Just before the holiday season starts siphoning shoppers’ money out of their pockets and into local economies, estate planning attorneys around the country spread awareness about important saving, investing, and planning opportunities during National Estate Planning Awareness Week. This year the campaign runs from October 21-27.

From seminars to blog posts, attorneys are offering detailed recommendations to the public and encouraging them to incorporate gifting plans, wills, trusts, and other planning tools to minimize tax burdens and maximize investments.

What should individuals know about North Carolina estate planning changes in 2013? TrustCounsel’s estate planning attorneys in Chapel Hill review some of the latest legislation changes that individuals, families, and business owners around the state should consider when creating or revising their estate plans:

Repeal of the North Carolina estate tax. The Tax Simplification and Reduction Act was passed into law in July 2013, however its repeal of the North Carolina estate tax is retroactive to January 1, 2013. This means surviving family members of individuals who passed away on or after January 1, 2013 will not have a state estate tax obligation. The new law should also prompt North Carolina residents to review alternative asset protection tools and update their estate plans to further minimize tax liabilities. The federal estate tax exemption is $5.25 million.

Digital estate planning. In 2013, a new section was proposed for the North Carolina General Power of Attorney addressing digital assets. However, the state did not include the provisions on the power of attorney. Online and offline digital files such as emails, images, documents, and media as assets for which residents should discuss with their estate planning attorney how these assets should be managed in the event of incapacitation. On an international level, Google also launched an Inactive Account Manager for its application users, offering the ability to assign administrative actions to accounts after specified lengths of inactivity.

Tax refunds for same-sex marriages. Although North Carolina does not grant same-sex marriages as of this writing, lesbian and gay couples who were married elsewhere in any qualified jurisdiction can now file for federal income tax and gift tax refunds that fall under a 3-year statute of limitations.