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to split gifts if you remarried before the

Specific Instructions

end of 2005.

Schedule A—Computation

Line 16

of Taxable Gifts

Part 1—General

Check the box that explains the change in

Do not enter on Schedule A any gift or

your marital status during the year and

Information

part of a gift that qualifies for the political

give the date you were married, divorced,

organization, educational, or medical

or widowed, or the date the donor spouse

Lines 12–18. Split Gifts

exclusions. In the instructions below,

died.

“gifts” means gifts (or parts of gifts) that

Consent of Spouse

A married couple may not file a

do not qualify for the political

joint gift tax return.

organization, educational, or medical

Your spouse must sign the consent for

CAUTION

exclusions.

your gift-splitting election to be valid. The

consent may generally be signed at any

However, if after reading the

Line A—Valuation Discounts

time after the end of the calendar year.

instructions below, you and your spouse

If the value of any gift you report in either

However, there are two exceptions:

agree to split your gifts, you should file

Part 1, Part 2, or Part 3 of Schedule A

1. The consent may not be signed

both of your individual gift tax returns

reflects a discount for lack of

after April 17 following the end of the year

together (that is, in the same envelope) to

marketability, a minority interest, a

in which the gift was made. (But, if neither

help the IRS process the returns and to

fractional interest in real estate, blockage,

you nor your spouse has filed a gift tax

avoid correspondence from the IRS.

market absorption, or for any other

return for the year on or before that date,

reason, answer “Yes” to the question at

Note. Form 709-A, United States Short

the consent must be made on the first gift

the top of Schedule A. Also, attach an

Form Gift Tax Return, previously used by

tax return for the year filed by either of

married couples to report nontaxable gifts

explanation giving the factual basis for the

you.)

claimed discounts and the amount of the

they consent to split is obsolete.

2. The consent may not be signed

discounts taken.

If you and your spouse agree, all gifts

after a notice of deficiency for the gift tax

(including gifts of property held with your

Line B—Qualified Tuition

for the year has been sent to either you or

spouse as joint tenants or tenants by the

your spouse.

Programs

entirety) either of you make to third

If in 2005, you contributed more than

The executor for a deceased spouse

parties during the calendar year will be

$11,000 to a qualified tuition program

or the guardian for a legally incompetent

considered as made one-half by each of

(QTP) on behalf of any one person, you

spouse may sign the consent.

you if:

•

may elect to treat up to $55,000 of the

You and your spouse were married to

When the Consenting Spouse Must

contribution for that person as if you had

one another at the time of the gift;

Also File a Gift Tax Return

made it ratably over a 5-year period. The

•

If divorced or widowed after the gift,

election allows you to apply the annual

In general, if you and your spouse elect

you did not remarry during the rest of the

exclusion to a portion of the contribution

gift splitting, then both spouses must file

calendar year;

•

in each of the 5 years, beginning in 2005.

his or her own, individual, gift tax return.

Neither of you was a nonresident alien

You can make this election for as many

However, only one spouse must file a

at the time of the gift; and

separate people as you made QTP

•

return if all the requirements of either

You did not give your spouse a general

contributions.

power of appointment over the property

Exception (1) or (2) below are met. In the

You can only apply the election to a

exceptions below, “gifts” means gifts (or

interest transferred.

maximum of $55,000. You must report in

parts of gifts) that do not qualify for the

If you transferred property partly to

2005 all of your QTP contributions for any

political organization, educational, or

your spouse and partly to third parties,

single person that exceed $55,000 (in

medical exclusions.

you can only split the gifts if the interest

addition to any other gifts you made to

Exception 1. During the calendar year:

transferred to the third parties is

•

that person).

Only one spouse made any gifts,

ascertainable at the time of the gift.

•

For each of the 5 years, you report in

The total value of these gifts to each

The consent is effective for the entire

Part 1 of Schedule A,

(20%) of the

third-party donee does not exceed

calendar year; therefore, all gifts made by

amount for which you made the election.

$22,000, and

•

both you and your spouse to third parties

In column E of Part 1 (Schedule A), list

All of the gifts were of present interests.

during the calendar year (while you were

the date of the gift as the calendar year

Exception 2. During the calendar year:

married) must be split.

•

for which you are deemed to have made

Only one spouse (the donor spouse)

the gift. Do not list the year of contribution

If the consent is effective, the liability

made gifts of more than $11,000 but not

for subsequent years.

for the entire gift tax of each spouse is

more than $22,000 to any third-party

joint and several.

However, if in any of the last 4 years of

donee,

•

the election, you did not make any other

The only gifts made by the other

If you meet these requirements and

gifts that would require you to file a Form

spouse (the consenting spouse) were

want your gifts to be considered made

709, you do not need to file Form 709 to

gifts of not more than $11,000 to

one-half by you and one-half by your

report that year’s portion of the election

third-party donees other than those to

spouse, check the “Yes” box on line 12,

amount.

whom the donor spouse made gifts, and

page 1; complete lines 13 through 17;

•

All of the gifts by both spouses were of

Example. In 2005, D contributed

and have your spouse sign the consent

present interests.

$80,000 to a QTP for the benefit of her

on line 18.

son. D elects to treat $55,000 of this

If either Exception (1) or (2) is met,

If you are not married or do not wish to

contribution as having been made ratably

only the donor spouse must file a return

split gifts, skip to Schedule A.

over a 5-year period. Accordingly, for

and the consenting spouse signifies

2005, D reports the following:

Line 15

consent on that return.

If you were married to one another for all

Specific instructions for Part 2 — Tax

$25,000

(the amount of the contribution

of 2005, check the “Yes” box and skip to

Computation are continued under Part

that exceeded $55,000)

line 17. If you were married for only part

2 — Tax Computation on page 11.

+ $11,000

(the

portion from the election)

of the year, check the “No” box and go to

Because you must complete Schedules

line 16. If you were divorced or widowed

A, B, and C to fill out Part 2, you will find

$36,000

the total gift to her son listed in

after you made the gift, you cannot elect

instructions for these schedules below.

Part 1 of Schedule A for 2005.

-5-

Instructions For Form 709 - United States Gift (And Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Return - 2005 Page 5

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