Atlanta Irrevocable Trust Attorney — Permanent Asset Protection

An irrevocable trust is a legal entity that holds assets permanently — you cannot take them back or change the terms after the trust is signed and funded. That permanence is what creates the legal and financial protections. Because you have given up ownership and control of the assets, they are not counted as yours for Medicaid, estate tax, or creditor purposes — subject to applicable rules and lookback periods. The trustee you name manages the assets according to the trust terms. The beneficiaries you designate receive the assets at your death or according to the distribution terms you set.

Generally no. An irrevocable trust cannot be modified or revoked by the grantor after it is signed — that is the defining feature. Some irrevocable trusts include provisions for decanting (moving assets into a new trust with modified terms), and Georgia law allows some modification with court approval and beneficiary consent. But these are narrow exceptions, not a general ability to change the trust. Before signing any irrevocable trust, you should be certain of the terms, the trustee, and the beneficiary designations — because changing them later requires significant legal process.

A revocable trust can be changed or terminated by the grantor at any time. It avoids probate but does not remove assets from your estate — they still count for Medicaid and estate tax. An irrevocable trust cannot be changed after signing. It does remove assets from your estate — after the applicable lookback period, those assets are not counted for Medicaid spend-down, are not subject to estate tax in your estate, and are generally protected from your personal creditors. The trade-off is control. A revocable trust gives you complete flexibility. An irrevocable trust gives you protection that flexibility alone cannot provide.

Georgia Medicaid counts all assets you own and control when evaluating eligibility. Because you cannot take assets back from an irrevocable trust, Medicaid does not count them as yours — after the five-year lookback period. The lookback period is 60 months. Medicaid examines every transfer you made in the five years before your application. If you funded the trust within that window, a penalty period applies based on the amount transferred and the average monthly cost of nursing home care in Georgia. Assets transferred more than five years before application are fully protected. The timing of funding is the single most important variable in how much the trust can protect.

Georgia residents commonly use several types of irrevocable trusts depending on their goals. A Medicaid asset protection trust (MAPT) protects assets from nursing home spend-down after a five-year lookback. An irrevocable life insurance trust (ILIT) holds a life insurance policy outside your taxable estate so the proceeds pass to heirs without estate tax. A spousal lifetime access trust (SLAT) removes assets from your estate while allowing your spouse to receive distributions. A special needs trust preserves assets for a beneficiary with disabilities without disqualifying them from government benefits. The right structure depends on your specific estate, tax situation, and planning goals — we assess all of them before recommending a structure.