Annuity Emergency

[Guest SPerson]

I own an annuity, and I have some questions.

1. Is my annuity safe from Creditors? 2. If I get sued can they take it from me?

3. I can transfer it to my wifes name, if I do that I will have to pay taxes on the earnings.Any other ways to get around this?

4. Any suggestions or help will be greatly appreciated.

[Guest CVCalhoun]

These questions are virtually impossible to answer without a whole lot more facts. A lot depends on whether the annuity was issued in the context of an employer plan (e.g., a section 403(B) annuity) or in a commercial context. If it was issued in the context of an employer plan, it is also important to know whether the plan was a governmental or church plan, or some other kind of plan. If it was some other kind of plan, was it a plan which provided for employer contributions which were not taken out of your salary, or only for contributions which were taken out of your salary? And if it was a governmental or church plan, or a plan in which all contributions were taken out of your salary, then applicable state law would also be a factor--and that law would vary from state to state.

One option to look into, though, if the annuity is provided through an employer plan, would be a domestic relations order dividing up the benefits. My colleagues in the family law area tell me that at least in some states, such orders can be issued even without a divorce or separation. If this is true in your state, it could enable you to divide up the annuity with your wife without immediate tax consequences.

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Employee benefits legal resource site

[Guest SPerson]

This is not a company sponsered annuity or any group plan. It is a personnal annuity issued in New York.

Thanks.