Revocable Living Trust Jurisdiction for USA ex-pats

[chubby]

hello, I am planning on a semi-permanent early retirement in Thailand, I currently have a RLT made in 1 USA state, but if I leave that state permanently, does it matter which state the trust was created in, eg if I am living overseas, can I pick any state that I want to claim jurisdiction for a trust?

my state happens to be small, and i'm not sure how much trust jurisdiction would matter, since my estate currently involves ONLY investments, no land , etc.

it's quite expensive to re-do my trust again , so I want to do it more correctly the 2nd time , and I don't think I can revise the current trust , as I mostly made it by myself with Nolo Press software, etc.

thanks

[JimGant]

I currently have a RLT made in 1 USA state, but if I leave that state permanently, does it matter which state the trust was created in, eg if I am living overseas, can I pick any state that I want to claim jurisdiction for a trust?

Your RLT should be valid in any state you choose. http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/moving-new-state-take-look-your-estate-plan.html

Or valid without any domicile at all, since, unlike Wills, there are no state-specific laws governing RLTs, even when they snap shut to irrevocable upon death.

But, as semi-retired, does this mean you'll be living part time in the States? If so, you'll probably have to establish a domicile state, if you want to do something as simple as having a US state issued driver's license. And here the matter of state income taxes enter the equation.

But why the need for a RLT? Sounds like all your assets can be titled jointly, or with Pay on Death beneficiaries -- thus no need for a RLT to avoid probate.

And do your assets exceed $5,000,000? The old days, with a much lower estate tax threshold, did call for a RLT A-B ("bypass") trust mechanism for married couples to raise the effective estate tax thresholds. But, at $5,340,000 for a single person, and double this (due to the portability clause) for married couples, RLTs have lost much of their efficacy.

Yeah, some states do have a lower estate tax threshold for their share -- so the "bypass" nature of the RLT might be warranted in these states. But, if you're going to be shopping around for a new domicile state, obviously look at both income and estate tax implications.

Obviously I don't know all your particulars for wanting a RLT. But I am curious.....

[NeverSure]

Before I forget, let me tell you that if you want to change your trust you must amend the existing one and never create a new one. The trust is a person just as a corporation is, and it owns things. If you create a new trust the old trust will continue to own them and the new trust will be unfunded. It will be a new person which owns nothing.

Second, I would encourage you to have all of your assets in the state that has the jurisdiction. If they are in other states it is a lot harder for a successor trustee to go after them.

An amended trust is complete. It starts out by being titled something like "First amendment to the John P. Doe Living Trust, John P. Doe, trustee." Then it continues fully as if it were a new trust, spelling out everything but with changes. If it didn't say it was an amendment, it could be mistaken for a complete trust. Since it is just an amendment to the original trust, it is still the owner of the assets.

You need to be a resident of the state when the trust is created, but after that, no. If that is an issue you could look into residency in S. Dakota. It's the only state I know of that doesn't require time in state to declare residency. There are outfits that can help you do that but you will need an address and they can do that too. my dakota address dot com is one choice.

Edited April 14, 2015 by NeverSure