Farms Paying Inheritance Tax: The Statistics

Relatively few farms pay inheritance tax in any given year. In the 2022 to 2023 tax year, agricultural property relief was claimed by 1,730 estates, set against a UK total of around 31,500 taxpaying estates and roughly 683,000 deaths (HMRC Inheritance Tax liabilities statistics, 2022 to 2023).

This page gathers the verified statistics on agricultural estates and inheritance tax from named official sources, chiefly HMRC, and sets out what changes from 6 April 2026. Statistics are quoted with their reference period and source; tax thresholds are current as at July 2026 and subject to change. For the wider context, see our Inheritance Tax Explained guide and our broader estate planning guide.

How many farms pay inheritance tax?

Only a minority of agricultural estates face an inheritance tax charge. Agricultural property relief was claimed by 1,730 estates in 2022 to 2023, and business property relief by 3,840 estates, out of roughly 31,500 taxpaying estates that year (HMRC, IHT liabilities statistics, 2022 to 2023). A claim for relief does not always mean tax was ultimately paid.

Some estates claim both reliefs, so the totals should not simply be added together. Both figures are counts of claims recorded by HMRC rather than a headcount of working farms, and they can be revised as more returns are processed. Around 4.62% of all UK deaths in 2022 to 2023 led to a taxpaying estate of any kind (HMRC, 2022 to 2023).

Key figures at a glance

The table below collects the headline statistics for agricultural estates and inheritance tax, each with its source and reference period. Every row links to the named official publication it comes from. Where a figure is a policy threshold rather than a statistic, it is marked as current as at July 2026 and subject to change.

Some estates appear in more than one relief category, so counts and values are not additive. Statistics are as published and may be revised. Thresholds are frozen to the end of the 2030-31 tax year (5 April 2031) (gov.uk), subject to change.

Agricultural property relief in the data

Agricultural property relief reduces the value of qualifying farmland and farm buildings for inheritance tax, at up to 100% or 50% depending on the circumstances (gov.uk, Agricultural Relief for Inheritance Tax, as at July 2026, subject to change). In 2022 to 2023 the 1,730 estates claiming it had a median claim of £505,000, with £1.9 billion of value relieved in total (HMRC, 2022 to 2023).

Business property relief is larger by volume: 3,840 estates claimed it in the same year, with a median claim of £207,000 and £3.34 billion relieved in total (HMRC, 2022 to 2023). The two reliefs combined were set against £5.28 billion of assets that year. The median gives a fairer sense of a typical farm claim than an average, because a handful of very large estates can pull a mean upwards.

Source: HMRC Inheritance Tax liabilities statistics, 2022 to 2023. Some estates claim both reliefs, so rows are not additive.

The 2026 APR and BPR reforms in numbers

From 6 April 2026, agricultural and business property relief change. The 100% rate of relief applies to the first £2,500,000 of combined agricultural and business property per person, with relief of 50% on value above that. This £2,500,000 allowance is transferable between spouses and civil partners, giving up to £5,000,000 per couple (gov.uk, announced 23 December 2025, as at July 2026, subject to change). This £2,500,000 figure superseded the £1 million, non-transferable allowance originally announced at the Autumn Budget 2024. HM Treasury forecasts that around 500 estates claiming agricultural property relief will pay more inheritance tax in 2026 to 2027.

On the same forecast, almost three-quarters of estates claiming agricultural property relief are not expected to pay more as a result of the change (gov.uk, 2026 to 2027 forecast, subject to change). Forecasts of this kind depend on assumptions about behaviour and asset values, so outcomes may differ. Our companion analysis of APR reform and farms looks at how the £2,500,000 allowance interacts with other thresholds.

What the numbers mean

Read together, the figures suggest that inheritance tax touches far fewer agricultural estates than headline debate can imply, though the estates it does touch are often substantial. With 1,730 agricultural property relief claims in 2022 to 2023 and around 500 estates forecast to pay more after reform, the affected group looks concentrated rather than broad (HMRC, 2022 to 2023; gov.uk, 2026 to 2027 forecast).

In our view, three points are worth holding in mind when interpreting this data. First, counts of claims are not the same as counts of farms, because some estates claim more than one relief and some claims do not lead to tax. Second, a median claim of £505,000 shows that a typical agricultural relief claim is meaningful but far from the largest estates in the statistics. Third, the reform figures are forecasts, and the frozen nil-rate bands mean more estates generally may drift into scope over time as values rise. None of this points to a single outcome for any particular family, and the effect of the rules depends heavily on circumstances.

The data describes a small, concentrated group of estates. What it cannot tell you is how the rules would apply to one farm, which is where individual advice tends to matter most.

Sources and methodology

Every statistic on this page comes from a named official source and has been checked against the live publication. Counts and values are as published for the stated period and may be revised in later releases. Policy thresholds are current as at July 2026 and subject to change. Where an estate can appear in more than one category, figures are not additive, and forecasts reflect assumptions that may not hold.

• HMRC Inheritance Tax liabilities statistics (2022 to 2023): estate counts, relief claims, median and total relief, taxpaying estates, liabilities and effective rate. gov.uk/government/statistics/inheritance-tax-liabilities-statistics
• Summary of reforms to APR and BPR (announced 23 December 2025; 2026 to 2027 forecast): the £2,500,000 per-person allowance (transferable to £5,000,000 per couple), the 50% rate above it, and the number of estates forecast to pay more. gov.uk, APR and BPR reforms
• Agricultural Relief for Inheritance Tax: how the relief works and the qualifying conditions. gov.uk/guidance/agricultural-relief-on-inheritance-tax
• Inheritance Tax (general rules and thresholds): nil-rate band, residence nil-rate band and the standard rate. gov.uk/inheritance-tax

Scotland and Northern Ireland

Inheritance tax is a UK-wide tax, so the thresholds, the standard rate and agricultural property relief apply across Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland (gov.uk, as at July 2026, subject to change). HMRC statistics likewise cover the whole UK. What differs is succession law: Scotland has its own rules, including legal rights that can give a spouse and children a fixed share of an estate, which can affect how farmland passes. Where an estate crosses jurisdictions, it can be worth taking advice in each.

Frequently asked questions