Feb-21-2024 - IRS interest rates remain the same for the second quarter of 2024 beginning April 1. The regular non-corporate underpayment and overpayment interest rates remain 8%. See Revenue Ruling 2024-6.

Nov-21-2023 - IRS interest rates remain the same for the first quarter of 2024 beginning January 1. The regular non-corporate underpayment and overpayment interest rates remain 8%. See Revenue Ruling 2023-22.

Nov-10-2023 - IRS announced the 2024 inflation factors in Revenue Procedure 2023-34. The 2024 basic exclusion amount for determining the amount of unified credit is $13,610,000, and the "2-percent portion" under section 6601(j) is $1,850,000. The amount of tax deferred at the 2% rate is $740,000.

Aug-25-2023 - IRS interest rates increase for the fourth quarter of 2023 beginning October 1. The regular non-corporate underpayment and overpayment interest rates increase to 8%. See Revenue Ruling 2023-17.

May-22-2023 - IRS interest rates remain the same for the third quarter of 2023 beginning July 1. The regular non-corporate underpayment and overpayment interest rates remain 7%. See Revenue Ruling 2023-11.

Feb-17-2023 - IRS interest rates remain the same for the second quarter of 2023 beginning April 1. The regular non-corporate underpayment and overpayment interest rates remain 7%. See Revenue Ruling 2023-4.

Nov-30-2022 - IRS interest rates increase for the first quarter of 2023 beginning January 1. The regular non-corporate underpayment and overpayment interest rates will be 7%. See Revenue Ruling 2022-23.

Nov-16-2022 - The IRS is soliciting comments concerning Form 4768, Application for Extension of Time To File a Return and/or Pay U.S. Estate (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Taxes. Written comments must be received on or before January 17, 2023 to be assured of consideration.

Oct-18-2022 - IRS announced the 2023 inflation factors in Revenue Procedure 2022-38. The 2023 basic exclusion amount for determining the amount of unified credit is $12,920,000, and the "2-percent portion" under section 6601(j) is $1,750,000. The amount of tax deferred at the 2% rate is $700,000.

Aug-18-2022 - IRS interest rates increase for the fourth quarter of 2022 beginning October 1. The regular non-corporate underpayment and overpayment interest rates will be 6%. See Revenue Ruling 2022-15.

Jun-28-2022 - IRS has proposed amendments to the Estate Tax Regulations for deductions under section 2053 [IRS-Reg-130975-08]. Among other proposed amendments, the allowable deductions for interest accrued more than 3 years after a decedent's date of death will be reduced to their "present values." This will impact certain section 6166 elections. Comments must be received by Sep-26-2022 to be considered.

May-20-2022 - IRS interest rates increase for the third quarter of 2022 beginning July 1. The regular non-corporate underpayment and overpayment interest rates will be 5%. See Revenue Ruling 2022-11.

May-04-2022 - IRS has proposed a rule regarding the anti-clawback provisions of Regulation 20.2010-1(c)(3) et seq. Written comments must be received by July 26, 2022.

Mar-28-2022 - The United States Tax Court has proposed amendments to its Rules of Practice and Procedure. Public Comments must be received by the Tax Court by May 25, 2022. Section 6166 Declaratory Judgment matters are covered in the Proposed Amendment to Rule 210 - Declaratory Judgment Actions (at page 103) - and in the Proposed Amendment to Rule 217 - Disposition of Actions for Declaratory Judgment (at page 110).

Feb-23-2022 - IRS interest rates increase for the second quarter of 2022 beginning April 1. The regular non-corporate underpayment and overpayment interest rates will be 4%. See Revenue Ruling 2022-05.

Dec-10-2021 - IRS has extended its temporary authorization to use electronic signatures on estate and gift tax returns (among others) through Oct-31-2023.

Nov-24-2021 - IRS interest rates remain the same for the first quarter of 2022 beginning January 1. See Revenue Ruling 2021-24.

Nov-16-2021 - Rev. Proc. 2021-45 provides the 2022 inflation-adjusted amounts for various Internal Revenue Code provisions. The section 6601(j) dollar amount for determining the  "2-percent portion" of tax deferred under a section 6166 election is $1,640,000 (item .51) and the 2022 basic exclusion amount is $12,060,000 (item .41). 

