Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan on 21 August 2026 approved amendments to the Estate and Gift Tax Act, revising the tax treatment of certain gifts made within two years before death, clarifying taxpayer obligations and easing instalment payment requirements. The changes also introduce rules on estate tax deductions, court-determined inheritance, tax payment using estate deposits and enforcement procedures.

RF Report

Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan on 21 August 2026 passed at third reading a draft amendment to parts of the Estate and Gift Tax Act. The amendments standardise the treatment of certain gifts made before death when calculating estate tax and rationalise the related tax burden.

At its 23rd meeting of the fifth session of the 11th term, the Legislative Yuan passed the draft amendments to the Estate and Gift Tax Act (hereinafter referred to as the Estate and Gift Tax Act). The amendments specify how estate tax is to be calculated when property gifted by the decedent to certain relatives within two years before death is included in the taxable estate. The specified relatives include the decedent’s spouse, heirs of any order of succession and their spouses. The portion of estate tax attributable to such property will be payable by the respective recipients. The amendments also set out rules for calculating the deduction for the spouse’s claim for distribution of the remaining property difference in cases involving property deemed to form part of the estate received by the spouse.

The Ministry of Finance said the amendments are intended to comply with the Constitutional Court’s Judgment No. 11 of 2024, safeguard the property rights of heirs and legatees, promote tax fairness, facilitate the filing and payment of Estate and Gift Tax, and ensure tax collection. The key amendments are as follows:

  1. Article 6: For property gifted to certain relatives within two years before the decedent’s death that is included in the gross estate for taxation, the estate tax attributable to each gifted property will be calculated based on its proportion of the gross estate, with each recipient designated as the taxpayer for that portion. The provision making an executor of a will a taxpayer for estate tax is removed. For cases involving an executor, the executor may instead file the tax return, pay the tax, and apply for a recheck on behalf of the taxpayer.
  2. Article 17-1: When calculating the deduction for a spouse’s claim for distribution of the remaining property difference, property gifted by the decedent to the spouse within two years before death will be deemed to be property still owned by the decedent.
  3. Article 23: Rules are added specifying the filing period and the date from which the assessment period begins for cases in which ownership of estate property is determined by a court judgment only after the decedent’s death.
  4. Article 30: The restriction requiring Estate and Gift Tax payable of at least TWD 300,000 before instalment payments can be requested is removed. The amendments also allow heirs to use deposits included in the estate to pay the tax based on a majority decision. In addition, a recipient applying to use estate property to offset or pay tax on deemed estate property must obtain the consent of all heirs.
  5. Article 41: A taxpayer who agrees to mortgage taxable immovable property that meets the requirements of Article 11-1 of the Tax Collection Act in favour of the tax collection authority may apply for a certificate approving the transfer of the property.
  6. Article 51: Provisions on the method for imposing delinquency surcharges and referring overdue unpaid tax for compulsory enforcement are removed, with such matters to be handled in accordance with the Tax Collection Act.

The Ministry of Finance said it is preparing amendments to subsidiary regulations, including the Enforcement Rules of the Estate and Gift Tax Act, as well as revisions to relevant tax return forms and online application systems. It will also oversee local National Taxation Bureaux in planning subsequent tax collection procedures.

The ministry said it will strengthen public communications after the President promulgates the amendments, so that taxpayers and other stakeholders can fully understand the revised provisions.

This announcement was made on 21 August 2026.