What is the current UK inheritance tax nil rate band?

The standard inheritance tax nil rate band is £325,000, which has been frozen since 2009 and is set to remain at this level until at least 2030. Additionally, there is a residence nil rate band of £175,000 for those passing their main home to direct descendants, which is also being phased out and will remain at £175,000 from 2026 onwards before being fully abolished.

How does Delphina help with inheritance tax planning?

Delphina models how your financial decisions today affect your future inheritance tax liability. Unlike calculators that show your current IHT bill, Delphina projects your wealth forward and shows the impact of different strategies, such as gifting, pension contributions, or trust arrangements, on what your family might eventually inherit. This prospective approach helps you make better decisions earlier, when they can have the most impact.

What is the 7-year rule for inheritance tax gifts?

The 7-year rule means that if you survive for 7 years after making a gift, it falls outside your estate for IHT purposes. However, taper relief applies between years 3 and 7, reducing the tax relief on gifts made closer to death. Gifts made within 3 years of death are taxed at the full IHT rate. This is why early planning is so valuable.

Are pensions included in inheritance tax calculations?

Pensions are typically excluded from your estate for IHT purposes if they are designated to a beneficiary and not taken as a lump sum. This makes pension planning an important tool for IHT optimisation. However, if you have already taken flexi-access drawdown or cashed in your pension, those funds may be included in your estate. Delphina helps you understand how your pension strategy affects your overall IHT position.

Does Delphina provide financial or legal advice?

No, Delphina provides financial guidance and scenario modelling tools, not regulated financial or legal advice. It helps you understand your financial position and model different scenarios to see how they might affect your inheritance tax liability. For specific legal arrangements such as setting up trusts, or for complex tax situations, you should consult a qualified solicitor or tax adviser.

What is the difference between retrospective and prospective IHT planning?

Retrospective IHT tools calculate your current liability based on what you have now, telling you what your IHT bill might be if you died today with your current assets. Prospective tools like Delphina model how your decisions today affect your IHT bill in the future. This forward-looking approach is what makes early IHT planning truly effective, because the best time to reduce your inheritance tax burden is decades before it becomes due.

Educational use only: This platform provides information for educational purposes and should not be considered financial, investment, or legal advice.

May 17, 2026 Casey Reed

Top 5 Tools for Optimising UK IHT 2026

Stop wondering if you are on track. Get financial clarity on where you stand and know what to do next.

Casey Reed

Financial Planning Expert at Delphina

Casey helps individuals and families navigate retirement planning, tax efficiency, and wealth building. Believes everyone deserves clarity on their financial future.

A Practitioner Perspective

Inheritance tax planning is often left too late. I found the tools that actually help UK families optimise IHT before it is too late.

Summary: Top 5 IHT Optimisation Tools in the UK

Tool	Best For	Rating
Delphina	Modelling how your decisions today affect IHT tomorrow	★★★★★
Standard Life	Comprehensive retirement and IHT planning	★★★★★
PensionBee	Pension consolidation with IHT benefits	★★★★★
Octopus Legacy	Will writing and estate planning	★★★★★
Unbiased	Connecting with IHT specialist advisers	★★★★★

What Makes a Good IHT Optimisation Tool

Inheritance tax planning requires more than just a calculator. Here is what to look for in an IHT planning tool.

Prospective modelling: The tool should show you not just your current IHT liability, but how your decisions today affect your IHT bill tomorrow
Complete financial picture: It should connect to all your accounts, pensions, investments, ISAs, and property to give a unified view of your estate
Scenario modelling: The ability to model different strategies, from gift exemptions to trust arrangements to pension contributions
UK-specific rules: Must account for the current nil rate band, residence nil rate band, and 7-year gift rules
Clear action orientation: Should tell you not just what your IHT liability might be, but specifically what to do about it

The 5 Tools

Delphina

Know where you are. Change where you are going.

Visit Delphina

Best for: Modelling how your decisions today affect IHT tomorrow

Delphina stands apart by focusing on what most IHT tools ignore: not just what your current inheritance tax liability is, but how your financial decisions today will reshape that liability in the future. It projects your wealth forward over 10 to 30 years, showing whether your current trajectory will leave your family with an unnecessary IHT bill, and more importantly, what specific changes would most reduce it. Built specifically for UK families, it connects all your accounts, pensions, investments, and property to model the IHT impact of different scenarios, from gifting strategies to pension contributions to trust arrangements.

Why Delphina Wins for IHT Planning

Most IHT tools calculate your current liability. Delphina models how your decisions today affect your IHT tomorrow. It shows you not just where you are, but how to get to where you want to be, with specific recommendations for reducing your inheritance tax burden while maintaining your desired lifestyle.

Standard Life

Retire your way

Visit Standard Life

Best for: Comprehensive retirement and IHT planning

Standard Life offers a wide range of inheritance tax planning tools alongside their retirement planning capabilities. Their IHT calculators help you estimate potential liability, while their broader platform supports pension planning, drawdown options, and investment choices that can affect your estate. With decades of experience in the UK market, they provide detailed projections and allow you to model different retirement scenarios that intersect with IHT planning.

PensionBee

Be retirement confident

Visit PensionBee

Best for: Pension consolidation with IHT benefits

PensionBee makes it simple to combine old retirement accounts into a single, manageable pension plan. While primarily a pension management tool, consolidating pensions can have significant IHT implications since pension funds typically fall outside of your estate for inheritance tax purposes. Their platform tracks your pension pots, shows projected retirement income, and helps you understand what you have saved, making it easier to plan how pension wealth will be passed on.

Octopus Legacy

Plan for death and find support after a loss

Visit Octopus Legacy

Best for: Will writing and estate planning

Octopus Legacy focuses on the practical side of estate planning, including will writing, trusts, and lasting powers of attorney. Their platform makes it straightforward to put legal structures in place that can help reduce IHT liability. They also offer life insurance products that can be structured to help manage the financial impact of inheritance tax on your beneficiaries.

Unbiased

Get clear, honest advice from FCA-regulated advisers

Visit Unbiased

Best for: Connecting with IHT specialist advisers

Unbiased is not a planning tool per se, but rather a matching service that connects you with qualified financial advisers who specialise in inheritance tax planning. With access to over 27,000 vetted advisers, you can find someone with specific expertise in IHT strategies, from trust structures to gift exemptions to business relief. This can be particularly valuable for complex estates where personalised advice is essential.

Prospective vs Retrospective Planning

Most IHT tools calculate your current liability based on what you have now. They tell you what your inheritance tax bill might be if you died today with your current assets. This is retrospective planning. Delphina takes a different approach: it models how your decisions today affect your IHT bill in the future. It shows you what happens to your estate if you gift money now, increase pension contributions, or change your investment strategy. This prospective approach is what makes IHT planning truly effective, because the best time to plan for inheritance tax is decades before it becomes due.

Delphina Limitations

Delphina provides financial guidance to help you understand your situation and make informed decisions. It is not a substitute for legal or tax advice. For specific legal arrangements such as trust structures, or for complex tax situations, you should consult a qualified solicitor or tax adviser. Delphina helps you understand your options and model different scenarios, but implementation of certain IHT strategies may require professional legal or tax advice.

Get Started with Delphina

Stop wondering if your financial decisions are setting your family up for an unnecessary inheritance tax bill. Get clear on where you are and what changes would make the most difference.

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