All you need to know about taxes on gifts and the exceptions (2024)

FAQs

What are the exceptions to gift tax? ›

Gifts to IRS-approved charities, to your spouse (assuming they are a US citizen), to pay another person's medical expenses, and to cover another person's tuition expenses are all exempt from the gift tax and from the annual limit.

The IRS allows every taxpayer is gift up to $18,000 to an individual recipient in one year. There is no limit to the number of recipients you can give a gift to.

The annual gift tax exclusion is a set dollar amount that you may give someone without needing to report it to the IRS. The threshold is typically adjusted to account for inflation each year. The 2023 annual gift tax exclusion was $17,000, and the 2024 annual gift tax exclusion is $18,000.

Lifetime IRS Gift Tax Exemption

If a gift exceeds the $18,000 limit for 2024, that does not automatically trigger the gift tax. Also for 2024, the IRS allows a person to give away up to $13.61 million in assets or property over the course of their lifetime and/or as part of their estate.

A gift tax is a government tax imposed on those who give money or property to others in exchange for nothing (or less than total value). There is typically a tax-free gift limit to family members until a donation exceeds $15,000 (jumping up to $16,000 in 2022). In these instances, the IRS is usually uninvolved.

The primary way the IRS becomes aware of gifts is when you report them on form 709. You are required to report gifts to an individual over $17,000 on this form. This is how the IRS will generally become aware of a gift. However, form 709 is not the only way the IRS will know about a gift.

The Donor Is Responsible for Gift Reporting and Taxes, Not the Recipient. When it comes to reporting gifts and paying any taxes due, the burden falls on the person making the gift. The recipient doesn't have to do anything.

Share: Generally, the answer to “do I have to pay taxes on a gift?” is this: the person receiving a gift typically does not have to pay gift tax. The giver, however, will generally file a gift tax return when the gift exceeds the annual gift tax exclusion amount, which is $17,000 per recipient for 2023.

Gift tax is paid by the giver of money or assets, not the receiver. The good news is that this threshold is so high that few people end up having to pay the gift tax. These thresholds are referred to as exclusions. There are two separate gift tax exclusions: an annual exclusion and a lifetime exclusion.

How much money can you gift a year without reporting to IRS? ›

By setting up an irrevocable trust, donors can direct how they want the money to be managed and specify how it can be distributed and when it should be withheld, even if that happens after the donor's death.

Gift splitting allows a married couple to gift twice as much as an individual without being subject to a gift tax. In order to qualify for gift splitting, couples must both agree to the gift and file joint tax returns. The annual gift exclusion is $34,000 for couples for 2023.

Your estate planning attorney can help you legally minimize tax liabilities to your heirs by gifting assets during your lifetime, establishing trusts, and leveraging exemptions. Tax-advantaged accounts, capital gains tax planning, and other tax-efficient investments like life insurance can minimize taxes to your heirs.

Reducing potential taxes with gifts

For smaller gifts, the IRS rules for 2024 allow any individual to gift up to $18,000 per year to any recipient without having to consider the potential impact of a taxable gift. A married couple may give up to $36,000 to any individual.

Generally, the answer to “do I have to pay taxes on a gift?” is this: the person receiving a gift typically does not have to pay gift tax. The giver, however, will generally file a gift tax return when the gift exceeds the annual gift tax exclusion amount, which is $17,000 per recipient for 2023.

Can my parents give me $100,000? Your parents can each give you up to $17,000 each in 2023 and it isn't taxed. However, any amount that exceeds that will need to be reported to the IRS by your parents and will count against their lifetime limit of $12.9 million.

Assets in the trust are subject to federal estate and gift taxes (though no tax may be due if you have a sufficient amount of exemption remaining) only once - when they are transferred to the trust.