Estate Planning

State of the North Carolina Estate Tax

By Greg Herman-Giddens

For years, there has only been North Carolina estate tax if federal estate tax was due.  Now, however, that the federal estate tax is gone (for now, anyway), what's the status of the NC estate tax?

N.C.G.S. Section 105-32.2 provides, in pertinent part, as follows:

"The amount of the estate tax imposed by this section is the amount of the state death tax credit that, as of December 31, 2001, would have been allowed under section 2011 of the Code against the federal taxable estate. The tax may not exceed the amount of federal estate tax due under the Code."  [Emphasis added.]

Regardless of how the first sentence above is interpreted, since zero federal estate tax is due for individuals dying in 2010, the second sentence clearly mandates a zero NC estate tax as well. 

Full post as published by North Carolina Estate Planning Blog on January 25, 2010 (boomark / email).