Connecticut Estate Tax Calculator
Estimate the federal and Connecticut estate taxes on a Connecticut decedent’s estate. Connecticut has a state estate tax with graduated rates but no inheritance tax or gift tax. Distinctive rules modeled: Connecticut estate tax with its own exemption and rates, spousal elective share (one-third), and small-estate affidavit. Three modes: estimate the tax, test a larger estate, or solve for the years of gifting needed to reach zero. Fields marked * are required; Calculate names any left empty.
Federal: unified estate and gift schedule topping at 40%; basic exclusion $13,610,000 (2024), $13,990,000 (2025), $15,000,000 (2026); federal portability (DSUE) allowed; unlimited marital and charitable deductions; GST 40%.
Exclusion and portability
Gross estate to taxable estate
Tax computation
What heirs receive
Connecticut succession
Gifting analysis
Three-year gifting projection
How it works
- Connecticut has a state estate tax. Connecticut imposes its own estate tax with graduated rates from 7.2% to 12% on estates above the state exemption ($7.1M for 2024, $10M for 2025, $15M for 2026). There is no Connecticut inheritance tax and no Connecticut gift tax.
- Federal estate tax also applies. The federal estate tax applies above the federal basic exclusion using the unified 18% to 40% schedule, and the federal GST applies at 40% to direct skips above the allocated GST exemption.
- No community property. Connecticut is a common-law state, so no halving of community assets and no double basis step-up.
- Portability is federal only. A surviving spouse may inherit the unused federal exclusion (DSUE) with a timely Form 706 election; there is no Connecticut state exclusion to port.
- Elective share. A surviving spouse may elect one-third of the estate under CGS 45a-161 regardless of the will.
- Small estates skip full probate. The affidavit procedure under CGS 45a-420 is available where personal property is $40,000 or less; verify the current figure.
- Binding factor names what controls the result: the federal basic exclusion, the Connecticut estate tax exemption, the federal unified schedule, or the GST.
- Gifting mode uses the guarded bisection solver (60 expansions, 90 iterations, rounded up) to find the years of annual-exclusion gifting that bring the taxable estate to the exclusion or below.
- Gifting is not free. Carryover basis loses the step-up; the deferred gain is netted against the tax saved.
Sources
- CGS 12-395 (Connecticut estate tax with graduated rates 7.2% to 12% and exemption $7.1M for 2024, $10M for 2025, $15M for 2026); Connecticut Department of Revenue Services guidance confirming no state inheritance or gift tax.
- CGS 45a-161 (spousal elective share of one-third of the estate); CGS 45a-420 (small-estate affidavit, $40,000 personal property limit; verify current figure); Connecticut probate venue in the Probate Court of the district of domicile (67 probate districts).
- IRC chapter 11 unified schedule and exclusion ($13,610,000 / $13,990,000 / $15,000,000 for 2024 / 2025 / 2026); IRC 2010 portability; IRC 2042 life insurance inclusion; IRC 2055 charitable deduction; IRC chapter 13 GST at 40%; IRC 1014 step-up and 1015 carryover basis.
- IRS Form 706 and Form 4768 instructions (9-month deadline, 6-month filing extension).
Test cases
Gross 9,000,000; admin 172,400; deductions 587,400; net estate 8,412,600; TE 8,412,600 below 10,000,000 CT and 13,990,000 federal. Federal $0, Connecticut $0, TOTAL $0. Headroom CT 1,587,400; federal 5,577,400. Affidavit NOT available (personal property 5,000,000).
Gross 18,000,000; admin 350,400; deductions 870,400; net estate 17,129,600; TE 17,129,600 above 10,000,000 CT but below 13,990,000 federal. CT tax ~512,000 (7.2% on 7.1M above exemption). Federal $0. TOTAL ~512,000.
Gross 26,000,000; admin 512,400; deductions 937,400; net estate 25,062,600; less marital 8,000,000 = TE 17,062,600; federal exclusion 15,990,000. CT tax ~507,000 (above 10M CT exemption); Federal ~45,000 (above 15.99M). TOTAL ~552,000. Elective share 50% = 12,531,300.
Gross 20,000,000; admin 394,400; deductions 709,400; net estate 19,290,600; TE 19,290,600 above 15,000,000. CT tax ~624,000; Federal ~932,000. Solver: 76,000 per year; 31 YEARS removes 2,356,000 leaving TE 16,934,600 at or below 15M exclusion, both taxes $0. Saved ~1,556,000.
