For years, estate planners circled December 31, 2025, worried the doubled exemption would fall back toward $7 million. It did not. The One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBBA), signed July 4, 2025, made the higher exemption permanent and raised it.
The 2026 numbers
- Federal lifetime estate and gift exemption: $15,000,000 per person
- Married couples: up to $30,000,000 with proper portability
- Top federal estate, gift, and GST tax rate: 40% on amounts above the exemption
- Generation-skipping transfer (GST) exemption: also $15,000,000
The exemption is indexed for inflation starting in 2027, using 2025 as the base year.
"Permanent" has an asterisk
Permanent means there is no scheduled sunset in current law. It does not mean a future Congress cannot change it. Planning should assume today's rules but keep flexibility.
Portability still requires action
A surviving spouse can use a deceased spouse's unused exemption, but only if a timely estate tax return is filed to elect portability. It is not automatic. Portability also cannot transfer unused GST exemption.
State death taxes are a different problem
OBBBA changed only the federal law. Roughly 17 states and the District of Columbia still levy their own estate or inheritance taxes, often with exemptions far below $15 million. Massachusetts and Oregon, for example, start around $1 million. A federal exemption does nothing for a state bill.
Numbers: a $20 million couple
A married couple with a $20 million estate and good portability planning owes $0 in federal estate tax. Before OBBBA, if the exemption had reverted to about $7 million, the same couple could have faced several million in federal tax.
Liquidity still matters. Estates built from a business, farm, or real estate owe tax in cash, often within nine months. Life insurance in an irrevocable trust and buy-sell agreements are common ways to fund that.
Disclaimer: This article is general educational information, not tax, legal, or investment advice. Dollar amounts come from the 2026 sources listed at the end of this article and may change. Before you act, talk to a licensed CPA, EA, or tax attorney about your own situation.