And there are many different types of charitable trusts, which involve making a sizable gift to a tax-exempt charity. Some of them provide both income tax and estate tax advantages. If your state imposes death taxes, there probably isn't much you can do. The government long anticipated this one. There are, however, a few exceptions to this rule.
Any property given to a tax-exempt charity avoids federal gift taxes.
And money spent directly for someone's medical bills or school tuition is exempt as well. But I've heard that people save on estate taxes by making gifts. Of course, there are risks with this kind of gift-giving program. The most obvious is that you are legally transferring your wealth. Gift giving to reduce eventual estate taxes must be carefully evaluated to see if you can comfortably afford to give away your property during your lifetime.