If I buy something for $10 and it's worth $10,000 when you inherit it, you should (obviously?) be taxed on the increase in value from $10 -> $10,000 if/when you sell. The purchase price shouldn't be "reset" to $10k.
It'sutterly insane to me that the step-up basis exists in the US, it's such an obvious loophole that can fairly easily be closed without many adverse effects.
In my country (Sweden) if you don't know the purchase price, you can use an approximate purchasing price (e.g. for equities you are allowed to assume that it was acquired for 20% of the current value, so you'd be taxed on 80%).
It'sutterly insane to me that the step-up basis exists in the US, it's such an obvious loophole that can fairly easily be closed without many adverse effects.
In my country (Sweden) if you don't know the purchase price, you can use an approximate purchasing price (e.g. for equities you are allowed to assume that it was acquired for 20% of the current value, so you'd be taxed on 80%).