If the holiday spirit is encouraging you to gift millions of dollars to family members, it’s time to start sharing the wealth.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act increased the gift and estate tax exemption — also known as the basic exclusion amount — to $11.18 million per person in 2018, which is more than double the amount under the old law.
That means any individual can transfer up to $11.18 million, either as gifts during their lifetime or as bequests after death — and do so without having that money be subject to the 40 percent estate and gift tax.
If you’re sitting on that much wealth, consider making those large gifts while you still can. The exemption is set to fall back to about $5 million per person at the end of 2025.
Sitting on $11 million? Give it away to save on estate taxes