Press Release: Direct taxation: The European Commission requests the United Kingdom to end discriminatory provisions in the area of inheritance tax

The European Commission formally requested the United Kingdom to amend its legislation which provides for discriminatory inheritance tax relief. The requests took the form of reasoned opinions (second step of the infringement procedure of Article 226 of the EC Treaty). If no satisfactory reaction to these reasoned opinions is received within two months, the Commission may decide to refer the matter to the Court of Justice of the European Communities.