ESTATE PLANNING BEFORE 2026: HOW UPCOMING TAX LAW CHANGES COULD AFFECT YOUR FAMILY

Why Estate Planning Is an Ongoing Process

Estate planning isn’t a one-time task—it’s a living process that should evolve with your life and the law. Major life events like marriage, the birth of a child, purchasing a home, starting a business, or entering retirement all change how your estate plan should work. But even if your personal life feels steady, tax laws rarely stay still.

The last major shift came from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) in 2017, which temporarily increased deductions and doubled estate and gift tax exemptions. Most of those provisions are set to expire after December 31, 2025.

In response, Congress passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) in 2025, designed to extend or permanently modify key parts of the TCJA.

Understanding how this transition affects your family’s plan is critical, especially before the end of 2025.

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What the 2026 Tax Law Changes Mean: Key Provisions Under the OBBBA

The OBBBA (One Big Beautiful Bill Act) is the 2025 tax reform law aiming to stabilize many of the expiring TCJA provisions. It adjusts personal tax rates, deductions, and key estate planning thresholds.

Below is a side-by-side look at what’s expiring and what’s changing:

Comparison: TCJA (2017) vs. OBBBA (2025)

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Core Documents You Need

Whether you expect to be directly affected by estate tax thresholds or not, every adult should have the following foundational documents in place:

• Last Will and Testament – Directs asset distribution and guardianship for minors.
• Revocable Living Trust – Helps avoid probate and maintain privacy and provides optimal planning for asset management during incapacity.
• Durable Power of Attorney – Ensures financial matters can be handled if you’re incapacitated.
• Advance Medical Directive – States your healthcare wishes and appoints decision-makers.
• HIPAA Authorization – Allows access to medical information when needed.

Even modest estates can face administrative delays, tax inefficiencies, or family tension without these basic tools. The OBBBA’s adjustments to income thresholds and exemptions make this an ideal time to revisit whether your plan still reflects your life today.

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Mid-Stage Strategies to Consider Before 2026

Families approaching retirement or managing growing wealth can take proactive steps before the OBBBA fully takes effect.

A few strategies include:

• Maximizing 2025 Gifting Opportunities: The current $13.9M exemption per person remains available through year-end 2025. Lifetime gifts made before the law transitions will retain the higher exemption value.
• Reviewing Trust Structures: Certain irrevocable trusts may benefit from timing distributions or funding before new valuation methods take hold in 2026.
• Rebalancing Portfolios: With the SALT cap and QBI deduction adjustments, consider how business entity structures and charitable contributions fit into your broader financial plan.
• Updating Beneficiary Designations: As tax rules change, ensure your retirement accounts, life insurance, and trust designations coordinate with your estate plan.

These mid-stage moves are especially valuable for those who may not consider themselves “wealthy” but have accumulated property, investments, or life insurance that push their estate near future exemption thresholds.

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Advanced Estate Planning Techniques

For clients with more complex estates, or those wishing to plan across generations, advanced strategies may help preserve tax efficiency under both current and future laws:

• Spousal Lifetime Access Trusts (SLATs): Allow one spouse to use the elevated 2025 exemption while retaining indirect access through the other spouse.
• Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts (GRATs): Useful for transferring appreciating assets at reduced gift tax cost before valuation assumptions change.
• Charitable Lead or Remainder Trusts: Combine philanthropy with tax benefits, locking in deductions before exemption levels shift.
• Family Limited Partnerships (FLPs): Offer control and valuation benefits for family-owned assets while leveraging current exemption amounts.

These strategies work best when timed thoughtfully and aligned with your broader financial plan. At JM Law, we focus on helping clients integrate these decisions seamlessly into their existing structures so their plans stay practical, not just theoretical.

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How to Prepare for the Year Ahead

The best estate plans evolve alongside your life, not after it.

As 2025 closes, consider these next steps:

1. Schedule a Review Meeting: Meet with your attorney to confirm your documents reflect current family, financial, and legal realities, and that you’ve named the right fiduciaries to act for you when you aren’t able.
2. Review Beneficiaries and Account Titling: Confirm that your account ownership and beneficiaries properly align with your estate plan.
3. Evaluate Tax Exposure: Even if you’re not near the estate tax threshold, updates to income, QBI, and SALT deductions can shift your strategy.
4. Document Major Life Events: Births, marriages, home purchases, or retirement transitions all warrant updates.
5. Stay Informed: Tax and estate law are interwoven – future updates to OBBBA or related acts could shift planning opportunities again.

This post was created by Avatus Stone, COO & estate planning strategist at JM LAW, PLLC.

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Get your free Estate Planning Checklist from JM Law

Reviewing your plan every few years helps ensure it reflects your life today, not just the one you had when you first created it. A quick check-in can make all the difference in keeping what you’ve built working for the people you care about most.

Download the Estate Planning Checklist review key areas of your plan, spot what may need attention, and ensure your legacy remains protected for generations.