At a glance
| State estate tax | Yes — exemption $7,160,00036 M.R.S. § 4119 / Maine Revenue Services · 2026 |
|---|---|
| Estate top rate | 12%36 M.R.S. § 4103 · 2026 |
| Inheritance tax | No |
| Small-estate ceiling | $40,00018-C M.R.S. § 3-1201 · current |
| TOD deed for real estate | Available18-C M.R.S. § 6-405 et seq. (Uniform Real Property TOD Act) · 2019 |
| Community-property state | No |
Estate tax
Maine imposes its own estate tax with an exclusion of $7,160,000 for deaths in 2026. The exclusion has a statutory base of $5,600,000 (36 M.R.S. § 4102(5)) adjusted for inflation each year under § 4119, so the figure moves — it was $7,000,000 for 2025 — and should be confirmed with Maine Revenue Services for the year of death.
The tax is graduated on the amount above the exclusion (36 M.R.S. § 4103): 8% on the first $3,000,000 over the exclusion, 10% on the next $3,000,000, and 12% above that. Only the excess over the exclusion is taxed.
Maine provides no portability of a deceased spouse's unused exclusion, so each spouse's exclusion must be used through planning at that spouse's death. A nonresident's estate is taxed on Maine real and tangible personal property (36 M.R.S. § 4104), so out-of-state owners of Maine property can trigger a filing.
Inheritance tax
Maine has no inheritance tax — beneficiaries are not taxed on what they receive by the state. Maine imposes no separate inheritance tax; beneficiaries owe no state tax based on their relationship to the decedent.
Probate basics
Successors may collect personal property by affidavit where the entire estate, less liens, does not exceed $40,000 (18-C M.R.S. § 3-1201, inflation-adjusted). Maine also allows informal probate and summary administration for qualifying estates.
Maine is a common-law (separate-property) state for ownership between spouses. A transfer-on-death deed for real estate is Available 18-C M.R.S. § 6-405 et seq. (Uniform Real Property TOD Act) · 2019. The probate deadlines for this state — filing the will, the creditor-claim window, the inventory — are cited in the Executor & Heir’s Guide.
State-specific quirks
The exclusion indexes every year
Maine's exclusion is not fixed: a $5,600,000 base (36 M.R.S. § 4102(5)) is adjusted for inflation annually under § 4119, reaching $7,160,000 for 2026 (up from $7,000,000 in 2025). Always confirm the current-year figure with Maine Revenue Services.
No portability between spouses
Unlike the federal estate tax, Maine does not let a surviving spouse use a deceased spouse's unused exclusion, so credit-shelter or bypass planning is often needed to preserve both spouses' Maine exclusions.
Nonresidents taxed on Maine property
A nonresident decedent's estate is subject to Maine estate tax on real and tangible personal property physically located in Maine (36 M.R.S. § 4104) — so owning a Maine vacation home can pull an out-of-state estate into a Maine filing.
Where to read next
- the federal lifetime exemption — how the far larger federal exclusion works — and why a state tax can still apply below it
- funding a revocable trust — the most common way to keep property out of probate entirely
- the ILIT cluster — keeping a life-insurance death benefit out of a taxable estate
- the Executor & Heir's Guide — the probate deadlines for this state, cited to the statute
- ← Back to the 51-jurisdiction comparison
Sources & methodology
Methodology & sources
Every tax figure on this page links to the primary source it was verified against — a Maine statute or department-of-revenue page — with that source’s own effective date. Aggregator round-ups are never used as a source. State death and probate law changes every legislative session; this page carries the date it was last re-verified, and any figure that could not be confirmed from a primary source is flagged for you to check with the state rather than guessed. See our editorial standards.
This page is educational and is not legal or tax advice. Whether a death tax applies turns on residency, where property sits, and how title is held — details a general page cannot resolve. Confirm your own situation with a professional licensed in Maine.
Last verified July 20, 2026.