Oct-19-2021 - Footnote 1 in TD-9957 has been corrected to read "For an overview of the procedure applicable to a request for an estate tax closing letter before October 28, 2021, see part D of the Background and Explanation of Provisions of the proposed regulations." This correction is effective October 28, 2021 and is applicable as of September 28, 2021.

Sep-28-2021 - TD-9957 publishes final regulations establishing a $67 user fee for issuing estate tax closing letters, Letter 627. The effective date is October 28, 2021. This fee will also apply to estates that request additional closing letters for supplemental estate tax returns filed pursuant to Rev. Proc. 81-27. The public comments submitted in response to this proposed regulation can be found here.

Aug-26-2021 - IRS interest rates remain the same for the 4th quarter of 2021, beginning October 1. See Revenue Ruling 2021-17.

May-27-2021 - IRS interest rates remain the same for the 3rd quarter of 2021, beginning July 1. See Revenue Ruling 2021-10.

May-21-2021 - The American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) submitted a Report with Recommendations to Revise IRC Section 6166 and to create a new Section 6166A. It addresses long-standing concerns of many practitioners and is well worth reading.

Apr-02-2021 - IRS TIGTA Interim Report 2021-IE-R002 describes a 134% increase through September 2020 in the number of IRS employees spending time teleworking because of the pandemic.

Mar-09-2021 - IRS posted Publication 5332 (Feb-2021), Estate Tax Returns Filed for Wealthy Decedents 2010 - 2019, a one-page summary of 2019 estate tax return filings by the top 5 states, top 5 states per 100,000 adult residents, portfolio composition of estates by 4 gross estate ranges, and a chart of estate tax return filings from 2010 - 2019. In 2019, "small businesses" constituted less than 10% of the assets for gross estates in excess of $10 million.

Dec-31-2020 - IRS published proposed regulations establishing a new user fee for requesting issuance of an Estate Tax Closing Letter (IRS Letter 627). The proposed user fee is $67. Written or electronic comments must be received by March 1, 2021.

Dec-28-2020 -  The IRS announced in a Memorandum that it will temporarily accept digital signatures on certain forms that cannot be electronically filed, including Forms 706, 706-NA, and 709. All of the forms listed can be digitally signed if postmarked from January 1, 2021 through June 30, 2021.

Oct-27-2020 - Rev. Proc. 2020-45 provides the 2021 inflation-adjusted amounts for various Internal Revenue Code provisions. The section 6601(j) dollar amount for determining the  "2-percent portion" of tax deferred under a section 6166 election is $1,590,000 (item .51) and the 2021 basic exclusion amount is $11,700,000 (item .41). 

Sep-11-2020 - In IR-2020-206 the IRS announced that it will temporarily accept digital signatures on 6 more forms that cannot be electronically filed, including Forms 706, 706-NA, and 709. All of the forms listed can be digitally signed if mailed by December 31, 2020.

Sep-04-2020 - TIGTA published a report, Sensitive Tax Records Could Not Always Be Located or Timely Provided, describing how paper tax returns and examination files cannot always be found, noting that Forms 706 and 709 cannot be filed electronically. Reference is made to IRS Document 12990, IRS Records Control Schedules (a 583-page PDF file). Item 156 provides that Forms 706 (and associated Forms 709) are retained for 75 years.

Apr-20-2020 -  IRS is requesting comments regarding the section 6324A Special Lien for estate tax extended under a section 6166 election. Written comments should be received on or before June 19, 2020 to be assured of consideration. See federalregister.gov/d/2020-08203.

Apr-10-2020 -  Notice 2020-23 provides Covid-19 filing extensions to July 15, 2020 for Forms 706 and section 6166 installment payments otherwise due on or after April 1, 2020 and before July 15, 2020, and other extension provisions.

Dec-03-2019 - Final regulations captioned Estate and Gift Taxes; Difference in the Basic Exclusion Amount (TD 9884), with a new entry for Reg. section  20.2010-1(c), were published on Nov-26-2019.

Nov-07-2019 -  Rev. Proc. 2019-44 contains the following inflation-adjusted amounts for 2020: $11,580,000 unified credit (at item .41); $1,180,000 §2032A adjustment (at .42); $15,000 gift tax annual exclusion (at .43); and $1,570,000 as the §6601(j) 2% amount for purposes of section 6166 (at .51).

