Did OBBBA raise the estate and gift tax exclusion amount for 2026?

The IRS announcement on OBBBA's permanent estate and gift tax exclusion confirms that, for estates of decedents dying and gifts made after 2025, the basic exclusion amount increased to $15 million, indexed for inflation. The 2026 amount is $15 million.

For planning around U.S. estate exposure (especially for foreign-owner structures with U.S. real estate or U.S.-situs assets), the OBBBA-driven exclusion is a meaningful change from earlier projected post-sunset numbers. NRA estate planning exposure to U.S.-situs assets remains tied to a much smaller threshold — the $60,000 NRA exclusion — so the $15 million figure does not directly help nonresident decedents.