Last year, I gave a gift to a married couple, the total sum of which was larger than the $14,000 per-person exclusion amount. However, the gift was given in separate installments, with roughly half of the total sent to a checking account in the name of one spouse, and the other half sent via PayPal to the other spouse. (I do not know how or whether the gift installments were transferred/routed after having been sent.)
- For tax purposes, is this gift considered to be a single gift to the couple, greater than $14,000, and therefore taxable? Or is it considered to be two separate gifts, one to each spouse, each within the $14,000 exclusion limit?
- Am I required to file a Form 709 to report the gift?
- Does the filing status of the recipient couple (i.e. single or filing jointly) factor into the answer in any way?
