Year-End Estate Planning Considerations

As the year draws to a close, it’s the perfect time to get an estate plan if you don’t have one or to review your estate plan and ensure it still reflects your long-term goals, especially if your family is growing through Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) or otherwise. Births, marriages, deaths, and financial changes can all affect the effectiveness of your plan. A year-end review helps keep your documents aligned with your current priorities while addressing the unique needs of families formed through ART.

If You Don’t Have an Estate Plan

The State of North Carolina has a plan for you and that plan will be enacted without your consultation upon your death. Importantly for people with minor children, the law requires that a portion of your estate be set aside for your children if you die without a will. While this may sound good, that portion may be unreachable until your children are 18 putting their surviving parent in a difficult position. This is just one of many possible scenarios. Place your estate plan on your to do list.

If You Do Have an Estate Plan, Review Your Estate Planning Documents

A great deal can change in a year. For families using or planning to use ART, it’s especially important to confirm that parental rights, guardianship, and inheritance are secure and clearly and explicitly protected. When reviewing your plan, consider the following:

• Confirmation of parentage: Confirm that you are a legal parent of any child who is not genetically related to you and that your parentage is portable.
• Confirm fiduciary designations: Ensure the trustees, executors, guardians, and agents under powers of attorney you selected are still appropriate and willing to serve.
• Review asset changes: Add newly acquired assets and remove those that no longer exist so your plan accurately reflects your current financial picture.
• Update your letter of instruction: Make sure it accurately reflects your wishes, including any updated inventory of assets or personal items.
• Consider changes in health: If your medical situation has changed, confirm your will, trusts, healthcare power of attorney, and advance directives reflect your current preferences.
• Review your beneficiaries: Confirm the individuals named in your will, trusts, retirement accounts, and life insurance policies remain correct. Major life events, marriage, divorce, birth, or death, often require beneficiary updates.
• Reaffirm your goals: Make sure your estate plan still reflects your broader family and financial objectives.
• Account for relocation: If you’ve moved to a new state, ensure your estate planning documents comply with local law.
• Ensure legal compliance: Laws change. A periodic review ensures that your plan remains valid, up to date, and structured to take advantage of beneficial new planning opportunities.

Additional Year-End Considerations

Annual Gifting Strategies

The IRS allows individuals to gift up to the annual exclusion amount without triggering gift tax or requiring a gift tax return.

• For 2025, the annual exclusion is $19,000 per recipient (or $38,000 for married couples electing gift-splitting).
• Gifts may also be made to certain trusts or custodial accounts for minors.
• Unused exclusions cannot be carried forward, making this a “use it or lose it” opportunity.

Alternative Gifting

Payments made directly to educational institutions or medical providers on someone else’s behalf do not count toward the annual exclusion and are not taxable gifts.

For ART families, this can include:

• Fertility treatments
• Surrogacy-related medical costs
• Educational expenses for intended children

This approach can provide meaningful support while preserving your annual exclusion amounts.

Charitable Gifting Strategies

Year-end is also a natural time to evaluate your charitable giving. Individuals may make a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) by donating their annual Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) from an IRA directly to a qualified charity.

• QCDs reduce taxable income, even though they do not generate a charitable deduction.
• This strategy is especially useful for donors who do not itemize deductions but still want the tax benefits of charitable giving.

A Law Firm Committed to Innovative Family Planning

At NicholsonPham, we understand that estate planning involving ART requires a proactive, personalized approach to navigate complex family structures, parental rights, and asset protection. Our attorneys craft comprehensive, legally sound strategies designed to reflect your wishes and safeguard your family, however it’s built.

If you need help reviewing your current estate plan or creating a new one, our team is ready to assist. We ensure that your plan reflects the specific needs associated with ART, including parental rights, guardianship, and inheritance concerns for embryos and children born through nontraditional methods.

Schedule a confidential consultation at 919-883-4900, or contact us online.

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