UTMA vs. UGMA: What’s the Difference?

UTMA and UGMA accounts are custodial accounts: an adult, called the custodian, manages money or property that legally belongs to a child until the child reaches an age set by state law. The two names come from two model laws, the Uniform Gifts to Minors Act (UGMA) and the newer Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (UTMA). Many providers still use a combined label, as Vanguard does, but the UTMA has now replaced the UGMA in every state, so a custodial account opened today is a UTMA account.

The difference still matters if your family has an older UGMA account, if someone wants to give your child something other than cash or stocks, or if you want to know exactly when the money becomes your child’s. This guide explains what each law allows, when the handoff happens in every state, the rules both accounts share, and a 2026 update to the UTMA that states can now adopt. It’s part of our section on account types, and Comparing Investment Accounts for Kids: 529 vs. UTMA vs. Roth IRA vs. 530A shows how custodial accounts stack up against the other options.

What is a custodial account?

A custodial account lets an adult hold and manage property for a child without drafting a trust or asking a court to appoint a guardian. The adult who opens one is often a parent, but anyone can give to it. The model act itself, shown here in the version South Carolina enacted in 2022 along with the drafters’ official comments, sets out the basics:

• The gift is permanent. A transfer to a custodian can’t be revoked, and the property belongs to the child from that moment. The custodian manages it but doesn’t own it.
• One child, one custodian. Each account holds property for a single child, and only one person can be the custodian at a time. Later gifts to the same custodian for the same child join the same account.
• Your child is the taxpayer. The account isn’t a separate entity for tax purposes, so it’s identified by your child’s taxpayer ID, usually a Social Security number, and its income is your child’s income.
• It ends on schedule. When your child reaches the age the law sets, the custodian must turn everything over, whether or not anyone feels ready.

The act doesn’t cap how much can go into an account. Large gifts still run into federal gift tax rules, though: in 2026, each person can give up to $19,000 to a child without filing a gift tax return, according to the IRS. Families have used the act to open millions of custodial accounts, according to an update from the Uniform Law Commission in the ABA’s Probate & Property magazine.

From UGMA to UTMA: a short history

The Uniform Law Commission drafts model laws that states can choose to adopt. It approved the first Uniform Gifts to Minors Act in 1956, building on an earlier model act that stock exchange firms had backed so families could give shares of stock to children, the ABA’s 2023 review of the act explains. A revised UGMA followed in 1966.

In 1983, the commission approved the Uniform Transfers to Minors Act, which broadened the old law to take in any kind of property, according to the ABA’s 2026 update. The commission amended the act in 1986, so it’s sometimes dated to that year. States adopted it one by one and repealed their UGMA laws as they went, FinAid notes. Vermont switched in 2015, according to its statute, and South Carolina became the last state when its governor signed its UTMA on April 4, 2022, as Nolo and the South Carolina legislature’s records show. Today the UTMA is law in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, the ABA update notes. Some financial websites still say South Carolina and Vermont use the UGMA; that’s out of date.

Accounts opened under a state’s UGMA before the switch didn’t disappear. The UTMA generally governs them now, but it can’t stretch out a custodianship that already existed, so those accounts still end at the age the old law set, the drafters’ comments explain. Gifts made under the old law also stay a separate custodianship from gifts made under the new one, even for the same child and custodian, because the handoff ages can differ.

UTMA vs. UGMA at a glance

The two laws share far more than they differ. Here’s how they compare, based on the act and its official comments.

Based on the model act and its official comments, FinAid’s state chart, and the ABA’s 2026 update. State versions vary in the details.

The four differences that matter

What the account can hold

The 1966 UGMA covered a short list of property: money, securities, and life insurance or annuity contracts. The UTMA reaches essentially any interest in any kind of property, from land and buildings to valuables and intellectual property, the drafters’ comments explain. The act spells out how to put a house, a car, an aircraft, patent rights, royalties, or a partnership interest in a custodian’s name for a child.

A custodial account at a brokerage holds cash, stocks, bonds, and funds, which both laws allow, so for a typical brokerage account this difference doesn’t come up. It matters when someone wants to give your child a share of a family property, a vehicle, or a stream of future royalties. Those assets are titled in the custodian’s name for your child rather than held in a brokerage account.

