Estate tax
Estate and gift tax returns, at a price set first
For executors and families: the estate tax return, gift tax returns, and answering the IRS when it reviews either one.
Most estates owe no federal estate tax, and some still file a return to keep a spouse's unused exemption. We tell you on the first call which one yours is. When a return is due, we work from the appraisals and statements you already have, meet you by video to go through them, and file. If the IRS reviews the return later, we answer it for the estate.
The fee
How the fee works for an estate return
One fee per return, quoted in writing before we start.
Set per return
The federal estate tax return for one estate, or the portability return that saves a spouse's exemption. A gift tax return is quoted on its own.
What it covers
A first call to say whether a return is needed
Review of appraisals and account statements
The return, prepared and filed
Answering IRS questions about it for a year
Paying it
Half when you sign the engagement letter and half when the matter closes, or split into monthly payments set out in the letter.
Not in the fee: appraisals of property or a business, probate or the estate's court filings, and any estate tax owed. Estates with a business or farm are quoted on the first call.
How it runs
From the first call to filing
- 01
Step 1: A 20-minute call
Tell us the estate's rough size and the date of death. We tell you whether a return is needed and the price.
- 02
Step 2: The papers you have
You upload appraisals and statements; we list anything missing.
- 03
Step 3: One walk-through
We go through the draft with you on video before anything is filed.
- 04
Step 4: Filed, and followed
We file and answer any IRS questions about the return for a year.
Questions
Asked by executors
Does the estate owe estate tax?
Most don't. The federal exemption is high, and only estates above it owe. We check on the first call.
Why file if nothing is owed?
A surviving spouse can keep the unused exemption, but only if a return is filed. It can matter a great deal later.
Do you handle probate too?
We handle the tax side. Probate is a court process; we work alongside the estate's probate lawyer.
Executor of an estate and unsure about the return?
Send us a line about it. We'll set up a short video call and give you the price in writing.