Skip to main content
SimplyTrust
SimplyTrust
Create a TrustNewForms & ToolsFreeResourcesStates
LoginGet started
Company
AboutCareersContactFormsCreate a TrustNew
Privacy PolicyTerms of ServiceSecurityAI Access

© 2026 SimplyTrust Software Inc.

SimplyTrust Logo

Every family deserves a plan. We'll help.

Get startedApp StoreGoogle Play

Forms

  • Revocable Trust
  • Last Will and Testament
  • Pour-Over Will
  • Healthcare Proxy
  • Financial POA
  • Transfer on Death Deed

Tools

  • Trust vs Will
  • Probate Calculator
  • Who Inherits
  • Estate Settlement
  • Death Tax Calculator
  • Life Insurance

Learn

  • Revocable Living Trusts
  • Last Will and Testaments
  • Articles
  • State Guides
  • Estate Law
  • Life Events

Directories

  • Law Firms
  • Financial Assets
  • Digital Assets
  • Government Agencies

Company

  • About
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Create a Trust

SimplyTrust is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice, legal counsel, or attorney review. Information on this platform is for general informational purposes only. Use of SimplyTrust does not create an attorney-client relationship. You are solely responsible for all documents you create. For advice tailored to your circumstances, consult a licensed attorney in your state.

© 2026 SimplyTrust Software Inc. All rights reserved.

Privacy Policy·Terms of Service·Security··AI Access

All content, data, and calculations are proprietary. Automated scraping, systematic downloading, or data extraction is prohibited under our Terms of Service. Product visuals are simulated for illustrative purposes and may differ from actual experience. Logos provided by Logo.dev.

A will is a wish. A trust is a plan.

Create and manage your trust online.

How it works

No probate. No public record. No court.

Estate Ledger

Every decision signed, timestamped, and hashed

Pricing

Simple, transparent pricing

Download

Get the app on iOS and Android

Home→Forms→Letter of Instruction→E*TRADE

Your kids shouldn't have to do this.

Court filings, creditor windows, frozen accounts — a revocable living trust skips them all.

Get startedApp StoreGoogle Play
SimplyTrust app shown on a phone

How Do I Write a Letter of Instruction to E*TRADE?

Prepare the letter of instruction E*TRADE requests during estate or death-claim processing — addressed to its verified claims department with the required enclosures. PDF.

Progress0%

Step 1 of 2

1

About You

How E*TRADE can reach the person reporting the death. All fields are required unless marked optional.

How are you related to the decedent?

FREE & PRIVATE: This form is free—no account or credit card required. Your document contents and generated PDF never leave your browser—SimplyTrust does not transmit or store them. Contact details you provide (name, email, phone, state) are transmitted only to send the updates you agree to receive at download. You are responsible for saving your completed document.

SELF-HELP SERVICE: SimplyTrust provides a self-help document preparation service. We are not a law firm and cannot provide legal advice, select forms for you, or tell you how to complete forms. Our role is limited to providing a platform where you input your own information into document templates.

NOT LEGAL ADVICE:This document was created entirely based on your selections. SimplyTrust does not review, analyze, or verify your entries, nor do we verify your identity, capacity, or authority to act. You are solely responsible for determining whether this document meets your needs and for completing all required execution formalities (signatures, witnesses, notarization, or recording) in accordance with your state's laws. For any legal questions, consult a licensed attorney in your state.

Frequently Asked Questions

Send it to E*TRADE's estate/claims department: E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley, P.O. Box 484, Jersey City, NJ 07303-0484. You can reach the department at 1-888-402-0653.

E*TRADE lists these among its required documents: Death certificate (legible copy or photo initially; certified copy may be required for final processing); Government-issued ID for claimant/beneficiary; For TOD accounts: typically just death certificate and ID; For IRA inheritance: Inherited IRA Application and certified or original death certificate. The prepared letter includes an enclosure checklist drawn from E*TRADE's recorded requirements.

7 business days after receiving all required documentation in good order

E*TRADE provides its own letter-of-instruction form. We complete that official form with your information; you print, sign, and send it.

It depends on the capacity you are acting in. An executor or administrator encloses Letters Testamentary (when there is a will) or Letters of Administration (when there is not); a successor trustee encloses a certificate of trust; a successor under a small estate encloses that state’s small estate affidavit. The prepared letter lists the proof-of-authority document for your role alongside the institution’s required documents.

A letter of instruction is the written request an institution asks for when settling a deceased customer’s account. It identifies the decedent and the account, states the capacity you are acting in, and tells the institution what to do with the account.

How E*TRADE Handles a Letter of Instruction

E*TRADE processes a death claim on its own form, Notify E*TRADE or Morgan Stanley Private Bank of a DeathE*TRADE claim formVerified Jun 22, 2026View source. This builder completes that official form with your answers so you can print, sign, and send it.

E*TRADE asks for Death certificate (legible copy or photo initially; certified copy may be required for final processing), Government-issued ID for claimant/beneficiary, For TOD accounts: typically just death certificate and ID, and moreE*TRADE death-claim requirementsVerified Jun 22, 2026View source. The enclosure checklist is built from that list, so you send the right documents the first time.

E*TRADE’s E*TRADE Beneficiary ServicesE*TRADE claims contactVerified Jun 22, 2026View source handles death claims and typically settles the account in 7 business days after receiving all required documentation in good orderE*TRADE death-claim processVerified Jun 22, 2026View source.

SimplyTrustSimplyTrust Editorial·Updated June 22, 2026

Sources

  • us.etrade.com
  • content.etrade.com

Data sourced from E*TRADE primary sources (23 pages reviewed). How we research.