Inheritance tax receipts for April 2022 to January 2023 were £5.9bn, according to the latest HMRC figures published today.

That was £0.9bn higher than the same period a year previously.

Meanwhile Inheritance tax receipts for January 2023 totalled £578m, up from £443m in the same month a year ago.

The total inheritance tax take for 2021-22 (the last full financial year) was £6.1bn, meaning this year is already only £178m short of that.

It looks set to beat that record as well as possibly surpassing official estimates for 2025-26 of £6.8bn, reckons Stephen Lowe, group communications director at retirement specialist Just Group.

He said: “The Chancellor has struck a seam of gold with recent inheritance tax receipts as he looks set to receive another record haul this financial year – and with more to come.

“The combination of frozen thresholds and property prices that have soared over the years mean that receipts could continue to grow over the coming years.”

Rachael Griffin, tax and financial planning expert at Quilter, said: “The figures highlight just how lucrative the government’s freeze on tax allowances and thresholds is likely to be.”

She pointed out that while inheritance tax has historically been considered a tax for only the very wealthy, the current freeze coupled with inflated house prices has seen far more people caught by the net.

She warned: “Even those who may not consider themselves wealthy could now end up paying inheritance tax as their property value has grown so much.”

While the average IHT bill was £216,000 in 2019/20, research conducted by Wealth Club suggests the average inheritance tax bill could reach £270,831 by 2025-26 and £288,611 by 2027-28 if current inflation expectations are met.

Alex Davies, chief executive and founder of Wealth Club, said: “This is no longer something just the very wealthy need to worry about.

“Thanks to years of frozen allowances, paired with house price growth and soaring inflation, families up and down the UK, most of which would not consider themselves to be especially affluent are also increasingly being affected.”

Laura Hayward, tax partner at wealth manager Evelyn Partners said: “All eyes are now on what, if any, changes to IHT the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will announce in his first proper Budget on March 15th.”