GOVERNOR SCOTT SAYS NO TO ELECTRONIC WILLS IN FLORIDA

♠ Posted by Marc J. Soss in electronic will,Estate planning attorney,florida estate planning,florida probate attorney,same sex estate planning,Sarasota estate planning

On Monday, June 26, 2017, Florida Governor Rick Scott vetoed the "Florida Electronic Wills Act" (the "Act")." The Act would have authorized the creation of electronic wills, and for their execution to be witnessed and notarized through the use of remote technology. The bill also provided for the probate of an electronic will in Florida. The Act raised concerns over safeguards to exploitation and fraud. The Governor determined that the remote notarization provisions in the Act did not adequately ensure authentication of the identity of the parties to the transaction and were not cohesive with...

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THE IRS ISSUES MORE ESTATE TAX PORTABILITY RELIEF

♠ Posted by Marc J. Soss in estate tax portability relief,portability election,Revenue Procedure 2017-34,Sarasota estate planning

In 2011, Congress raised the estate tax exclusion amount to $5 million per person (indexed for inflation) and added portability to the estate tax laws. The portability provision is an election that allows a surviving spouse to carry over any unused portion of their deceased spouse’s estate tax exclusion and shield an increased amount of assets from the estate tax. Under the portability provision a surviving spouse had nine (9) months to make the election or it was lost. In 2014, the IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2014-18 that provided a simplified method for obtaining an extension of time to...

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MINNESOTA TAX LAW CHANGE AS TO RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS

♠ Posted by Marc J. Soss in 2017 retirement planning,asset protection planning,federal income tax return,florida estate planning,Minnesota Depart of Revenue,minnesota income tax law change,minnesota residency requirement

With the number of retirees moving to states which do not access an income, estate or inheritance tax many states are trying to find ways to recoup the lost revenue. The Minnesota Department of Revenue previously took the position that the location of a person’s attorney, CPA, financial adviser or bank account determined where an individual is domiciled for income tax purposes. This was in addition to Minnesota law which found that an individual is a resident of Minnesota for income tax purposes if he or she is either: (1) domiciled outside Minnesota, but maintains a place of abode in the state...

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INCOME TAX EVASION - BELGIUM, COLUMBIA AND PORTUGAL JOIN THE FIGHT

♠ Posted by Marc J. Soss in Department of the treasury,IRS,IRS Revenue Procedure 2017-31,mutual information exchange agreement,offshore bank accounts,tax crimes,tax evasion,tax fraud

Maintaining an offshore bank account is not illegal, however, failing to report income and interest earned is tax evasion. Effective January 1, 2017, IRS Revenue Procedure 2017-31 added Belgium, Columbia and Portugal to the list of countries that participate in the automatic exchange of information on bank interest paid to nonresident alien individuals. This addition means there are now 43 countries participating in the automatic exchange program. The IRS only shares information with countries that have entered into this mutual information exchange agreement. The IRS is statutorily barred from...

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MINNESOTA RAISES ITS ESTATE TAX EXEMPTION FOR 2017 AND BEYOND

♠ Posted by Marc J. Soss in 2017 federal estate tax exemption,florida estate plan,florida estate planning,inheritance tax,Minnesota 2017 estate tax reform,retirement planning

The State of Minnesota's recent budget brings it closer to joining the thirty-two (32) states that do not impose a state inheritance or estate tax in addition to the federal estate tax. The state budget increases the estate tax exemption amount to $2.1 million for 2017 (from the current $1.8 million level). The change is retroactive to January 1, 2017, and includes incremental increases in the exemption amount to $2.4 million in 2018, $2.7 million in 2019, and $3 million by 2020. The Minnesota estate tax doesn’t have a portability provision and tops out at 1...

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DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA INCREASES ITS ESTATE TAX EXEMPTION

♠ Posted by Marc J. Soss in 2017 Federal Estate Tax,2017 federal estate tax exemption,DC estate tax,ESTATE TAX ELIMINATION,estate tax reform,florida estate planning

Tax reform dating back to 2014 has resulted in an increase in the District of Columbia's 2017 estate tax exemption amount to $2 million. In 2018 the exemption amount is anticipated to be equal to the 2017 federal exemption amount of $5.49 million. Currently, eighteen (18) states and the District of Columbia impose an estate or inheritance tax—separate from the federal estate tax. However, neighboring states have been repeal their estate and inheritance tax by raising the exemption amount to the federal level. For example, Maryland increased its 2018 exemption to $4 million in 2018, and the federal...

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