Transfers between spouses and civil partners are the largest single inheritance tax exemption by value. HMRC records £5.98 billion of such transfers in the 2022 to 2023 tax year, reported by 5,070 estates above the nil-rate band (HMRC Inheritance Tax liabilities statistics, tax year 2022 to 2023, published 31 July 2025).
This article gathers the official statistics on spouse-exempt and other exempt transfers, sets them beside the wider inheritance tax numbers, and offers some hedged analysis of what they may suggest. Every figure is drawn from a named official source and dated at the point it is used. Core allowances are current as at July 2026 and are subject to change.
What the spouse exemption is
The spouse or civil partner exemption means that assets passing to a surviving husband, wife or civil partner are generally free of inheritance tax, with no monetary cap in most cases (gov.uk, Inheritance Tax, as at July 2026, subject to change). Where the recipient is not a long-term UK resident, the exemption can be limited. Any unused nil-rate band can also pass to the survivor, a point covered in the transferable nil-rate band.
Key figures at a glance
The headline numbers below come from HMRC and the Office for Budget Responsibility. In the 2022 to 2023 tax year there were 31,500 taxpaying estates, with total inheritance tax liabilities of £6.70 billion, while 4.62% of the 683,000 UK deaths that year resulted in an inheritance tax charge (HMRC, tax year 2022 to 2023, published 31 July 2025).
| Statistic | Value (reference period) | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Spouse / civil partner exemption set against assets | £5.98 billion (2022 to 2023) | HMRC, pub. 31 Jul 2025 |
| Estates reporting the spouse exemption above the NRB | 5,070 estates (2022 to 2023) | HMRC, pub. 31 Jul 2025 |
| Taxpaying inheritance tax estates | 31,500 (2022 to 2023) | HMRC, pub. 31 Jul 2025 |
| Total IHT liabilities created | £6.70 billion (2022 to 2023) | HMRC, pub. 31 Jul 2025 |
| Share of UK deaths with an IHT charge | 4.62% (2022 to 2023) | HMRC, pub. 31 Jul 2025 |
| Average IHT per taxpaying estate | £212,000 (2022 to 2023) | HMRC, pub. 31 Jul 2025 |
| Chargeable value sheltered by the residence nil-rate band | £7.72 billion across 30,600 estates (2022 to 2023) | HMRC, pub. 31 Jul 2025 |
| Forecast total IHT receipts | £8.7 billion (2025 to 2026 forecast) | OBR, Nov 2025 forecast |
Percentages and values are as published by the named sources for the periods shown. Statistical figures are historical and are not adjusted here.
How spouse-exempt transfers compare with other reliefs
The spouse exemption is larger than any other exemption or relief set against assets. In the 2022 to 2023 tax year it was valued at £5.98 billion, ahead of business property relief at £3.34 billion, the charity exemption at £1.92 billion and agricultural property relief at £1.9 billion (HMRC, tax year 2022 to 2023, published 31 July 2025). The table sets them side by side.
| Exemption or relief | Value (2022 to 2023) | Estates using it |
|---|---|---|
| Spouse / civil partner exemption | £5.98 billion | 5,070 |
| Business property relief (BPR) | £3.34 billion | 3,840 (median £207,000) |
| Charity exemption | £1.92 billion | 10,800 |
| Agricultural property relief (APR) | £1.9 billion | 1,730 (median £505,000) |
Source: HMRC Inheritance Tax liabilities statistics, tax year 2022 to 2023, published 31 July 2025. Figures are amounts set against assets. For background on how these fit together, see our Inheritance Tax Explained guide.
The reported spouse-exemption figure fell sharply from £15.50 billion in 2021 to 2022 to £5.98 billion in 2022 to 2023. HMRC attributes most of that drop to a change in reporting requirements for excepted estates for deaths from 1 January 2022, rather than to a real fall in transfers between spouses (HMRC, published 31 July 2025). The two years are therefore not directly comparable.
Who actually pays inheritance tax
Most inheritance tax is paid by the estates of people who were widowed rather than married at death. In the 2022 to 2023 tax year, estates of widowed individuals or surviving civil partners carried £3.76 billion of the liability, 56% of the total, while estates of people married or in a civil partnership at death carried just £543 million, 8% (HMRC, tax year 2022 to 2023, published 31 July 2025).
| Marital status of the deceased | IHT liability (2022 to 2023) | Share of total |
|---|---|---|
| Widowed or surviving civil partner | £3.76 billion | 56% |
| Single, divorced or dissolved civil partnership | £2.4 billion | 36% |
| Married or in a civil partnership | £543 million | 8% |
Source: HMRC Inheritance Tax liabilities statistics, tax year 2022 to 2023, published 31 July 2025. Shares are rounded and sum to 100%.
