Raleigh Spousal Lifetime Access Trust (SLAT) Attorney

Use your exclusion without giving up access

The biggest objection to using your exclusion during life is simple: what if we need the money? A SLAT answers it. One spouse makes a gift to an irrevocable trust for the other spouse and the children. The assets and all of their future growth leave both estates, but your spouse can still receive distributions from the trust if your family ever needs them.

How it works

You (the grantor) transfer assets, up to your remaining exclusion, to an irrevocable trust. The gift is reported on a gift tax return but no tax is due. Your spouse and descendants are the beneficiaries. An independent trustee may distribute income and principal to your spouse, which keeps the wealth available to your household.

The trust is a grantor trust which means you pay the income tax on its earnings, which lets the trust grow tax-free and moves even more wealth out of your estate without any additional gift.After your spouse's death the trust continues for your children and grandchildren as a protected, generation-skipping trust.

The advantages

• Every dollar of growth after the gift escapes the 40 percent estate tax.
• Your generation-skipping exemption is used at today's values and shelters the trust forever.
• The assets are protected from your beneficiaries' creditors and divorces.
• You can sell additional assets to the trust, or swap assets in and out to manage income tax basis.

What you should know before you sign

• The gift is irrevocable. You can never be a beneficiary, and if your spouse dies or you divorce, your indirect access ends unless the trust is drafted for that.
• If both spouses want a SLAT, the two trusts must be meaningfully different and created at different times; mirror-image trusts are disregarded by the IRS.
• The trust must be funded with the grantor's own separate property.
• You will need a qualified appraisal for any business or real estate interest, and a gift tax return for the year of the gift.

How we price advanced planning

Advanced planning is priced case by case. These trusts are significantly more complex than a standard revocable trust or a Medicaid asset protection trust: each one involves tax modeling, valuation, coordination with your CPA and financial advisor, and years of administration that the document has to anticipate. For that reason they are not on our flat-rate menu. After your consultation we quote a flat fee for your specific plan, so you still know the full cost before any work begins.

Contact Us To Learn More Today

Schedule a consultation with Kevin Peach. We will tell you plainly whether advanced planning is right for your family and quote a flat fee for your plan.

 Call (919) 759-6353 or contact us today!

Disclaimer: This page is general information about North Carolina and federal estate planning, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Exemption amounts are as of 2026 and change annually. Every plan depends on the client's facts, and no result is guaranteed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is a good candidate for a SLAT?

A married couple with a stable marriage, a combined estate above or heading above $15 million, assets expected to grow, and enough wealth outside the trust for the grantor's own security.

Can both spouses create a SLAT?

Yes, but the trusts must differ in beneficiaries, distribution standards, trustees, powers of appointment, assets and timing. We plan both trusts together so they are not reciprocal.

Does my spouse pay tax on distributions?

No. Distributions of principal are not income to your spouse, and while you are living the trust's income is taxed to you, not to the trust or your spouse.