IRS changes estate tax closing letter procedure: What you need to know
The federal agency quietly changed the procedure needed to receive a tax closing letter.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) made an unannounced change to their Frequently Asked Questions page on the Estate Taxes portion of their website. The change impacts the procedure used for closing letters received after filing a Form 706 Estate (and Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax) Return. An article on WealthManagement.com, a news source designed to provide wealth professionals with updates on financial planning strategies, notes that the change was significant and that the agency made the change quietly.
Read MoreWhat If It Is Too Late for a Power of Attorney?
Burlington elder law lawyers can help with the creation of a power of attorney as a part of an incapacity plan. A power of attorney is one of the most important legal documents that you can create in order to protect yourself and in order to protect the people that you love from being put into a difficult situation if something happens to you. When you make a power of attorney, you give authority to someone who will act as your agent and who has a fiduciary duty to act on your behalf. That person can take control if you cannot manage your own affairs because of an illness or an injury.
Read MoreCan I Protect My Assets Under Massachusetts Medicaid Eligibility Rules?
Massachusetts Medicaid eligibility is determined by many different factors, including your income relative to the federal poverty level for a family of your size. One of the most important criteria for determining whether or not someone can qualify for Medicaid coverage is the amount of assets that person has.
For far too many seniors who are dependent upon Medicaid to pay for the costs of their nursing home care (since Medicare and most other insurers typically won’t pay), the asset limit creates big problems. Seniors usually save money and acquire property over the course of their lifetimes, and they want to leave this property to their loved ones. Unfortunately, this means they have too many assets to qualify for Medicaid. Many seniors end up having to spend down those assets until they drop below Medicaid eligibility limits before Medicaid will finally start to pay for the nursing home services they need.
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