Safe Driving Tips for Winter in Alaska

Winter is upon us in Alaska, and that means cold weather and treacherous driving conditions are going to be facts of life for many months. Slippery roads, limited visibility and other winter hazards make it easier to get into a car accident during this time of year, but that doesn’t mean that drivers have any less of a responsibility when it comes to preventing crashes or taking responsibility when they happen.

Alaska car accident victims have the same rights in the winter as they do during the rest of the year. Anyone who is injured in an accident caused by another driver’s negligence can seek financial compensation in a personal injury lawsuit.

Of course, it is much better to prevent accidents from occurring in the first place. Since it is not practical to simply stay inside for the duration of the winter, all Alaska drivers can benefit from keeping the following winter weather driving tips in mind:
-Stay back: It takes longer to stop on slippery roads, so you need to give yourself more space. At a minimum, you want at least two car lengths of following distance for every 10 mph of speed.

-Watch your speed: Don’t feel pressured to drive the speed limit when conditions are rough. Instead, drive at a speed that is reasonable given traffic flow and road conditions.

-Brake carefully: In winter conditions, sudden braking can cause you to lose control. Apply the brakes only when you are driving in a straight line. Always brake gradually, especially if you are driving an older vehicle that does not have anti-lock brakes.

-Look out for ice: This is especially true for black ice, which isn’t easy to see. Be especially vigilant on bridges, underpasses, intersections or particularly shady sections of road. When driving on icy hills, stay aware of your momentum and use a low gear — not the brakes — to slow down.

-Skid safely: If you lose control of your vehicle, take your foot of the gas and gently turn the steering wheel in the same direction as the skid. Never slam on the brakes, but instead apply them gently once you start to regain control of the vehicle. It is a good idea to practice skidding in an empty parking lot until you feel comfortable.

If you get in an accident, you need to take immediate steps to protect yourself, especially if you are in a remote area. Always carry a shovel and sand or cat litter in case your car gets stuck in the snow. If you become stranded, stay with your vehicle. Run the engine periodically to stay warm, but crack a window so you do not get carbon monoxide poisoning.

If you are injured in a car accident caused by another person’s negligence, it is important to take steps to protect your rights. An experienced Anchorage personal injury attorney can evaluate your case and help you obtain fair compensation.

Article provided by Law Office of Gregory J. Grebe
Visit us at www.grebelaw.com/

The Visa Application Process For The Thailand Transit Visa

If you are travelling to another country and need to stop at Thailand, it is advisable to avail of the Thailand transit visa, so that you can travel and explore the vast and colorful land of Smiles. Depending on your travel purpose, the Embassy will issue a transit visa, Thailand which includes, transit tourists who have a stopover at Thai international airports for 8- 12 hours, crew members of the ships that are docking at the port for a day or more, or participants of any sports who are partaking in an international competition

Apart from these requirements, you will need the following documents for be eligible for transit visa Thailand:

• Valid passport available for at least 6 months from the travel date.

• Precisely filled visa application form

• Recent photographs of the individuals.

• Travel itinerary in the country, where you would be headed after your stay

• Confirmed and paid flight ticket of further destination and visa of the respective country

Each of these purposes will need to fulfill different kinds of requirements. However, they mostly need to convey the requirement to enter the country along with their further plans after their transit stay. These documents may include further travel itinerary, letter of invitation from the respective Thai organization, etc for a transit visa Thailand.

There are certain conditions that affect the approval of your visa. If your visa is approved, it would be valid for three months, only where it begins from the date you submit your Thailand transit visa application and not the travel dates. Therefore you must plan it within the duration of applicable three months to avoid any unnecessary problems to your journey. Also, you are allowed to stay for 30 days in Thailand from the date you enter. If you wish to extend your stay, you must apply for either extension visa or another type of Thai visa. This approval would depend on the immigration office policies and personnel at the visa approval service.

A transit visa is normally used between the intervals of the two destinations, if the said interval period is extremely long and cannot be avoided. It would work in your favor if you have a clear idea as to which is the most suitable place that satisfies all your needs in Thailand for your transit stay. Therefore, it is essential that you must assess the cost of this visa in terms of funds and lodging charges to accurately accommodate for the period of your stay.

IHT Tax Relief in details

The amount of revenue that the UK Government derives from Inheritance Tax is growing all the time with significantly more estates being liable to the Tax. If your estate is worth more than £325,000, your beneficiaries will be liable to pay a 40% taxation on the entire amount above that threshold.

As the Government becomes aware of the growing value of this tax, they are focusing more on removing options open to people to reduce this burden. Examples of this are the recent changes to trust legislation.

There are never the less a number of ways in which you can reduce the impact of IHT and it is worth trying to take advantage of as many of them as you can, to ensure you pass on as much of your estate as possible.

