Heritage property

The conditional exemption

The conditional exemption is an inheritance tax (IHT) relief contained in sections 30 and 31 of the Inheritance Tax Act 1984 (IHTA 1984). The basic premise of the scheme is to allow relief from IHT on a conditional basis in return for the provision of undertakings to preserve the property, allow reasonable public access to it and (in relation to moveable property) to keep it in the UK. On the sale or other disposal of the item or on any breach of an undertaking, the conditional exemption is withdrawn and a charge to tax arises.

In order to be eligible for conditional exemption, the asset must be one of the following:

1. •

   buildings, estates or parklands of outstanding historical or architectural interest

2. •

   land of outstanding scenic interest

3. •

   land of outstanding scientific interest including special areas for the conservation of wildlife, plants and trees, or

4. •

   objects which are pre-eminent for their national, scientific, historic or artistic interest, either individually or as a collection and in their own right or due to a connection with historical buildings

HMRC determines which assets qualify