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inheritance

关于世界各地的死亡与税收

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「在世上，只有死亡和税收是确定难免的」这一句格言是美国其中一个开国元勋和传奇学者短语归于本杰明-法兰克林 。为了避免雪上加霜，我们建议死后尽量避税。

美国财政部于2023年2月28日报告称，当天征收了70亿美元的「遗产税和赠与税」，这是自2005年以来征收的最高金额。 隐私条例禁止披露更多细节，但人们对需要支付这笔款项的人的身份猜测纷纷、 或者是作为提前规划遗产的一部分而支付的押金（以避免将来需要支付更高的金额） ，或者是已故亿万富翁的延迟付款，可能是由于强制执行行动。

香港于2006年2月11日废止了遗产税。此后,无需提交遗产税宣誓书或账目,也无需办理遗产税清关手续,即可申请获得香港死亡案件的遗产授予书。

然而，遗产税（IHT）在英国仍然适用。个人遗产税的征收比例为遗产价值超过免税额的部分只 40%。目前的免税额为每人 32.5 万英镑。 未使用的免税额可以转让给未亡配偶或民事伴侣。 这样一个人实际上就有了 65 万英镑的免税额。 此外，有多种免税和减税措施可用于减少个人所得税。例如，如果将所有财产遗赠给未亡配偶或民事伴侣、 慈善机构或社区业余体育俱乐部，则无需缴纳个人所得税。

在美国，2023年联邦遗产税免税额为每个人1,292万美元(已婚夫妻共2,584万美元)。联邦遗产税的最高税率为40%。美国许多州也征收自己的遗产税或继承税，免税额和税率各不相同。50 个州中有 33 个州不征收遗产税，包括拉巴马州、阿拉斯加州、亚利桑那州、阿肯色州、加利福尼亚州、科罗拉多州、特拉华州或佛罗里邓州。

加拿大没有联邦遗产税或继承税。然而，一旦死亡，所有资本财产被视为处置，可能会引发离世人士遗产的资本利得税。离世人士的最终报税表必须报告所有资本收益和损失以及正常收入。加拿大的最高边际税率可高达 54%，具体取决于省份。

在歐洲聯盟，各成员国的遗产税和继承税规则大相径庭。在 27 个欧盟国家中，有19 个国家仍在征收某种形式的死亡税。8个欧盟国家 (奥地利、塞浦路斯、爱沙尼亚、 拉脱维亚、 马耳他、罗马尼亚、 斯洛伐克和瑞典）已经废除了继承税。适用的规则和豁免因具体国家、离世人士与受益人之间的关系以及遗产规模的不同而有很大差异。税率也差异很大，从波兰的0-20%到西班牙的7.65-87.6%。

台湾对超过一定门槛的资产征收10-20%的累进遗产税，目前设定为1,330万新台币，继承人和丧葬费用可享受免税和减税。

新加坡没有遗产税、继承税或资本利得税，但新加坡公司股份转让时可能需要缴纳印花税。

与香港一样，澳门是中华人民共和国的一个特别行政区，也没有继承税。

中国大陆曾于2002年发布了一项关于遗产税的规定草案，但从未通过过一项法规。 目前没有遗产税、赠与税或继承税。

相比之下，据2021年报道，三星电子董事长李健熙的遗产将支付超过12万亿韩元（107.8亿美元）的遗产税。韩国是世界上遗产税税率最高的国家之一。如果离世人士拥有控股权，则可在此基础上加收溢价。溢价有可能超过标准遗产税率50%。据报道，李先生的艺术收藏，包括夏加尔、 高更、米罗、 莫奈和毕加索的作品，将被捐赠给韩国国立博物馆，以帮助减轻部分税收负担。

世界各地的遗产和继承税差别很大。有些司法管辖区（如香港）完全取消了遗产和继承税，而其他司法管辖区则保留了复杂的扣除、免税和边际税率递增制度。我们在做财务和遗产规划时，必须随时了解相关司法管辖区的遗产税和继承税的最新情况。制定周密的遗产规划有助于消除或大限度地减轻继承人的税务负担，确保财富顺利跨代传承。虽然死亡和税收可能是必然的，但死后的税收可以通过专业指导巧妙地避免。

免责声明：本文仅供参考。本文中的任何内容均不得解释为法律意见，无论是一般法律意见还是针对任何特定人士的法律意见。 高李严律师行所不对任何人因本文所载材料而导致的任何损失和/或损害承担责任。

Succession of Chinese Nationals of the HKSAR Estate in Mainland China

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Introduction

It is quite common for Hong Kong permanent residents to acquire property or keep bank accounts in Mainland China (PRC). Since Hong Kong and the PRC has different legal systems, sometimes Hong Kong citizens may have concerns if they plan to bequeathing such properties to their family or loved ones after they pass away.