How money and property can arrive

The UGMA allowed one kind of transfer, a lifetime gift. The UTMA added several more, the drafters explain. An executor or trustee can pay an inheritance into a custodial account when the will or trust authorizes it, and can sometimes do so even without that authorization. Someone who owes your child money, such as an insurance company paying a death benefit or a party paying a court judgment, can pay it to a custodian rather than insisting that a court appoint a guardian first. Larger transfers of those unplanned kinds need a court’s involvement. The model act set that threshold at $10,000, and states could pick their own; South Carolina uses $15,000.

The UTMA also lets people plan ahead. Anyone who can name a beneficiary, in a will, a trust, a deed, or a life insurance or retirement account beneficiary form, can name a custodian for a child under a particular state’s UTMA, and can change that choice until the transfer happens. It’s a simple way for a grandparent to leave something to a young grandchild without a trust. For larger amounts, though, a trust offers more control over when and how the money is used, as Understanding Trust Funds for the Middle Class explains.

Accounts funded by an executor or trustee acting without the will’s or trust’s authority, or by someone paying a debt to your child, such as an insurance company, generally end at the state’s ordinary age of adulthood rather than at 21. They stand in for a guardianship that would have ended then.

How the money can be spent

Under the 1966 UGMA, a custodian could spend the money for the child’s “support, maintenance, education and benefit.” The UTMA widened that to whatever the custodian judges will benefit the child, a change the drafters made so no one would read the law as limited to basic support.

Under both laws, the spending has to benefit the child, and under the UTMA it doesn’t replace or reduce anyone’s duty to support the child. The drafters wrote that rule with taxes in mind: the IRS has taken the position that custodial income used to support a child can be taxed to whoever is legally obligated to provide that support, whether or not that person is the custodian. The question has fueled lawsuits for decades, and the 2026 update to the UTMA says outright that a custodian can’t use the account to meet their own support obligation, according to the ABA.

In practice, extras such as camp, lessons, a laptop, travel, or college costs are common uses of custodial money. Basics you’re already legally required to provide, such as food and housing, are the category to avoid, and a tax professional or attorney can help with gray areas.

When the handoff comes

Under the UGMA, the handoff usually came at 18. Most states lowered the UGMA’s age when they lowered their general age of adulthood, the drafters note, and FinAid’s state chart shows a UGMA age of 18 everywhere except Alabama and Nebraska (19) and Mississippi (21).

For the UTMA, the drafters strongly recommended returning to 21 for gifts. They reasoned that most people who give to a child would rather keep the money under management as long as possible, and that 21 matches how long federal tax law lets a similar trust for a minor run. Most states followed that advice, as the next section shows.

When your child takes control, state by state

Under the model UTMA, an account created by a gift, or by a will or trust that authorizes it, ends when the child turns 21, while accounts created by other transfers end at the state’s general age of adulthood, FINRA summarizes. States have moved those ages in both directions. The table sorts every state by its default age for a gift, based on FinAid’s chart. Where FinAid’s chart and the state’s own statute disagreed, the table follows the statute: Maryland’s law sets 21 for gifts, and Virginia’s sets 18 unless the account is set up for 21 or 25.

Based on FinAid’s state chart (updated March 2026), with Maryland and Virginia following their statutes. Accounts funded by an insurance payout, a court award, or an executor or trustee acting without authority in the will or trust generally end at the state’s age of adulthood, usually 18. Some states also allow ages between 18 and 21; in Maine, Michigan, Oklahoma, and D.C., for example, you can choose 21 instead of 18. Older UGMA accounts keep the age the old law set.

A few details are worth knowing before you open an account:

• The age is locked in when the account is created. An account stays under the state law it was created under, even if you, your child, or the custodian later moves, according to South Carolina’s act. That law must belong to a state where the giver, your child, or the custodian lives, or where the property is located, at the time of the transfer.
• A later age has to be chosen up front. Where a state allows one, the choice is written into the account’s title or the document that creates it. Vanguard, for example, lets the person opening an account add a custom age where state law permits.
• Some states build in an early exit. In Virginia, a gift set to pay out at 25 must still be handed over at 21 if your child asks in writing. Florida and Wyoming allow longer custodianships as long as your child is told of a right to demand the money, FINRA notes, and Wyoming’s statute allows ages up to 30.
• Rules can differ by the type of transfer. California ends custodial accounts at 18 by default, lets gifts run to 21, and allows 25 only for transfers under a will, trust, or similar document, according to FinAid. Maryland uses 21 for gifts but 18 for payments from someone who owed your child money.

