Trust Vehicles Compared: What Federal Law Says
Each vehicle is read from its own held federal text, and a state-law feature is not taken to exist because a federal text is silent. The table does not state how a trust may be modified, which states allow a domestic asset protection trust, or any state-law role, notice duty or protection statute.
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Who does federal tax law treat as the owner of each trust vehicle and foundation?
Revocable trust: Federal roles of a revocable trust: creator, titleholder, controller, tax owner and record custodian, as the federal tax and deposit rules state them source The irrevocable trust, domestic asset protection trust and private foundation rows are in the table below, each from its own cell.
| Vehicle | Roles |
|---|---|
| dapt | Federal text that fixes who is the creator, the title-holder, the controller and the tax owner of a trust, with the roles the federal text leaves to state law marked as not statedsource |
| irrevocable-trust | Federal text that fixes who is the creator, the title-holder, the controller and the tax owner of a trust, with the roles the federal text leaves to state law marked as not statedsource |
| private-foundation | Federal text that fixes who the substantial contributor, the foundation managers and the taxpayer are for a private foundation, with the creator of a trust named as a substantial contributor, and title, remainder and founder-as-a-term fields marked as not statedsource |
| revocable-trust | Federal roles of a revocable trust: creator, titleholder, controller, tax owner and record custodian, as the federal tax and deposit rules state themsource |
Source: 4 vehicles. Each source link opens the authority for its cell. The page source record lists the capture date for every cell, and the SHA-256 and snapshot path of the source document for the cells that have them.
Field definitions
- Roles
- The roles federal text fixes for the vehicle, as the held cell states them, with any role it leaves to state law marked as not stated.
Not established here: the roles federal text leaves to state law, and any role of a land trust, for which no role cell is held. A domestic asset protection trust is a state-law vehicle: its row is read as the held cell states it, and this page does not say that federal law recognises or protects one, or which states allow one.
Which reserved powers and retained interests make a trust a grantor trust?
Irrevocable trust: Federal text on the reserved powers and retained interests that make the grantor or another person the tax owner or bring the property into the gross estate source The domestic asset protection trust row is in the table below, from its own cell.
| Vehicle | Reserved powers and retained interests |
|---|---|
| dapt | Federal text on the reserved powers and retained interests that make the grantor or another person the tax owner or bring the property into the gross estatesource |
| irrevocable-trust | Federal text on the reserved powers and retained interests that make the grantor or another person the tax owner or bring the property into the gross estatesource |
Source: 2 vehicles. Each source link opens the authority for its cell. The page source record lists the capture date for every cell, and the SHA-256 and snapshot path of the source document for the cells that have them.
Field definitions
- Reserved powers and retained interests
- The reserved powers and retained interests federal text ties to tax ownership or the gross estate, as the held cell states them.
Not established here: protector powers. A domestic asset protection trust is a state-law vehicle: its row is read as the held cell states it, and this page does not say that federal law recognises or protects one, or which states allow one.
What do federal rules say about funding a trust?
Revocable trust: Federal funding fields of a revocable trust: the transferor, the titled owner, the deposit-account designation and the lender rule on real property transfers source The irrevocable trust, domestic asset protection trust and land trust rows are in the table below, each from its own cell.
| Vehicle | Funding |
|---|---|
| dapt | Federal text on funding a trust: the gift-tax reach of a transfer in trust, the trustee's title, the tax owner after funding and the lender rule, with the per-asset record fields marked as not statedsource |
| irrevocable-trust | Federal text on funding a trust: the gift-tax reach of a transfer in trust, the trustee's title, the tax owner after funding and the lender rule, with the per-asset record fields marked as not statedsource |
| land-trust | Federal funding fields touching a land trust: the lender rule for a transfer of real property into an inter vivos trust, with the land trust unnamed in the federal textsource |
| revocable-trust | Federal funding fields of a revocable trust: the transferor, the titled owner, the deposit-account designation and the lender rule on real property transferssource |
Source: 4 vehicles. Each source link opens the authority for its cell. The page source record lists the capture date for every cell, and the SHA-256 and snapshot path of the source document for the cells that have them.
