The Costs of Deceased Estates Explained

An important function of an executor, the person who is appointed by the Master of the High Court to administer a deceased estate, is to account for the liabilities in the estate of the deceased. Keep in mind that only once the liabilities in the estate have been discharged can the heirs receive their inheritances. […]

THE BASICS OF ESTATE DUTY

When a person dies, they leave behind an estate which includes everything they own. Estate Duty is payable on the estate of every person who dies and whose nett estate is in excess of R3,5 million. It is charged at the rate of 20%. Currently, SARS is responsible for collecting the Estate Duty of a deceased person. […]

WHAT IS THE COST OF MY ESTATE DUTY?

In terms of the stipulations of section 4 of the Estate Duty Act No 45 of 1955 certain deductions from the value of an estate are allowed in order to determine the final value of the estate which will be subject to estate duty. The following two rebates are the most well-known: Section 4(q) – […]

IMPLICATIONS OF ESTATE DUTY

 Estate duty is charged on the dutiable value of the estate in terms of the Estate Duty Act. The general rule is that if the taxpayer is ordinarily resident in South Africa at the time of death, all of his/her assets (including deemed property), wherever they are situated, will be included in the gross value […]

IS IT BENEFICIAL TO CREATE A TRUST?

A Trust can be described as a legal relationship which has been created by the founder, who places assets under the control of Trustees. This either happens during the founder’s lifetime (inter vivos trust) or at the death of the founder (testamentary trust). This article will focus on the advantages and disadvantages of an inter […]