If your state is in the 18 group, the handoff can land in your child’s first year after high school, which makes planning for it all the more important.

What the difference means for your family today

For a new account, there’s no choice to make between the two laws: you’ll be opening a UTMA. The questions that matter are practical ones.

• If your family has an old UGMA account, check its paperwork or ask the provider which state’s law governs it and when it ends, since it keeps the old law’s handoff age. Ask, too, how the provider handles new deposits, because money given under the UTMA is legally a separate custodianship that may end at a different age.
• If someone wants to give property rather than cash, such as a share of a rental property or a car, the UTMA allows it, with the property titled in the custodian’s name for your child. A trust may still be the simpler home for anything that needs active management.
• If you’re planning an inheritance, you can name a custodian for your child in your will, trust, or beneficiary forms. Keep in mind that payouts from an insurance company or retirement plan to a custodian generally end at your state’s age of adulthood, not 21.
• If you’d rather your child get the money later than 18 or 21, check whether your state allows a later age and ask for it when you open the account. If it doesn’t, a 529 plan or a trust keeps control with you longer.

The rules both accounts share

Whichever law created your child’s account, the same core rules apply. The Ultimate Guide to Legalities for Custodial Accounts covers them in depth; here are the essentials.

The gift can’t be taken back

Putting money into a custodial account is an irrevocable transfer to the child, FINRA reminds brokerages. You can’t withdraw it for yourself, move it to a sibling’s account, or name a different child later. Because the property is legally your child’s, it stays your child’s whatever happens between the adults; Protecting Assets in the Event of Divorce covers what that means in a separation.

The custodian is a fiduciary

A custodian must manage the account with the care a prudent person would use with someone else’s property, keep it separate from their own money, and keep records of every transaction, including what’s needed for your child’s tax returns, under South Carolina’s act. Those records must be open to a parent and, once your child turns 14, to your child, who can also ask a court to order an accounting. A custodian can be reimbursed for reasonable expenses, and one who didn’t give the money may charge reasonable compensation.

Name a successor custodian

Because only one person can serve at a time, plan for the day that person can’t. A custodian can name a successor at any time in a dated, signed document witnessed by someone other than the successor. If the custodian dies or becomes incapacitated without naming one, a child who is at least 14 can choose an adult family member or a trust company, and otherwise the child’s conservator or a court fills the role. Naming Successor Custodians explains how to set this up.

Taxes follow your child

The account’s income is your child’s income. For 2026, the first $1,350 of a child’s unearned income, such as interest, dividends, and capital gains, is tax-free, the next $1,350 is taxed at your child’s rate, and income above $2,700 is generally taxed at the parents’ rate if that’s higher, according to Fidelity and the IRS’s Revenue Procedure 2025-32. That’s the kiddie tax, and Navigating the 2026 Kiddie Tax Thresholds walks through how it works and how to keep it small.

Gift tax rules apply to every giver

Each deposit is a gift to your child from whoever provides the money. In 2026, each person can give your child up to $19,000 without filing a gift tax return, so two parents, or two grandparents, can each give that much. Larger gifts are reported on a gift tax return, and tax is due only once a giver’s lifetime taxable gifts pass the basic exclusion amount, which is $15 million in 2026, Revenue Procedure 2025-32 shows. The Impact of the 2026 Gift Tax Exclusion has the details.

Financial aid counts it as your child’s

On the FAFSA, a UTMA or UGMA account is reported as your child’s asset and assessed at 20% of its value, compared with a maximum of 5.64% for parent assets, Saving for College explains. So $10,000 in a custodial account could reduce need-based aid eligibility by up to $2,000, while the same $10,000 counted as a parent asset, such as in a parent-owned 529, would reduce it by up to $564. How 529s and UTMAs Impact the FAFSA goes deeper.

The estate tax wrinkle

If the person who gives the money also serves as custodian and dies before the account ends, the IRS counts the account in that person’s taxable estate, according to rulings the UTMA’s drafters cite, and the drafters call it generally unwise for givers to name themselves custodian. With the federal estate tax exclusion at $15 million in 2026, according to the IRS, this matters mainly for large estates, such as a grandparent making sizable gifts who might otherwise serve as custodian.

