No state death tax
Texas Inheritance & Estate Tax in 2026
Texas has no current state estate or inheritance tax. There is no Texas beneficiary-rate calculation to apply to the value of an inheritance. To estimate federal estate tax, use the 2026 federal worksheet with prepared estate and gift amounts.
Updated 5 primary sources citedEditorial policy
Texas and federal death-tax estimate
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- Total estimated death taxes
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- Texas death tax
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Article VIII, section 26 of the Texas Constitution prohibits state death taxes and taxes on transfers of estates, inheritances and gifts, subject to its stated exceptions. Added in November 2025, it preserves property taxes, motor-vehicle gift taxes and the taxes described in section 29(b). Federal tax remains outside this Texas prohibition.
Full federal worksheet with credits, GST and payments · What each input means
What the 2025 constitutional amendment changes
Article VIII, section 26, added November 4, 2025, prohibits the legislature from imposing a state tax because of an individual's death. It also restricts taxes on transfers of estates, inheritances, legacies, successions and gifts, using January 1, 2025 as the baseline for the transfer-tax provisions. Texas Constitution, Article VIII, section 26.
Which taxes are preserved?
The section preserves property taxes, taxes applicable to motor-vehicle gifts and the taxes described in section 29(b), including specified business, mineral and title-insurance taxes. It does not turn every transaction involving inherited property into a tax-free transaction. The same constitutional source lists those exceptions.
Federal estate tax is a separate calculation
A state constitutional restriction does not eliminate federal estate tax. The federal worksheet asks for prepared deductions, adjusted taxable gifts, gift tax and confirmed additional exclusion. Start with the federal input guide rather than treating the value of the inheritance as the taxable estate.
The recipient's share and the decedent's federal estate are different amounts. Likewise, the absence of Texas tax does not determine another state's rules for property located there. Check the state worksheet directory when the estate has a connection to another jurisdiction.
Texas death-tax rules by date of death
| Rule | Texas position | Applies to | Primary source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inheritance tax, Tax Code chapter 211 | Chapter repealed by S.B. 752 | From September 1, 2015 | S.B. 752 (84th Legislature), sections 1 and 4 |
| Liability that accrued under chapter 211 | Continues; the former law still governs its collection and enforcement | Liability accruing before September 1, 2015 | S.B. 752, section 3 |
| State tax because of a death | The legislature may not impose one, including an estate, inheritance or death tax | Since the November 4, 2025 amendment | Tex. Const. art. VIII, § 26(a)(1) |
| Transfer taxes on estates, inheritances and gifts | No new tax, and no higher rate or wider reach than a tax in effect on January 1, 2025 | Since the November 4, 2025 amendment | Tex. Const. art. VIII, § 26(a)(2)–(3) |
Worked example: a $19 million Texas estate with a charitable bequest
A Texas resident dies in 2026 leaving a $19,000,000 prepared gross estate. The will leaves $1,500,000 to a qualifying charity, and debts and administration expenses come to $500,000, so the prepared deductions total $2,000,000. With no lifetime taxable gifts, the $17,000,000 taxable estate is $2,000,000 above the $15,000,000 basic exclusion, and the federal worksheet estimates $800,000 at the 40% top rate. The Texas line is $0: chapter 211 no longer exists and the constitution now bars a replacement.
The date of death still matters for an old file. If the decedent died before September 1, 2015, a liability that accrued under chapter 211 remains collectible under the former law. This page does not compute that historical tax. IRS Form 706 instructions: deductions and the basic exclusion.
Community property and the Texas small-estate affidavit
Family Code section 3.002 defines community property as property, other than separate property, acquired by either spouse during marriage. Only the decedent's share of a community asset belongs in the estate figures entered below.
When someone dies without a will, Estates Code section 205.001 lets the heirs use a small-estate affidavit, approved by the judge, 30 days after death if no personal representative has been sought and the estate assets other than homestead and exempt property do not exceed $75,000.
Before entering a federal estimate
- Identify the decedent and date of death; the worksheet covers 2026 U.S. citizen/resident estates.
- Gather the estate's prepared values and deductions, not only one beneficiary's expected distribution.
- Resolve lifetime-gift and portability records before entering them.
- Keep filing and final distribution decisions separate from the calculator's estimate.
See Texas in the state comparison or read the model's scope. Reviewed October 1, 2026. Settlement statutes read October 5, 2026. S.B. 752 and the article VIII rule table read October 12, 2026.
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