Gift Tax Calculator: 7-Year Rule UK
How much inheritance tax could your gifts trigger? Enter what you gave each year and our free calculator applies the £3,000 annual exemption, the carry-forward rule and 7-year taper relief — showing the tax due on every gift.
Not financial advice. Gifting rules interact with trusts, reservations of benefit and the rest of your estate in complex ways. Before making large gifts, speak to an FCA-regulated financial adviser — or start with free guidance from MoneyHelper.
How to use this calculator
- List your gifts by yearEnter the total gifts you gave to individuals in each of the last 7 years, before any exemptions. Enter the full amounts — the calculator applies the £3,000 annual exemption for you.
- Press CalculateThe calculator applies the annual exemption (plus one year's carry-forward), works out which gifts are still chargeable, and applies taper relief by age of gift.
- Read the breakdownSee the tax on each year's gifts, how much taper relief saved you, and the important reminder that taper only helps on gifts above the £325,000 nil-rate band.
Calculate tax on your gifts
No taper: 40% if above the nil-rate band.
No taper: 40% if above the nil-rate band.
No taper: 40% if above the nil-rate band.
Taper relief: 32% rate.
Taper relief: 24% rate.
Taper relief: 16% rate.
Taper relief: 8% rate.
Enter the total gifts to individuals in each year, before exemptions — the calculator applies the £3,000 annual exemption (plus one year's carry-forward) for you. Gifts made more than 7 years ago are fully exempt, so leave them out.
Gifting and inheritance tax questions
How much can I gift tax-free in the UK?
£3,000 per tax year under the annual exemption — and if you didn't use last year's, you can carry it forward once, giving away up to £6,000 in one year. Smaller extras exist too: £250 small gifts per person and wedding gifts (£5,000 to a child). Anything beyond the exemptions is a potentially exempt transfer under the 7-year rule.
What is the 7-year rule for inheritance tax?
Gifts to individuals are potentially exempt transfers: survive 7 years and they leave your estate entirely. Die within 7 years and they're added back — but gifts made 3–7 years before death get taper relief, cutting the tax rate from 40% down to 8% on a sliding scale.
Does taper relief apply to all gifts?
No — this is the part most people get wrong. Taper relief only reduces tax that is actually due, and tax is only due on gifts above the £325,000 nil-rate band. A £50,000 gift made 5 years ago owes nothing either way, because it was never taxable in the first place.
What are the taper relief rates?
Death within 3 years of the gift: 40%. Then 3–4 years: 32%; 4–5 years: 24%; 5–6 years: 16%; 6–7 years: 8%. At 7+ years the gift is fully exempt. The calculator above applies these automatically.
Do gifts use up my nil-rate band?
Yes, if you die within 7 years. Failed gifts are set against the nil-rate band oldest first — which means an early large gift can swallow the whole £325,000 and leave a later gift fully taxable, even with taper relief. Survive the 7 years and the gift uses no band at all.
What gifts are immediately exempt from IHT?
The £3,000 annual exemption, £250 small gifts, wedding gifts, regular gifts from surplus income that don't affect your lifestyle, and any gifts to a UK-domiciled spouse, civil partner or charity. Watch out for gifts with reservation — e.g. giving away your home but living in it rent-free — which HMRC treats as never given.
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Sources & official guidance
Estimate only — not legal or financial advice. Rates: 2026/27. See our disclaimer.