Biography
I am a Senior Associate solicitor in the High Net Worth and International private client team in London. I specialise in multi-jurisdictional wealth planning, international tax and trusts, and succession planning for high net worth (HNW) and ultra high net worth clients and their families.
I am recognised for my expertise in complex cross-border tax and estate planning, including drafting bespoke Wills for UK and international HNW individuals and administering cross-border estates. This often involves applying international succession law and addressing tax-related considerations to safeguard assets and wealth from creditors, matrimonial claims, and succession regimes such as forced heirship rules. I also work with clients who wish to structure their wealth to comply with Islamic Sharia principles of succession and for non-Muslims resident in or connected to Islamic countries such as the UAE, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia.
I regularly work with international families and trustees to navigate the challenges posed by multi-national estates. I'm experienced with relevant tax reliefs for individuals and trusts, such as inheritance tax business relief, agricultural property relief, and capital gains tax.
The creation and setting-up of offshore trusts is another specialism of mine and I help beneficiaries and trustees of offshore trusts to ensure optimal tax efficiency. I also advise on residence and domicile issues, including the statutory residence test or the taxation of UK residential and non-residential property owned by offshore structures.
I'm a member of the Society for Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP) and have completed the STEP Advanced certificate on UK tax for international clients.
What is the most rewarding aspect of your role?
Being able to work with clients from all walks of life, getting to know them, their family background and delving into their cultures. Each client is different and by understanding each one of them individually, I am then able to manage their expectations and assist them with the appropriate estate planning, trust structures suitable for them and discuss any associated taxation matters.
What do you like about working at Irwin Mitchell?
The friendly atmosphere and working alongside lawyers who are experts in their fields.
What do you do away from the office?
I am a huge cricket fan so in my spare time (whether in the UK or abroad) I am mostly found watching cricket. I enjoy test cricket and I am excited by the challenge that you need to really score runs, stay in the wicket and continue for five days...
Testimonials
'Yousafa Hazara is an exceptional solicitor; of her many attributes, the ones that stand out most to me would be her technical prowess and her approachability.'
'Yousafa Hazara has been extremely helpful and diligent in going into the myriad of details of UK domicile requirements, inheritance tax, and my estate planning requirements. She is a wealth of information, and she provided highly detailed written information to demystify the complexity.'
"Yousafa is a very pragmatic and reliable lawyer able to handle complex cross-border files. She absorbs the difficulties while maintaining a constant level of expertise and vision on those multi-jurisdictional files. I enjoy very much working with Yousafa as she manages to always remain accessible and friendly while keeping high standards for her clients."
"I have worked with Yousafa on international inheritance matters (UK/IT) and participated at a conference as a panelist with her.
She is very experienced in cross border, complicated inheritance matter. She is able to immediately grasp the complex issues stemming from foreign legal systems. She is knowledgeable, incredibly responsive, and fun to work with. I would recommend her as a referral to our clients." - Legal 500, 2025 (Leading Associate)
Publications
Unilateral relief—UK IHT, Lexis Nexis practice note