Gross 40,000; admin 1,040; deductions 8,040; net estate 31,960; TE 31,960. Federal $0, Connecticut $0, TOTAL $0. Affidavit available (personal property 40,000 at or below 40,000). Elective share 18% = 5,753.
Estimates only. Not legal, tax or financial advice. Verify the current Connecticut General Statutes and federal rules before relying on any figure.
What Is a Connecticut Estate Tax Calculator?
A Connecticut estate tax calculator estimates transfer taxes using the estate values and planning information you enter. This calculator separately calculates the federal estate tax, Connecticut estate tax, and federal GST tax. It also shows the gross estate, net estate, taxable estate, applicable exclusions, estimated tax due, and estimated amount left for other heirs.
The calculator helps executors, surviving spouses, estate owners, and families estimate whether an estate crosses the Connecticut or federal exclusion used by the tool. It supports 2024 through 2026 and can also test a larger estate or estimate how many years of annual-exclusion gifting would be needed for the calculated transfer tax to reach zero.
The result is an estimate, not a tax return or legal determination. Actual estate tax can depend on asset ownership, valuation, deductible expenses, prior gifts, elections, tax law, filing requirements, and facts that this calculator does not model. Verify important estate planning and filing decisions with current federal and Connecticut rules and qualified professionals.
How the Connecticut Estate Tax Calculator Formula Works
The calculation starts by adding five asset categories: real property, financial accounts, retirement accounts and annuities, life insurance owned by the decedent, and business interests or other property.
Administration costs include the entered court costs plus the attorney and personal representative fee percentage applied to gross estate minus debts. If debts exceed the gross estate, the percentage is applied to zero instead.
The calculator then subtracts debts, funeral expenses, administration costs, and casualty or theft losses. The result cannot fall below zero. An allowed marital deduction and charitable deduction are then subtracted. In gifting calculations, qualifying annual-exclusion gifts are also removed.
The federal tax base equals the taxable estate plus earlier taxable gifts. DSUE entered from a predeceased spouse increases the federal applicable exclusion. If the federal base exceeds that exclusion, the calculator subtracts the unified-schedule tax on the exclusion from the unified-schedule tax on the federal base.
For Connecticut tax, the executed code calculates zero below the selected Connecticut exemption. Above it, the code applies 7.2% while the amount above the exemption is no more than $10 million, then 12% when that excess is greater than $10 million. Although intermediate rates are stored in the configuration, the current conditional logic does not reach them.
For example, enter a 2025 estate with $4,000,000 of real property, $3,000,000 of financial assets, $2,000,000 of retirement assets, $400,000 of debts, $15,000 of funeral expenses, a 2% administration fee, and $400 of court costs. Gross estate is $9,000,000. Administration costs are $172,400. Total deductions are $587,400, leaving a net and taxable estate of $8,412,600 if no other deductions apply. That is below both coded 2025 exclusions, so federal estate tax and Connecticut estate tax are both $0.
How to Use the Connecticut Estate Tax Calculator: Step by Step
- Choose what you want to calculate. Select estate tax on the current estate, test whether a larger estate would be taxed, or solve for years of gifting needed to eliminate the calculated tax.
- Select the year of death and Connecticut probate district. The year controls the federal exclusion, Connecticut exemption, and annual gift exclusion used by the code.
- Enter assets at date of death. Available fields cover real property, bank and brokerage accounts, retirement assets, life insurance, business interests, personal property, and other included property.
- Enter debts and administration costs. These include debts and liens, funeral costs, the attorney or personal representative fee percentage, court costs, and casualty or theft losses.
- Complete the marital, charitable, prior-gift, portability, and GST fields that apply. A spousal bequest receives the modeled marital deduction only when the decedent is marked married and the spouse is a U.S. citizen or the non-citizen bequest uses a QDOT.
- For gifting analysis, enter the number of donees, gift per donee, gifting-related fields, and maximum years to test. Then check the required acknowledgment and calculate the result.
The main result shows either total transfer tax, a tax verdict, or required gifting years, depending on the selected mode. Detailed sections break the result into federal tax, Connecticut tax, GST tax, exclusions, deductions, estimated amounts for heirs, probate information, and gifting projections.
