Effective August 9, 2012, the Illinois Attorney General adopted amendments to Form 700, State of Illinois Estate & Generation Skipping Transfer Tax Return. The purpose of the amendments is to conform the return with the provisions of the Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act, which gives parties to same-sex or opposite-sex civil unions the same obligations, responsibilities, protections, and benefits afforded or recognized by the law of Illinois to opposite-sex married couples. This in effect will give surviving civil union partners the ability to make marital deduction and qualified terminable interest property ("QTIP") elections when using ABC Trust planning with regard to their deceased partner's estate for Illinois state estate tax purposes. Surviving civil union partners must file the following documents with the Illinois Attorney General in order to make the appropriate estate elections:
- Form 700, State of Illinois Estate & Generation Skipping Transfer Tax Return
- Pro forma federal Form 706, United States Estate (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Return
- If the estate is taxable at the federal level, then a copy of the Form 706 actually filed with the IRS
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