If I was not name in my fathers' will but his brothers & sister were and want to divid his inheritance giving me 1/4 of it as a gift, do I have to pay an inheritance tax on my 1/4?
Answer
No. Its not an inheritance. That's nice that your father's siblings want to give you something, but it would be a gift. They can gift up tp $13,000 to you (each person can give you up to $13,000 each year). Anything over that will subject them, not you, to gift tax.
My question is what does the will say about excluding you from the will? Depending on what the will says, you may be able to make a claim. I would sit down with a probate attorney in the county/state where your father lived at the time of his death and pay him/her for 30 minutes of time and to review the will. It may be that if the will is invalid for any number of reasons and you can bring what is called a caveat (challenge) then a family settlement can be reached and you will be included. In such case, you would then probably have to pay inheritance taxes.
I would explore all options to see how you can best maximize your benefit and minimize the taxes.
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