Spousal Right of Election and Its Effects on CRTs

To address this possibility, the IRS, in Rev. Proc. 2005-24, stated that the existence of a spousal right of election, even if it’s not exercised, causes a trust to fail CRT qualifications.

To avoid this, the Rev. Proc. requires that in the states where the spousal right of election can extend to CRT assets, the spouse must irrevocably waive the right of election as applied to CRT assets.