A Grantor Retained Annuity Trust (通常称为“GRAT”)是一种特殊的信托，用于在指定的年限后将资产的所有权传递给子女或其他家庭成员. Potentially, a GRAT can achieve significant gift tax savings for the grantor, 以及从授予人的总遗产中移除资产以缴纳遗产税. GRATs can perform particularly well when the valuation rate, known as the 7520 rate, 是低利率吗?近几个月来，这些利率一直处于历史低点.
当一个人(授予人)转让一项或多项资产时，就会创建GRAT, which are expected to appreciate in value, 成为不可撤销的信托，并保留在固定年限内领取年金的权利. At the end of that period, GRAT中剩余的任何资产将分配给授予人在信托文件中指定的受益人(“剩余受益人”). 年金付款通常以转入退休金计划的资产原值的固定百分比表示.
All income and appreciation, 超过向授予人支付年金所需的数额, accumulates for the benefit of the remainder beneficiaries. Consequently, it may be possible to transfer assets to the beneficiaries that, when the trust terminates, 当转移到信托时，价值是否远远大于其原始价值, more importantly, that far exceed the gift tax value of the transferred assets.
转让资产的赠予税价值在信托成立和资助时采用“减法”确定. That is, 赠予税的价值等于转让时转入信托的资产价值减去授予人保留的权益价值, i.e., the value of the annuity payments. 保留的年金支付流的价值是用精算表确定的，其中考虑到退休金计划将存在的年数. For purposes of the actuarial valuation, 假定信托资产将按照《现金网官网》第7520条(“7520税率”)规定的税率获得收入. The rate changes monthly.
7520税率对GRAT业绩的一般影响是，超过7520税率的平均年增值和收入将转移到剩余部分，无需缴纳遗产税和赠予税. Thus, 当7520利率较低时，GRAT更有可能成功转移升值. The 7520 rate for January 2012 is 1.4%—as low as that rate has ever been.
As noted above, 年金派息率可按转入退休金计划的资产原值的固定百分比计算. Another option, permitted under the tax laws, is to provide for the annuity percentage to increase or decrease in a systematic manner each year; however, it may not increase or decrease by more than 20% from year to year. Under either method, 每年支付的支付百分比可以在设立GRAT时计算和安排，以产生“剩余”值(i.e.(最终传递给剩余受益人的资产的精算价值)为零. 因此，就赠与税而言，赠予其余受益人的价值为零.
There is a catch. If the Grantor dies before the end of the selected GRAT term, the value of the GRAT assets, generally, as valued on the date of the Grantor’s death, is included in the Grantor’s gross estate for estate tax purposes.
Let’s look at an example. Assume Grantor transfers $2,000,将1万美元的单一股票转换为5年的GRAT，每年支付同等数额的款项. The GRAT is established in December, 2011, when the 7520 rate is 1.6%, and therefore, to produce a taxable gift of zero, the GRAT will require that each of the five annual payments be $419,401. 这些支付可以使用任何现金(例如股息)和GRAT中的股票. If the stock appreciates at a steady rate of 10% per year, 在五年GRAT期限结束时，转移给剩余人的资产价值将超过660美元,000. 授予人在转让那660美元时将不会支付任何赠予税,000 nor used any gift tax exemption.
GRAT的结构使授予人对信托资产的所有收入和已实现收益征税，即使这些金额大于信托的年金支付. 这也意味着，使用增值资产来支付年金不是应纳税事项，也不会产生任何应纳税收益.
GRATs, as we currently know them, are “endangered” trusts. 最近，政府一直在努力制定立法，收紧对grat的规定. In his 2012 Budget Proposal, 奥巴马总统建议修改税法，要求最低GRAT期限为10年, 由于需要在信托期限内存活下来，这使得grat对老年纳税人来说不太可能成功. 最近的几项立法提案要求将grat的结构设定为产生最低限度的捐赠, 可能高达转移到GRAT的资产价值的10%. 由于这些立法改革的威胁和历史上最低的7520利率, 现在是时候考虑使用GRAT作为遗产规划和财富转移策略了.
Written by Christine Buchanan and Diane Thompson.