Nov-06-2019 -  IRS is soliciting comments concerning Form 706-QDT. Form 706–QDT is used by the trustee or the designated filer to compute and report the Federal estate tax imposed on qualified domestic trusts by Internal Revenue Code section 2056A. Written comments should be received on or before January 6, 2020 to be assured of consideration.

Oct-25-2019 - IRS is soliciting comments concerning the collection of information related to the requirements to ensure collection of section 2056A estate tax. Written comments should be received on or before December 24, 2019 to be assured of consideration.

Oct-09-2019 - IRS released its initial 2019 - 2020 Priority Guidance Plan.

Sep-30-2019 - In PLR 201938002 a supplemental 706 return making a §2032 alternate valuation was filed wirthin one year of the original 706 filing date. IRS granted the request under §301.9100-3 because the estate had relied on a law firm's failure to advise it to make the alternate valuation request on the orignal return, and the supplemental return was filed in response to the law firm's determination that the election should have been made.

Sep-25-2019 - The 2019 Instructions for Form 706 have been published.

Sep-04-2019 - Form 706 for estates of decedents dying in 2019 has been published. The 2019 Instructions for Form 706 have not yet been published.

Aug-20-2019 - IRS Notice (FR) 2019-17812 is requesting comments on Form 3520, Annual Return to Report Transactions With Foreign Trusts and Receipt of Certain Foreign Gifts, and Form 3520-A, Annual Information Return of Foreign Trust With a U.S. Owner. Written comments must be received by October 21, 2019 for consideration.

Jul-16-2019 - PLR 201928007 provides several rulings under section 6166. A revocable grantor trust held shares of a company that was composed of 6 operating units. There were several tiers of entities including a holding company. After applying the principles of Rev. Rul. 2006-34, IRS held that all of the operating units were active trades or businesses for purposes of section 6166.

Jul-01-2019 - In CCA 201926023 IRS advised that, because audit adjustments resulted in a lower estate tax using date of death values, section 2032(c) required that the alternate valuation date values could no longer be used to determine the total estate tax. The alternate valuation date election remained valid, however.

Jun-17-2019 - In PLR 201924009 the IRS ruled that a taxpayer who acquired his citizenship solely by reason of his residence within a United States possession, and not on account of his birth, was not a citizen for estate and gift transfer taxes (including Generation-Skipping Transfer taxes).

Jun-11-2019 - Here is a link to the IRS page listing the 2019 mailing addresses for all tax forms beginning with the number 7. All Forms 706-xx are included, including the 2008 Form 706-D.

Jun-05-2019 - CCA 201922029 advised that if a remittance that is held as a deposit is returned at the taxpayer's written request, with or without interest, and a deficiency is later assessed for that period and type of tax, the running of interest will not be suspended during the period for which the remittance was held as a deposit. References were made to section 6603 and Rev. Proc. 2005-18.

May-07-2019 - News release IR-2019-89 says that, beginning May 13, 2019, only individuals with tax identification numbers – either a Social Security number (SSN) or an individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN) – may request an employer identification number. The change prohibits entities from using their own EINs to obtain additional EINs. The new requirement applies to both the paper Form SS-4, Application for Employer Identification Number (PDF), and online EIN applications.

Mar-30-2019 - The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals published its opinion in United States v. Mary Carol S. Johnson et al.

Mar-27-2019 - The Government Accountability Office (GAO) published its report to Congress, GAO 19-176, which provides details about serious risks to the IRS mission resulting from understaffing and other related problems.

Jan-22-2019 - Joint Committee on Taxation, List of Expiring Federal Tax Provisions 2017 - 2027, was published Jan-18-2019.

Jan-15-2019 - On November 23, 2018, IRS proposed regulations to modify provisions in reg. section 20.2010-1 et seq. regarding differences in the Basic Exclusion Amount for certain gifts made, and estates of decedents dying, from January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2025 and afterward. This proposal has attracted much attention since it was published. Comments must be received by February 21, 2019 to be considered.

Dec-20-2018 - IRS announced in IR-2018-256 that it will discontinue faxing tax account transcripts (personal or business) as of Feb-04-2019. Alternate procedures are described or referenced in the news release.

