18 States With Scary Death Taxes

Federal estate taxes are no longer a problem for all but the extremely wealthy, but several states have their own estate taxes and inheritance taxes that could still hit your heirs.

Grim Reaper in a fog-covered cemetery
(Image credit: Getty Images )

Most people shouldn't be afraid of federal "death taxes." For 2023, only estates worth $12.92 million or more ($24.12 million or more for a married couple) are slashed by federal estate taxes, and only a small percentage of Americans have accumulated that much wealth. Plus, there's no federal inheritance tax to spook your heirs. (Estate taxes are paid by the estate and based on the estate's overall value, while inheritance taxes are paid by an individual heir on whatever property they inherit.)

But don't feel too comfy if your assets are below the federal estate tax threshold — a tax bill from your state could be lurking in the shadows. While a number of states have reduced or eliminated their death taxes over the past decade or so to dissuade well-off retirees from moving to more tax-friendly jurisdictions, 12 states and the District of Columbia still impose an estate tax and six states have an inheritance tax on the books. (Maryland has both!) So if you don't know boo about death taxes and live in one of the states listed (alphabetically) below, beware. Your heirs could be haunted by a state tax collector.

[Yours free, New Tax Rules for 2023. Download your free issue of The Kiplinger Tax Letter today. No information is required from you.]

Sandra Block
Senior Editor, Kiplinger's Personal Finance

Block joined Kiplinger in June 2012 from USA Today, where she was a reporter and personal finance columnist for more than 15 years. Prior to that, she worked for the Akron Beacon-Journal and Dow Jones Newswires. In 1993, she was a Knight-Bagehot fellow in economics and business journalism at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. She has a BA in communications from Bethany College in Bethany, W.Va.