The IRS has recently released new rules regarding the issuance of a closing letter after a person files a form 706 estate tax return. The closing letters are meant to provide taxpayers with evidence from the IRS that the estate tax returns have been filed and that tax liabilities are satisfied. Under the previous procedures the IRS would issue the closing letters automatically. The new rules will now require taxpayers to formally request a closing letter from the IRS. The IRS is making these changes because of the substantial increase in the number of people filing estate tax returns for the purpose of making portability elections. This column criticizes the rational for the IRS’s decision, claiming that it’s “akin to cracking a nut with a sledgehammer.”
See Kenneth Pun and James Dougherty, New Estate Tax Closing Letter Procedure Issued, Wealth Management, June 25, 2015.
Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse for bringing this article to my attention.