Dec-17-2018 - IRS posted the 2018 Instructions for Form 706 on its website. NOTE: Forms 706 filed after June 30, 2019 must be sent to Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service Center, Kansas City, MO 64999.

Dec-11-2018 - IRS released the 2018 version of Form 706. A link to that Form is on the Home page, left column, in Forms and Instructions under the IRS Resources title bar. The companion Instructions should be issued soon.

Nov-15-2018 - Rev. Proc. 2018-57 provides certain inflation-adjusted items for 2019. The basic exclusion amount for determining the unified credit is $11,400,000. The gift tax annual exclusion remains $15,000. The section 2032A aggregated decrease for special use valuation is $1,160,000. The "2-percent portion" (for purposes of calculating interest under section 6601(j)) is $1,550,000. (The maximum amount of tax deferred at 2% is $620,000, as shown in our table Calculating the 2% Portion of Deferred Tax.)

Sep-11-2018 - IRS is requesting comments on Form 5495, Request for Discharge From Personal Liability Under Internal Revenue Code Section 2204 or 6905. Comments must be received by November 13, 2018.

Jul-17-2018 - IRS announced in Notice 2018-61 that proposed regulations will be issued regarding the effect of section 67(g) on estates and trusts, clarifying that, inter alia, estates and non-grantor trusts may continue to deduct expenses described in section 67(e)(1), and deductions enumerated in section 67(b) and (e) continue to remain outside the definition of "miscellaneous itemized deductions. Comments are requested regarding treatment of section 642(h)(2) excess deductions on termination.

Jun-21-2018 - In Gaskin v. Commissioner, TC Memo 2018-89 (income tax; Jun-20-2018), the Tax Court ruled that the amount on which the 75% fraud penalty of section 6663 is computed cannot be reduced by an amended return. Reg. section 1.6664-2(c)(2) provides that the amount shown on an amended return is not included in the "amount shown as the tax by the taxpayer on his return" for establishing the amount of the underpayment in determining the fraud penalties under section 6663.

Jun-19-2018 - IRS is requesting comments on Form 712, Life Insurance Statement. Written comments should be received on or before August 20, 2018.

Jun-05-2018 - IRS is requesting comments on Form 4422, Application for Certificate Discharging Property Subject to Estate Tax Lien, and on new Form 15056, Escrow Agreement for Estates. Written comments should be received on or before August 6, 2018.

Mar-09-2018 - Rev. Proc. 2018-18 (IRB 2018-10 at page 392) modifies certain inflation-adjusted items of Rev. Proc. 2017-58, including the unified credit (.35), which is based on a basic exclusion amount of $11,180,000. Modifications to the amounts excluded under section 2032A (.36), the annual exclusion for gifts (.37), and the amount used to calculate the 2% interest amount under section 6601(j) (.45) should be announced later this year.

Feb-26-2018 - In CCA 201808017 the IRS concluded that notices (Statutory Notice of Deficiency) to an estate should be sent not only to the taxpayers (i.e. the executors or personal representatives), but also to all of their representatives named on a Power of Attorney (e.g. Form 2848).

Feb-08-2018 - A second quarter update to the IRS 2017-2018 Priority Guidance Plan was released, but the release date of updated inflation factor adjustments for Rev. Proc. 2017-58 is not yet indicated (Rev. Proc. 2017-58 was released Oct-19-2017). One can also review the IRS index of Priority Guidance Plans from 1999 to date.

Jan-18-2018 - The Congressional Research Service released Report R42959, Recent Changes in the Estate and Gift Tax Provisions, which describes changes from 2001 through the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.

Jan-10-2018 - In a Memorandum Decision the United States District Court of Utah (Central Division) awarded attorney's fees and expert witness costs to the defendants in United States v. Mary Carol S. Johnson et al. The IRS failed to show that its legal positions were substantially justified.

Dec-08-2017 - The Tax Policy Center published its Estimate of Estate Tax Returns under the House and Senate versions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

Oct-21-2017 - Rev. Proc. 2017-58 provides certain inflation-adjusted items for 2018. The basic exclusion amount for determining the unified credit is $5,600,000. The gift tax annual exclusion increases to $15,000. The section 2032A aggregated decrease for special use valuation is $1,140,000. The "2-percent portion" (for purposes of calculating interest under section 6601(j)) is $1,520,000. (The portion of tax deferred at 2% is $608,000, as shown in our table Calculating the 2% Portion of Deferred Tax.)

