Check out this article: Ensure you revisit estate plans when clients move to other provinces and territories. Here’s what to consider. 1. WILL VALIDITYEach province and territory has its own criteria for a valid will. The new jurisdiction may have different rules regarding whether a subsequent marriage or divorce revokes a will. And if your client doesn’t have a will, each has its own intestacy rules. 2. PROBATEProbate fees differ throughout Canada. Nova Scotia and Ontario are the most expensive, at 1.645% and 1.5% respectively, of the estate’s value on the date of death. Minimizing these fees is less of a worry in Alberta and N.W.T., where they’re capped at $400. 3. DUAL WILLSIf a client relocates to or acquires certain assets in Ontario, such as shares in private corporations, it may be possible to minimize probate fees using multiple wills (different assets are allocated to each will). This strategy may also be available in B.C. under the soon-to-be-in-force Wills, Estates and Succession Act. For real property in Quebec, like a cottage, clients may be able to execute notarial wills to avoid the probate process. 4. DEPENDENT’S RELIEFThis type of legislation ensures support to a deceased person’s dependants if she failed to provide adequately for them in her will. The Supreme Court of Canada has confirmed that B.C.’s legislative requirement to provide “proper maintenance and support” includes not only the basic necessities of life, but also moral obligations. This requirement can lead the court to redistribute an estate, even to the extent of providing for an adult independent child who was excluded from http://www.advisor.ca/tax/estate-planning/4-estate-planning-tips-when-clients-move-133213
How do you know who to call when a loved one dies? Well, as an Orange County estate planning lawyer, I have numerous tips that will help you. The first thing you should do is to contact a funeral home, this may be per your loved ones request or a funeral home of your choice. Next you need to contact the beneficiaries of your loved ones assets and then call and estate planning lawyer to look over their will. After that you should contact banks or credit card companies that need to notified. Lastly, you should make a list of friends and family that will want to attend the funeral. For more estate planning advice please visit this blog: http://blog.tompkins-law.com/2013/12/an-estate-planning-lawyer-discusses.html
Read this article we found: After several years of significant change, 2013 will end with relative certainty related to estate tax laws. However, this does not remove the need for careful year-end planning. Higher marginal income tax rates for ordinary income, capital gains and dividends – coupled with the imposition of the new (and complicated) 3.8% surtax on net investment income for higher-income individuals – can create new challenges and opportunities. A few simple actions may result in savings if taken before year-end. Transfer Tax Exemption and GST Exemption At the beginning of the year, Congress enacted legislation that “made permanent” the exemption amount that individuals may transfer by gift and/or at death without being subject to federal transfer taxes. Notably, the legislation includes an annual inflation adjustment for the federal exemption amount and a maximum tax rate of 40%. The inflation-adjusted federal exemption amount is $5,250,000 for 2013, and will be increasing to $5,340,000 in 2014. In contrast, Illinois has established its exemption amount at $4,000,000 for state estate tax purposes – which amount is not adjusted for inflation. The rates of Illinois estate tax on Illinois estates range from 8% to 16%. Illinois also allows a marital deduction for state transfer tax purposes for assets passing in qualifying trusts for the benefit of a surviving spouse (including trusts for which a similar federal marital deduction is not elected). In order to ensure a death tax at each successive generational level, a generation-skipping transfer (“GST”) tax – equal to the highest estate tax rate – is imposed on transfers to grandchildren or more remote descendants. However, every taxpayer is also given a separate federal GST exemption equal to the federal transfer tax exemption ( i.e., $5,250,000 in 2013 and $5,340,000 in 2014), although the federal GST exemption is applied separate and apart from the federal transfer tax http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=266d087f-1091-4bbf-90eb-639a8fc82ece
Read this article we found: With the responsibility for saving for retirement shifting to workers as companies and the government abandon pension plans, experts say estate planning is crucial step in creating a secure financial future. “You can either plan accordingly in an efficient and organized manner or just let things happen,” says Ben Barzideh, wealth advisor at wealth management firm Piershale Financial Group, in Crystal Lake, Ill. “When you don’t plan for the transfer of your estate to one generation to the next, you can end up losing more money to taxes than you had to.” Not having a clear estate plan can not only be costly to your beneficiaries, it can also create unnecessary heartache, warns trusts and estates attorney Avi Kestenbaum. Estate planning used to only be an obligation of the wealthy, but that’s no longer the case. “Anyone who has a penny to his or her name, children, or might even be coming into money in the future, needs to have the basic estate planning documents,” Kestenbaum says. Kestenbaum adds that in the past, estate planning was all about minimizing taxes, and while that still plays a role it also now includes “elder law planning.” “People are living longer and you need to make sure your money will last; it’s about making your IRA stretch as long as possible to cover your basic needs, cover long-term health-care costs and make sure the people you want to inherit your assets will.” Here are four tips on what you need to know and how to get started with creating your own estate plan. Have an Open Mind. According to Kestenbaum, many people think estate planning is a morbid and complicated topic. “It’s more about living than dying, it can be a pleasant process, but often people over think it and overcomplicate it. After all, we all know who we love and want to take care of.” http://www.foxbusiness.com/personal-finance/2013/11/22/4-tips-to-begin-estate-planning-process/
Read this article we found: Technology is changing the world of estate planning, with new intangible assets that must be accounted for, and new ways of accounting for them. Carrie Bray, a senior wealth manager with Buckingham Financial Group, said planning for how to pass on digital assets is an essential part of estate planning. “We own so may assets electronically,” Bray said. “Technology is advancing quicker than the lawmakers can keep up with it, to determine if you can pass those assets on.” Bray listed some examples of assets that could rack up a significant digital fortune: • Frequent flyer miles; • iTunes libraries; • Online gaming accounts; • Bitcoin accounts; • Digital photo collections; and • PayPal accounts. read more at http://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/news/2013/11/27/estate-planning-should-include-digital.html
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