Ezel / Tax Rulings / CT
CT Ruling 89-125 Real Estate Conveyance Tax 1989-09-27

Which conveyances qualified as made pursuant to a divorce decree under Connecticut Ruling 89-125?

Short answer: A joint conveyance to the purchaser after the divorce decree ordered sale and equal division of proceeds qualified. A wife's quitclaim to the husband did not qualify unless the decree was modified to assign the property to him and the purchase money to her.

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This page answers the general question as of 1989. Ezel answers yours, under current Connecticut tax law, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1989
Subsequent statutory amendments, regulation changes, court decisions, or later rulings may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current tax advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, rate, or position mentioned here.
Disclaimer: This is an official 1989 Connecticut Department of Revenue Services Ruling applying the real-estate-conveyance-tax court-decree provision then in effect to specific divorce transactions. The result turns on what the dissolution decree itself ordered and whether it was modified to assign the property and purchase money between the spouses. This summary is informational only and is not legal or tax advice. Consult a licensed Connecticut tax professional about your specific transaction.
About this page: The plain-English summary, reader guidance, and Q&A below were written by Ezel based on the official state tax ruling. The original ruling (linked on this page as a PDF) is the authoritative source for any reliance.
View original ruling (PDF)

Plain-English summary

When a divorce decree ordered the spouses to sell real property and divide the net proceeds equally, their conveyance to the purchaser was a conveyance pursuant to the Superior Court decree under the cited provision.

A quitclaim from the wife to the husband was not pursuant to that decree merely because he paid her for her interest. It would qualify if the decree were modified to assign the real property to the husband and the purchase money to the wife.

What this means for you

The historical ruling looked to the actual terms of the divorce decree, not only the spouses' payment arrangement.

Common questions

Did the joint sale to the purchaser qualify? Yes, because the decree ordered the sale and equal division of proceeds.

Did the wife's quitclaim to the husband qualify? No under the original decree.

What modification would change the result? Assigning the property to the husband and the purchase money to the wife.

Citations and references

  • Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-498(a)(9), as cited in the ruling.
  • Conn. Gen. Stat. § 46b-81, as cited in the ruling.

Source

Original ruling text

Ruling 89-125, Real Estate Conveyance Tax

Where the court, at the time of entering a decree dissolving a marriage, has ordered the sale of real property, the net proceeds to be equally divided by the husband and wife, a conveyance by the husband and wife to the purchaser is a "conveyance of an interest in real property pursuant to a decree of the superior court under section 46b-81"; Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-498(a)(9).

Where the court, at the time of entering a decree dissolving a marriage, has ordered the sale of real property, the net proceeds to be equally divided by the husband and wife, a quitclaim by the wife to the husband is not a "conveyance of an interest in real property pursuant to a decree of the superior court under section 46-81"; Conn. Gen. Stat. § 12-498(a)(9), even if made in consideration of the payment to the wife of her interest in the property. If the decree were modified so that it assigned the real property to the husband and assigned the purchase money to the wife, the quitclaim would be a "conveyance of interest in real property pursuant to a decree of the superior court under section 46b-81"; Conn. Gen. Stat. §12-498(a)(9).

LEGAL DIVISION

September 27, 1989

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