Updated October 5, 2026. Quick answer: No. Colorado has no estate tax for a person who dies in 2026. The General Assembly’s Legislative Council Staff says that under current law, “no Colorado estate tax filing is required for estates” of individuals who die after December 31, 2004. The federal exclusion is $15,000,000 for 2026.
Deeding a home to a family member while you are alive? What Colorado requires, from its own documents: Colorado quitclaim deed requirements.
Naming a beneficiary on a brokerage account or a vehicle title is covered here: transfer-on-death registration in Colorado.
Inheriting from, or planning for, someone in this state? Whether the state has an inheritance tax, from its own tax documents: Does Colorado have an inheritance tax?.
Making a gift or planning an estate? The state’s gift tax answer, from its own tax documents: Does Colorado have a gift tax?.
Colorado estate tax at a glance
| Item | What the documents say |
|---|---|
| State estate tax | None |
| Why | Colorado’s tax equaled the federal state death tax credit, which federal changes eliminated for deaths after 2004 |
| State estate tax return | None required for deaths after December 31, 2004 |
| State inheritance tax | Replaced by the estate tax in 1980; no current inheritance tax is described |
| Federal estate tax basic exclusion amount, 2026 | $15,000,000 |
| Source | Colorado General Assembly, Legislative Council Staff; IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32 |
Why Colorado has no estate tax
Legislative Council Staff says that “In 1980, the state legislature replaced the inheritance tax” with an estate tax equal to the federal state death tax credit. Federal changes then reduced that credit between 2002 and 2004 and “ultimately eliminated it, effectively eliminating the Colorado estate tax” for individuals who die after December 31, 2004.
Does Colorado have an inheritance tax?
The issue brief records that a state inheritance tax was enacted in Colorado in 1927 and that the legislature replaced it in 1980. It describes no inheritance tax in force today.
CMG’s inheritance tax by state page covers the beneficiary side.
What applies to a Colorado estate instead
Federal estate tax is separate. Revenue Procedure 2025-32 says the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, section 70106, increased the “basic exclusion amount to $15,000,000 for calendar year 2026”.
An estate of $3,000,000 in Colorado owes $0 of state estate tax, and $3,000,000 is below the federal $15,000,000.
Probate: Colorado probate cost. Retirement accounts: how Colorado taxes 401(k) and IRA withdrawals.
What the documents do not say
- The Department of Revenue page returned an error when read, so this page rests on the Legislative Council Staff’s 2023 issue brief.
- The brief notes a condition: “If federal law is changed to reinstate the state death tax credit”, a Colorado estate tax may be collected again.
Common mistakes
- Reading the brief’s note about reinstatement as current law; the tax is collected only if federal law brings the credit back.
- Assuming the state answer settles the federal one, or the answer for property held in another state.
Related: estate tax by state, inheritance tax by state, and probate cost by state.
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Answer againSources
- Estate Tax: https://content.leg.colorado.gov/agencies/legislative-council-staff/estate-tax
- Revenue Procedure 2025-32 (Internal Revenue Service): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/rp-25-32.pdf
Sources: the primary documents linked above, read on October 5, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and an estate attorney, a tax preparer or the state agency itself is the right place to confirm anything consequential.