Lifetime Gift Simulator
Project the impact of annual-exclusion gifting over many years. Accounts for gift splitting, skip-person GST exposure, and the growth of gifted assets outside the estate.
Lifetime Gift Simulator — Calculation Summary
| Input / parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual gift per donee | $19,000 |
| Number of donees | 2 |
| Years of gifting | 10 |
| Married (gift splitting) | Yes |
| Gifts to skip-persons | No |
| Assumed annual growth | 6% |
| Years until death | 20 |
| Result | |
| Total gifted over 10 yrs | $380,000 |
| Sheltered by annual exclusion | $380,000 |
| Applied to lifetime exemption | $0 |
| Lifetime exemption remaining | $15,000,000 |
| Gift tax due now | $0 |
| Estimated estate tax avoided | $487,485 |
| Gifted assets grown to (at death) | $1,218,711 |
Source: IRC § 2503; IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32 (2026 annual and lifetime exclusions).
This is an informal planning estimate only, not legal or tax advice. Confirm all figures with the IRS, your state Department of Revenue, or a licensed estate attorney or CPA before relying on them.
The annual exclusion ($19,000/donee in 2026, doubled by gift splitting) removes gifts from your taxable estate with no lifetime-exemption cost. Amounts above it eat into the $15,000,000unified lifetime exemption — but that same exemption also covers your estate, so large lifetime gifts reduce the exemption available at death. The “estate tax avoided” shows why gifting appreciating assets early is powerful: the assets’ future growth escapes estate tax entirely (illustrated at the 40% top rate). Figures are planning estimates; confirm with a CPA.
Informal estimate only — not legal or tax advice. Figures cite federal statute (IRC § 2010, OBBBA 2025) and each state's Department of Revenue. Tax laws and exemption amounts change yearly; confirm the current rule with the IRS, your state agency, or a licensed estate attorney or CPA before relying on any number.
How this calculator works
Calculation method & sources
- Annual exclusion: IRC § 2503(b) and IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32 set the 2026 annual exclusion at $19,000 per donee.
- Gift splitting: IRC § 2513 allows a married couple to treat a gift as made half by each spouse, doubling the annual exclusion per recipient.
- Lifetime exemption: IRC § 2505. The unified lifetime exemption is $15M in 2026. Gifts above the annual exclusion consume this exemption.
- GST exemption: IRC § 2631. The generation-skipping transfer exemption is also $15M in 2026 and is not portable between spouses.
- Growth estimate: Future value is calculated as total gifted × (1 + assumed growth rate) ^ years until death. The “estate tax avoided” assumes the top federal estate tax rate applies to that future value.
How to interpret your lifetime gift simulator result
- “Total gifted” is the raw amount transferred over the gifting period.
- “Sheltered by annual exclusion” is the portion that escapes transfer tax without using your lifetime exemption.
- “Applied to lifetime exemption” is the amount that reduces the $15M unified credit available at death.
- “Estimated estate tax avoided” assumes the gifted assets would have grown inside the estate and been taxed at the top federal rate.
- Gifts to skip-persons (grandchildren) also consume GST exemption, which is tracked if you check that box.