A sample gift letter for tax purposes is a short, signed statement in which the donor confirms that a transfer of money or property to another person is a genuine gift, with no repayment expected. The IRS does not require you to submit a gift letter with a tax filing, but keeping one in your records protects both parties if the transfer is later questioned during an audit or a mortgage application. For 2026, gifts up to $19,000 per recipient carry no federal reporting obligation at all; above that, the donor files Form 709 and keeps the gift letter as supporting documentation.1Internal Revenue Service. Gifts and Inheritances
What a Gift Letter Should Include
A gift letter is most useful when it answers every question an auditor or loan officer might ask on its face. At a minimum, include:
- Full legal names and addresses of both the donor and the recipient.
- The exact dollar amount, or, for non-cash gifts, a description of the asset and its fair market value on the date of transfer.
- The date the gift was made, which ties it to a specific tax year.
- The donor’s relationship to the recipient (parent, grandparent, friend, and so on).
- An explicit statement that the transfer is a gift and that no repayment is expected, required, or implied.
- Signatures and dates from both the donor and the recipient.
If the gift is being used toward a home purchase, mortgage lenders typically ask for an added sentence confirming that the funds did not come from anyone with a financial interest in the transaction, such as the seller or the real estate agent. That language is standard for loan underwriting and can be omitted when the letter is meant only for tax records.
Sample Gift Letter
Replace the bracketed information with your own details. This template works for both tax recordkeeping and most mortgage lender requirements.
Gift Letter
Donor Name: [Full Legal Name]
Donor Address: [Full Street Address, City, State, ZIP]
Recipient Name: [Full Legal Name]
Recipient Address: [Full Street Address, City, State, ZIP]
Relationship to Recipient: [Parent, Grandparent, etc.]
I, [Donor Name], certify that on [Date of Transfer], I made a gift of [Dollar Amount or Asset Description] to [Recipient Name]. This transfer is a gift. No repayment is expected, required, or implied, either now or in the future. No conditions have been placed on this gift.
[Include the following sentence only if the gift is for a home purchase: I confirm that these funds were not provided by any party with a financial interest in the sale of the property.]
Donor Signature: ____________________ Date: __________
Recipient Signature: ____________________ Date: __________
Keep the signed original with your tax records. If the gift exceeds the annual exclusion, retain a copy alongside your filed Form 709.
When You Also Need to File Form 709
The gift letter itself never goes to the IRS. What may go to the IRS is Form 709, and only the donor files it. The recipient files nothing for receiving a gift.2Internal Revenue Service. About Form 709, United States Gift (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Return
You need to file Form 709 if a gift to any one person in 2026 exceeds the $19,000 annual exclusion, or if you and your spouse elect to split gifts.2Internal Revenue Service. About Form 709, United States Gift (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Return Filing does not automatically mean tax is owed. Gifts above the annual exclusion apply against a lifetime gift and estate tax exemption of $15,000,000 per person for 2026, and no gift tax is actually due until that lifetime amount is used up.3Internal Revenue Service. Whats New – Estate and Gift Tax For most people, Form 709 is a tracking document rather than a bill.
Form 709 asks for the donor’s Social Security number, a description of each gift specific enough to identify the property, and the fair market value on the date of transfer.4Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 709 A well-drafted gift letter already contains almost all of that, which is a large part of why keeping one is worthwhile even when no filing is required.
Gifted Property Rather Than Cash
When the gift is stock, real estate, or another asset instead of cash, the recipient takes over the donor’s original cost basis in the property.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S.C. 1015 – Basis of Property Acquired by Gifts and Transfers in Trust This is called carryover basis. If you bought stock for $10,000 and gift it when it is worth $50,000, the recipient’s basis is still $10,000. A later sale at $55,000 produces $45,000 of capital gain, calculated from your purchase price rather than the value on the day you handed it over.
Because the recipient will need those numbers eventually, a gift letter for non-cash property should record the donor’s original purchase date, the original cost, and the fair market value on the date of transfer. Attach supporting documents such as brokerage statements or an appraisal where you have them.
How Long to Keep the Letter
The IRS generally has three years from a return’s filing date to assess additional tax, extended to six years if income is underreported by more than 25%.6Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 305, Recordkeeping Gift tax records interact with the lifetime exemption and can affect estate tax calculations decades later, so the practical answer for a signed gift letter, any Form 709 you filed, and any valuation documents is to keep them indefinitely rather than discarding them on a fixed schedule.