President Jimmy Carter, an advocate of the program, said that his mother, who had served as a nurse in the program, had one of the most glorious experiences of her life in the Peace Corps. In 1979, he made it fully autonomous in an executive order.
So a couple will be able to give away $10.86 million tax-free in 2015 (assuming they havenât made prior lifetime gifts). Totally separate from the lifetime gift exemption amount is the annual gift tax exclusion amount. Itâs $14,000 for 2015, the same as 2014, up from $13,000 a year in 2013. You can give away $14,000 to as many individuals as youâd like. A husband and wife can each make $14,000 gifts.
There are two limits for tax-free gifts: an annual ceiling of $13,000 to any one person, and a separate $5 million lifetime limit. Compromise legislation passed in 2010 set the tax exemption limits and indexed them for inflation, but the legislation is due to expire at the end of 2012, so the limits could change.