ESTATE TAX RETURNS FOR NON-RESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES WHO OWN ASSETS IN THE U.S.
First, a few definitions:
United States: The United States means the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Domicile: For estate tax purposes, a person acquires domicile in a place by living there, for even a brief period of time, with no definite present intention of later moving. For this purpose, the United States includes only the states and the District of Columbia.
Nonresident not a citizen (NRNC) of the United States: For estate tax purposes, a decedent is an NRNC of the United States if the decedent is neither domiciled in nor a citizen of the United States at the time of death.
Note: A decedent may be a U.S. resident for income tax purposes yet be considered a nonresident for estate tax purposes.
Long-term U.S. resident: A long-term U.S. resident is an individual (other than a U.S. citizen) who has been a lawful permanent resident of the United States (green card holder) for income tax purposes in at least 8 of the last 15 tax years ending with the tax year in which U.S. income tax residency is terminated.
Executor: An executor is the personal representative of the deceased person's estate. If no executor is appointed, qualified, and acting in the United States, every person in actual or constructive possession of any of the decedent's property must file a return.
Who Must File
The executor must file Form 706-NA if the date of death value of the decedent’s U.S.-situated assets, together with the gift tax specific exemption and the amount of adjusted taxable gifts, exceeds the filing threshold of $60,000. The amount of adjusted taxable gifts refers to the amount of adjusted taxable gifts made by the decedent after December 31, 1976.
When To File
File Form 706-NA within 9 months after the date of death unless an extension of time to file has been granted.
If you are unable to file Form 706-NA by the due date, use Form 4768, Application for Extension of Time To File a Return and/or Pay U.S. Estate (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Taxes, to apply for an automatic 6-month extension of time to file. If you have already received a 6-month extension and are an executor who is out of the country, you may apply for an additional extension of time.
