Inheritance tax by country — headline rates

Cross-country comparison of headline inheritance tax rates. Draft-status country pages are excluded until figures are cross-checked.

See the full 65-country comparison table →

Rank	Country	Headline rate	Composition
#1	Japan	55%	10–55% on statutory shares above a basic exemption of JPY 30 million + 6 million per heir — among the world's heaviest, with a 10-year expatriate tail.
#2	Germany	7–50%	Progressive by relationship and amount: spouses get €500,000 and children €400,000 tax-free per parent, then 7–30%; strangers face 30–50%.
#3	South Korea	50%	Inheritance and gift tax run 10–50% above allowances that are modest by estate size — KRW 500 million standard, KRW 600 million spousal gifts.
4	United Kingdom	40%	40% above a £325,000 nil-rate band (+£175,000 for a home left to children); spouses exempt; 7-year rule on gifts.
5	United States	40% above $15M	No inheritance tax on heirs; a federal estate tax of up to 40% hits estates above the $15 million per-person exclusion, with full basis step-up for heirs.
6	Ecuador	35%	Inheritances and gifts share one progressive scale to 35% above USD 942,353 — children and other first-line heirs pay half rates.
7	Ireland	33%	Capital Acquisitions Tax at a flat 33% above lifetime thresholds: €400,000 from a parent, €40,000 wider family, €20,000 anyone else.
8	South Africa	20% / 25%	Estate duty charged on the deceased's estate, not on heirs. Donations tax mirrors it at the same rates for lifetime gifts.
9	Colombia	15%	There is no separate inheritance or gift tax — heirs and donees pay the flat 15% capital-gains rate on what they receive, after generous fixed allowances.
10	Netherlands	10% – 40%	Spouses/children: 10% then 20% above €158,669, after allowances of €828,035 (spouse) and €26,230 (child); unrelated heirs 30%/40%.
11	Vietnam	10%	Inheritances and gifts of registrable assets are taxed at 10% on the value above VND 20 million per event (threshold effective 1 July 2026; VND 10 million through 30 June) — and close-family real estate passes free.
12	Spain	7.65% – 34%	State scale 7.65%–34% before regional adjustments and wealth-based multipliers — but regions can soften it dramatically for close family.
13	Finland	7% – 33%	Close family pays 7%–19% above a €30,000 threshold (spouse deducts €90,000 extra, minor children €60,000); others pay 19%–33%.
14	Philippines	6%	Estates pay a flat 6% on the net estate after a PHP 5 million standard deduction and up to PHP 10 million for the family home; gifts pay 6% above PHP 250,000 a year.
15	Thailand	5% / 10%	Tax only starts above THB 100 million per heir: 5% for parents and descendants, 10% for everyone else — and spouses pay nothing.
16	Italy	4% – 8%	Among Europe's mildest: 4% for spouse and children above a €1 million per-person allowance, 6% for siblings above €100,000, 8% for everyone else.
17	Belgium	3% – 80%	Set by region: spouses and children pay 3%–30% (3%–27% in Flanders); distant heirs face up to 55% in Flanders and 80% in Brussels and Wallonia.
18	Montenegro	3% – 6%	Only Montenegrin real estate is caught, at 3-6% progressive — and children, spouses and parents are fully exempt.
19	Chile	1% – 35%	A progressive 1-25% scale on each recipient's share, surcharged 20% for siblings and cousins and 40% for unrelated heirs — spouses and children deduct 50 annual tax units first.
20	Greece	1% – 10% close family	Close family pays 0–10% above a EUR 150,000 per-heir allowance; parental gifts are tax-free up to EUR 800,000; unrelated heirs pay up to 40%.
21	Turkey	1% – 10% (gifts 10-30%)	Inheritances pay 1-10% progressive after a TRY 2.9 million per-heir exemption; gifts pay 10-30%, halved for close family.
22	Andorra	0%	No inheritance tax, no gift tax and no wealth tax — at any amount, to any heir.
23	Argentina	0% (federal)	No federal inheritance or gift tax — inheritances are exempt income; only Buenos Aires Province taxes them, at roughly 2-9%.
24	Australia	0%	No inheritance or gift tax anywhere in Australia — capital gains tax is deferred at death rather than charged.
25	Austria	0%	No inheritance or gift tax since August 2008 — only reporting duties, property-transfer tax on real estate, and a 3.5% foundation entrance tax remain.
26	Bahrain	0%	No inheritance tax, no estate duty and no gift tax — transfers at death or during life are entirely untaxed.
27	Belize	0%	Belize imposes no estate, inheritance or gift taxes — transfers at death and during life are untaxed.
28	Bulgaria	0% – 6.6%	Spouses and direct-line relatives pay nothing; siblings and their children 0.4–0.8%, others 3.3–6.6% — each above a EUR 127,823 per-heir exemption.
29	Canada	0% (deemed disposition instead)	No inheritance or gift tax anywhere in Canada — but death and gifts trigger capital gains tax on accrued profits, plus provincial probate fees up to 1.645%.
30	Costa Rica	0%	Costa Rica has no inheritance or gift tax — inheritances, bequests and marital property are excluded from income for residents and non-residents alike.