Oct-10-2017 - Rep. Austin Scott (R Ga.) introduced H.R. 3886, a bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to increase the unified credit against the estate and gift tax and to simplify the estate and gift tax rates. The unified credit in section 2010(c)(3) is increased from $5,000,000 to $50,000,000, and the tentative tax under 2001(c) is changed to equal 20% of the amount with respect to which such tentative tax is to be computed. It also provides that indexing for inflation adjustments would begin in 2017.

Apr-26-2017 - President Trump signed an Executive Order on Promoting Agricultural and Rural Prosperity in America. A task force will identify changes to be made to promote the purposes of the Order in Section 4, including changes to the estate tax as follows: 

(viii)  promote the preservation of family farms and other agribusiness operations as they are passed from one generation to the next, including changes to the estate tax and the tax valuation of family or cooperatively held businesses;

Apr-25-2017 - IRS is requesting comments on Form 709, United States Gift (and Generation-SkippingTransfer) Tax Return. Comments should be received by June 23, 2017.

Mar-29-2017 -  IRS is requesting comments on, among other forms, Form 706 and Form 4422. Comments should be received by April 27, 2017.

Mar-10-2017 -  IRS is requesting comments on Form 1041-ES, Estimated Income Tax for Estates and Trusts. Written comments are due on or before May 8, 2017.

Feb-13-2017 - The SOI (Statistics of Income) Tax Stats estate tax statistics for the 2015 fiing year have been released; 11,917 estate tax returns were filed of which 4,918 reported tax due. Of those, 266 were for gross estates of $50 million or more. Total estate tax of of $17 billion was paid or shown due.

Feb-10-2017 - IRS has released Pub. 559, Survivors, Executors, and Administrators, for use in preparing 2016 returns.

Feb-07-2017 - H.R. 451, the Permanently Repeal the Estate Tax Act of 2017, is a proposal to repeal the estate tax and retain stepped-up basis at death. It would be effective for estates of decedents dying after Dec-31-2016. Also see H.R. 631, which would be effective for estates of decedents dying on or after the date of enactment.

Feb-01-2017 - The IRS is soliciting comments concerning Form 706-NA, United States Estate (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Return - Estate of nonresident not a citizen of the United States. Written comments should be received on or before April 3, 2017. Also see the Instructions for Form 706-NA.

Jan-25-2017 - Senator Thune has introduced a bill, Death Tax Repeal Act of 2017. See S.205. The estate tax and GST transfer tax would be repealed for transfers after the date of enactment, while the gift tax would be modified, not repealed. This is a companion to the House Death Tax Repeal Act of 2017 introduced or co-sponsored by Reps. Noem and Bishop. See H.R. 198, as noted below on Jan-06-2017, which would repeal the estate tax, GST transfer tax, and gift tax for transfers after the date of enactment.

Jan-19-2017 - TD 9811 provides final regulations regarding application of the modified carryover basis rules of section 1022 and section 2210 for estates. The regulations will affect property transferred from certain decedents who died in 2010 and will apply on and after Jan-19-2017. Also see section 1014.

Senator Rubio has introduced a bill, S. 47 - the Protect Family Farms and Businesses Act - providing that the proposed regulations under section 2704 shall have no force or effect.

Jan-18-2017 - Notice 2017-15 provides information and rules concerning recalculations of the applicable exclusion amount under sections 2010(c), 2505, and 2631 for gifts, bequests, and Generation-Skipping Transfers to same-sex spouses.

Jan-17-2017 - In PLR 201702004 a section 2055 charitable deduction was allowed for a bequest to a foreign organization whose purpose is to improve the quality of life of the handicapped and elderly. The decedent was a citizen and resident of the U.S. on date of death.

Jan-09-2017 - Notice 2017-12 provides that an IRS transcript of an estate account can be used in lieu of an estate tax closing letter to confirm that an examination of the return has been closed. Reference is made to TC Code 421. See Document 6209 at Section 8A, Master File Codes, for further transcript account code number information.

Jan-06-2017 - Representative Mac Thornberry has introduced The Death Tax Repeal Act of 2017, H.R. 198. Also see Rep. Bob Goodlatte's bill, the "Tax Code Termination Act", H.R. 29, to be effective for any taxable year beginning after December 31, 2021.

