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Q. I have considerable personal wealth. What about Inheritance Tax?

A. For Inheritance Tax purposes, shares in a private trading company are effectively exempt from IHT and this is lost when the shares are converted to cash. Gifting some shares into trust pre-sale can also be an effective way of passing on wealth to the next generation, as there will be no capital gains tax or IHT implications on the gift.

As can be seen, there are many aspects to consider when planning to sell a business and early planning is essential to achieve the best sale price and maximise the tax savings. Tax is a major consideration as it is, after all, the after-tax amount that the seller will ultimately enjoy.