Form IHT30: Apply for Inheritance Tax Clearance (2026 Guide)

Form IHT30 is the executor’s last brick in the wall. Once inheritance tax has been paid and the estate has been wound up, you file IHT30 to ask HMRC for a Clearance Certificate — formal confirmation that no further IHT is due. Without it, you remain personally exposed if an undisclosed asset emerges later. With it, you close the book. It is one page. It costs nothing. And it is quietly one of the most important documents an executor or trustee will ever sign.

When Do You Need This?

End of estate, not beginning. File once tax is settled, assets distributed, and you want HMRC to draw a line in writing. Executor’s protection certificate.

Need IHT30 if: personal representative finalising estate where IHT400 was submitted and IHT paid; trustee winding up settlement where IHT charge arisen; want HMRC confirmation before distributing residue; selling deceased’s property and buyer’s solicitor asks for clearance evidence.

Do NOT need it: estate was excepted estate (no IHT400 filed). Cannot file during open HMRC enquiry — clearance is closing step, not tactic.

What It Involves

Single-page application. Confirms deceased’s details, date of death, IHT reference from IHT400, that to best of your knowledge you have disclosed everything. You sign as personal representative or trustee applying for clearance.

Replaces old IHT Cap 30. Legal effect sits under s.239 IHTA 1984: once Clearance Certificate issued, discharges applicant from further IHT liability, provided no fraud or failure to disclose material facts.

Fees

No HMRC fee. Form is free. Certificate is free. Value = personal protection.

How to Complete — Step by Step

Box 1: Deceased/Transferor’s Details

Full name, date of death (or date of chargeable transfer for trust matter), last known address. Match exactly to IHT400.

Box 2: HMRC Reference Number

IHT reference HMRC issued when IHT400 submitted. Top right of correspondence. Lost: call IHT helpline, don’t guess.

Box 3: Applicant’s Details

Who is applying. Name, capacity (executor, administrator, trustee), contact address. Multiple PRs: all sign.

Box 4: Event for Which Clearance Sought

Tick boxes: death estate, lifetime transfer, ten-year anniversary charge, exit charge, termination of interest in possession.

Box 5: Declaration

Confirm full disclosure of all material facts. Signing: honest. Clearance obtained by concealment is not clearance.

Box 6: Signature and Date

Wet signature preferred. Multiple applicants: each signs.

Where to Send

Inheritance Tax, HMRC, BX9 1HT. No covering letter required.

Key Deadlines

• Cannot apply before: IHT paid in full, affairs concluded
• Cannot apply during: open HMRC enquiry
• Alternative: 4 years from later of tax paid/account delivered, HMRC window closes with full disclosure
• HMRC response: typically 8–12 weeks

What Happens After You File

HMRC reviews file. IHT400 processed, tax paid, no live enquiry: Clearance Certificate issued. Single letter confirming no further IHT due. Keep it — future buyer’s solicitor or beneficiary’s adviser may ask years later.

Declines usually because file not ready: tax unpaid, enquiry open, instalment arrangement running. Decline letter states why. Resolve and re-file.

If HMRC issues clearance then discovers concealed asset: certificate does not protect. s.239(4) preserves HMRC’s position where material facts withheld.

Common Mistakes

• Filing too early — estate still being gathered in
• Filing during enquiry — cannot cut enquiry short
• Mismatched details — middle name, DOD typo
• Forgetting lifetime transfers — failed PETs in 7 years must have been on IHT400
• Not keeping the certificate
• Assuming it protects estate not just you

The Rules That Apply

• s.239 IHTA 1984 — Clearance Certificate regime. Subsection (2): discharge. Subsection (4): preserves HMRC position where disclosure incomplete or fraudulent.
• s.216 IHTA 1984 — delivery of accounts (IHT400)
• s.240 IHTA 1984 — 4-year limitation on further action where full disclosure made

How Chris Can Help

Short form but long effect. Personal exposure after distribution is quietest risk in probate. Chris drafts IHT30 to HMRC standard. Give Chris IHT reference, key dates, role, summary of conclusion. Chris produces form + plain-English note of what certificate does and does not do.

7-day money-back guarantee. We refund. We are miracle-makers, not miracle-workers.

Just one application: Litigator. Complex estate with PA1P + Inheritance Act claim + property sale: Hybrid.

Subscribe: Email hello@elitigant.com with subject line “Application update” and say hello with your given name.

FAQ

Mandatory?

No. Optional. Alternative: wait 4 years from later of tax paid/account delivered for HMRC window to close with full disclosure. IHT30 = formal shortcut.

HMRC response time?

Typically 8–12 weeks. Don’t chase before week 10.

Instalment IHT on property?

Only once all instalments paid and account fully settled.

Protects estate or just me?

Discharges applicant from further IHT liability. Does not prevent HMRC pursuing estate if undisclosed tax emerges.

File during open enquiry?

No. Clearance is closing step. Resolve enquiry first.

Asset discovered after clearance?

Tell HMRC. s.239(4) preserves HMRC position where material facts withheld.

Close probate file?

No. Probate closes when estate distributed and executor’s duties discharged. IHT30 is tax component only.

Lay executor without solicitor?

Yes. One-page form. Match IHT400 exactly.