Large Gifts Now Won't Hurt Post-2025 Estates

The IRS has issued final regulations that should provide comfort to taxpayers interested in making large gifts under the current gift and estate tax regime. The final regs generally adopt, with some revisions, proposed regs that the IRS released in November 2018 meaning that large gifts now won't hurt post-2025 estates. The need for clarification The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) temporarily doubled the gift and estate tax exemption from $5 million to $10 million for gifts made or estates of decedents dying after 12/31/17, and before 1/1/26. The exemption is adjusted annually for inflation ($11.40 million for 2019 and $11.58 million for 2020). After 2025, though, the exemption is scheduled to drop back to pre-2018 levels. With the estate tax a flat 40%, the higher threshold...