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No basis step-up for grantor trust assets if not in grantor’s estate

In a revenue ruling issued Wednesday, the IRS confirms that the step-up in basis under Sec. 1014(a) does not apply to the assets held by an irrevocable grantor trust when the grantor dies if the grantor’s gross estate does not include the assets of the irrevocable trust.

2022 Arthur J. Dixon Memorial Award

G. Edgar “Eddie” Adkins Jr., CPA, received the 2022 Arthur J. Dixon Memorial Award, the highest honor bestowed by the accounting profession in the area of taxation.

Recent developments in estate planning: Part 3

In this third installment of an annual update on trust, estate, and gift taxation, the topics include generation-skipping transfer tax, trusts, private foundations, selected inflation-adjusted amounts, and the president’s and Treasury’s proposed law changes affecting trusts, estates, and gifts.

Recent developments in estate planning: Part 2

In this second installment of an annual update on trust, estate, and gift taxation, the topics include split-dollar life insurance arrangements, indirect gifts, formula clauses in transfers of limited partnership interests, valuation discounts, and grantor retained annuity trusts.

Recent developments in estate planning: Part 1

In this first installment of an annual update on trust, estate, and gift taxation, the topics include estate tax closing letters, the basic exclusion amount, estate debts and expenses, and extending the time to elect portability.

Trusts as S corporation shareholders

Generally, a trust cannot hold stock of an S corporation; however, grantor trusts, testamentary trusts, voting trusts, ESBTs, and QSSTs are permissible S corporation shareholders (Sec. 1361(c)(2)).

Freezing stock value with a corporate recapitalization

A corporate recapitalization can freeze the value of the owner’s stock, potentially reducing the owner’s estate tax liability by removing future appreciation in the value of stock from the owner’s estate.

10 common Form 709 mistakes

While it may take some finesse to report the most complicated transactions on Form 709, you do
not have to be a gift tax specialist to be aware of 10 common return preparation mistakes.