New York has an “estate tax cliff,” which can result in heirs paying New York estate tax at a rate exceeding 100%.

The current per-person NYS estate tax exemption is $6.94 million, which is the amount you can leave to your heirs at your death without paying NYS estate tax. If your taxable estate, however,

You may have heard of Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts (SLATS) lately, especially if you have been thinking about using your federal estate and gift tax exemption before the current higher exemption amount of $13.61 million is automatically reduced to about $7 million on January 1, 2026, assuming Congress takes no action. (See my column from last

The current combined federal estate and gift tax exemption amount of $13.61 million per person ($27.22 million per married couple) is scheduled to “sunset” automatically on January 1, 2026, and revert to $5 million indexed for inflation (guesstimated at $7 million), unless Congress takes action. This exemption amount applies to the total taxable gifts made

The federal estate and gift tax exemption (the combined amount you can give away to beneficiaries other than your spouse or charities during life and at death without paying gift or estate tax) is increasing to $13.61 million per person as of January 1, 2024, up from $12.92 million in 2023. This is an increase

If you are at least 70 ½ years old and have a traditional IRA, you can give up to $100,000 from your IRA account directly to charity. This direct transfer, called a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD), avoids having to  recognize the assets transferred to the charity in your gross income on your tax return.

Direct

Did you know that actions can be taken after you die (i.e., post-mortem) to achieve the best results possible for your testamentary plan? Some estate plans are intentionally structured to give your beneficiaries and your executor/trustee the ability to make educated post-mortem planning decisions after your death.

For instance, bequests can be altered through post-mortem

Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, died in Michigan in 2018, leaving not one but two handwritten wills. The 2010 will was found in a locked cabinet, signed on every page and notarized, while the 2014 will, which the courts would usually view as superseding the first and which was written in a spiral notebook

This article appeared in the Summer 2023 issue of  Conservation News, a publication of the North Shore Land Alliance.

You may already know about many of the amazing things the North Shore Land Alliance has done to protect our beloved Long Island. The mission of the Land Alliance is: “To conserve and safeguard Long island’s natural

I am often asked about the difference between wills and revocable trusts, so I thought it important to explain the purpose of each.

Wills and revocable trusts basically do the same thing – each is a document in which you give away your assets to your beneficiaries upon your death. Both can be revoked and

Oh, the things you hear at cocktail parties: “Everyone should have a revocable trust,” “It’s easy to change your residence to Florida for tax purposes – just count days and get a Florida license,” “Make all your trusts Delaware trusts to avoid state income taxes.” The efficacy of any of these pronouncements depends on each

What is one of the things that kids from a first marriage worry about when their parent re-marries? The “evil” step-parent getting it all, of course. Many parents struggle with the problem of alleviating the fears of their children in this regard. There are steps you can take to ease their minds and your own.

Many individuals are considered “house rich, cash poor,” meaning that their biggest asset is their house. While some of these individuals have an estate plan in place, many do not and are unaware of the consequences. Without proper estate planning, heirs inheriting a house can find themselves in a precarious situation. Fortunately, a provision in

As we turn the calendar to 2023 and the holiday gift-giving season is behind us, now is the time to consider this year’s changes to the estate and gift tax exemption. You may recall from earlier columns that the estate and gift tax exemption is the amount of money or assets the government lets you

One of the easiest ways to give to charity and one of the best-kept “secrets” is to open a fund at the Long Island Community Foundation (LICF). A community foundation is a public charity that connects you to a variety of other
charities, and most often, there’s one right in your own neighborhood. Opening

Your friendly neighborhood branch banker suggests that you change all your accounts to either joint with your kids or to
name your kids as beneficiaries on all your accounts (a “pay on death” beneficiary designation). She says this will make the administration of your estate when you die much less complicated and easier for

The federal estate tax exemption provisions are set to expire at the end of 2025, potentially requiring more people to pay estate taxes. In view of the uncertainty of the estate tax laws, it is important to have estate planning documents that are flexible enough to adjust to changing estate tax laws.

Generally, the exemption

Crypto assets (such as non-fungible tokens, or NFTS) and cryptocurrencies (such as bitcoin) are types of digital assets, which are typically transmitted by means of blockchain technology. (I know, this makes my brain hurt, too!) Crypto assets are growing in popularity as an investment class, and you may already own some or may be thinking

New York has an “estate tax cliff,” which can result in heirs paying New York estate tax at a rate exceeding 100%. The current per-person NYS estate tax exemption is $6.11 million, which is the amount you can leave to your heirs at your death without paying NYS estate tax. If your taxable estate, however,

We were all set for big changes in the federal estate and gift tax laws last year and, by the end of the year, almost nothing changed. Who knows what changes will ultimately come down the pike when Congress finally becomes functional, and when those changes will take effect? For now, we’ve escaped the reduction

It has been a long, cold winter, and many of us are yearning for warmer weather. With New York’s fiscal crisis due to the pandemic, and the prospect of higher taxes, many are thinking about changing their primary residence to a warmer and “friendlier” taxing jurisdiction. While an easy topic of cocktail party talk, changing

With the prospect of estate tax exemptions going down and estate tax rates going up, it’s a good time to consider using life insurance as a hedge against potential estate taxes. One way to do that is to add an Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust (ILIT) to your estate plan.

Life insurance proceeds are included in

It’s the holiday season, and people are in the spirit of giving.

Besides giving gifts to friends and family, we consider supporting nonprofits whose work aligns with our values. One of the easiest ways to give to charity, and one of the best-kept secrets, is to open a fund at the Long Island Community Foundation

Every U.S. citizen may gift, during life or at death, assets to his or her children free of federal estate or gift tax up to an aggregate amount – frequently called the “exemption amount.” The exemption amount in 2021 is $11.7 million.

Prior to 2011, if one spouse died without having gifted or bequeathed all

Discussing your estate plan with your adult children can feel like a daunting task. You want your children to be ready for the responsibilities that wealth entails, but you’re not sure you’re ready to disclose your finances and intentions to your kids yet. It can be even more overwhelming when a family business is involved.

Sometimes, the terms of an irrevocable trust (one that cannot be amended or revoked) were fine at the time the trust was created, but subsequent events or circumstances make the terms of the old trust impractical, unwanted, or obsolete. So, what can be done?

Originally published in Lloyd Harbor Life, July 2021. Read the full article here.

President Biden’s proposed changes to the Internal Revenue Code, known as the American Families Plan, was unveiled at the end of April 2021. These changes are intended to accomplish three goals: (1) fund the government’s efforts against the pandemic, (2) support new social programs, (3) enable tax cuts for lower-income families. The measures aim to

Oftentimes, in the summer, we return to the topic of changing your residence for state tax purposes. There are five factors which the tax authorities will look to in determining whether someone has changed their residency.  This is frequently referred to synonymously as one’s “domicile” for tax purposes:  (1) physical presence, (2) home, (3) family