What Your Connecticut Estate Tax Calculator Result Means
Year-Specific Exclusions Used by the Calculator
| Year of Death | Connecticut Exemption | Federal Basic Exclusion | Annual Gift Exclusion per Donee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $7,100,000 | $13,610,000 | $18,000 |
| 2025 | $10,000,000 | $13,990,000 | $19,000 |
| 2026 | $15,000,000 | $15,000,000 | $19,000 |
The calculator adds entered DSUE to the federal basic exclusion but does not add DSUE to the Connecticut exemption. Earlier taxable gifts are added to the federal tax base. They are not added to the Connecticut taxable estate. Connecticut inheritance tax is always calculated as $0 because the calculator is configured with no Connecticut inheritance tax.
Spousal, Probate, and Filing Results
If the decedent is marked married, the calculator displays a spousal elective share equal to one-third of the calculated net estate. The entered years of marriage are collected by the form, but the current calculation does not change the one-third fraction based on that value. The small-estate test uses personal property consisting of financial, retirement, life insurance, and business or other property. It returns eligible when that total is $40,000 or less.
The Form 706 indicator is based on whether taxable estate plus earlier taxable gifts exceeds the entered federal applicable exclusion after DSUE. The displayed deadline is nine months after death, with a six-month filing extension noted. Because the calculator does not request an exact date of death, it does not produce a calendar filing date.
Important Gifting and Calculation Limits
Gifting mode counts only the smaller of the entered gift per donee and the annual exclusion for that year. It multiplies that amount by the number of donees and years. Amounts above the annual exclusion are not modeled as additional taxable gifts. The solver searches for the first whole number of years that makes total calculated transfer tax zero, subject to the entered maximum testing period.
The form also asks for unrealized gain in gifted assets, a long-term capital gains rate, and the 3.8% NIIT option. In the current code, the unrealized-gain value is not carried into the result object used to render the deferred capital-gains cost. As written, that cost and the related net-benefit display can therefore show $0 rather than reflecting the entered gain.
The displayed remaining headroom is federal headroom only: federal applicable exclusion minus the federal tax base, floored at zero. The displayed tax-free ceiling adds that federal headroom to gross estate. It does not independently limit that figure to the lower Connecticut exemption, so it should not be treated as a guaranteed Connecticut tax-free estate size.
Estate Tax Calculators for All 50 U.S. States
Frequently Asked Questions
How is Connecticut estate tax calculated in this calculator?
The calculator first determines the taxable estate after modeled deductions. It then compares that amount with the Connecticut exemption for the selected year. The executed code applies no state estate tax below the exemption, 7.2% to an excess of up to $10 million, and 12% when the excess is greater than $10 million.
What is the Connecticut estate tax exemption used for 2025?
The calculator uses a $10,000,000 Connecticut estate tax exemption for a 2025 death. It separately uses a $13,990,000 federal basic exclusion for 2025. These thresholds are not interchangeable. DSUE entered from a predeceased spouse increases the calculator’s federal exclusion, but it does not increase the Connecticut exemption.
Does this calculator include Connecticut inheritance tax or gift tax?
No Connecticut inheritance tax is added to the result. The calculator’s Connecticut inheritance-tax output remains $0, and its configuration states that Connecticut gift tax is not imposed. Federal gift history can still matter because the earlier taxable gifts field is added to the federal estate tax base when federal tax is calculated.
How does DSUE portability affect the estate tax estimate?
Entered DSUE is added to the federal basic exclusion. For example, the calculator would combine the selected year’s federal exclusion with the DSUE amount before comparing it with taxable estate plus prior taxable gifts. DSUE does not increase the Connecticut exemption, and the calculator describes Connecticut portability as unavailable.
How does the estate tax gifting calculator work?
Gifting mode estimates how many years of annual-exclusion gifts are needed for total calculated transfer tax to reach zero. Each year’s estate reduction equals the number of donees multiplied by the smaller of the entered gift amount and that year’s annual exclusion. The solver rounds the required result up to a whole year.
Does the calculator include generation-skipping transfer tax?
Yes. Federal GST tax is calculated as 40% of direct skips remaining after the GST exemption amount entered by the user. The GST exemption field defaults to zero in the form, so users who want an allocated exemption reflected in the calculation must enter the applicable amount themselves.
How accurate is the Connecticut estate tax calculator?
The calculator follows the formulas, thresholds, inputs, and assumptions coded into the tool, so it is useful for estimates and scenario testing. It does not replace an estate tax return, appraisal, probate determination, or professional advice. Actual results can differ because of valuations, deductions, elections, ownership structures, tax rules, and facts not modeled here.