Field definitions
- Funding
- What federal text says about funding the vehicle, as the held cell states it, with any field it does not state marked as not stated.
Not established here: asset-specific funding steps. The land trust row states only the lender rule on a transfer of real property into a trust, and the land trust itself is unnamed in the federal text. A domestic asset protection trust is a state-law vehicle: its row is read as the held cell states it, and this page does not say that federal law recognises or protects one, or which states allow one.
What events in a trust's life does federal law address?
Revocable trust: Federal lifecycle events of a revocable trust: revocation, death, fiduciary notice, returns and creditor consequences source The irrevocable trust, domestic asset protection trust and private foundation rows are in the table below, each from its own cell.
| Vehicle | Lifecycle events |
|---|---|
| dapt | Federal text on the events of a trust: creation, funding, a power to alter or revoke, a change of fiduciary, a creditor claim or bankruptcy and death, with the events the federal text does not name marked as not statedsource |
| irrevocable-trust | Federal text on the events of a trust: creation, funding, a power to alter or revoke, a change of fiduciary, a creditor claim or bankruptcy and death, with the events the federal text does not name marked as not statedsource |
| private-foundation | Federal text on a private foundation's events: creation and the notice and presumption of private foundation status, funding through contributions reported by substantial contributor, amendment through the governing-instrument requirement, change of foundation managers through the annual return, and termination; incapacity, marriage, divorce, claim, bankruptcy and death are marked as not statedsource |
| revocable-trust | Federal lifecycle events of a revocable trust: revocation, death, fiduciary notice, returns and creditor consequencessource |
Source: 4 vehicles. Each source link opens the authority for its cell. The page source record lists the capture date for every cell, and the SHA-256 and snapshot path of the source document for the cells that have them.
Field definitions
- Lifecycle events
- The events in the vehicle's life that federal text addresses, as the held cell states them, with any event it does not name marked as not stated.
Not established here: events the federal text does not name, state notice duties, and any lifecycle event of a land trust, for which no cell is held. How a trust may be modified by court or by agreement is not held and is not stated. A domestic asset protection trust is a state-law vehicle: its row is read as the held cell states it, and this page does not say that federal law recognises or protects one, or which states allow one.
What federal text fixes a fiduciary's authority over a trust?
Revocable trust: Federal fiduciary authority for a revocable trust: the trustee role, the notice that moves tax powers to the fiduciary, the return duty and the claim remedies source The irrevocable trust and domestic asset protection trust rows are in the table below, each from its own cell.
| Vehicle | Fiduciary authority |
|---|---|
| dapt | Federal text on the fiduciary: the trustee's title, the notice that gives a fiduciary the taxpayer's powers and duties, and a non-grantor's power over a trustsource |
| irrevocable-trust | Federal text on the fiduciary: the trustee's title, the notice that gives a fiduciary the taxpayer's powers and duties, and a non-grantor's power over a trustsource |
| revocable-trust | Federal fiduciary authority for a revocable trust: the trustee role, the notice that moves tax powers to the fiduciary, the return duty and the claim remediessource |
Source: 3 vehicles. Each source link opens the authority for its cell. The page source record lists the capture date for every cell, and the SHA-256 and snapshot path of the source document for the cells that have them.
Field definitions
- Fiduciary authority
- What federal text says about the fiduciary's authority over the trust, as the held cell states it.
Not established here: whether a certification of trust proves a trustee's authority, which is a by-state fact, and the fiduciary authority of a land trust, for which no cell is held. A domestic asset protection trust is a state-law vehicle: its row is read as the held cell states it, and this page does not say that federal law recognises or protects one, or which states allow one.
Can a creditor reach a transfer into a self-settled trust under federal law?
Irrevocable trust: Federal text on creditor claims against a transfer to a trust: avoidance in bankruptcy, the self-settled trust lookback, the restriction on a beneficial interest and the government's priority source The domestic asset protection trust row is in the table below, from its own cell.
| Vehicle | Creditor claims on a transfer |
|---|---|
| dapt | Federal text on creditor claims against a transfer to a trust: avoidance in bankruptcy, the self-settled trust lookback, the restriction on a beneficial interest and the government's prioritysource |
| irrevocable-trust | Federal text on creditor claims against a transfer to a trust: avoidance in bankruptcy, the self-settled trust lookback, the restriction on a beneficial interest and the government's prioritysource |
Source: 2 vehicles. Each source link opens the authority for its cell. The page source record lists the capture date for every cell, and the SHA-256 and snapshot path of the source document for the cells that have them.
