Property tax receipts hit new high

The government enjoyed a strong year of property taxation, raking in more money from stamp duty, inheritance tax and income tax, data from HMRC shows.

Stamp duty receipts hit £19.3 billion between April 2022 and March 2023, £0.7 billion more than the year before.

Inheritance tax rose to £7.1 billion over the same period, £1 billion higher than the year before, boosted by rising asset values.

And PAYE Income Tax and NIC1 receipts hit £378.2 billion, a huge £40.2 billion more than the same period the year proceeding.

Helen Morrissey, analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “There’s no getting away from the fact our tax burden is growing as a series of threshold freezes and cuts kick in.

“We’ve seen receipts for taxes such as inheritance tax, income tax and national insurance on the rise and recent cuts to capital gains tax thresholds will further boost future receipts.

“Stamp taxes soared in the last tax year surpassing £19bn in a roller coaster year that started strongly and rapidly ran out of steam.”

The environment is only getting harder for investors.

The government has altered Capital Gains Tax rules so that the annual exemption from the tax will fall from £12,300 to £6,000 in 2023/24, before dropping to £3,000 in 2024/25.

It’s rumoured that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt could cut the 40% rate on inheritance tax above £325,000 ahead of the next general election.