What the numbers mean
Read together, the figures suggest the spouse exemption tends to defer inheritance tax rather than remove it. On a first death, assets passing to a surviving spouse are generally exempt, so little or no tax arises; on the second death, the combined estate can fall due for tax. That pattern is consistent with widowed estates carrying 56% of the liability while married estates carry 8% (HMRC, 2022 to 2023, published 31 July 2025).
The exemption moves the tax point from the first death to the second, rather than making it disappear.
A second caution is that the large year-on-year drop in the reported spouse-exemption total is mostly a reporting artefact from the excepted-estates change, not evidence that couples are transferring less. Single-year comparisons across that boundary can mislead. Looking forward, the OBR expects inheritance tax to raise £8.7 billion in 2025 to 2026, and notes that frozen thresholds alongside rising asset prices continue to draw more estates into charge through fiscal drag (OBR, November 2025 forecast). As more estates are drawn in, the interaction between the spouse exemption and the transferable bands may become relevant to a wider group of families, though the effect in any one estate depends on its circumstances. For the wider context, our estate planning guide sets out how these pieces fit together.
Scotland and Northern Ireland
The inheritance tax rules, including the spouse and civil partner exemption, apply across the whole of the UK, and the HMRC statistics above are UK-wide. Succession law differs, however: Scotland has its own rules on legal rights that can give a spouse and children a fixed share of an estate, and it uses confirmation rather than a grant of probate. Where an estate crosses jurisdictions, many people choose to take advice in each.
Sources and methodology
Every figure on this page is taken from a named official statistics source and dated at the point of use. The two primary sources are HMRC and the Office for Budget Responsibility. Figures are quoted as published for the stated reference period and are not re-estimated or rounded beyond the source.
- HMRC, Inheritance Tax liabilities statistics: commentary, tax year 2022 to 2023, published 31 July 2025. Source for the spouse and civil partner exemption, other exemptions and reliefs, taxpaying estate counts, average tax, the residence nil-rate band and the marital-status breakdown.
- Office for Budget Responsibility, Inheritance tax, November 2025 forecast. Source for forecast receipts and the projected effect of the threshold freeze.
- gov.uk, How Inheritance Tax works, as at July 2026, subject to change. Source for the standard rate, nil-rate band and spouse exemption description.
Frequently asked questions
How much is transferred tax free under the spouse exemption each year?
HMRC recorded £5.98 billion of transfers exempted between spouses and civil partners in the 2022 to 2023 tax year, reported by 5,070 estates above the nil-rate band, making it the largest exemption set against assets (HMRC, tax year 2022 to 2023, published 31 July 2025). The published figure can move year to year, partly due to reporting changes.
Is the spouse exemption unlimited?
In most cases transfers between spouses and civil partners are exempt without a monetary cap, so the exemption is generally uncapped where both are long-term UK residents (gov.uk, as at July 2026, subject to change). Where the recipient is not a long-term UK resident, a limit can apply. The position depends on individual circumstances, so it can be worth discussing with a qualified professional.
Why do widowed people's estates pay the most inheritance tax?
Estates of widowed individuals and surviving civil partners carried 56% of the inheritance tax liability in 2022 to 2023, against 8% for married estates (HMRC, tax year 2022 to 2023, published 31 July 2025). This generally reflects the exemption deferring tax to the second death, when the combined estate can fall due, rather than a difference in wealth.
How many estates actually pay inheritance tax?
There were 31,500 taxpaying inheritance tax estates in the 2022 to 2023 tax year, which HMRC reports as 4.62% of the 683,000 UK deaths that year (HMRC, tax year 2022 to 2023, published 31 July 2025). Most estates pay no inheritance tax, though the OBR expects the share to rise while thresholds stay frozen.
Does the spouse exemption remove inheritance tax or just delay it?
The statistics are consistent with the exemption deferring tax rather than removing it. Assets passing to a surviving spouse are generally exempt on the first death, and any unused nil-rate band can transfer to the survivor (gov.uk, as at July 2026, subject to change). Tax can then arise on the second death, depending on the size and shape of the combined estate.
Are these statistics for the whole UK?
Yes. The HMRC Inheritance Tax liabilities statistics cover the whole UK, and inheritance tax itself applies UK-wide (HMRC, tax year 2022 to 2023, published 31 July 2025). Succession law differs between England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, which can affect how much of an estate passes to a spouse in the first place.