Field definitions
- Creditor claims on a transfer
- Federal text on creditor claims against a transfer to a trust, as the held cell states it.
Not established here: state protection statutes, which are by-state facts. This page does not say that any trust protects assets from a creditor. A domestic asset protection trust is a state-law vehicle: its row is read as the held cell states it, and this page does not say that federal law recognises or protects one, or which states allow one.
How do assets pass at death outside probate, and does that keep an asset away from creditors?
How assets pass: Federal death-transfer map by asset: Treasury book-entry securities, payable-on-death deposits, joint holdings and life insurance, with the real property transfer unstated federally source Creditors: Federal reach of probate-avoidance claims: the Treasury security passes to the beneficiary, while federal estate tax inclusion and transferee liability still apply source
| Vehicle | How assets pass at death | Probate avoidance and creditors |
|---|---|---|
| death-transfer | Federal death-transfer map by asset: Treasury book-entry securities, payable-on-death deposits, joint holdings and life insurance, with the real property transfer unstated federallysource | Federal reach of probate-avoidance claims: the Treasury security passes to the beneficiary, while federal estate tax inclusion and transferee liability still applysource |
Source: 1 vehicles. Each source link opens the authority for its cell. The page source record lists the capture date for every cell, and the SHA-256 and snapshot path of the source document for the cells that have them.
Field definitions
- How assets pass at death
- The federal death-transfer map by asset, as the held cell states it, with any transfer unstated federally marked so.
- Probate avoidance and creditors
- The federal reach of probate-avoidance claims, as the held cell states it.
Not established here: the transfer of real property at death, which the cell marks as unstated federally, the documents that prove a death transfer, and state-law creditor rules, which are by-state facts and are not read in this table.
What federal rules govern a beneficiary designation?
Federal beneficiary-designation rules by account type: Treasury securities, deposit accounts and employer retirement plans with the spouse-consent rule for a waiver of the survivor annuity forms of benefit source
| Vehicle | Beneficiary designation rules |
|---|---|
| beneficiary-designation | Federal beneficiary-designation rules by account type: Treasury securities, deposit accounts and employer retirement plans with the spouse-consent rule for a waiver of the survivor annuity forms of benefitsource |
Source: 1 vehicles. Each source link opens the authority for its cell. The page source record lists the capture date for every cell, and the SHA-256 and snapshot path of the source document for the cells that have them.
Field definitions
- Beneficiary designation rules
- The federal beneficiary-designation rules by account type, as the held cell states them.
Not established here: IRA custodian rules.
What does a private foundation's annual return disclose to the public?
Federal text on what a private foundation's annual return states and what the public may inspect: substantial contributors' names and addresses, foundation managers and highly compensated employees with their compensation, grant recipients, and the return itself at the foundation's principal office source
| Vehicle | What the public may inspect |
|---|---|
| private-foundation | Federal text on what a private foundation's annual return states and what the public may inspect: substantial contributors' names and addresses, foundation managers and highly compensated employees with their compensation, grant recipients, and the return itself at the foundation's principal officesource |
Source: 1 vehicles. Each source link opens the authority for its cell. The page source record lists the capture date for every cell, and the SHA-256 and snapshot path of the source document for the cells that have them.
Field definitions
- What the public may inspect
- What a private foundation's annual return states and what the public may inspect, as the held cell states it.
Not established here: the schedule detail of the foundation return.
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What must a private foundation do before it makes a grant?
