Estate Planning in Maryland

Like all states, Maryland recognizes formally executed wills and living trusts as valid estate planning tools. A standard will here requires 2Md. Est. & Trusts § 4-102Verified Oct 18, 2026View source adult witnesses.

A Maryland healthcare power of attorney is signed before 2Md. Health-General Code Ann. § 5-603Verified Oct 15, 2026View source witnesses; notarization is not requiredMd. Health-General Code Ann. § 5-603Verified Oct 15, 2026View source. Witnesses must be at least 18 yearsMd. Health-General Code Ann. § 5-603Verified Oct 15, 2026View source old and cannot be the named agent. The agent must be at least 18 yearsMd. Health-General Code Ann. § 5-603Verified Oct 15, 2026View source old, and Maryland bars employees of the treating facility from serving, subject to the statute’s exceptions.

A Maryland financial power of attorney is signed before 2Md. Code, Est. & Trusts §§ 17-101 to 17-116, §§ 17-201 to 17-204; Md. Code, Real Prop. § 4-107; Md. Code, Gen. Prov. § 1-401Verified Sep 18, 2026View source witnesses and a notaryMd. Code, Est. & Trusts §§ 17-101 to 17-116, §§ 17-201 to 17-204; Md. Code, Real Prop. § 4-107; Md. Code, Gen. Prov. § 1-401Verified Sep 18, 2026View source; both are required. The document is durable by defaultMd. Code, Est. & Trusts §§ 17-101 to 17-116, §§ 17-201 to 17-204; Md. Code, Real Prop. § 4-107; Md. Code, Gen. Prov. § 1-401Verified Sep 18, 2026View source: it stays in effect if the principal becomes incapacitated. A springing power of attorney, one that takes effect only when the principal becomes incapacitated, is permittedMd. Code, Est. & Trusts §§ 17-101 to 17-116, §§ 17-201 to 17-204; Md. Code, Real Prop. § 4-107; Md. Code, Gen. Prov. § 1-401Verified Sep 18, 2026View source.

Maryland is one of a handful of states that impose both an estate tax and an inheritance tax. The estate tax applies to estates exceeding $5,000,000Md. Tax-Gen. § 7-309Verified Sep 15, 2026View source, with rates up to 16%Md. Tax-Gen. § 7-309Verified Sep 15, 2026View source. The inheritance tax is paid by each beneficiary based on their relationship to the deceased and the amount inherited. This double layer of taxation makes probate avoidance and lifetime gifting strategies particularly relevant here.

Maryland does not require a revocable living trust to be notarizedMd. Code Est. & Trusts § 14.5-101 et seq.Verified Oct 17, 2026View source. Maryland allows transfer-on-death deeds for real estate, enabling property to pass directly to named beneficiaries without probate. This is a significant probate avoidance tool that doesn't require creating a trust. Transferring property into a revocable trust does not trigger a property tax reassessment in Maryland, so property taxes remain at their current level.

Maryland does not automatically revoke an ex-spouse as beneficiary upon divorce. Without updating beneficiary designations after a divorce, an ex-spouse may still inherit life insurance proceeds and retirement accounts—regardless of what a will says.

Maryland fully authorizes remote online notarization (RON) for estate planning documents, including wills, trusts, healthcare directives, powers of attorney. RON covers the notarization step; whether the whole signing can happen remotely also depends on whether the document's witnesses may attend by video.