To wonder why there isn’t public outrage about this?

[Blusterylimp]

If a couple isn’t married but own their property between them, the surviving one will need to pay inheritance tax on their partners half of the house (and other assets) if they die.
Effectively they will lose their home to pay the IHT unless they also have huge savings.
How can that be allowed in this day and age when so many couples cohabit without getting married?

So they are actively opting out of the legal and financial protections involved in marriage or civil partnership. It’s part of the deal.

If your home is worth that much and you’ve not declared yourselves as a single financial unit then yes it is totally fair that you pay IHT on the part you inherit. The benefits of marriage are significant because marriage is recognised as a serious and lasting commitment. If you don’t want to be financially joined to your partner, that’s fine. Obviously it’s then fair that you’re treated in all matters as financially not joined.

If the house is worth that much it is very unlikely you need it all as a single person. Why should you be given a substantial financial benefit so that you can have a luxury home, while someone else with similar assets in a different form would have to pay tax?

IHT is a reasonable way to push against the tendency of wealth to accumulate and so increase inequality in a society.

If you already had your savings before marriage they would likely not be split in a divorce, only new savings during the marriage (it’s a bit more complicated than that, but that’s the idea). So a lot of what you have would be protected and you would get all the inheritance benefits. Unless this thread is just trolling, which I begin to suspect it is, I am very surprised that you described yourself as financially savvy but apparently have no idea about any of this.

This canbe a problem at death. If you're not married and your partner dies at work or while away (i e you're not there), you can't identify the body. What's more if your partner's family are religious and s/he wasn't then they can hold a religious funeral and ban you from the ceremony and there's nothing you can do about it.

Marriage ain't just a piece of paper.

I worked in a hospice. You do see last minute weddings for this very reason.

The last government were lobbied to create civil partnerships for heterosexual couples as had been done to protect homosexual couples. Unfortunately it never happened.

You need to bear in mind that a joint tenant can unilaterally sever the joint tenancy if they decide they want to dispose of their share differently.

I do think they should teach that marriage is a legal contract not just for love, relationship etc.

The law doesn't need to change as it will open up a possible huge can of worms and be quite complicated.

No it doesn't. Lots of countries have cohabitation laws and no 'can of worms' has been opened, they seem to manage just fine.

Heterosexual couples can have a civil partnership.

You are mistaken. OK, so if that couple divorced (the high earner and the SAHP) they could still pass on up to £500k each to the children, so making £1 million.

Also, house ownership isn't limited to romantic couples/long time partners. If joint house ownership was exempt from IHT, regardless of people's relationship, that would create a massive loophole where wealthy children could buy into their parents £5mil house, and inherit the whole thing tax free when they die.

In some countries they have automatic marriage for cohabitants or so i heard

But it doesn't become an asset in an estate under joint tenants? Please explain how it does as all indications are that it doesn't?

You can pay £46 (as of 2023), and have a register office ceremony. No vows, no rings, just two witnesses. Two declarations and you're done:

Declaratory words
I declare that I know of no legal reason why I (full names) may not be joined in marriage to (full names).
Contracting words
I (full names) take you (full names) to be my wedded wife/husband.

With signatures and preparatory conversation with each party beforehand, you're done in 20 minutes or less.

Be aware that some register offices only offer two of these ceremonies a week as the first slots of the day so we had to wait a year to book ours. If you can't wait you'll have to pay room hire of about £150-£500 but you can have the same ceremony.

let me rude for a minute: pretend I am not married, from abroad, he fucks me, I cook, clean , stay home, keep the house when he is out playing golf, do not spend any extras, take only the money he offers me, getting pregnant and you think I am going to give him all this just like that, without a paper? Why a man would fuck me or you for free

and yet, we the foreign women get the nicer men, get married and all done but you pretend with your feminist cleverness end up in the garbage. WHY?

Heterosexual people have been allowed civil partnerships since 2 December 2019. A family member had one in 2022.

Yes, Australia have "de facto" marriage if you have kids or have lived together for a certain amount of time.

Let someone spell it to you as it is, so you all start getting married, once and for all.

Tough titty, basically.
That's what marriage is for, a legal combining of two individuals into one. It's the only reason we got married. Most of our friends were the same.

There's no outrage bvecause there's an easy solution - if half the house would tip you into IHT, get wed. It's a quick ceremony and very cheap to do.

The UK isn't "some country" though. Does no one listen to Nigel Farage ? We are special.

Also, as I have repeated suggested - not that anyone has taken the hint - if people are that vexed then they are free to campaign to change the law. Because unfortunately "what the MN posse say" isn't the same as old fashioned legislation passed by parliament.

All I can see from this thread is why so many women I know who are unhappy are committed to staying in their marriages (the kids' IHT). Not sure what you are seeing! Low divorce rates certainly doesn't mean all married couples are happily married. If you look at femicide worldwide, it is safer not to be with a man at all.

I can see women have to weigh up if it is better to be living a life of suffering with an a.hole if it means your kids can double their inheritance though.

Civil partnerships were created for heterosexual couples. I have been to several civil partnership weddings.

You can apply on form IHT400 but you do have to pay interest on any outstanding amount which is currently 7.25%

https://www.gov.uk/paying-inheritance-tax/yearly-instalments

Yes, sorry - saw that quite a few posts ago (had a whole debate about whether I should have been made aware on my mum's death and when I made my Will last year, etc etc).

Do you really have more rights as a single woman than a married woman in that country?

I’m skeptical that a country that restricts the movement or rights of married women is happy for single women to act as they please.