What does the year select?

The assumed year of death, not the year a return is filed. Death year 2025 uses a $13,990,000 basic exclusion and $5,541,800 credit; 2026 uses $15,000,000 and $5,945,800.

How are prior gifts treated?

Adjusted post-1976 taxable gifts outside the estate are added to the assumed taxable estate before unified rates are applied. The basic credit is subtracted afterward. The model assumes a $0 recomputed Form 706 line-7 deduction; it does not infer zero from historical cash tax paid or reconstruct Form 709 history.

Does this calculate nonresident tax or a filing requirement?

No. The scenario assumes a U.S. citizen or resident decedent and no estate deductions. Nonresident rules, DSUE, portability, state death tax, other credits and actual filing requirements are outside the model.

Estate Tax Calculator

Apply unified federal rates and the selected death-year basic credit, with no estate deductions and an explicit zero recomputed gift-tax deduction.

Bounded federal estate-tax scenario

Apply unified rates and the selected basic credit under explicit simplified assumptions.

Entered estate value; assumes no deductions (USD)

$0$50,000,000

Assumed year of death

2,0252,026

Adjusted taxable gifts outside the estate (USD)

$0$5,000,000

Estimated federal estate tax under assumptions

$2,000,000.00

Estate value after this estimate

$18,000,000.00

Entered estate value

$20,000,000.00

Basic exclusion for selected death year

$15,000,000.00

Entered estate split: retained value and estimated tax

Model details

Model parameter	Value (USD unless year)
Year of death	2026
Entered assumed taxable estate	$20,000,000.00
Adjusted gifts outside estate	$0.00
Estate plus adjusted gifts	$20,000,000.00
Selected basic exclusion	$15,000,000.00
Tentative unified tax on combined base	$7,945,800.00
Recomputed gift-tax deduction (assumed)	$0.00
Selected basic credit	$5,945,800.00
Estimated federal estate tax	$2,000,000.00
Estate after modeled tax	$18,000,000.00

This hypothetical scenario assumes a U.S. citizen or resident decedent and no estate deductions. The entered estate therefore equals the assumed taxable estate. Adjusted taxable gifts are post-1976 taxable gifts not already included in that estate; gift classification, valuation and history are supplied assumptions, not determined here.

The recomputed gift-tax deduction under Form 706 line 7 is assumed $0. This is not inferred from the gift amount, historical cash tax paid, or the input limit. The model does not reconstruct Form 709 history. Special 1976 credit adjustments, DSUE, restored exclusion, portability, marital/charitable/debt/administrative deductions, state death tax, GST, treaties, special assets and other credits are excluded.

Year of death 2025 uses a $13,990,000 basic exclusion and $5,541,800 basic credit; 2026 uses $15,000,000 and $5,945,800. The unified rate schedule applies to estate plus adjusted gifts; the basic credit is subtracted afterward, with the estimate floored at zero. Gifts are not subtracted from the entered estate.

This is neither a filing-requirement determination nor an actual estate/inheritance/income-tax return or avoidance recommendation. Amounts are rounded half-up to USD cents; exact summary values and full chart legends remain available when both doughnut segments are zero.

IRS estate-tax scope and death-year thresholds

IRS Form 706 instructions: unified rates, gifts and credit

An estate scenario with explicit assumptions

This scenario assumes a U.S. citizen or resident decedent, no estate deductions, and an entered estate equal to the assumed taxable estate. Adjusted taxable gifts are post-1976 taxable gifts outside that estate. Classification, valuation and gift history are supplied assumptions, not calculated here. The selected year is the year of death, not the filing year.

The recomputed gift-tax deduction under Form 706 line 7 is explicitly assumed $0. Zero is not inferred from the gift amount, historical cash tax paid or the input limit. The model does not reconstruct Form 709 history or cover nonresident rules, special 1976 adjustments, DSUE, restored exclusion, portability, marital/charitable/debt/administrative deductions, state death tax, GST, treaties, special assets or other credits.

Gifts are added before the basic credit is subtracted

Unified rates apply to the entered estate plus adjusted taxable gifts. The selected basic credit is then subtracted and the estimate is floored at zero. Gifts are not subtracted from the estate. Death year 2025 uses a $13,990,000 basic exclusion and $5,541,800 credit; 2026 uses $15,000,000 and $5,945,800. These parameters and the line-7 distinction are documented in the IRS Form 706 instructions.

For a $20,000,000 estate in 2026, the estimate is $2,000,000.00 with no adjusted gifts, or $2,400,000.00 with $1,000,000 of adjusted gifts, under the same zero line-7 assumption. The estimate is rounded half-up to USD cents. It does not determine filing requirements, actual tax owed, inheritance or income tax, or an avoidance strategy.

How to use this calculator

Enter an assumed taxable estate in USD from $0 to $50,000,000; this scenario assumes no estate deductions.
Select the assumed year of death, 2025 or 2026, for the matching basic exclusion and credit.
Enter adjusted post-1976 taxable gifts outside the estate, from $0 to $5,000,000; the recomputed Form 706 line-7 deduction remains an explicit $0 assumption.
Review the combined base, tentative unified tax, basic credit and floored estimate; the result does not determine a filing requirement.