Estate Tax Calculator Estimate federal and state estate tax liability — with exemption planning, gifting strategies, and ...

Estate Tax Calculator

Estimate federal and state estate tax liability — with exemption planning, gifting strategies, and trust analysis for 2025.

Federal Tax

State Tax

Gift Planner

Trust Analyzer

Gross Estate ($)

Debts & Expenses ($)

Marital Deduction ($)

Charitable ($)

Filing Status Single Married (Portability)

State No State Tax Oregon (16% top) Massachusetts (16% top) Minnesota (16% top) New York ($6.94M excl.) Washington (20% top)

Taxable Estate ($)

Annual Gift ($/recipient)

Recipients

Years Gifted

First Spouse Estate ($)

Second Spouse Estate ($)

Exemption Used First ($)

$0

Taxable Estate

$0

Federal Tax Due

$0

State Tax Due

$0

Total Tax

Estate Tax Waterfall

How Federal Estate Tax Works

2025 Federal Rules**:

• Exemption**: $13.61M per person ($27.22M married w/ portability)
• Top Rate**: 40% on amounts over exemption
• Portability**: Surviving spouse can use deceased spouse’s unused exemption (DSUE) — but requires **Form 706 filing** within 9 months

Formula**:

$$\text{Taxable Estate} = \text{Gross Estate} - \text{Debts} - \text{Marital} - \text{Charitable}$$

$$\text{Tax} = \max(0, \text{Taxable Estate} - \text{Exemption}) \times 40\%$$

Example: $15M estate, $500K debts, $7M to spouse, $1M charity → Taxable = $15M − $0.5M − $7M − $1M = $6.5M Tax = max(0, $6.5M − $13.61M) × 40% = **$0** (exempt)

Estate Tax Red Flags

⚠️ Critical planning mistakes:

• Missing Form 706** — lose portability → $13.61M exemption wasted
• Ignoring state nexus** — CA resident with NY property owes NY tax
• Non-spousal QTIP failure** — marital deduction lost if trust not structured properly
• Gift tax return omissions** — lifetime exemption usage not tracked

✅ Pro Tips**:

• File **Form 706** even if $0 tax due — to lock in portability
• Use **SLATs** (Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts) for married couples in high-tax states
• Leverage **annual exclusion** ($19K/recipient) + **529 plans** for education gifting

2025 State Estate Tax Benchmarks

State	Exclusion	Top Rate	$5M Estate Tax
Oregon	$1M	16%	$640K
Massachusetts	$1M	16%	$640K
New York	$6.94M	16%	$0
Washington	$2.193M	20%	$561K
Minnesota	$3M	16%	$320K

📉 Step-Up in Basis**:

• Assets receive new cost basis at death → heirs avoid capital gains
• $1M stock bought at $100K → $900K gain wiped out at death

How to Use This Calculator

➡️ Federal Tax

Model gross estate, deductions, and portability to estimate federal liability.

➡️ State Tax

See if your state imposes tax — and how much.

➡️ Gift Planner

“$19K to 4 kids for 10 years = $760K removed, $0 gift tax”

➡️ Trust Analyzer

Compare portability vs. credit shelter trust for surviving spouses.

Note: Uses 2025 IRS exemption ($13.61M), 40% top rate, and state laws as of Jan 2025.