Common Marital Trust Variations
- QTIP trust (qualified terminable interest property): the standard choice for Arizona blended families. The survivor gets income for life, but the first spouse to die names the remainder beneficiaries.
- General power of appointment (GPOA) marital trust: the survivor gets income for life and the right to redirect the remainder by will. Less common today because it surrenders control over who ultimately inherits.
- Qualified Domestic Trust (QDOT): required to claim the marital deduction when the surviving spouse is not a U.S. citizen.
Why Use One
Outright transfers to a spouse also qualify for the marital deduction, but they give up all control over who eventually inherits. A marital trust keeps the tax benefit while letting the first spouse to die direct the remainder, which matters most in second marriages, families with children from a prior relationship, and estates large enough to be exposed to federal estate tax.
Arizona Spousal Protections
Any marital trust has to be coordinated with Arizona's family protection statute, A.R.S. 14-2401, so the surviving spouse actually receives the support the trust is meant to provide.