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2026 federal estate tax exemption: $15,000,000 per person — $30,000,000 for a married couple with portability.
- Annual gift tax exclusion: $19,000 per recipient ($38,000 for a married couple splitting gifts)
- Top estate & gift tax rate: 40%
- Annual exclusion, gifts to a non-citizen spouse: $194,000
- Lifetime gift exemption: unified with the estate exemption — the same $15,000,000
Source: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 and the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-21). Figures apply to deaths and gifts in calendar year 2026. This page is updated every year when the IRS publishes its inflation adjustments — see the update log.
What Changed for 2026
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act’s elevated exemption was scheduled to sunset on January 1, 2026, which would have dropped it to roughly $7 million. That never happened: the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-21, signed July 4, 2025) set the exemption at $15 million per person, permanently, with inflation indexing resuming in 2027. There is no sunset currently scheduled in federal law.
Federal Estate Tax Exemption by Year (2026 back to 1997)
| Year | Estate Tax Exemption | Top Rate | Annual Gift Exclusion | Law |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $15,000,000 | 40% | $19,000 | OBBBA amount; permanent, indexed from 2027 |
| 2025 | $13,990,000 | 40% | $19,000 | OBBBA signed July 4, 2025 |
| 2024 | $13,610,000 | 40% | $18,000 | |
| 2023 | $12,920,000 | 40% | $17,000 | |
| 2022 | $12,060,000 | 40% | $16,000 | |
| 2021 | $11,700,000 | 40% | $15,000 | |
| 2020 | $11,580,000 | 40% | $15,000 | |
| 2019 | $11,400,000 | 40% | $15,000 | |
| 2018 | $11,180,000 | 40% | $15,000 | TCJA doubles the exemption |
| 2017 | $5,490,000 | 40% | $14,000 | |
| 2016 | $5,450,000 | 40% | $14,000 | |
| 2015 | $5,430,000 | 40% | $14,000 | |
| 2014 | $5,340,000 | 40% | $14,000 | |
| 2013 | $5,250,000 | 40% | $14,000 | ATRA makes rules "permanent" |
| 2012 | $5,120,000 | 35% | $13,000 | First inflation indexing |
| 2011 | $5,000,000 | 35% | $13,000 | TRA 2010 |
| 2010 | $5,000,000† | 35%† | $13,000 | Repeal year — see note |
| 2009 | $3,500,000 | 45% | $13,000 | |
| 2008 | $2,000,000 | 45% | $12,000 | |
| 2007 | $2,000,000 | 45% | $12,000 | |
| 2006 | $2,000,000 | 46% | $12,000 | |
| 2005 | $1,500,000 | 47% | $11,000 | |
| 2004 | $1,500,000 | 48% | $11,000 | |
| 2003 | $1,000,000 | 49% | $11,000 | |
| 2002 | $1,000,000 | 50% | $11,000 | EGTRRA phase-in begins |
| 2001 | $675,000 | 55%* | $10,000 | |
| 2000 | $675,000 | 55%* | $10,000 | |
| 1999 | $650,000 | 55%* | $10,000 | |
| 1998 | $625,000 | 55%* | $10,000 | TRA 1997 phase-in |
| 1997 | $600,000 | 55%* | $10,000 |
* 1997–2001: 55% statutory top rate, plus a 5% surcharge on taxable estates between $10,000,000 and $21,040,000, producing an effective top marginal rate of 60% in that band.
† 2010: the estate tax was briefly repealed. Executors of 2010 estates could elect either full repeal with modified carryover basis, or a $5,000,000 exemption at a 35% rate with stepped-up basis (TRA 2010).
Annual Gift Tax Exclusion by Year
The annual exclusion is the amount you can give any number of individual recipients each year with no tax, no reporting, and no use of your lifetime exemption. It is indexed to inflation in $1,000 increments.
| Years | Annual Exclusion (per recipient) |
|---|---|
| 2025–2026 | $19,000 |
| 2024 | $18,000 |
| 2023 | $17,000 |
| 2022 | $16,000 |
| 2018–2021 | $15,000 |
| 2013–2017 | $14,000 |
| 2009–2012 | $13,000 |
| 2006–2008 | $12,000 |
| 2002–2005 | $11,000 |
| 1997–2001 | $10,000 |
How the Unified Exemption Works
The estate tax exemption and the lifetime gift tax exemption are a single unified amount: every dollar of taxable gifts above the annual exclusion made during life reduces the exemption available at death. Estates above the exemption pay a top rate of 40% on the excess — but with portability, a surviving spouse can use any exemption the first spouse didn’t. Fewer than 0.1% of estates owe any federal estate tax at the current exemption. Only about 7,200 estate tax returns are filed a year nationwide — see who actually pays. What catches families instead is state-level estate and inheritance taxes, where 17 states tax at far lower thresholds — and the practical planning decisions covered in our living trust cost guide.
Cite or Link This Page
Journalists, attorneys, and financial educators are welcome to cite this table with attribution:
Federal Estate Tax Exemption (1997–2026), Family Estate Guide, https://familyestateguide.com/estate-tax-exemption/
Deep links: historical table · gift exclusion by year · update log
Licensed under CC BY 4.0 — reuse, republish, or adapt this material, including commercially, with credit to Family Estate Guide and a link to this page. The license covers our compilation and analysis; underlying source data remains subject to its original terms.
Update Log
- August 2026 — Page published. 2026 figures per Rev. Proc. 2025-32 and P.L. 119-21; historical series cross-checked against IRS revenue procedures and practitioner compilations.
- August 2026 — Released under CC BY 4.0; reuse permitted with attribution.
Primary sources: IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (2026 amounts) · IRS: What’s New — Estate and Gift Tax · IRS Estate Tax FAQ
Last updated: August 2026. This reference is reviewed annually when the IRS publishes inflation adjustments (typically October–November) and whenever federal law changes. Educational information, not legal or tax advice.