King Charles to publish tax payments in annual royal accounts

Buckingham Palace will publish the King's tax payments on Thursday as part of the annual royal financial accounts. Palace sources said the decision was a personal one by the King.

The release covers the 2024-25 tax year and will show tax paid on income from the Duchy of Lancaster, personal investments and earnings from the King's private estates at Sandringham and Balmoral. The total amount paid will be made public for the first time, including tax on the Duchy's profits, which reached about £24 million last year.

A Buckingham Palace spokesman said the step forms part of a wider effort to increase openness. "To put it simply, we continue to modernise and evolve," the spokesman said, adding that the tax bill will be published each year.

The King already paid income tax and capital gains tax on private assets while he was Prince of Wales. Monarchs are not required to pay income tax, inheritance tax on assets received from a previous monarch, or capital gains tax, but the King pays the first two categories voluntarily.

The Duchy of Lancaster, which includes estates in northern England and property in central London, supplies much of the monarch's personal income. The tax details will appear alongside figures for the Sovereign Grant, the public funding for the Royal Household that covers staff, building maintenance and official travel.

The grant has risen to a record £137.9 million, partly to fund renovations at Buckingham Palace. A reduction is expected soon after a review by the Treasury, Downing Street and the Royal Household.

The Public Accounts Committee will also examine royal property and leases from the Crown Estate. An initial National Audit Office report showed that Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, who are not working royals, hold properties in St James's Palace and Kensington Palace.