Prince William refuses to reveal tax bill, breaking King Charles tradition

The decision marked a stark contrast with his father, who would publish a full breakdown of his tax details annually

The Prince of Wales has refused to reveal how much tax he pays on private income derived from his huge property portfolio.

Prince William’s Duchy of Cornwall estate, which he inherited on the death of his grandmother Elizabeth II, generated profits of £23.6m over the last financial year, according to the estate’s latest annual report.

The decision marked a stark contrast with his father King Charles III, who would publish a full breakdown of household costs and his tax, which for the year ending 2022 was £5.89m.

Kensington Palace said the Prince was paying the “appropriate” level of income tax and his decision not to publish details reflected “what was required”, according to the Daily Telegraph.

Tax is paid by the Prince of Wales on his earnings from the Duchy of Cornwall after deducting official expenditure on his family.

His father King Charles III would publish a full breakdown of household costs and his tax, which for the year ending 2022 was £5.89million (Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

The surplus available to William, Kate and their family is used for the official, charitable and private lives of their household.

Tax is then paid at standard UK rates once official costs have been deducted from the £23.6m figure reported this year.

The Duchy was set up in 1337 by Prince Edward III in order to provide a pot of money for his son, Prince Edward. It was designed to provide an income for the Prince of Wales and all subsequent heirs to the throne that is independent of the Sovereign.

On Wednesday, the Sovereign Grant report revealed travel expenditure for the Royal Family went up by £300,000 at a bill of £4.2m despite there being around 400 fewer visits and less foreign travel than the year before.

The surplus available to William, Kate and their family is used for the official, charitable and private lives of their household (PA Archive)

The royals managed to attend 2,327 events, down from 2,710 the previous year, with the King and Queen undertaking 665 official engagements between them.

There were 27 separate journeys by Royal Family members listed in the official report for 2023/24 where travel costs were at least £17,000, only eight of which involved the King.

It also revealed the royal estate was undergoing a climate-friendly makeover in the first full year of King Charles’ reign, with energy efficient electric “gas” lamps will installed as part of the £16.6m spent on property maintenance projects.