Gift Tax Limit for 2026: Annual Exclusion, Lifetime Exemption & Rates
Giving during life is one of the simplest ways to reduce a future estate tax bill — but the gift tax has its own limits. In 2026, you can give $19,000 per person per year free of any filing, and up to $15 million over your lifetime before the federal gift-or-estate tax applies.
The 2026 annual gift tax exclusion
In 2026 the annual exclusion is $19,000 per recipient. A married couple can split gifts and give $38,000 per recipient without using any lifetime exemption or filing a gift tax return in most cases. Gifts within the annual exclusion are completely tax-free and require no IRS Form 709.
The lifetime gift and estate exemption
The gift tax shares a unified lifetime exemption with the estate tax: $15,000,000 per person in 2026 (indexed for inflation from 2027 under OBBBA 2025). Taxable gifts made during life reduce the exemption available at death. A married couple can shield $30 million combined.
Gift tax rates
The federal gift tax uses the same graduated schedule as the estate tax, topping out at 40%. You only pay gift tax when cumulative taxable gifts exceed the lifetime exemption — which, for绝大多数 families, never happens.
Gifts that are never taxable
Payments made directly to an educational institution for tuition, and to a medical provider for care, are excluded from gift tax regardless of amount. Gifts to a U.S.-citizen spouse are unlimited. These do not use the annual exclusion or the lifetime exemption.
Gifts and state estate tax
Some states add taxable gifts back into the estate if made within a few years of death (New York and Minnesota use a 3-year lookback). Lifetime gifting is most effective when done well before death and documented. Model a multi-year program with our Lifetime Gift Simulator.