Don’t put your grieving family into an even
bigger despair because of estate taxes. With enough preparation, you can lower
the cost of estate taxes.
The first thing you need to do is hire a Professional estate
lawyer in North Vancouver who can walk you through the process of
estate planning. An estate lawyer is experienced in handling estate business
and would help you cover all the bases when it comes to estate planning.
1. Make sure your estate and all the assets
that come with it is passed to a beneficiary or a surviving relative.
When you die, your estate and all the property
you leave behind goes through the Canadian taxation process. This is the last
tax you will have to pay. But you can defer this by appointing a surviving
family member or another beneficiary to become the recipient of the estate.
2. Give early inheritances.
Don’t wait until you die before your children
or the rest of your surviving family members get their inheritance. When they
turn into adults, consider leaving inheritances to them such as house or money.
Once you give money after your death, it is subjected to tax. But if you give
their inheritance money earlier while you are still alive, it won’t be
subjected to tax.
You can also try liquidating assets and
securities. Converting them into cash will subject you to lower taxation on the
liquidation year – still significantly lower than the tax you might accrue on
your death.
3. Use a loan for inheritance
Set up a loan in lieu of inheritance. Look for
those with low interest rates or no interest and use it to fund your children’s
education or a mortgage. When you die, the loan can be paid off, leaving
you without additional tax obligations to deal with.
Estate planning can get really complex so make
sure you are guided by Lakes, Whyte LLP. Your law firm should offer you
solutions on how to keep estate taxes at a minimum.