In this article, we shall explore the matter of succession of estate in the PRC by looking into three different hypothetical scenarios and a discussion on some relevant statutory provisions in the PRC which may affect the estate succession.

Inheritance succession of deceased’s estate in the PRC

When dealing with cross-border estate inheritance, it is important to know which country’s law governs the inheritance process, and this depends on what type of asset it is. There are two main types of assets in an estate, immovable (i.e. flat, land) and movable assets (i.e. money, personal belongings). Generally succession to immovable assets are governed by the law of the place where the asset is located, while succession to movable assets are governed by the law of the deceased’s domicile at the date of death.

Scenario 1: The deceased has a will in Hong Kong governing estate in the PRC

If the deceased has a will in Hong Kong governing immovable asset in the PRC, the succession of the immovable asset is governed by the succession law of the PRC after the deceased passes away. According to the succession laws of the PRC, provided that the deceased’s will is valid, the executor of the will (once confirmed) will be responsible for the distribution of the deceased’s estate according to the will.

However, if the asset is movable, its succession is governed by the succession law of Hong Kong if the testator died domiciled in Hong Kong. According to the laws of Hong Kong, given that the will is valid, the executor of the will appointed (or named in the last will) has to apply for the Grant of Probate of the will at the Probate Registry in Hong Kong. If the grant is successful, the executor can distribute the deceased’s estate according to the will.

Scenario 2: The deceased does not have a will in Hong Kong but leaves assets in the PRC

If the deceased does not have a will (i.e. died intestate) and leaves immovable assets in PRC, the inheritance of the estate is governed by the succession laws of the PRC after he or she passes away. The order of priority of the inheritance is governed by Part 6 of the People’s Republic of China’s new Civil Code, which states that the successors first in order includes spouse, children and parents and the second in order includes siblings, paternal grandparents and maternal grandparents. When the succession starts, the first in order shall inherit to the exclusion of the successor(s) second in order, and the successor(s) second in order shall inherit in default of any successor first in order. Generally, successors with the same priority shall inherit in equal shares unless an agreement to take unequal shares is reached amongst themselves.

If there are movable assets in the PRC, the inheritance of the estate is governed by the succession law of Hong Kong if the testator died domiciled in Hong Kong. Generally, the order of priority of the right to apply for a Grant of Letters of Administration governed by Rule 21 of the Non-Contentious Probate Rules (Cap. 10A) is as follow:

  1. the spouse of the deceased;
  2. the children of the deceased;
  3. the father or mother of the deceased;
  4. the brothers and sisters of the deceased or the children of any deceased brother or sister of the deceased.

After the grant is made, he or she will become the administrator and will be responsible for performing the administrator’s duties including the distribution of the deceased’s estate according to the order of priority provided by the Intestates’ Estates Ordinance.

The order of priority for inheritance without a will in the PRC is slightly different from that in Hong Kong. Comparatively, it is much more difficult for parents of the deceased in Hong Kong to inherit the deceased’s estate compared to the PRC since it may only happen if the deceased has no children and there are remaining assets after the spouse has his or her entitled portion distributed (if the deceased has a spouse).

Scenario 3: The deceased has both a will in Hong Kong and the PRC governing a specific PRC asset

There is no restriction on having wills in two different countries. However, matters may be complicated if there are conflicts between them. If there is any conflict (E.g. the wills give different instructions for the succession of the same PRC asset), according to Article 1142 of the succession law of the PRC, where several wills are made and the contents conflict with each other, the one made last in time shall prevail. For instance, if the deceased have both a will in Hong Kong and in the PRC giving conflicting instructions on the disposal of the same PRC asset, the matter of which will should prevail depends on when each will was made. The latest will governing would prevail and replace the other. Please be reminded that if the law governing the two wills are different, the rule aforementioned may not apply and you are recommended to seek further legal advice for such a case.

Statutory provisions that may affect the estate succession in the PRC

Some statutory provisions in the PRC may affect the process of estate succession. Marriage Law is one of the examples.

On a basic reading of Article 41 of the Marriage Law of the People’s Republic of China, it would appear that if the husband and wife incurred debts during their marriage, at the time of divorce such debts should be repaid by them jointly. If their joint property is not enough to pay off the debts, and no agreement can be made between the two parties regarding such payment of debts, the court shall determine how the debts are repaid.

Disclaimer: This article is for reference only. Nothing herein shall be construed as legal advice, whether generally or for any specific person. Oldham, Li & Nie shall not be held liable for any loss and/or damage incurred by any person acting as a result of the materials contained in this article.