What is IRS Form 706?
Form 706 is the primary form used to pay estate taxes. Because of changes in the estate tax schedule, this form may be used for only people who died in 2008. Part 2 of this form will be used to calculate the total estate tax owed, once the value of the estate is established using the schedules attached to Form 706. Part 3 allows the executor of the estate to make certain elections on valuation that may affect the estate’s value. Many schedules are attached, in which the estate’s various kinds of assets should be listed and assessed to produce a total value for the decedent’s estate. More schedules are used to find the total amount of deductions, such as debts owed by the decedent, funeral and administrative expenses, and other deductions allowed by law. The generation-skipping tax (GST) may also be computed using Schedules R and R-1.
