marital deduction

n. when one spouse dies, the survivor may take a tax deduction of half of the value of the estate of the dying spouse. Thus, the minimum value of the estate before there is a possible federal estate tax rises from $600,000 to $1,200,000 at the death of the first spouse to die. In trusts which a married couple creates, they can agree that on the death of the first to go, the amount of the property which is given to the survivor is limited to the amount which will not be subject to federal estate tax, thus delaying some or all estate tax until the death of the surviving spouse. Such trust provisions should be written only by an attorney and with consultation with an accountant or financial adviser. (See: community property, estate tax, trust)

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This part covers estate tax planning techniques, including the marital deduction and the use of various types of trusts.

Practitioners should know about the marital deduction and how to use different types of trusts in estate planning

Before the Supreme Court issued its decision in Windsor, (1) same-sex marriages were not recognized for federal tax purposes, and, therefore, same-sex spouses (1) were not treated as married for gift, estate, or GST tax purposes; (2) could not claim a marital deduction for gifts or bequests to one another; and (3) were required to determine generation assignments for GST tax purposes based on age rather than on familial relationship with their spouse.

Recent developments in estate planning

When does the gift of an annuity between spouses qualify for the gift tax marital deduction?

What Are Gift Tax Issues With Annuities?

One of the first lines on a tax return is the Filing status, which can tell its whether our client qualifies for the estate taxes "unlimited marital deduction." A married couple qualifies for this deduction; a silt* person does not.

Taxing thoughts: this is the time to discuss estate planning with your clients

As it turned out, the last-minute deal kept and made permanent the $5 million exemption, marital deduction, portability and unified credit.

In avoiding cliff, some may be over-insured

The plaintiff argued that the trust settlor had created the trusts primarily for estate tax purposes--so that he could pass the property to his wife and take advantage of the marital deduction, while ultimately leaving the property to his daughter.

Estate planning/taxation

On the estate tax return, the 100 percent interest was valued at $2,834,033, and a marital deduction was claimed for 51 percent of such amount, or $1,445,357.

Disappearing and reappearing value on a two-way street: the reverse Chenoweth situation

Life insurance or annuity proceeds payable to a surviving spouse qualify for the marital deduction if certain conditions are met (see Q 663).

Annuities and living proceeds

Then transfer the balance of my estate ($500,000) to my wife [for which a marital deduction will be claimed]."

Illinois estate tax planning in 2009 and beyond: for persons dying in 2009 and later, the Illinois estate tax is further decoupled from (but still tethered to) the federal estate tax. Estate plans should now provide the flexibility to deal with this dilemma. This article discusses the options and makes the case for an Illinois QTIP

marital deduction allows tax-free inter-spousal transfers, whether inter

Transfer tax reform after EGTRRA-2001: reconstruction or further deconstruction?

The federal estate tax also includes a marital deduction for property passing to a surviving spouse.

Property rights of a disinherited spouse

IRC Section 2056(d) states that no deduction shall be allowed under Section 2056(a) (the unlimited marital deduction) if the surviving spouse is not a U.S.