Federal text on a private foundation's grants: grants to organizations and individuals that are taxable expenditures unless the foundation follows the stated procedures, with the grantee classes the regulations treat separately (reliance on a grantee's status notice, organizations treated as public charities, foreign grantees, earmarked grants and grants passed through another organization), the expenditure responsibility steps of pre-grant inquiry, written terms (with the use restriction for a foreign grantee deemed met by a substantially equivalent agreement), grantee reports including the final report and capital-endowment reports, the general rule that the foundation is not an insurer of the grantee's activity and acts through reasonable efforts and adequate procedures (with reports from a secondary grantee where the grant is treated as made to it), the foundation's reliance on records the grantee supplies for its own report, the foundation's report of each such grant on its annual return and its records, and the consequences of a violation source
| Vehicle | Grant rules |
|---|---|
| private-foundation | Federal text on a private foundation's grants: grants to organizations and individuals that are taxable expenditures unless the foundation follows the stated procedures, with the grantee classes the regulations treat separately (reliance on a grantee's status notice, organizations treated as public charities, foreign grantees, earmarked grants and grants passed through another organization), the expenditure responsibility steps of pre-grant inquiry, written terms (with the use restriction for a foreign grantee deemed met by a substantially equivalent agreement), grantee reports including the final report and capital-endowment reports, the general rule that the foundation is not an insurer of the grantee's activity and acts through reasonable efforts and adequate procedures (with reports from a secondary grantee where the grant is treated as made to it), the foundation's reliance on records the grantee supplies for its own report, the foundation's report of each such grant on its annual return and its records, and the consequences of a violationsource |
Source: 1 vehicles. Each source link opens the authority for its cell. The page source record lists the capture date for every cell, and the SHA-256 and snapshot path of the source document for the cells that have them.
Field definitions
- Grant rules
- Federal text on a private foundation's grants and the procedures that keep them from being taxable expenditures, as the held cell states it.
Not established here: grant agreement terms.
Which excise taxes and governance rules apply to a private foundation?
Federal text on a private foundation's governance and excise taxes: self-dealing with the reasonable-compensation exception, minimum distribution, excess business holdings, jeopardizing investments, taxable expenditures, the net investment income tax, the governing-instrument requirement, and termination or transfer to another foundation source
| Vehicle | Governance and excise rules |
|---|---|
| private-foundation | Federal text on a private foundation's governance and excise taxes: self-dealing with the reasonable-compensation exception, minimum distribution, excess business holdings, jeopardizing investments, taxable expenditures, the net investment income tax, the governing-instrument requirement, and termination or transfer to another foundationsource |
Source: 1 vehicles. Each source link opens the authority for its cell. The page source record lists the capture date for every cell, and the SHA-256 and snapshot path of the source document for the cells that have them.
Field definitions
- Governance and excise rules
- Federal text on a private foundation's governance and excise taxes, as the held cell states it.
Not established here: excise rates.
Does a state supervise a private foundation?
Federal text that reads on state supervision of a private foundation: notices to the appropriate state officer, copies of the annual return furnished to state officials, governing-instrument rules that yield to state law, the plan for an extended period to dispose of excess business holdings that the foundation submits to the Attorney General or other appropriate State official, and termination, with abatement of the termination tax where the State officer reports corrective action under State law; state registration and a state annual report are marked as not stated, and court approval is stated only in that abatement rule source
| Vehicle | State supervision |
|---|---|
| private-foundation | Federal text that reads on state supervision of a private foundation: notices to the appropriate state officer, copies of the annual return furnished to state officials, governing-instrument rules that yield to state law, the plan for an extended period to dispose of excess business holdings that the foundation submits to the Attorney General or other appropriate State official, and termination, with abatement of the termination tax where the State officer reports corrective action under State law; state registration and a state annual report are marked as not stated, and court approval is stated only in that abatement rulesource |
Source: 1 vehicles. Each source link opens the authority for its cell. The page source record lists the capture date for every cell, and the SHA-256 and snapshot path of the source document for the cells that have them.
Field definitions
- State supervision
- Federal text that reads on state supervision of a private foundation, as the held cell states it.
Not established here: state registration of a foundation and a state annual report, which the cell marks as not stated.
How to read Unknown
- Unknown: Verified absence
- The captured authority was searched and shows no such rule or filing. No value is printed because the absence is the finding. The reason and the authority are printed beside the badge.
- Unknown: Not yet verified
- The captured sources did not settle this field yet. No value is printed, not even an earlier one. The reason is printed beside the badge, and an authority is linked only when one was supplied.