Estate Tax questions: help settling my deceased Dad's estate in Taiwan

Legal Taxes
1

Hi,

I am new to this forum but glad I found it.

My Dad (a US and Taiwan citizen) passed away this May and he owned some real estate in Taiwan. I am trying to help my Mom settle his estate and have a few questions.

My current understanding of Taiwan Estate Tax laws are based on these 2 documents (I don’t know the veracity of them but they seem to be current and accurate):

  1. Section 10.1 Estate and Gift Tax Act from dot.gov.tw/en/home.jsp?msern … p&level=2#
  2. globalpropertyguide.com/Asia … nheritance

Background on Dad’s estate and family profile

  • my Dad is a Taiwan citizen & had a resident’s card but it’s fine line if we can claim he “continuously resided in Taiwan”. He spent about 35-45% of his time over the past 8 years in Taiwan.
  • My Dad owned: 2 condos - 1 in Keelung (a very old condo his Dad gave to him) and 1 in Linkou
  • Mom: also a dual citizen of Taiwan and US.
  • Dad’s children: myself and my sister. We are both US citizens only but in process now of getting Taiwan passports so we can be legally recognized by Taiwan as my Dad’s legal heirs.

My questions

  1. Is the 10% estate tax only applied to the value of my Dad’s estate that is over NT $12 million? My mom and I are now trying to value my Dad’s assets and liabilities (debt) and it’s roughly around 12million we think.
  2. My Dad’s father (a Taiwan citizen and resident) is still alive - can we use the NT $1 million exemption per Article 17 (3) of the Estate & Gift Tax Act?
  3. My Dad had (2) mortgages on these 2 condos. I assume that’s considered a liability and can be deducted from his taxable estate?
  4. Since my Dad passed away May 2011, his estate tax, if any, is due by November 2011, correct? (6 month rule)
  5. Would you recommend we hire an appraiser to value the condos on the date my Dad passed away? (US estate tax law allows for revaluation based on deceased person’s date of death)
  6. Dad has a US pourover will that states (basically) that all his property shall be transferred into the joint trust my Mom and Dad set up. Will Taiwan probate court recognize a translated version of this Will?

Thank you for your help.

2

I suggest that you contact a Dai-Su, a kind of notary public that is familiar with processing legal matters and documents in TW. You are right about the 6 month rule and I do not know about the ceiling at which the 10% tax is enforced, but I do know that there are many deductions and exemptions that can apply to keep you from ever getting to a level where you would be taxed very high. Again, a professional would be able to point all of these out to you.