Each year, my first blog post focuses on updates to estate tax laws that take effect in the new year. Before diving into the details and numbers, I want to pause to wish everyone a happy new year and to express my sincere gratitude to my clients and centers of influence for the continued trust they place in me. The success of Canarick & Canarick is rooted in the strong relationships we have built over time, and we truly would not be where we are today without your support. I would also like to extend a special thank-you to my exceptional team—Amy, Katie and Allison—whose dedication and hard work keep our firm operating at its best.

With that said, I wanted to provide a few small updates for 2026…

• For an estate of any decedent dying during calendar year 2026, the applicable exclusion is increased from $13.99 million to $15 million. This change increases not only the applicable exclusion amount available at death, but also a taxpayer’s lifetime gift applicable exclusion amount and generation skipping transfer exclusion amount. This means that in 2026, a married couple could transfer up to $30 million to their children and grandchildren without the imposition of estate, gift or generation skipping transfer taxes.
• The estate, gift and generation skipping transfer tax rate remains the same at 40%.
• The gift tax annual exclusion will remain the same at $19,000. This means that as long as gifts made from one individual to another in the year 2026 do not exceed $19,000 in value, the gift will not count against the $15 million lifetime applicable exclusion amount described above.
• The New York exclusion is increasing to $7.35 million (up from $7.16 million in 2025), and is scheduled to increase with inflation each year going forward. It is important to note that, unlike the Federal exclusion amount, the New York exclusion amount is not portable. This means that if the first spouse to die fails to utilize his or her full exclusion amount, the surviving spouse will not be able to utilize the unused exclusion amount of the first spouse to die. It is also important to note that unlike the Federal estate tax law, estates in excess of $7.35 million are taxed on the full value of the estate and not just the amount above the $7.35 million.
• The New Jersey estate tax was repealed in 2018 and there has been little to no discussion about reinstating it. New Jersey still does have an Inheritance Tax, but spouses and descendants (children, grandchildren, etc.) are not subject to it.

As always, please feel free to reach out with any questions or to schedule a review of your estate plan.

Wishing you and yours a safe, healthy, and prosperous new year! Cheers to 2026!