When planning for your future and working on an estate plan, married couples have options not otherwise available to unmarried couples. Understanding how estate taxes work between spouses is important in planning your estate to preserve as much wealth as possible for the surviving spouse and for future beneficiaries.
This kind of estate planning involves maximizing deductions, creating tax free wealth, dividing income and assets to shift wealth, deferring, using discounting and estate freezing techniques, and planning for disability.
Marital Deduction Planning
Marital Deduction Planning references the use of the marital deduction to eliminate taxes at the first death, and aims to reduce any unnecessary estate tax at the second death. The marital deduction is only available if the surviving spouse is a U.S. citizen.
Transfers that qualify for the marital deduction include:
- l Outright transfer to spouse
- l Transfer to a General Power of Appointment Trust
- l Transfers to Q-Tip Trust
- l Transfers to Qualified Domestic Trust (for non-citizen spouse)
Getting Legal Help
Experienced Estate Planning and Trust Attorney Elga Goodman can help you understand all your options for preserving and maximizing wealth. Contact us today at Call us today at 973-841-5111 to learn more.
Posted in: Estate Planning, New York Estate Planning