Prince William's income tax bill revealed putting him in top 0.002% of contributors

Prince William contributes up to £7million annually in income tax, putting the heir to the throne among Britain's highest taxpayers.

This whopping figure places him in the top 0.002 per cent of those paying tax in the United Kingdom.

The future king's wealth stems primarily from the Duchy of Cornwall, a historic estate valued at approximately £1.1billion.

This huge property portfolio generates upwards of £20million each year for the Prince of Wales.

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The Duchy has been bestowed upon successive heirs to the throne since the fourteenth century, intending to provide financial independence from the public purse.

William is understood to pay the highest marginal rate of 45 per cent on his personal earnings, though he faces no legal obligation to do so after his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, struck an agreement with the Treasury in 2013.

The Duchy of Cornwall traces its origins to 1337, when King Edward III established the estate to provide funds for his son and heir.

Today, it encompasses between 2,000 and 3,000 properties spread across 23 counties in England and Wales, covering roughly 130,000 to 140,000 acres.

Holdings range from residential cottages and farmland to commercial premises, shops and industrial units, alongside coastal and river foreshore rights.

During the 2023-24 financial year, William's first year of overseeing the estate following his father's accession to the throne, the Duchy delivered a record surplus of £23.6million.

Of this figure, approximately £13.5million is believed to be subject to taxation, producing an estimated tax liability between £5million and £7million.

The prince is permitted to deduct official expenditure before calculating his contribution.

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Questions surrounding the transparency of royal finances have grown more pressing following revelations about the Duchy's dealings with public institutions. William had refused to disclose his tax returns in the past.

Investigations uncovered that both the Cornwall and Lancaster estates have generated millions by levying charges on the army, navy, NHS and schools for access to their land, rivers and coastal waters.

These arrangements, while lawful, have sparked debate about whether taxpayer-funded bodies should be directing money towards a private royal estate.

Several of these leases have subsequently been renegotiated.

Following scrutiny in 2024, William stopped collecting rents from lifeboat stations, fire services, village halls and school playing fields.

However, the Duchy continues to receive income from Dartmoor Prison, which has stood empty for nearly two years due to toxic radon contamination, costing taxpayers £1.5million annually.

A Kensington Palace spokesman said: "The Prince of Wales pays the top rate of income and capital gains tax on all his personal income, including receipts from the Duchy."

When King Charles served as heir, he voluntarily disclosed paying £5.9million in income tax on his £23million Duchy earnings during the 2021-22 financial year.

Neither father nor son has made their tax arrangements public since that time.

Norman Baker, former Home Office minister and author of Royal Mint, National Debt, has called for the duchies to be absorbed into the Crown Estate for the Treasury's benefit.

"These are not private estates. They are public estates and we should be having the benefit of it, not treating them as royal slush funds for William and Charles," he argued.

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