IRS

Cross-Border Charitable Donation & U.S. Donor

Philanthropy can strengthen one’s estate plan. In Canada, an estate plan may integrate charitable donations to leave a legacy to our community while taking advantage of the associated tax benefits. Such strategy can be implemented during the donor’s lifetime or upon the donor’s death. If the donor is a U.S. citizen living in Canada (hereinafter referred as a “U.S. donor”), does the strategy work? U.S. donor & U.S. Tax Filings….

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Charitable Giving, International, Philanthropy/Charitable Giving, Tax Issues, U.S. Citizen, US Taxes

Joint Ownership & U.S. Estate Tax Considerations

Canadians are familiar with the concept of joint ownership with right of survivorship. It is the prevalent form of ownership between spouses. Therefore, it is not uncommon for Canadians to own U.S. real property or other U.S. property, jointly, especially between spouses. Many are of the view that it will simplify the estate plan and succession of the U.S. property to the surviving owner yet, few understand the U.S. estate….

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International, Joint Tenancy, Real Estate, Succession Planning, Tax Issues, United States, US Taxes

Can the CRA seize the proceeds of life insurance?

An existing tax debt at the time of death can wreak havoc on the administration of an estate and can jeopardize the estate and insurance planning. This is because the Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”) is not your typical creditor and has statutory powers to seize assets of the estate beyond what other creditors may seize. Personal Insurance If the insurance proceeds are payable to the designated beneficiary(ies) under the insurance….

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Estate Planning, Insurance, Tax Issues, US Taxes

Corporately-Owned Insurance, Redemption Obligations and the U.S. Supreme Court

Canadian estate and tax advisors may want to consider the case Connelly v. Internal Revenue Service, No. 23-146[1] (U.S. 3/27/24).  The U.S. Supreme Court (“SCOTUS”) issued its decision on June 6th and it serves as a good reminder of the implications of corporately-owned life insurance in the context of cross-border tax and estate planning for Canadian estates. The issue focused on the estate tax treatment of corporately-owned life insurance proceeds….

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Estate Planning, Insurance, IRS, Tax Issues, U.S. Citizen, United States, US Taxes, valuation

Is a U.S. Estate Tax Return Due?

So you’ve taken on the role of executor of your dear friend, Sally’s estate. It just so happened that Sally owned a vacation property in the United States. You’ve come across a couple of blogs in the last few weeks that suggest her estate may owe some taxes to the IRS. You have no idea whether this is true and what you may need to do. You decide to keep reading these blogs to see if they’ll help you…..

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Estate Administration, IRS, United States, US Taxes
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