Burial contracts or trusts entered into January 1, 1988 or later may be revocable
or irrevocable. The law specifically allows agreements to be "irrevocable to the extent
that federal law or regulations require that such a contract be irrevocable for purposes
of such buyer"s eligibility for Supplemental Security Income benefits." If a statement
to this effect is included in a contract, assume the entire contract is irrevocable
unless the contract specifically states only a lesser dollar amount is irrevocable.
If the contract provides that interest must be left to accrue or otherwise states
that interest is irrevocable, the interest on the agreement is also considered irrevocable,
and, therefore, is not income or resources. Otherwise, the interest is income (subject
to exclusion, e.g., as irregular or infrequent) and a countable resource in subsequent
months. (Note that if the irrevocable agreement does not entirely reduce the $1,500
national burial fund exclusion, the national exclusion may also apply.)