Make a Gift Before 2021
I try very hard not to be political in these blog posts. I also try not to speculate on what the government may or may not do as they frequently compromise in an unpredicted manner. However, I would be remise if I didn’t talk about the fact that Joseph Biden is ahead in most of […]
Who has an Estate and Gift Tax Treaty with the US?
I just noticed a helpful link at the IRS that gives a nice chart detailing which countries have an Estate and Gift Tax Treaty with the US: Estate and Gift Tax Treaties.
Repeal of the NJ Estate Tax – Should married couples update their wills?
Effective January 1, 2018, New Jersey repealed its estate tax. The question then become how does this affect you and do you need to do anything about it? For most people the change is a positive one because it means their heirs pay less taxes and they do not need to do anything to update […]
What is a Disclaimer Trust?
A Disclaimer Trust is a special type of trust often created under a Will (or as a sub-trust of a revocable living trust). In order to understand Disclaimer Trusts, you first need to understand what a disclaimer is and what happens when you make a disclaimer so that you can understand the purpose and mechanics of Disclaimer Trusts. […]
Estate Tax Exemption Limit Changes for 2018
While the House and Senate are considering competing tax proposals, including a proposal to eliminate the federal estate tax, it is worth noting that the IRS has released Revenue Procedure 2017-58 which provides inflationary updates for a number of provisions in the Internal Revenue Code, including Estate Tax Exemption Limits. Assuming that the Republicans do not […]
Proposed Tax Policy By Republicans Would Enable Wealthy to Pass On A Massive Income Tax Deduction to Their Heirs Upon Death
As most of you know, I generally try to avoid political discussions and I really try to avoid commenting on proposed tax policy before it becomes law for the simple reason that most proposed law changes never get enacted. However, I feel compelled to talk about what I believe is a major flaw in the […]
Will the New Jersey Estate Tax Repeal Become Permanent?
New Jersey Estate Tax As most of my estate planning clients are aware, I have been very cautious regarding whether or not New Jersey will keep a $2,000,000 estate tax exemption beyond 2017 or allow for a full repeal. However, it is worth noting that the front-runner for Governor, Phil Murphy, released part of his […]
NJ Has Finally Released 2017 Estate Tax Return and Calculator
As I know many of you have been waiting anxiously, I wanted to make sure that you are aware that the New Jersey Division of Taxation has finally released the 2017 Estate Tax Return form. They have also released an estate tax calculator so that we can accurately prepare the return. The NJ 2017 Estate Tax […]
The Best Place To Die (From An Estate And Inheritance Tax Perspective)
Best place to die Several years ago, I wrote a few articles comparing the tax consequences of dying in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Florida. Now that New Jersey has amended its estate tax laws, I thought I should write another post for 2017 regarding the best place to die. I will write this […]