Dec-30-2016 - The IRS is requesting comments on Form 4422, Application for Certificate Discharging Property Subject to Estate Tax Lien. Written comments should be received By February 27, 2017. See 81 FR 96200-96201.

Dec-27-2016 - The IRS is requesting comments on Form 706. Written comments should be received By February 21, 2017. See 81 FR 94483.

Dec-12-2016 - In CCA 201650017 the IRS explained that if the gross estate exceeds $5,000,000 a portability election cannot be made if the estate tax return was not timely filed. If the gross estate is less than $5,000,000 and a return was not timely filed, a portability election would be granted only if a private letter ruling is requested; simply filing a zero tax return with the portability election after the due date will not be effective.

Dec-01-2016 - The Tax Policy Center released projections for estate tax return filings in 2017 and 2025 under various proposals including the 2009 tax rates with and without indexing. Under the Tax Policy Center's Model Estimates, see item numbers T16-0276,  T16-0277,  T16-0278,  T16-0279,  T16-0280,  T16-0281, and T16-0282.

Dec-01-2016 - The Fall 2016 Statistics of Income Bulletin has been released covering certain business return filings in 2014 and 2010. Through 2014 the number of LLCs filing as sole proprietorships and as partnerships has greatly increased since LLCs were first broken out as a separate category in 2001.

Nov-08-2016 - In CCA 201645013 (an income tax case) the IRS made clear that "surveying" a tax return is merely "looking at" a tax return within the meaning of Rev. Proc. 2005-32 and is not an examination. An estate tax return can be surveyed before assignment by the Estate Tax Group Manager or can be surveyed after assignment by the Estate Tax Attorney who would otherwise examine (audit) the return. See IRM 4.25.1.4.

Oct-27-2016 - In Rev. Proc. 2016-55 the IRS announced the 2017 inflation-adjusted items. The basic exclusion amount is $5,490,000; the maximum §2032A valuation decrease is $1,120,000; the gift tax annual exclusion remains $14,000; and the amount used to determine the 2% portion of tax under §6601(j) is $1,490,000. Our projected figure for the amount of tax deferred at 2% for 2017 is $596,000.

Oct-24-2016 - In CCA 201643020 the donor failed to report prior year taxable gifts on a timely filed gift tax return. The gift tax on the filed return was therefore underpaid. The failure to report those prior year gifts does not extend the statute of limitations for assessing additional gift tax (attributable to the prior year taxable gifts) on the return that was filed. Section 6501(c)(9) applies only when gifts are not reported.

Oct-12-2016 - The Treasury Department Office of Tax Analysis released a report captioned Tax Expenditures Under the Estate Tax.  It points out that the marital deduction, charitable deduction, and unified estate tax credit can reduce the effective estate tax rate from 40 percent to 10 percent. In 2014, 11,764 estate tax returns were filed (page 13 has a typo stating the number as 16,764), of which 5,112 were taxable returns, of which 174 estates made a §6166 election to defer payment of a total of $788 million in estate tax.

Oct-11-2016 - IRS Appeals has revised its case transfer and conference procedures. See Appeals IRM 8.6.1.2, effective Oct-01-2016, and the Interim Guidance on Appeals' Conference Practices.

Sep-28-2016 - Rev. Proc. 2016-49 provides that in estates in which the executor made a portability election, QTIP elections will not be treated as void. Rev. Proc. 2001-38 is modified and superseded.

Sep-19-2016 - H.R. 6042 has been introduced to nullify the implementation of proposed regulations under section 2704. Also see Rep. Davidson's proposed Protect Family Farms and Businesses Act (Sep-22-2016).

Aug-16-2016 - An updated IRS Priority Guidance Plan for 2016-2017 has been released.

Aug-09-2016 - In Rev. Proc. 2016-42 the IRS provides a sample provision for the governing instrument of a CRAT as a "qualified contingency" under §664(f), effective Aug-08-2016. Any CRAT containing this sample provision will not be subject to the probability of exhaustion test set forth in Rev. Rul. 70-452 and applied in Rev. Rul. 77-374. This applies to trusts created on or after Aug-08-2016.

