Vermont estate tax in 2026
Vermont's estate tax has one exclusion and one rate. Enter the Vermont taxable estate to see the tax, then the effect of property outside Vermont and of recent gifts.
- Exclusion
- $5,000,000
- Rate on the excess
- 16 %
- Gifts added back
- last 2 years
- EST-191 due
- 9 months
Vermont estate tax for a death in 2026
$240,000
3.7 % of the taxable estate; exemption $5,000,000.
| Exemption or threshold | $5,000,000 |
| Amount above it | $1,500,000 |
| State estate tax | $240,000 |
| Return due | 9 months after death |
Estimate on the state table for 2026. Federal tax comes on top above the federal exclusion.
| Taxable estate | State tax | Share |
|---|---|---|
| $5,000,000 | $0 | 0.0 % |
| $6,000,000 | $160,000 | 2.7 % |
| $7,000,000 | $320,000 | 4.6 % |
| $8,000,000 | $480,000 | 6.0 % |
| $9,000,000 | $640,000 | 7.1 % |
| $10,000,000 | $800,000 | 8.0 % |
| $11,000,000 | $960,000 | 8.7 % |
Compiled by Radif Partners · How we calculate · figures read on the state revenue department, the statute and irs.gov · not legal or tax advice
Under 32 V.S.A. section 7442a, Vermont charges no estate tax on a Vermont taxable estate under $5,000,000 and 16 % of the excess above it. There are no brackets: an estate of $6,000,000 owes $160,000, one of $10,000,000 owes $800,000, and every dollar above the exclusion costs 16 % however large the estate. The exclusion has been $5,000,000 for deaths since January 1, 2021 and is not indexed. The Vermont taxable estate is the federal taxable estate with the deduction for state death taxes put back and taxable gifts made within two years of death added. The tax is then multiplied by the Vermont share of the gross estate, which leaves out a resident's real estate in other states and taxes a nonresident only on Vermont real estate and tangible property. The 2026 legislature raised the filing threshold to $5,000,000 to match the exclusion, effective June 18, 2026. Form EST-191 and the payment are due 9 months after death.
One rate, no brackets
Most estate tax schedules are ladders. Vermont's statute, 32 V.S.A. section 7442a, prints two lines: under $5,000,000, none; $5,000,000 or more, 16 % of the excess. That makes the Vermont tax easy to estimate without a calculator, and it makes the average rate climb toward 16 % without ever reaching it.
| Vermont taxable estate | Vermont tax | Share of the estate |
|---|---|---|
| $5,500,000 | $80,000 | 1.5 % |
| $6,000,000 | $160,000 | 2.7 % |
| $7,000,000 | $320,000 | 4.6 % |
| $8,000,000 | $480,000 | 6.0 % |
| $10,000,000 | $800,000 | 8.0 % |
| $15,000,000 | $1,600,000 | 10.7 % |
Because the rate is flat and starts at the first dollar over the line, Vermont ranks differently depending on the size of the estate. On $6,000,000 Vermont charges $160,000, New York $0 and Massachusetts $411,200; on $12,000,000 the three figures are $1,120,000, $1,386,800 and $1,287,200. The state by state view is on the state estate tax page.
Vermont tax at your figure
Vermont estate tax for a death in 2026
$240,000
| Exemption or threshold | $5,000,000 |
| Amount above it | $1,500,000 |
| State estate tax | $240,000 |
| Return due | 9 months after death |
What is in the Vermont taxable estate
The definitions are in section 7402 of Title 32, which the Department of Taxes applies. The Vermont taxable estate is the federal taxable estate under section 2051 of the Internal Revenue Code, whether or not any federal tax is due, increased by three items: the federal deduction for state death taxes, the deduction for foreign death taxes, and the taxable gifts made within two years of death. The gifts are counted at their gift value, and a gift already included in the federal estate is not counted twice.
The two-year window is shorter than New York's and Minnesota's three years, and longer than Maine's one year. A resident who dies with $5,200,000 after giving a child $600,000 above the annual exclusion eighteen months earlier has a Vermont taxable estate of $5,800,000, which owes $128,000; without the add-back the estate would owe $32,000. A gift made thirty months before death would have stayed out. Vermont has no gift tax of its own. The comparison of all the windows is on gifts and state estate tax.
The Vermont fraction
The tax computed on the whole Vermont taxable estate is then multiplied by a fraction no greater than one: the Vermont gross estate plus Vermont-situs gifts, over the federal gross estate plus the same gifts. The situs rules decide what is "Vermont". Real estate belongs to the state where it lies. Tangible property belongs where it was normally kept. Intangible property, such as bank accounts, stocks and bonds, follows the domicile of the deceased.
| Situation | Gross estate | Vermont part | Vermont tax |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resident, all in Vermont | $8,000,000 | $8,000,000 | $480,000 |
| Resident with a $2,000,000 Florida condo | $8,000,000 | $6,000,000 | $360,000 |
| New Hampshire resident, $1,500,000 house in Stowe | $9,000,000 | $1,500,000 | $106,667 |
The New Hampshire case is common: New Hampshire has no estate tax, but a house across the river is Vermont real estate, and once the whole estate is above $5,000,000 Vermont takes its fraction of the tax on the whole. One special rule protects lenders of art: a qualified work of art owned by a nonresident and on loan to a Vermont nonprofit is treated as located outside Vermont.
Filing: the June 18, 2026 change
The Department reports that the 2026 legislature raised the filing threshold to $5,000,000, to match the payment threshold, effective June 18, 2026. Its page describes the rule as it now stands: a Vermont return is generally required when the deceased had an interest in Vermont property and either the federal gross estate plus adjusted taxable gifts made within two years of death exceeds $5,000,000, or a federal Form 706 has to be filed. With the federal exclusion at $15,000,000, the second trigger concerns few estates, mainly those filing a federal return to elect portability.
Form EST-191 is due 9 months after death. A six-month extension to file is available on Form EST-195, but the tax estimated to be due has to be paid with the request: an extension of time to file is not an extension of time to pay. The EST-191 instructions also ask for a pro forma federal Form 706, completed line by line, even when no federal return is required.
Spouses
A transfer to a surviving spouse who is a US citizen is deducted through the federal marital deduction, so the first death of a married couple usually owes Vermont nothing. Vermont publishes no rule letting the survivor use the first spouse's unused exclusion. Couples whose combined estate is above $5,000,000 meet the question explained on married couples and state estate tax.