That is a £37 million drop compared with the same period last year.

But despite the year-on-year fall, the government believes that IHT revenues are expected to continue rising over the coming years.

HMRC said higher receipts will be driven by a combination of increased wealth transfers following recent liable deaths, growth in asset values and the government’s decision to freeze tax-free thresholds at their 2020/21 levels through to the 2030/31 tax year.

The data also highlights several periods of unusually high receipts in recent years.

Elevated revenues in June and October 2023, September and October 2024, and April and December 2025 were partly attributed to a small number of exceptionally large payments.

Commenting on the figures, Will Hale, chief executive of Key Equity Release, said: “Rising demand from clients for IHT and estate planning support is turning the spotlight on the need for holistic advice which looks at all options to support objectives around tax-efficient retirement funding and intergenerational wealth transfer.

“Despite a small dip in receipts from April 2026 to May 2026 compared to the same period last year, total IHT receipts remain on course to hit £14.5 billion by the 2030/31 tax year compared with £8.5 billion in the last tax year, so never has quality advice been more important.”

IHT receipts for April 2026 were £0.7bn, which is £65million lower than the same period last year.