Did a 1980 irrevocable trust or its income beneficiary owe Florida intangible tax when the trustee could not be based in Florida?

Plain-English summary

The Florida Department of Revenue concluded that neither the trustee nor the beneficiary of the 1980 irrevocable trust owed Florida intangible tax, and no returns were required for the trust.

The trust prohibited an individual trustee from residing in Florida and prohibited a corporate trustee from qualifying to do or doing business in Florida. It also required any trustee who became taxable in Florida to stop serving. The current trustee was not a Florida resident, so the Department found no Florida taxable situs.

The beneficiary had a current right to trust income and a limited power of appointment. The beneficiary could not appoint assets or income to the grantor, the grantor's estate, or the estate's creditors, and had no power to revoke the trust or invade its corpus. Those limits meant the beneficiary did not hold the taxable beneficial interest described by the cited law.

What this means for you

Trustees

Trustee residence or domicile was central to Florida situs under this ruling. The trust document itself barred a trustee from maintaining the Florida connections described in the advisement.

Trust beneficiaries and grantors

A current income right did not by itself create the taxable beneficial interest at issue. The ruling also examined revocation, corpus-invasion, and appointment powers.

Accountants and tax professionals

This ruling expressly found no Florida intangible-tax liability and no trust return requirement under its 1996 facts and authorities. Confirm current law before applying its historical result.

Common questions

Q: Why did the trustee lack Florida taxable situs? A: The current trustee was not a Florida resident, and the trust barred Florida-resident individual trustees and corporate trustees doing or qualified to do business in Florida.

Q: Could the beneficiary appoint trust property to the grantor or the grantor's estate? A: No. The appointment power expressly excluded the grantor, the grantor's estate, and creditors of that estate.

Q: Could the beneficiary revoke the trust or invade its corpus? A: No. The Department relied on the absence of both powers.

Q: Did the trust have to file a Florida intangible-tax return? A: No. The ruling states that no returns were required for the trust under these facts.

Citations and references

• Fla. Stat. § 199.052(5) — responsibility of a Florida trustee for intangible tax
• Fla. Stat. § 199.175 — taxable situs
• Fla. Stat. § 199.023(7) and Fla. Admin. Code r. 12C-2.002(1)(c) — taxable beneficial interest in a foreign trust
• Fla. Stat. § 213.22 — Technical Assistance Advisements

Source

• Landing page: Florida Tax Law Library
• Advisement: TAA 96C2-145

Original ruling text

Dec 26, 1996

Re: Technical Assistance Advisement No. 96(C)2-145 Intangible Tax; Trust ss. 199.023(7), and 199.052(5), F.S., XXX Irrevocable Trust of 1980

Dear :

This office has received your request for a Technical Assistance Advisement for the trust listed above. This office has examined the provisions of the trust document that contains provisions governing duties of trustees and rights of the beneficiary.

Discussion of Trust Provisions

Under the provisions of the trust, the beneficiary is granted the right to trust income and a limited power of appointment over the assets of the trust. This limitation states that the beneficiary/grantor may not appoint to or for the benefit of the grantor, or the grantor's estate, or the creditors of the grantor's estate, any asset or income of the trust. The trust further provides that the individual trustee may not be a resident of Florida and that a corporate trustee may neither be qualified to do nor do business in Florida. If any trustee becomes taxable in Florida, the trust requires that the trustee cease to act as trustee.

Provisions and Discussion of Law

Section 199.052(5), F.S., places primary responsibility for payment of intangible tax on a Florida trustee. Section 199.175, F.S., describes persons and assets with taxable situs in Florida. A trustee must be a Florida resident or legally or commercially domiciled in Florida to have a taxable situs in Florida. Based upon this statute and the provisions of the trust, the individual trustee may not be a resident of Florida and no corporate trustee may do or be qualified to do business

in Florida. The current trustee is a not a Florida resident. Therefore, the trustee does not have a taxable situs in Florida.

Section 199.023(7), F.S., and Rule 12C-2.002(1)(c), F.A.C., state that a taxable beneficial interest in a foreign trust includes at least a current right to income coupled with either a right to revoke the trust, or a right to invade the corpus of the trust or a general power of appointment. Based on the statute and the express provisions of the trust, the income beneficiary has a limited power of appointment over the assets of the trust, does not have a power to invade the corpus of the trust, and does not have power to revoke the trust. Therefore, beneficiary does not have a taxable beneficial interest in the trust.

In summary, neither the trustee nor the beneficiary is liable for the intangible tax in Florida and no returns are required to be filed for the trust.

This response constitutes a Technical Assistance Advisement under s. 213.22, F.S., which is binding on the Department only under the facts and circumstances described in the request for this advice as specified in s. 213.22, F.S. Our response is predicated on those facts and the specific situation summarized above. You are advised that subsequent statutory or administrative rule changes or judicial interpretations of the statutes or rules upon which this advice is based may subject similar future transactions to a different treatment than expressed in this response.

You are further advised that this response and your request are public records under Chapter 119, F.S., which are subject to disclosure to the public under the conditions of s. 213.22, F.S. Your name, address, and any other details which might lead to identification of the taxpayer must be deleted by the Department before disclosure. In an effort to protect the confidentiality of such information, we request you notify the undersigned in writing within 15 days of any deletions you wish made to the request or the response.

Sincerely,

J.V. Parramore, Jr.
Tax Law Specialist
Technical Assistance

JVP/mh