“Recent federal legislation permanently raised the estate and gift tax exemption starting in 2026, with the amount now indexed for inflation each year going forward. There's no expiration date built into the new law this time, so the exemption won't quietly shrink back down the way it was set to. The annual gift tax exclusion went up as well, though the top estate tax rate stays where it was.
(. . .)
“Why you shouldn't file this away and forget it:
“A bigger exemption doesn't mean your estate plan takes care of itself. If anything, it's a good excuse to take a fresh look at three things:
Documents built for the old rules. If your trust or will was drafted with the prior, lower exemption in mind — or around the assumption that the exemption would drop — it may not do what you intended anymore.
Your state. The federal exemption is only half the picture. Plenty of states apply their own estate or inheritance tax at thresholds far below the federal number, which matters a lot if you've moved or split time between states.
Building in room to adapt. Given how much this landscape has shifted before, it's worth structuring a plan that can bend if the law changes again, rather than one built entirely around today's numbers.”
(continued)
ARTICLE LINK: https://www.udel.edu/alumni-friends/stories/2026/estate-planning-new-tax-landscape-retirees/
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