Justice Department Requested Authorization to Issue Summons Pursuant to Tax Treaty between United States and the Netherlands “A federal court in Texas authorized the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to serve a John Doe Summons on American Express Travel Related Services Company, the Justice Department announced. The IRS John Doe summons seeks information about persons residing […]
Read More »STEP Article – Trusts targeted by South Africa’s budget tax increases
Enjoy this short blog courtesy of STEP
Read More »Is a Financial Plan Enough? Why Experts Say You Need an Estate Plan, too
If you want to leave a robust financial legacy for your family, a financial plan alone is like trying to guide a boat with just one oar. It’s only part of the big picture for your overall monetary health. A well-informed financial plan is worth your time for several reasons, but let’s look at how […]
Read More »Act Now! There’s Still Time to Avoid the New IRS Regulations That Might Raise Taxes on Your Family’s Inheritance
The IRS recently released proposed regulations which effectively end valuation discounts that have been relied upon for over 20 years. If the IRS’s current timetable holds, these regulations may become final as early as January 1, 2017. Although that date isn’t set in stone, I expect that the regulations will be final around that time […]
Read More »Facebook Founders Use Estate Planning Technique for $200 Million Tax-Free Transfer
Sometimes the planning of the rich and famous helps us better understand what mere mortals can accomplish through proper planning. Such is the case with the recent planning of Facebook co-founders Mark Zuckerberg and Dustin Moskovitz, and CEO Sheryl Sandberg. The footnotes to Facebook’s recent public stock offering reflect that these executives apparently used a […]
Read More »Ensuring Income Tax Deferral for Retirement Plan Beneficiaries
Some of the most generous provisions of the tax code are those that permit beneficiaries of IRAs and other qualified retirement plans to defer income tax on the plans until time of withdrawal. This allows the IRA or qualified plan to grow significantly more than if it were subject to tax on gains each year.
Read More »Are You Wasting Money? Part Three: Taxes, Insurance, Not Bidding and/or Negotiating
So far in this series on wasting money, we have looked at how people may overpay for housing, interest, transportation, food, clothing and entertainment. In this last part, we will look at a few more areas in which we may pay more than necessary–taxes, insurance, not obtaining bids for services, and not negotiating for large […]
Read More »When is an Estate Subject to State Death Taxes?
In the United States, certain states collect a death tax based on the value of the deceased person’s estate and who inherits it.
Read More »Estate Planning Options for Your Pets
Increasingly people are making provisions in their estate plans for their pets. If you would like to do the same, then you have a few options for how to do it. In the past people gave little thought to what might happen to their pets after they passed away. It certainly was not common to provide […]
Read More »Early Predictions About 2016 Estate Tax, Gift Tax, GST Tax and Annual Gift Tax Limits
While the IRS will not officially release the 2016 inflation-indexed exemption and exclusion until later in October, Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting has released its 2016 predictions based on historical inflationary trends. According to Wolters, the exemption should end up at $5,450,000 in 2016, or $10,900,000 for married couples. While this is a mere $20,000 […]
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