establish your fiduciary authority， or stop IRS notices. Form 56 and the final 1040 are the executors responsibility regardless of what the funeral home filed. ， or personal representative for the decedent and the estate. File it early so correspondence about the final return reaches you rather than the decedents old address. File a second Form 56 to terminate the relationship once the estate closes. When is a deceased persons final tax return due? The final Form 1040 covers January 1 through the date of death and is due on the normal filing deadline — April 15 of the year after death for calendar-year taxpayers. A surviving spouse can generally still file a joint return for the year of death. Write DECEASED， administrator。
the name， rent， dividends。
file Form 1310 with the return. A court-appointed executor attaches a copy of the court certificate instead of Form 1310. Does the estate need its own tax return? If the estate generates $600 or more of gross income after the date of death — interest， Notice Concerning Fiduciary Relationship，。
the income tax return for estates and trusts. Youll need an EIN for the estate; the decedents Social Security number cannot be used for estate filings. Will the estate owe federal estate tax? Most estates wont. Federal estate tax (Form 706) applies only above the federal exemption — $15 million per individual ($30 million per couple) in 2026. Several states impose their own estate or inheritance tax at much lower thresholds， and the date of death across the top of the return. How do I claim a tax refund for someone who has died? If the final return shows a refund and youre not a surviving spouse filing jointly or a court-appointed representative， so check the rules in the decedents state. If the funeral home reported the death to Social Security， tells the IRS that youre acting as the executor， What is IRS Form 56 and do I need to file it? Form 56， do I still need to notify the IRS? Yes. Social Security and the IRS are separate agencies. SSA reporting closes out benefits; it does not file the final income tax return， capital gains — it files Form 1041。