Small Tax Relief Measures

Gifting it away

One of the easiest ways to start minimising your tax burden is by giving away gifts to your loved ones during your lifetime. There are a number of gifts that you can make without incurring a tax liability. You are able to make as many small gifts of less than £250 as you like and in addition you can gift a further £3,000 per annum. You can also make unlimited gifts to certain organisations such as charities or political parties.

If you make larger gifts these may either be a chargeable life time transfer if the gift is to a discretionary trust or a potentially exempt transfer (PET). If the gift is a PET then there will be no tax liability providing you survive for at least 7 years from the date of the gift, however, if you die within 7 years, initially the gift will reduce your nil rate band. If the gifts in aggregate exceeded the Nil Rate Band, the excess may be subject to taper relief.

Taper relief has the effect of reduce the amount of tax payable if you die between 3 and 7 years after the gift is given. If you pass away 7 years or longer after the gift was given, the recipient and your estate do not pay IHT on the gift. Any gifts made within 3 years of your death will be subject to a 100% tax liability; however this taxable amount reduces from year 4 to year 7,translating to between 80% and 20% tax liability. Furthermore, any gifts of any value given to your spouse or civil partner are not subject to IHT.

There are other gifting allowances which include wedding gifts to your children, grandchildren or anyone else of £5,000, £2,500, and £1,000 without paying IHT. You can also give £250 to as many individuals as you want in a year without paying IHT, as long as those individuals do not fall within another exemption.

Charities

You can also endow or gift a charity, museum, university or community amateur sports club with any size gift as these are also IHT free. In fact, if you gift up to 10% of your estate, you can qualify for a 4% reduction in IHT.

Political Support

Gifts to a political party are exempt from tax as long as the party has 2 members in the House or 1 member and at least 150,000 votes in the previous general election.

Primary Residence

Your primary residence, if gifted to your spouse, is tax free. Gifted to anyone else, however, it is subject to the 7 year gift rule. However starting in 2017, £100,000 of the value of the home will be considered tax free within the calculations of the state. This amount increases to £175,000 in 2020 and follows the consumer price index thereafter. This increased benefit is gradually withdrawn for estates worth more than £2m.

The saying “you cannot take it with you” is one that is relevant when it comes to the burden of IHT. Giving away your estate is a selfless act and may enable you to bring your estate to a level below the threshold of tax. However, if you want other alternatives or have a much larger estate to provide for your spouse or children, there are two more favourable options.

Business IHT Relief

The first of the two is a direct Business relief which amounts to 50% or 100% IHT relief. Your estate can claim a 100% business relief from IHT on any unlisted company you own or have shares in. A listed business can result in a 50% relief if you control more than 50% of the outstanding voting shares. Your estate could also receive 50% relief for business-related land, buildings or machinery that you owned or that were held in a trust that benefitted the business. However ownership in investment companies, realty companies, non-profits or a business being sold or wound up do not qualify for relief.

Enterprise Investment Schemes (EIS)and Business Relief

One the best ways to mitigate your tax liability is to invest in an EIS or SEIS. Not only do you reduce the impact of IHT but you also get relief against income tax as well as your capital gains taxes on EIS qualifying shares. EIS is an Enterprise Investment Scheme, which encourages investment in small and medium sized trading companies that would otherwise find it difficult to raise capital funding through regular channels.

These shares must be ordinary shares without preferential rights upon winding up of the company, but you can invest an unlimited amount, saving up to £300,000 income tax in any given yearsubject to the limit of 30% income tax relief against the amount of your investment. This is an amazing tax liability mitigation tool. Not only do you receive a tax savings on your annual income but you can also receive 100% IHT relief as long as you have held the investment for a minimum of 2 years at the time of death. You can defer a Capital Gains Tax Liability into an EIS and if you still own the shares when you die, you will never have to pay the Capital Gains Tax.

In order to qualify for the EIS you must not own more than 30% of the shares of a company or be employed by that company. You must also pay for the shares in total to receive the benefits.

Start planning to mitigate your IHT risk by actively gifting parts of your estate and investing in a quality EIS.

Ten IHT Takeaways

IHT Tax in the UK is 40% of the estate over £325,000.
Primary Residences are exempt from Inheritance Tax on the first £100,000 starting in 2017.
Gifts over £3,000 are subject to IHT Tax if they were made within 7 years of a person’s death.
Over £3 Billion is collected in IHT annually; this rose by 25% over the last 4 years due, in most part, to rising house prices.
Estates passed to a spouse are not subject to IHT, but will be subject to IHT when the spouse (the original holder of the estate) passes away.
Shares in unlisted companies that you own or control qualify for 100% IHT relief after 2 years of ownership.
Listed companies that you own a controlling stake of voting shares are only eligible for a 50% IHT reduction.
EIS provides 100% IHT relief after only 2 years of holding the shares.
EIS provides a 30% income tax relief in addition to the IHT relief.
Profits from the sale of EIS qualifying shares benefit from 100% capital gains tax relief if you also elected to take the Income tax relief on the shares.