Aug-02-2016 - In CCA 201631011 the IRS said that a Power of Attorney designated on Form 2848 can request copies of documents in an examination file, and can also request and receive return information of the taxpayer for the year in question, but cannot request 3rd party documents outside the context of an examination of the  tax year specified on the 2848. A power of attorney on Form 2848 is limited to representing the taxpayer before the IRS and is not the same as an attorney-in-fact.

Jun-30-2016 - IRS released memorandum AP-08-0616-0003 with updated procedures for Appeals when requesting Examination assistance in docketed Tax Court cases.

Jun-30-2016 - IRS released Information Letter 2016-0038, which explains the §2010 unified credit.

May-31-2016 - In CCA 201622032 an estate's Form 1041 closed-year refund claim was based on a Tax Court stipulated decision settling an asset's value for Form 706 estate tax purposes. The original estate tax value had been used as the 1041 basis value. The estate argued that the mitigation provisions of sections 1311 - 1314 applied to allow the closed-year refund. IRS concluded that the Tax Court settlement, as incorporated in the Stipulated Decision, was not a "substantive decision on the merits" for sections 1311 - 1314 mitigation purposes and denied the 1041 refund claim.

May-23-2016 - In CCA 201621014 the IRS said that heirs at law, next of kin, beneficiaries under a will, and some donees of property may request estate return information if they have a material interest that will be affected by that information, but that the IRS can withhold items if disclosure would seriously impair federal tax administration

Apr-04-2016 - In CCA 201614036 IRS Counsel determined that reporting understated gifts on a prior year return does not extend the ASED for adjusting subsequent year gift tax.

Feb-12-2016 – In Notice 2016-19 the IRS extended the deadline for filing basis reporting statements under section 6035 from February 29, 2016 to March 31, 2016.

Dec-31-2015 - The Death Tax Repeal Act of 2015, HR 1105, would repeal the Federal estate tax and generation-skipping transfer tax for the estates of decedents dying on or after the date on which it is enacted. Modifications to the gift tax and Qualified Domestic Trusts are also incorporated.

Oct-22-2015 - Revenue Procedure 2015-53 provides the 2016 inflation adjustments for Federal estate tax and other sections of the Internal Revenue Code. Our table for calculating the 2% portion of tax deferred under section 6166 has been updated with a projected figure for 2016 of $592,000.

Sep-21-2015 - The text of the American Solution for Simplifying the Estate Tax Act of 2015, HR 3508, is available on the Congress.gov website. It would permit taxpayers to elect to pay an additional annual income tax of 1% of modified adjusted gross income in lieu of the chapter 11 estate tax and the chapter 13 generation-skipping transfer tax. There are some differences between HR 3508 and HR 5872 (the 2014 Act). 

Sep-10-2015 - Proposed regulations regarding gifts and bequests from expatriates and section 2801 reporting requirements have been published in the Federal Register. A new Form 708 will be used to report the tax due, as was described in Announcement 2009-27. Notice 2009-85 provided computational guidelines and certain payment deferral provisions with regard to section 877. Also see IRB 2015-39 (Sep-28-2015), where the final date to submit comments is Dec-09-2015.

Aug-24-2015 - The section 6035 basis statement filing deadline has been extended in Notice 2015-57, 2015-36 IRB 1, to Feb-29-2016.

Jul-28-2015 - IRS is requesting public comment on the Regulations under section 6324A, Special lien for estate tax deferred under section 6166, and Form 13925, IRC Section 6324A Lien Agreement Form - Notice of Election of and Agreement To Special Lien In Accordance With Internal Revenue Code Section 6324A and Regulations. Comments are due by September 25, 2015.

Jul-09-2015 - The Tax Court Stipulated Deficiency Decision in Estate of William M. Davidson v. Commissioner provides for a total increase of $387,405,078: a net Form 706 estate and GST tax deficiency of $152,040,896; total Form 709 gift tax and GST tax deficiencies of $235,231,270; and gift tax section 6651(a)(1) penalties of $132,912. 

Jun-26-2015 - The text of the Sanders Responsible Estate Tax Act is available in PDF format on the Senate Budget Committee's website.

May-07-2015 - Notice 2015-38 provides an updated list of Private Delivery Services for section 7502 timely filing purposes.

Apr-14-2015 - The text of the House Death Tax Repeal Act of 2015 is available.

