The first STEP Virtual STEP UK Annual Tax Conference was held on 26 June with over 800 people attending online. The day was a radical departure for STEP, with conventional meetings postponed or cancelled due to COVID-19. While it did include some glitches, attendees have the opportunity to catch up on any material they missed, with presentations available for a full year.

The day saw some outstanding STEP members speaking on topical matters, and we were delighted to host Emma Chamberlain OBE TEP, Robert Jamieson TEP, John Barnett TEP, Dawn Register TEP, Katherine Bullock TEP, John Woolley TEP and Deborah Clark TEP.

Emma Chamberlain presented the first session, giving an update on inheritance tax (IHT), which covered the Barclays Wealth case and the resulting legislation on excluded property settlements; and the definition of charity in IHT after the Routier case and its implications. She noted the work done by the Office of Tax Simplification and the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Inheritance & Intergenerational Fairness (APPG) on IHT reform was something to watch.

Robert Jamieson TEP covered capital gains tax (CGT) main residence relief and the statutory changes in the Finance Bill 2020 relating to residency, in a comprehensive presentation.

John Barnett TEP gave an informative update on Agricultural Property Relief (APR) and Business Property Relief (BPR), covering their structure, key cases such as Gill and Brander; and finishing with predictions on their reform; he noted that the CGT uplift was the most likely to be reformed by any government in the near future.

The afternoon session started with Dawn Register TEP giving advice on dealing with HMRC, covering areas such as its No Safe Havens 2019 programme to ensure offshore tax compliance and its risk assessment process. She also explained changes made due to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the relaxation of some deadlines.

Katherine Bullock TEP followed with a practical session focused on such IHT calculations as chargeable lifetime gifts, how to arrange settlements and when grossing up is necessary.

John Woolley TEP was next with an update on pension transfers and lump sum IHT plans following the Staverley decision in the Supreme Court in May 2019. John covered the advantages and disadvantages of death benefits being paid through either flexi access drawdown or by-pass trusts the protection of funds on divorce or insolvency; and dealing with the valuation issues of the ten-year periodic charge and their impact on loan trusts and discounted gift trusts, as well as any problems that may arise.

The final presentation of the day was from Deborah Clark TEP who spoke on family investment companies and their use. Her presentation covered their structure and funding and asset protection as well as how they were treated by income tax.

• Our thanks to the event’s sponsors: James’s Place, Fraser and Fraser, National Philanthropic Trust, Octopus Investments, and Remember a Charity.

Robert Carington is Policy Executive at STEP