Internal Revenue Service (IRS)

by April 15 of the year following the year of death¹

when the fiduciary relationship is created^{2, 3}

within 9 months of the date of death^{4, 5}

within 9 months of the date of death; Only a separate extension of time to pay, requested on the same Form 4768, moves it.⁴

by the fifth anniversary of the date of death; An estate that misses it, or that was required to file, must request a private letter ruling instead.^{6, 7}

within 30 days of the date Form 706 is due (including extensions) or filed, whichever is earlier^{8, 9}

the earlier of the estate tax return due date (with extensions) or April 15¹⁰

by the 15th day of the 4th month after the end of the estate's tax year (April 15 for a calendar-year estate)^{11, 12}

A final income tax return is filed for the deceased for the year of death, covering income from January 1 to the date of death. The executor, administrator or surviving spouse is responsible for filing it.¹³

An estate needs its own employer identification number if it has income, opens a bank account or files Form 1041. The deceased person's Social Security number is not used for estate transactions.¹³

A written request for prompt assessment on Form 4810 cuts the time the IRS has to assess tax from 3 years to 18 months from receiving the request. It applies to any return except the estate tax return and is filed separately from any other document.^{1, 17}

The IRS is notified of a death through the final income tax return filed for the deceased, with "DECEASED," the decedent's name and the date of death written across the top. The executor also files Form 56 to record the fiduciary relationship.¹³

The Social Security Administration shares death data with the IRS, but the executor or surviving spouse is still responsible for filing the final return and any required estate tax returns.¹³

An appointed personal representative signs the final return, and on a joint return the surviving spouse signs too. With no personal representative, the surviving spouse signs the joint return and writes "Filing as surviving spouse"; with neither, the person in charge of the property signs as "personal representative."^{1, 18}

A personal representative claiming the refund on an amended return (Form 1040-X) or on Form 843 attaches Form 1310 together with the court certificate.¹

Form 56 notifies the IRS that a fiduciary, such as an executor or administrator, has been appointed for the estate, and authorizes the fiduciary to act on behalf of the deceased in tax matters.^{19, 3}

A request for the deceased person's prior-year returns includes the full name, last address and Social Security number, a copy of the death certificate, and either court-approved Letters Testamentary or Form 56.²⁰

A transcript of a prior-year return, requested on Form 4506-T, is free; a full copy of a filed return, requested on Form 4506, carries a fee.²⁰

No user fee applies to a late portability election made under Revenue Procedure 2022-32.¹⁵

A late portability election under Revenue Procedure 2022-32 is a complete Form 706 with "FILED PURSUANT TO REV. PROC. 2022-32 TO ELECT PORTABILITY UNDER § 2010(c)(5)(A)" written at the top.⁶

Each beneficiary is furnished only their own Schedule A, never a copy of Form 8971.⁸

The federal estate tax basic exclusion amount is set per year of death in the Instructions for Form 706, Table of Basic Exclusion Amounts. Estates valued below the amount for the year of death generally do not owe federal estate tax.^{4, 15, 16}

Public Law 119-21 set the $15 million amount permanently; inflation indexing resumes for deaths in 2027 and later years.²¹

Form 706 is required when the gross estate, plus adjusted taxable gifts and specific gift tax exemption, exceeds the filing threshold for the year of death. It is also filed to elect portability even when no tax is owed.^{4, 5}

Form 1041 is required when the estate has gross income of $600 or more in the tax year, or, regardless of income, when any beneficiary is a nonresident alien. The estate is allowed a $600 exemption deduction in computing taxable income.^{11, 18}

The executor sets the estate's tax year on the first Form 1041: any period of 12 months or less ending on the last day of a month, so an estate may use a fiscal year. Form 1041 is filed each year until the estate is fully distributed.¹¹

To reduce the risk of identity theft, the IRS directs survivors to send a copy of the death certificate to the credit bureaus and ask them to place a deceased alert on the credit reports.²²

Shares death data with the IRS¹³