.svg)
In September, we hosted a CPD-accredited webinar with Tony Wickenden, founder and Managing Director of Technical Connection, looking at the changing tax landscape and what advisers may need to consider as a result.
With frozen thresholds, reduced allowances and further changes already on the way, Tony considered the implications across the financial planning journey, from helping clients build their wealth to drawing an income in retirement and eventually passing wealth to the next generation.
Here are four of the key themes from the session.
1. Making the most of tax-efficient investing
Tony started with accumulation and the options available to clients while they are building their wealth.
Frozen tax thresholds and reductions to the dividend and Capital Gains Tax (CGT) allowances have increased the importance of considering how investments are held. Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) and pensions remain an important part of this, but Tony also considered the options available once clients have made use of their usual allowances.
Venture Capital Trusts (VCTs) formed part of this discussion. From 6 April 2026, qualifying VCT investments can benefit from 20% upfront income tax relief on investments of up to £200,000 each tax year, provided the relevant conditions are met. Dividends are tax free and gains on VCT shares are exempt from CGT.
Tony also revisited investment bonds and the role they can play in longer-term planning, including the ability to defer tax and manage when gains arise.
For advisers, this means looking at the different ways a client can hold their investments alongside the underlying investments themselves, considering their circumstances, objectives, need for access and attitude to risk.
2. Rethinking retirement income
The session then moved on to decumulation and the changes to the Inheritance Tax (IHT) treatment of pensions due to take effect from 6 April 2027.
Under the current rules, unused pension funds and death benefits fall outside the estate for IHT purposes. This has made pensions an important part of estate planning and, for some clients, has influenced the order in which they draw on their assets in retirement.
From 6 April 2027, most unused pension funds and death benefits will be brought within the estate for IHT purposes. This could prompt advisers to revisit existing withdrawal strategies with affected clients.
Tony cautioned against assuming that the answer is simply to take more money out of a pension. Pensions will continue to provide a tax-efficient environment during a client’s lifetime, so any decision to change how they are used needs to take account of income requirements, other assets, tax liabilities and longer-term plans.
The changes therefore create a broader planning question around how clients draw an income in retirement and whether an existing approach still makes sense once pensions are considered alongside the rest of their assets.
3. Considering the role of lifetime gifting
If clients do decide to draw more from their pensions or other assets, the next question is what they do with that money.
Tony spent part of the session looking at lifetime gifting and the different ways clients can pass wealth to the next generation during their lifetime, rather than leaving the full transfer until death.
One area he highlighted was the normal expenditure out of income exemption. Where the relevant conditions are met, regular gifts made from surplus income can be immediately exempt from IHT, without the seven-year period that applies to potentially exempt transfers.
This can be particularly relevant when looking at retirement income. If a client has more income than they need to maintain their usual standard of living, there may be an opportunity to consider regular gifting as part of their wider estate planning.
Tony also discussed outright gifts and trusts, alongside the need to consider how much clients can comfortably afford to give away. Estate planning needs to work for the individual during their lifetime as well as for the people who will eventually inherit their wealth.
4. Taking a wider view of estate planning
The final part of the discussion looked more broadly at the options available when planning for the transfer of wealth between generations.
These included lifetime gifting, trusts, life assurance and investments that qualify for Business Relief (BR). Tony considered how each can play a different role depending on the client’s circumstances, including their need to retain access to capital and the level of investment risk they are prepared to accept.
He also discussed the changes to BR from April 2026 and why it can continue to form part of estate planning for suitable clients under the new rules.
The important consideration is how these different options fit within the client’s overall financial position. Their estate may include property, investments, pensions and business interests, while their own income and capital requirements need to remain central to any planning decisions.
This also brings together the different stages Tony covered throughout the webinar. Decisions made while accumulating wealth can affect the options available in retirement, while decisions about how clients draw and use their assets can ultimately affect what they are able to pass on.
As the tax landscape changes, looking at these areas together can help advisers identify where existing plans may need to be revisited and where there may be other options for clients to consider.
Watch the webinar
You can hear Tony’s discussion in full in the recording of our September webinar, where he explores these topics in more detail and considers their implications for financial planning. Watch the webinar here.
Important Notice
For professional advisers only.
This document is for information purposes only and does not constitute investment, tax, financial or legal advice. It does not constitute an offer to buy or sell an investment or solicit any such invitation.
The explanation of the tax rules set out in this article has been written in accordance with our understanding of the law and interpretation of it at the time of publication. The information is believed to be accurate at the date of publication, but no representation or warranty, stated or implied, is made or given by any person as to its accuracy or completeness and no responsibility or liability is accepted for any such information or opinion. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances, and tax rules may change.
Issued by Beringea LLP of Charter House, 55 Drury Lane, London, England WC2B 5SQ. Registered in England and Wales under number OC342919. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under number 496358.