31	Croatia	0% / 4%	Spouses, children and parents inherit tax-free; other heirs pay a flat 4% above a EUR 6,640 threshold on movables and cash.
32	Cyprus	0%	No inheritance tax and no gift tax at all — Cyprus abolished estate duty in 2000 and never brought it back.
33	Czech Republic	0%	Inheritance and gift taxes were abolished in 2014; inheritances are always income-tax-free, and family gifts are exempt too.
34	Denmark	0% / 15% / 36.25%	Spouses inherit tax-free; close family pays 15% above DKK 392,300; distant heirs an effective 36.25%; family businesses 10%.
35	El Salvador	0%	No inheritance tax exists, and inheritances and bequests are exempt income; only gifts outside the close family are taxed — as income of the recipient.
36	Estonia	0%	No inheritance tax and no gift tax — but inherited assets carry a nil cost basis, so the income tax waits for the resale.
37	France	0% / 5% – 45%	Spouses and civil partners inherit tax-free; children get €100,000 each then 5%–45% bands; distant heirs face flat 55%–60%.
38	Georgia	0% / 20%	No estate duty exists. Inheritances and gifts are income-tax events, with close family fully exempt and distant heirs exempt up to GEL 150,000.
39	Hong Kong	0%	Estate duty was abolished in February 2006 and no gift tax exists — wealth passes entirely untaxed.
40	Hungary	0% / 9% / 18%	Direct family — spouse, children, grandchildren, parents — inherits and receives gifts entirely tax-free; everyone else pays 18%, or 9% on homes.
41	Indonesia	0%	Indonesia has no inheritance tax and no gift tax; inheritances are exempt income in the heir's hands.
42	Latvia	0%	No inheritance or gift tax — inheritances are exempt income, and gifts from close relatives are always tax-free.
43	Lithuania	0% / 5% / 10%	Spouses, children, parents, grandchildren and siblings inherit tax-free; other heirs pay 5% (10% above EUR 150,000) on 70% of market value.
44	Luxembourg	0% – 48%	Spouses and direct-line heirs largely 0%; siblings from 6%, unrelated heirs 15% — all multiplied up to 48% max on shares above €1.75 million.
45	Malaysia	0%	Malaysia has no inheritance tax and no gift tax — estates and lifetime gifts pass at 0%.
46	Malta	0%	No inheritance or gift tax — only 2–5% stamp duty on Maltese real estate and Maltese company shares passing on death, with a family-home exemption.
47	Mauritius	0%	Mauritius has no inheritance tax, no gift tax and no wealth tax — estates pass entirely untaxed.
48	Mexico	0%	No estate or gift tax at any level of government — inheritances are exempt income, and family gifts (spouse, ascendants, descendants) are tax-free.
49	Monaco	0% – 16%	Only Monaco-situated assets are taxed, by kinship: 0% for spouses and the direct line, 8% siblings, 10% nephews, 13% other relatives, 16% unrelated.
50	New Zealand	0%	Estate duty and gift duty are both abolished — nothing is charged on death or lifetime giving, at any level.
51	Norway	0%	No inheritance or gift tax since 2014 — but carry-over basis means heirs inherit the capital gains bill, and the wealth tax keeps taxing what they keep.
52	Panama	0%	Panama abolished inheritance tax decades ago and never taxed gifts — inheritances, legacies and gifts are expressly exempt income.
53	Peru	0%	Peru has no inheritance, estate or gift tax at any level of government — and no wealth tax either.
54	Poland	0% – 20%	Immediate family inherits tax-free with a 6-month notification; other relatives pay 3–12% and unrelated heirs up to 20%, each above small allowances.
55	Portugal	0% / 10%	No inheritance or gift tax; a flat 10% stamp duty applies instead, and spouses, children and parents pay nothing.
56	Qatar	0%	No inheritance or gift taxes exist — the planning topic is succession law, not tax.
57	Romania	0%	No inheritance or gift tax — only a 1% transfer charge on inherited real estate when probate drags past 2 years.
58	Saudi Arabia	0%	No inheritance or gift taxes exist — succession follows Islamic law, and the only property cost is the transaction tax on transfers.
59	Singapore	0%	No inheritance or gift tax — estate duty was abolished years ago.
60	Slovakia	0%	Inheritance and gift taxes were abolished in 2004 — nothing is charged on death or on gifts, to anyone.
61	Slovenia	0% – 39%	Spouses and all direct descendants pay nothing; parents and siblings 5–14%; unrelated heirs up to 39% — each on progressive scales.
62	Sweden	0%	No inheritance tax, no gift tax, no wealth tax — all abolished; heirs inherit assets with the deceased's cost basis.
63	Switzerland	0% – ≈50%	No federal tax. Cantons decide: spouses exempt everywhere, children exempt in most cantons; distant heirs can pay 20%–50% depending on canton.
64	United Arab Emirates	0%	No inheritance or gift tax; the practical issue is succession law, not tax.
65	Uruguay	0%	No inheritance or gift tax exists — only the property-transfer tax touches estates: 3% for direct-line heirs, 4% for gratuitous transfers of real estate.

Headline rates only. Effective burdens depend on brackets, allowances, surcharges, residency and regime elections — see each country guide for detail. Updated 2026-07-11.