Forbes magazine reached out to McGuireWoods partner Charles D. “Skip” Fox IV for insight on the Internal Revenue Service announcement that the estate and gift tax exemption will jump from $5.49 million to $5.6 million per individual.
The 2 percent increase in the amount the federal government allows individuals to shield from 2018 federal estate and gift taxes was determined by annual inflation rates.
The Oct. 19 story noted that the yearly wait for the IRS to disclose allowable exemptions could end if Congress approves President Donald Trump’s tax reform blueprint. Trump’s proposal would eliminate the federal estate tax.
Believe it when you see it, cautioned Fox, who chairs McGuireWoods’ tax and employee benefits practice. “We’ve been down this road before,” he said, noting Washington undercurrents that Congress might jettison estate tax repeal to achieve its priority of lowering corporate and individual income tax rates.