Mar-17-2015 - The Joint Committee on Taxation published JCX-52-15, History, Present Law, And Analysis of the Federal Wealth Transfer Tax System (JCT link to download the text in PDF format).

Jan-29-2015 - The AICPA published a letter to Congress requesting relief for a number of section 9100 statutory elections, among which are the section 6166(d) regular election and section 6166(h)(2) election on a deficiency.

Dec-29-2014 - The text of the American Solution for Simplifying the Estate Tax Act of 2014, HR 5872, is available on the Congress.gov website. It would permit taxpayers to elect to pay an additional annual income tax of 1% of modified adjusted gross income in lieu of the chapter 11 estate tax and the chapter 13 generation-skipping transfer tax.

Oct-31-2014 - The inflation-adjusted items for 2015 have been released in Rev. Proc. 2014-61. The 2015 basic exclusion amount is $5,430,000. The gift tax annual exclusion remains $14,000. The dollar amount used to determine the 2% portion of tax (for purposes of calculating interest) is $1,470,000; our projection of the 2% portion of deferred tax is $588,000. We have updated our table for calculating the 2% portion of deferred tax to reflect the 2015 adjustments.

Oct-08-2014 - Here is a link to the text of S. 2899, the Responsible Estate Tax Act, in html/xml format from the Congress.gov website.

Sep-19-2014 - The 2014 Final Instructions for Form 706 were released. The 2013 version of Form 706 is to be used.

Aug-26-2014 - Draft Instructions for the 2014 Schedule D, Form 1041, were released.

Aug-25-2014 - The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance released TSB-M-14(6)M, which shows how tax is to be computed for the estate of a decedent dying on or after April 1, 2014.

Jul-18-2014 - The IRS released Legal Memorandum 201429023 explaining that a section 6511 refund amount includes previously paid tax, interest, and penalties. The refund is not limited to just the tax that was previously paid. The taxpayer's designation at the time of payment, and the allocations to tax, interest, or penalties previously made by the IRS, have no effect on calculating the refund amount.

Apr-23-2014 - The IRS released a draft Form 706-QDT and the draft Instructions for Form 706-QDT.

Mar-28-2014 - The Joint Committee on Taxation released its Overview of the Federal Tax System as in Efffect for 2014, JCX-25-14.

Feb-28-2014 - The IRS released the final instructions for Form 8960, Net Investment Income Tax - Individuals, Estates, and Trusts.

Jan-17-2014 - PLR 201403012 was published January 17, 2014. Our narrative review of this Ruling highlights three important considerations that were not directly addressed in the Ruling but which are clearly indicated by IRS Counsel's conclusions.

Nov-18-2013 - The 2014 inflation adjustments are published in Revenue Procedure 2013-35. We prepared a summary of the 2014 Estate and Gift Tax adjustments. The table showing the calculation of the maximum 2% portion of tax deferred under section 6166 has been updated to reflect the 2014 adjustments.

Oct-29-2013 - The 2013 Form 706 was posted on the IRS website on October 29. The Instructions for the 2013 Form 706 were posted November 12, 2013. A suggestion is made for rewording the last sentence of Item 5 of the worksheet for determining the adjusted gross estate ratio on page 14 of the Instructions.

Oct-25-2013 - PLR 201343004 dealing with section 6166(b)(10) and 6166(b)(8) elections was released on October 25, 2013. A narrative description discusses its more important elements. The North Carolina estate tax has been repealed for decedents dying on or after January 1, 2013.

Aug-23-2013 - In Sun Capital Partners III, et al v. New England Teamsters & Trucking Industry Pension Fund, et al, the First Circuit Court held that a private equity fund was engaged in a trade or business and was not merely an investor. Although Federal estate tax was not a factor in this case, the fact that a private equity fund was found to be engaged in a trade or business suggests that a decedent's interest in a private equity fund could qualify for a section 6166 election with a similar finding if the other requirements for a section 6166 election were satisfied, and if the Federal estate tax were to be treated the same as the tax at issue in Sun Capital . A petition for rehearing, and a petition for a rehearing en banc, were denied. August 23, 2013.

Jul-29-2013 - The United States District Court, District of Utah, Central Division, issued an Amended Memorandum opinion in the transferee liability case of U.S. v. Johnson.