How Do I Open an Estate Account at Provident?
Provident's estate-account opening requirements: where the account can be opened, the documents to bring, and the EIN requirement.
Opening an estate account at Provident
Account type: business checking, business savings, certificate of deposit
Opening channels
- In a branch
- Not stated
- Online
- Not stated
- By phone
- Not stated
- By mail
- Not stated
- Appointment
- Not stated
- Co-executors
- Not stated
Documents to bring
- Estate tax identification number (EIN) -- "When you apply for an Account, we will ask for the legal business/entity name, address, and Tax Identification Number (TIN)" (Business Deposit T&C); the bank's account-opening platform marks the estate entity's taxId as required
- Legal name of the estate and the decedent's full name -- both required fields on the estate entity in Provident's account-opening platform (open.provident.bank)
- Death certificate -- the account-opening platform's estate schema requires proofOfDeath with document type deathCertificate
- Letters Testamentary -- the account-opening platform's estate schema requires executorDocumentation with document type lettersOfTestamentary
- Legal name, address, date of birth, and TIN for each authorized signer (Business Deposit T&C)
- Two or more forms of identification for the estate and two or more forms of identification for each authorized signer, one of which must be a government-issued unexpired photo identification (Business Deposit T&C)
What to know at Provident
Provident Bank publishes no page describing how an executor or administrator opens an estate account -- no channel list, no appointment rule, no Letters recency window, no minimum deposit, and no timeline specific to estates (the site FAQ page carries no death or estate topics; sweep verified 2026-07-16). What is verifiable is the governing framework: the Business Deposit Accounts Terms and Conditions Agreement (form PV-2002) names the Estate in its "you" definition and states in its Eligibility section that estates for which all the beneficiaries are natural persons may open and maintain business checking, savings, and certificate of deposit accounts -- an estate account at Provident is a business-purpose account, and consumer accounts may not be opened or maintained by estates. Note the stated eligibility condition: ALL beneficiaries of the estate must be natural persons. Separately, Provident's own online account-opening platform (open.provident.bank) models an estate entity whose required items are the estate's tax ID, the estate's legal name, the decedent's full name, a death certificate, and Letters Testamentary -- but the platform's self-serve online flow offers only consumer and business product paths, so expect estate opening to run through a branch or the Customer Care Center at 1-800-448-7768 rather than the online application. Full estate administration is separately available through the Beacon Trust subsidiary (1-866-377-8090).
This guide summarizes each bank's published estate-account requirements and is not legal or banking advice. Requirements may vary by state and account type.
Frequently Asked Questions
Provident's published guidance does not state whether an estate account can be opened online.
Provident asks for: Estate tax identification number (EIN) -- "When you apply for an Account, we will ask for the legal business/entity name, address, and Tax Identification Number (TIN)" (Business Deposit T&C); the bank's account-opening platform marks the estate entity's taxId as required; Legal name of the estate and the decedent's full name -- both required fields on the estate entity in Provident's account-opening platform (open.provident.bank); Death certificate -- the account-opening platform's estate schema requires proofOfDeath with document type deathCertificate; Letters Testamentary -- the account-opening platform's estate schema requires executorDocumentation with document type lettersOfTestamentary; Legal name, address, date of birth, and TIN for each authorized signer (Business Deposit T&C); Two or more forms of identification for the estate and two or more forms of identification for each authorized signer, one of which must be a government-issued unexpired photo identification (Business Deposit T&C).
Yes. Provident opens the account under the estate's Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the IRS — the deceased's Social Security Number cannot be used. Getting the EIN is the first step.
Provident's published guidance does not state a co-executor appearance rule. When more than one executor or administrator was appointed, confirm with Provident whether all must attend.
An estate account is a bank account titled to the estate itself — not to the person who died and not to the executor personally. The court-appointed executor or administrator opens it to deposit money owed to the estate (final paychecks, refunds, proceeds from closed accounts), pay the estate's debts and expenses, and distribute what remains. Checks made out to "the Estate of" can only be deposited into an account titled this way.
The estate is its own taxpayer, separate from the person who died. Banks open estate accounts under the estate's Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the IRS, not the deceased's Social Security Number. The free EIN application prepares IRS Form SS-4 for the estate.
Sources
Data sourced from Provident primary sources (5 pages reviewed). How we research.
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