FLORIDA ESTATE PLANNING AND PROBATE LAW BLOG

The Florida Estate Planning and Probate Law Blog is focused on recent federal and state case law and planning ideas.

Showing posts with label Florida Corporation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Florida Corporation. Show all posts

CAN MY REVOCABLE TRUST OWN S-CORPORATION STOCK

♠ Posted by Marc J. Soss in ,,,,,,,
A Florida Revocable Trust (“Trust”) is a common tool utilized by individuals when creating their Florida estate plans. A Trust is designed to hold assets during the Grantor (the individual who creates the Trust) lifetime and then dispose of those assets at their death (the terms of the Trust will contain the individual’s specific directions as to how the assets will be distributed). In order for a Trust to accomplish its objective it must be funded (assets retitled into the name of the Trust) with all of the Grantor’s assets during their lifetime. This will require the Grantor to retitle real property, bank and investment accounts, and any business interests (LLC interests or stock in an S-Corporation) into the Trust. If a Grantor intends to title S-Corporation stock into the name of their Trust there are specific guidelines which must be adhered to. While a Trust is a permitted shareholder of an S-Corporation, Section 1361 of the Internal Revenue Code only permits certain kinds of trusts (a Qualified Subchapter S Trust or Electing Small Business Trust) from owning the stock. If an unauthorized Trust becomes a S-Corporation stock shareholder, the Corporation will cease to be a qualified S-Corporation and will be taxed as an ordinary C Corporation. Additional pitfalls must be avoided when a married Grantor dies. Upon a Grantor’s death, the Trust assets may be divided and distributed into separate trusts (share for the surviving spouse and one for the deceased spouse). The deceased spouse’s share is typically held in an irrevocable trust for the survivor’s benefit (a “Credit Shelter Trust” or “Bypass Trust”). If the S-Corporation stock is utilized to fund the Credit Shelter Trust, not a grantor trust, then it must qualify as either a Qualified Subchapter S Trust or Electing Small Business Trust and make a timely election with the IRS.
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CHANGES TO THE PARTNERSHIP RULES COMING IN 2017

♠ Posted by Marc J. Soss in ,,,,,,


The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 has strengthened the IRS’s ability to audit partnerships (including multi-member LLCs). The new rules apply to tax years beginning after 2017, and will apply to partnerships of 100 or more partners. To prepare for these changes, Partnerships should amend their Partnership Agreements and select a “Partnership Representative” (sole contact individual with the IRS auditor and someone authorized to make all decisions regarding how to handle the audit).

The new rules require the IRS to assess the partnership if filing errors are detected during an audit. The Partnership Representative will then be responsible to determine whether the partnership itself (the current partners, indirectly), or those who were partners during the audit period, should pay the assessment. The Partnership Representative will also be able to determine whether the entity could opt-out of the new rules (if it has 100 or fewer partners, individuals, S corporations, C corporations, or estates of deceased partners). If you have an S corporation partner, then you must count each of its shareholders for this purpose. If a Partnership Representative is not designated by the entity, the IRS reserves the right to appoint one for the entity.

Partnerships should begin planning for 2017 today by determining: (i) who will serve as the Partnership Representative; (ii) the level of indemnification they will receive against any costs or liabilities that may be incurred in that role, and (3) the level of accountability they will have to the company and its partners. It is important to note that Partnership Representative does not need to be a partner of the entity.
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