What happens at the handoff

When your child reaches the age, the custodian must transfer everything to your child, who can then use it for anything. At that point the custodian generally loses authority over the account, FINRA says. It expects brokerages to track when each custodianship ends and to check whether the custodian still has authority, and it points to firms that warn custodians ahead of time and retitle the account in the child’s name. FINRA has also found firms that let custodians keep trading or withdrawing money months or years after a custodianship ended, and in 2019 it sanctioned five firms over their supervision of these accounts.

The age matters because of what arrives with it. Here’s how large a custodial account could be at each common handoff age.

• Money put in
• Growth

Show the numbers

Hypothetical balances at each handoff age

Handed over at	Growth	Total
$100 a month until 18You put in $21,600
Age 18	$20,492	$42,092
Age 21	$29,964	$51,564
Age 25	$45,990	$67,590
One $19,000 gift at birthYou put in $19,000
Age 18	$45,219	$64,219
Age 21	$59,671	$78,671
Age 25	$84,121	$103,121

Hypothetical 7% average annual return, compounded monthly, with $100 deposits at the end of each month from birth to 18 and none after, and the one-time gift made at birth. Doesn’t reflect fees, taxes, or any specific investment.

At a hypothetical 7% average annual return, $100 a month from birth to 18 could be worth about $42,100 at 18. Left invested, it could reach about $51,600 by 21 and $67,600 by 25. A single $19,000 gift at birth could grow to about $64,200 at 18, $78,700 at 21, and $103,100 at 25. Whatever the number, your child gets full control of it on the date the law sets.

That’s why the handoff deserves as much planning as the saving. Bringing your child into a yearly review of the account in the middle school years, as Middle School (Ages 11-14) suggests, builds familiarity long before the money changes hands. The “Wealth Transfer” Conversation offers a script for the talk itself, What Happens at the Age of Majority? covers your child’s rights on the day, and The Hand-Off: Safely Withdrawing and Transitioning Wealth covers the whole final phase.

Moving a custodial account into a 529

You can move custodial money into a 529 plan, but it remains your child’s money. Federal law lets 529 plans accept contributions only in cash, under Section 529, so the custodian has to sell the account’s investments first, and the sale can create taxable capital gains for your child, Saving for College explains. The money goes into a custodial 529, and the custodianship carries over: the custodian typically can’t change the beneficiary, the money must still be used for your child, and your child takes full control at the age your state’s law sets.

The move can pay off in two ways. Growth in a 529 can be tax-free when it’s spent on qualified education costs, and for a dependent student, a custodial 529 is reported on the FAFSA as a parent asset, assessed at no more than 5.64% instead of 20%, according to Saving for College’s guide to sheltering assets. The trade-off is that the tax break now depends on spending the money on education. The Complete Guide to 529 College Savings Plans explains what counts. Custodial money can’t be moved into your own account or a sibling’s.

The 2026 update to the UTMA

In 2026 the Uniform Law Commission approved a new version of the UTMA, its first major update since 1983, and recommended it to every state for enactment, the ABA’s update reports. It isn’t law anywhere until a state enacts it, so the rules above still apply. Its main changes:

• Later handoffs. States could let new accounts created by lifetime gifts, or by transfers a will or trust authorizes, continue until 25 or any younger age the giver picks. Accounts that stand in for a guardianship, such as an insurance payout or court award to a child, would still end at the state’s age of adulthood.
• Portability. Custodians could move money into other accounts for the same child, including 529 plans, ABLE accounts, special needs trusts, and certain other trusts.
• A clear line on support. A custodian couldn’t use the account to meet their own legal duty to support the child.
• Still one custodian. The drafters kept the one-custodian, one-child rule, citing the disputes co-custodians could have, but made it easier to name a successor.
• A higher court threshold. The size of a transfer that triggers court oversight would rise from $10,000 to a suggested $50,000.

