One of the more common reasons to own life insurance is to help fund estate taxes after your death. If the policy is properly structured, the proceeds will not be included in your taxable estate and your beneficiaries will not have to pay federal income or estate taxes. However, with the eventual repeal of the estate tax in 2010, you may wonder whether you still need life insurance for estate purposes.
Keep in mind that the estate tax repeal may not be permanent. Due to the sunset provisions of the current tax law, the estate tax will be reinstated in 2011, based on 2001 tax laws, unless further legislation is enacted.
Even if the estate tax appeal becomes permanent, there are situations where the use of life insurance may be an appropriate estate planning strategy:
- To provide liquidity after your death - If your estate consists primarily of illiquid assets, such as real estate or a business, you may want to use insurance to provide funds to your family so they won't have to sell or mortgage assets.
- To equalize inheritances - Perhaps your primary asset is a family business, which is run by one of your children. You may want to leave the business to that child, but need additional funds to equalize the inheritances of your other children.
- To transfer wealth to heirs - Even if the estate tax is permanently repealed, life insurance proceeds still retain their income tax advantage - proceeds are paid to beneficiaries free of federal income taxes.
- To leave a large contribution to a charity - You may want to leave a large contribution to a charity without depletion assets left to heirs.
- To help heirs fund future tax liabilities - After the estate tax is repealed, inherited assets will no longer receive a step-up in basis to market value at the date of the decedent's death. Instead, inherited property will generally have a basis equal to the lesser of the decedent's adjusted basis or the property's fair market value at the date of the decedent's death, with certain adjustment. If you leave substantial assets with low bases to heirs, they may face significant future tax liabilities. You may want to help them with those tax liabilities through the use of life insurance.