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GLOSSARY

Transferable nil rate band (TNRB) definition

Published by a LexisNexis Private Client expert

What does Transferable nil rate band (TNRB) mean?

A colloquial term for the inheritance tax rules which enable the estate of a surviving spouse or civil partner to benefit from the unused nil rate band of the first of the couple to die.

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Mixed domicile spouses and civil partners

Mixed domicile spouses and civil partners STOP PRESS: Abolition of non-dom regime and introduction of residence-based IHT regime Finance Act 2025 (FA 2025) which received Royal Assent on 20 March 2025, implements legislation to abolish the remittance basis of taxation and replace it with a residence-based regime, commencing on 6 April 2025. FA 2025 also replaces domicile as the key factor in establishing liability to inheritance tax. Other changes include amendment of the rules determining excluded property status, the abolition of protected settlements status of offshore trusts, and changes to overseas workday relief. For information on these changes, see Practice Notes: The abolition of the remittance basis of taxation from 2025–26 and A new residence-based regime for IHT from 2025–26. See also: Finance Bill Tracking Service: Key dates (Finance Bill 2025) and Finance Act 2025. Section 18 of the Inheritance Tax Act 1984 (IHTA 1984) contains an unlimited exemption from inheritance tax (IHT) for transfers of value between spouses and civil partners, except where...

IHT—nil rate band (NRB) and transferable NRB

IHT—nil rate band (NRB) and transferable NRB Nil rate band (NRB) and transferable nil rate band (TNRB) Each person's estate is charged to inheritance tax (IHT) up to a certain threshold at a rate of zero per cent, called the nil rate band (NRB), which is £325,000 for the tax year 2023–24. The government announced at Autumn Statement 2022 that it will be frozen at this level until 5 April 2028 . See: Autumn Statement 2022—Private Client analysis—Key Private Client announcements. Prior to 9 October 2007, if the value of the chargeable transfer on a person's death did not use up all of their available NRB (either because their estate was less than the NRB or was left to an exempt beneficiary) its tax-saving benefit would not be fully realised. For example, it is common for spouses to leave their entire estates to each other under their Will (and in the absence of a Will, a significant amount, if not all of the estate, passes to the...

Discover our 2 Practice Notes on Transferable nil rate band (TNRB)

Is it possible to choose how to apply the transferable nil-rate band on a surviving spouse’s death, ie setting it solely against lifetime gifts made by the surviving spouse which have become chargeable on their death or solely against the surviving spouse’s estate?

Is it possible to choose how to apply the transferable nil-rate band on a surviving spouse’s death, ie setting it solely against lifetime gifts made by the surviving spouse which have become chargeable on their death or solely against the surviving spouse’s estate? Property which becomes subject to inheritance tax (IHT) on death is set against the combined total of the available transferable nil-rate band (TNRB) and the deceased’s own available basic nil-rate band. The relevant legislation does not permit any choice as to how to apply the TNRB, as contemplated by the question. For information on how the available TNRB is calculated and how it operates on the surviving spouse's death, see Practice Notes: IHT—nil rate band (NRB) and transferable NRB and IHT—calculation of nil rate band and transferable NRB. In particular, these Practice Notes contain some helpful examples and links to

The deceased (B) survived their first spouse (A) and remarried. Should the transferable nil band rate (TNRB) of A be claimed on B's death, or can that TNRB be claimed on the death of the surviving spouse from the second marriage (C)?

The deceased (B) survived their first spouse (A) and remarried. Should the transferable nil band rate (TNRB) of A be claimed on B's death, or can that TNRB be claimed on the death of the surviving spouse from the second marriage (C)? The transferable nil rate band (TNRB) is only available if it is claimed in accordance with section 8B of the Inheritance Tax Act 1984 (IHTA 1984). See Practice Note: IHT—nil rate band (NRB) and transferable NRB, in particular example 3 in section ‘Calculating the TNRB‘, which covers a similar factual scenario to that posed by the Q&A. As Practice Note states, if the TNRB is not claimed by B's personal representatives (PRs), it is possible for C's PRs to claim it on behalf of B's estate, provided that it does not affect any IHT that was due at the time. This rule is contained in IHTA 1984, s 8B(2), which provides that: 'If no claim has been made under IHTA 1984, s 8A above [transfer of unused...

See the 18 Q&As about Transferable nil rate band (TNRB)