Tax law could make grandkids rich

Congress last year enacted temporary changes that allow for a massive estate-tax break through a Roth IRA. As a result, a grandchild could pocket millions, tax-free, over a lifetime.

Sometimes Congress hands out a break that is so generous it seems it must be a mistake. This one's a doozy: The ability to receive a totally tax-free inheritance of $400 million or more.
Thanks to two recent changes in the tax code, investors with huge 401k accounts now have a way to turn them into completely tax-free income for their grandchildren's lifetimes.
This is by far the biggest estate-planning break on record, created even as lawmakers debate over which tax giveaways should be killed to help shore up the federal budget.
"I call this tax break the government's going-out-of-business sale," says individual retirement account guru Ed Slott, who travels the country teaching advisers and accountants how to squeeze benefits out of the Roth IRA. "This is a tax break you could drive 10 Mack trucks through. It's an incredible opportunity to do a totally tax-free transfer of wealth." More