Most deadlines announce themselves.

This one didn’t.

Starting on January 1, 2026, federal tax rules are scheduled to shift – a change that may potentially impact plans written under older thresholds, including some created before 2020.¹

Some of the biggest impacts may include:²

• Older plans may no longer align with today’s tax thresholds, depending on how they were structured.
  
• Some beneficiaries could face tax obligations that didn’t apply when the plan was created, based on individual circumstances.
  
• Certain assets – such as real estate, businesses, or retirement accounts – may transfer less efficiently under updated rules, depending on the plan’s design.
  
• IRS oversight and reporting requirements have tightened, which may potentially increase the chance of unintended outcomes for some families.

And now, as we move into 2026, the danger isn’t about missing a deadline—

but relying on a plan that wasn’t built for these new rules.

It’s a bit like using an old map to navigate a city that’s been rebuilt.

Most of the major landmarks are still there – town hall, the general store, the park playground…

But the details – the roads, speed limits, and traffic signals – have changed.

If you keep following the old map, the route to go from point A to point B may simply look different.

Today, I’ll give you important details about these changes.

More importantly, I’ll show you what families can do now to ensure their plans protect more of what they’ve built in the years ahead…

Why Many Estate Plans May Need a Fresh Look Right Now

Generally speaking, estate planning is a relatively stable field. Once a family creates a will or trust, the plan usually holds up for long periods of time without major need for adjustments.

But Jan. 1, 2026, marks a turning point…

That’s the day the historically high estate-tax exemption is set to expire – reverting to roughly half its current level.

This adjustment may materially affect some families – particularly those whose estate plans were built around the higher thresholds.

And over the past few years, this change collided with two others – reshaping the estate-planning landscape faster than most families realize.

1. A temporary tax environment is coming to an end.

The elevated estate-tax exemption created in 2017 was always designed to sunset in 2026.³

For families who drafted their plans before 2020, that meant they were planning around a threshold that simply won’t exist going forward.

Now that the sunset date is here, millions of families who were once below the estate-tax line may suddenly find themselves above it – exposing a portion of their estate to federal tax for the first time.

2. IRS oversight has modernized and expanded.

The IRS is operating under a very different playbook than the one that existed when many older estate plans were drafted.⁴

New analytics tools, updated reporting rules, and tighter scrutiny around transfers and valuations mean older plans are potentially more vulnerable to:

• inconsistencies,
• documentation gaps,
• mismatches between stated values and real values, and
• unintended tax consequences.

3. Household wealth has changed – often dramatically.

The world of 2015 is not the world of 2026.

Real estate values surged. Retirement accounts grew. Business valuations shifted. Interest rates rewrote balance sheets.⁵

Many families’ assets simply look different today…

Yet they haven’t updated their estate plans to reflect the new numbers.

These dynamics – the 2026 sunset, higher scrutiny, and shifting asset values – have quietly pushed millions of estate plans out of alignment with the realities families face today.

To understand how this plays out, consider a hypothetical couple (an educational illustration only) who drafted their estate plan in 2016.

At the time…

• Their home was valued around $900,000.
• Their retirement and investment accounts totaled approximately $3.2 million.
• They owned a small business valued at $1.5 million.
• With a combined net worth of about $5.6 million, the estate-tax exemption felt so high that it wasn’t a major consideration in their planning discussions.

Fast-forward ten years…

• Their home is now worth roughly $1.4 million.
• Their investment and retirement accounts have grown to nearly $4 million.
• Their business has appreciated to about $2.2 million.

Their net worth – now approaching $7.5 million – sits closer to where the estate-tax exemption is scheduled to revert after January 1, 2026.

This shift may place them in a different position than when their plan was first drafted, depending on the provisions they put in place.

Under their old plan, everything still “looks” fine on paper – the same assets, the same beneficiaries, the same intentions.

But under today’s rules, the outcome could look very different…

For instance, a portion of their estate may now fall above the new exemption amount, creating a potential tax burden their plan was never designed to handle.

Another possibility: their children may face a higher tax bill on inherited retirement accounts due to the 10-year distribution rule that didn’t exist when the plan was drafted.

Or their home – now worth significantly more – may create liquidity issues, since the plan didn’t anticipate higher valuations or how heirs might handle property in a higher-rate environment.

Or perhaps the gifts or transfers that once seemed routine may require documentation the old plan never addressed, due to expanded reporting requirements.

The family didn’t change their intentions…

But the math around their legacy changed – quietly, and decisively.

That’s the challenge so many families are facing today:

The plan you trusted no longer behaves the way you thought it would.

^{*This hypothetical is not a prediction; individual results will vary based on specific facts, elections, and applicable law.}

What Families Can Do Now

The Jan. 1, 2026, changes don’t necessarily mean your plan needs to be torn apart or rebuilt from scratch.

But it may benefit from a careful review…

One grounded in an updated view of today’s tax thresholds, reporting requirements, and asset values.

That kind of review – in this post-Jan. 1, 2026 landscape – could make a meaningful difference in understanding how your intentions will translate from here on out.

For example, you might revisit:

• how your assets are titled
• whether your beneficiary designations still fit the new rules
• how your plan handles real estate, business interests, and rising valuations
• whether your trusts or documents reflect updated tax thresholds
• how changes to IRA rules may affect the people you hope to leave money to

Of course, the point of any solid estate plan is that it carries out your intent.

And this is where guidance can genuinely matter.

Because tax law’s complex… and understanding how the recent changes may interact with an existing plan often requires specialized knowledge.

And that’s where WorthNet can play a meaningful role.

Our network wasn’t built to be large; it was built to be thoughtful. We partner with a small, invitation-only group of fiduciary advisers who spend their days working through the kinds of shifts we’ve talked about here: changing tax thresholds, updated reporting rules, rising valuations, and the sometimes-unexpected ways these changes interact inside a real family’s estate plan.

Each adviser in the WorthNet network goes through a vetting process before joining, and many bring decades of experience in helping families interpret how today’s rules may affect the plans they already have in place.

For readers who seek perspective, WorthNet offers a simple way to begin:

Our short, 90-second questionnaire helps determine which adviser in our network may be the best fit for your situation, priorities, and concerns.

There’s no obligation or pressure; just a chance to speak with someone who understands this landscape and can walk through the details with care.

If that kind of clarity would be helpful, click the button below to get matched with a WorthNet adviser.