Portability Provision Slipping Away
by Paul Kraft (Frank & Kraft, Attorneys at Law)There are some changes to the estate tax parameters pending at the end of this year when the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010 expires. Some of them are rather high profile like the increase in the rate to 55% and the decrease in the exclusion to just $1 million.
These are certainly sources of concern within the estate planning community, but the matter of portability is another thing to take into account.
In the field of estate planning the term “portability” is used to define the ability of a surviving spouse to utilize the individual estate tax exclusion that would have been afforded to his or her deceased husband or wife.
The above-mentioned tax relief measure included a portability provision. Previous to the enactment of this piece of legislation the estate tax exclusion was not portable, and this did not seem fair to many observers.
This portability is slipping away by the minute because it will dissolve into the sunset when the 2010 tax relief act expires at the end of this year.
We are looking at a profound plummet for a widow or widower who will have a $10.24 million exemption on one day and a $1 million exemption on the next.
As you can see the ever changing tax laws can render your existing estate plan obsolete in the blink of an eye.
Without question you are going to want to discuss your current situation with an expert between now and the end of the year. If you are interested in doing so, simply take a moment to pick up the phone to arrange for a consultation with a good Indianapolis estate planning lawyer.
Experienced estate planning attorneys Indianapolis IN of the Frank & Kraft Attorneys at Law offers estate planning and business planning resources to residents of Indianapolis IN. To learn more about these free resources, please visit www.frankkraft.com today.