Custodial accounts vs. other accounts for kids

A custodial account is the most flexible way to set money aside for a child, and the one that leaves you the least control later. Here’s how it compares with the main alternatives:

• 529 plan. Growth is tax-free for qualified education costs, you keep control, and it counts more lightly for financial aid. It’s usually the better home for money meant for school.
• Custodial Roth IRA. Decades of tax-free growth, but your child needs earned income from a job to contribute. See The Custodial Roth IRA.
• Trump Account. A newer account for children with its own contribution and tax rules; The 530A Trump Account Explained covers them.
• Parent-owned taxable account. You keep full control and can change your plans, but the money is yours, and so are the taxes. Custodial Brokerage Accounts vs. Parent-Owned Taxable Accounts weighs the trade-off.
• Teen account. Some brokerages offer accounts that teens own and manage with a parent watching; Teen Brokerage Accounts vs. Custodial Accounts compares them.

Comparing Investment Accounts for Kids lays out the main options side by side.

Is a custodial account right for your family?

A UTMA account can be a good fit when:

• You want savings for your child that aren’t limited to education, such as a first car, a trade program, or a first apartment. Using Custodial Funds for Life Starts covers those uses, and Setting Realistic Goals: Balancing College vs. General Wealth helps you split money between flexible and education accounts.
• A relative wants to give property other than cash, or to leave your child a modest inheritance without a trust.
• You’re comfortable with your child controlling the money at your state’s handoff age.

Think twice when:

• Need-based college aid is likely to matter, since the account counts heavily against it.
• You want to keep control, or the option to redirect the money to another child, later.
• The account could grow large enough that its yearly income lands above the kiddie tax threshold.
• You’re uneasy about your child holding a large sum at 18 or 21.

How to open a UTMA account

Opening an account is usually a short online application. These steps keep it simple:

1. Choose a provider. Brokerages, mutual fund companies, and investing apps offer custodial accounts. Compare fees and investment choices; low-cost index funds make a strong core, as Index Funds vs. Stock Picking for Minors explains.
2. Choose the custodian. A parent usually serves. If a grandparent is giving a large sum, consider naming someone other than the giver, for the estate tax reason above.
3. Have your child’s details ready. The account is your child’s, so you’ll need your child’s Social Security number and date of birth.
4. Confirm the state law and the age. Ask which state’s UTMA the account will be created under and whether a later handoff age is available. Decide now, because in most states the age can’t be changed once the account exists.
5. Name a successor custodian. Ask your provider how it records one. Under the model act, a dated document signed in front of a witness also works.
6. Automate contributions. A recurring transfer keeps the account growing without anyone having to remember; Automating the Nest Egg shows how.

Where family gifts fit in

Custodial accounts are a natural home for family gifts that aren’t meant only for college. Anyone can give, and in 2026 each giver can put up to $19,000 into your child’s account without a gift tax return.

GoodNest helps with that part: loved ones can give toward your child’s future from your child’s GoodNest page, often alongside a small keepsake like a book. GoodNest doesn’t hold or invest the money. Family send gifts straight to you by Zelle, Venmo, or PayPal, and you move them into your child’s UTMA, 529, or whichever account fits. A few habits help:

• Decide before you deposit. Once money is in a UTMA, it belongs to your child for good. A gift meant only for education may fit better in a 529 you own.
• Keep a simple record of who gave what and when. Your GoodNest page keeps most of it for you: each gift sent from the page is written down with who sent it and how much. Add any checks or cash that came another way. The record makes thank-you notes easy and helps any big giver keep track of their $19,000 annual exclusion. Thank You Notes and Portfolio Updates shows how to share the account’s progress with family.
• Tell givers where their gift went. Knowing it’s invested in an account in your child’s name helps family see the point of a gift that grows.

The GoodNest Guide to Asking for Investments Instead of Toys has scripts for the conversation, Milestone Contributions maps which occasions suit which account, and Building Your Village: How to Crowdfund Your Child’s Nest Egg covers pooling gifts from family and friends.

The bottom line

UGMA and UTMA accounts work the same way at heart: a permanent gift your child owns, managed by a custodian until an age set by state law. The UGMA is the older, narrower law. The UTMA replaced it everywhere, can hold any kind of property, and usually runs to 21. The choices that matter now are practical ones: when your child will take control in your state, who will serve as custodian and successor, and whether a 529 or a trust fits your goals better. To weigh custodial accounts against every other option, head back to Comparing Investment Accounts for Kids.

Frequently asked questions

Is a UTMA better than a UGMA?

