Bankrate, which has more than 2.75 million readers, recently published a story based on McManus & Associates’ “Same-sex marriage tax and estate planning tips.” As the story points out, thousands of gay and lesbian couples are celebrating wedding anniversaries this year and, this month, another momentous date. June 26 was the day last year that the Supreme Court declared same-sex marriage legal throughout the United States.
From the article:
“The Internal Revenue Service had been accepting jointly filed federal tax returns from same-sex couples married in states that sanctioned their vows since the High Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act in 2013. The 2015 Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, however, made taxes less of a hassle for gay and lesbian married couples at the state and federal levels regardless of where they live.”
As Bankrate Reporter Kay Bell puts it, “The historic 2015 marriage ruling also opened up a new world of estate planning for same-sex married couples.” She goes on to share insight from John O. McManus:
“Today, there are opportunities and protections within reach for same-sex couples that were unavailable during most of American history,” says John O. McManus, founding principal of the New York/New Jersey-based estate planning law firm McManus & Associates.
As the Supreme Court same-sex marriage ruling anniversary approaches, McManus offers some estate planning tips.
Marital deduction plus portability
Same-sex married couples can now take advantage of the unlimited marital deduction from federal estate tax and gift tax for transfers between spouses. This means that, in most cases, one spouse can leave an unlimited amount to his or her surviving spouse without any federal estate tax ramifications.
In addition, the portability provisions of federal gift and estate tax laws generally allow a surviving spouse regardless of gender to use any portion of his or her deceased spouse’s unused applicable estate and gift exclusion amount. This amount is adjusted annually for inflation. For 2016, the amount that skips these taxes is $5.45 million per spouse.
Greater gift splitting
Same-sex married couples also now can enjoy the benefits of gift splitting, says McManus.
The annual gift exclusion amount currently is $14,000. Now a same-sex husband or wife can, with the consent of his or her husband or wife, give a total as if each spouse contributed half of the amount.
This combining of individual allowances lets married couples increase their total gift tax exemption amount.
Generally, gift splitting requires the filing of a Form 709 Gift Tax Return. However, says McManus, if the split gifts total $28,000 or less to each gift recipient, only the donor spouse is required to file a gift tax return.
To read Bell’s full article for Bankrate, click here.
WealthManagement.com also featured a byline slideshow by John O. McManus on same-sex planning in its Morning Memo on Monday. The newsletter links to “Top 10 Tax and Estate Planning Considerations for Same-Sex Couples” on the publication Trusts & Estates’ website. Click through the slideshow for a quick download on key opportunities now available to gay and lesbian couples in light of the historic U.S. Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges.
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