For a new account, you don’t have to choose: every state has replaced the UGMA with the UTMA, so new custodial accounts are UTMAs. The UTMA is broader, since it can hold any kind of property and receive inheritances and insurance payouts, and in most states it runs to 21 rather than 18. An existing UGMA account still works; it simply keeps its original handoff age.

At what age does a UTMA account transfer to the child?

It depends on the state whose law governs the account. For a gift, the default is 21 in most states, 18 in California, the District of Columbia, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Nevada, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Virginia, and 22 in Louisiana. Eleven states allow an age past 21 if it’s chosen when the account is created, usually up to 25, and Wyoming allows up to 30.

Can parents take money out of a UTMA or UGMA account?

Only for the child’s benefit. The custodian can spend the money on things that benefit your child, such as camp, lessons, a computer, or college, but can’t use it for their own purposes, give it to another child, or take the gift back. Using it for basics you’re already legally obligated to provide can create tax and legal problems, and the 2026 update to the UTMA makes clear that a custodian can’t use the account that way.

How is a UTMA account taxed?

The account’s earnings are your child’s income. In 2026, the first $1,350 of your child’s investment income is tax-free, the next $1,350 is taxed at your child’s rate, and anything above $2,700 is generally taxed at the parents’ rate if it’s higher. Gifts into the account count toward each giver’s $19,000 annual gift tax exclusion.

Can I move a UTMA or UGMA account into a 529 plan?

Yes, into a custodial 529. The custodian sells the investments first, which may create capital gains, and deposits the cash. The money still belongs to your child, the beneficiary can’t be changed, and your child takes control at the same age. For financial aid, a dependent student’s custodial 529 counts as a parent asset, assessed at up to 5.64% instead of 20%.

Sources

• Vanguard, “UGMA/UTMA accounts”.
• South Carolina General Assembly, 2021-2022 Bill 3821, SC Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (Act No. 128, signed April 4, 2022), with the Uniform Law Commission’s official comments.
• Internal Revenue Service, “IRS releases tax inflation adjustments for tax year 2026, including amendments from the One, Big, Beautiful Bill”, IR-2025-103 (October 9, 2025).
• Benjamin Orzeske, Probate & Property, “Uniform Laws Update: The New Uniform Transfers to Minors Act” (September/October 2026), American Bar Association.
• Probate & Property, “Uniform Laws Update: Uniform Transfers to Minors Act Is Under Review” (September/October 2023), American Bar Association.
• FinAid, “Age of Majority and Trust Termination” (updated March 10, 2026).
• Vermont General Assembly, 14 V.S.A. § 3230, Termination of custodianship (added 2015, No. 7).
• Nolo, “The Uniform Transfers to Minors Act Is the Law in Every State”.
• FINRA, Regulatory Notice 20-07, “FINRA Reminds Member Firms of Their Responsibilities for Supervising UTMA and UGMA Accounts” (February 27, 2020).
• Maryland General Assembly, Maryland Code, Estates and Trusts § 13-320.
• Virginia General Assembly, Code of Virginia § 64.2-1919, Termination of custodianship.
• Justia, 2025 Wyoming Statutes § 34-13-138, Changing the Time for Transfer of Custodial Property.
• Fidelity, “What to know about the kiddie tax”.
• Internal Revenue Service, Revenue Procedure 2025-32, 2026 inflation adjustments, including the kiddie tax amount, the annual gift exclusion, and the basic exclusion amount.
• Saving for College, “How to Shelter Assets on the FAFSA and Maximize Financial Aid Eligibility”.
• Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 26 U.S. Code § 529, Qualified tuition programs.
• Kathryn Flynn, Saving for College, “What is a Custodial 529 Plan Account?” (updated August 6, 2026).

This article is for general educational purposes only and is not legal, tax, investment, or financial aid advice. Custodial account rules come from state law, vary by state and by how an account was created, and can change; confirm the rules for your child’s account with your provider or an attorney. Figures reflect federal rules for 2026 as of the date above. Growth examples are hypothetical, assume a steady 7% average annual return, and don’t reflect fees, taxes, or any specific investment. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. GoodNest does not provide legal, tax, or investment advice and does not hold or invest funds. For your family’s situation, consider consulting a qualified attorney or tax professional.