Filing a Final Tax Return for Someone Who Died: Who Signs, What to Write and When It's Due
The short answer: the person handling the estate files one last ordinary Form 1040 for the year of death, covering income from January 1 to the day they died. Write "DECEASED," their name and the date of death across the top. It is due on the usual date the following year, normally in April, exactly as if they were still alive. If you are a surviving spouse you can usually file it as a joint return. To get a refund sent to someone other than a spouse, you generally attach Form 1310. Everything here comes from the IRS's own guidance, Publication 559. Anything about estate tax is a question for an accountant.
Of all the paperwork after a death, this is the one most people put off longest. It also has a hard deadline. Once you know which form it is and who signs, it is a lot smaller than it looks. This guide covers the federal return only. Most states with an income tax want a final state return too, and your state's revenue department website will say how.
Who Has to File It
The IRS puts it in one line: "The personal representative … must file the final income tax return" for the year of death. Who that is depends on what has happened so far:
- An executor or administrator has been appointed by a court. That person files and signs.
- Nobody has been appointed, and there is a surviving spouse. The spouse can file a joint return alone.
- Nobody has been appointed and there is no spouse. In the IRS's words, "the person in charge of the decedent's property must file and sign the return as 'personal representative.'"
If you are not sure whether an executor will be appointed, it helps to understand what happens when there is no will first. That decides who ends up holding this job.
Do you have to file at all?
It depends on the person's income, age and filing status for that year, the same tests that applied while they were alive. There is one case where you should file even if nothing is owed. If tax was taken out of their wages, pension or annuity during the year, the only way to get that money back is to file. The IRS says a return "must be filed to obtain a refund if tax was withheld," "even if a return isn't otherwise required." For many retired people that withheld tax is the whole point of filing.
It is also worth checking that they filed for the years before. If you can't tell, the IRS page on filing for a deceased person points to Form 4506-T, which requests their records.
What Goes on the Return
It is the same Form 1040 (or 1040-SR) they would have filed. Two things are different.
The period is shorter. It covers January 1 to the date of death. Income that arrives after the death, such as the last paycheck paid late, interest earned after the date, or rent collected by the estate, generally belongs to the estate or the person who inherited it, not to this return. That split is the most common place for mistakes. If there is any income after the death, it may need an estate income tax return (Form 1041). This is where an accountant is worth paying.
The top of the form. From Publication 559: "Write the word 'DECEASED,' the decedent's name, and the date of death across the top of the tax return." Tax software has a field for this. On paper, you write it across the top yourself.
Deductions and credits are claimed the way they always were. Ask your preparer about anything that changes because the year was cut short.
How to Sign It
| Your situation | Who signs | What to write |
|---|---|---|
| Court-appointed executor or administrator | You | Your own signature as personal representative |
| Surviving spouse, joint return, an executor has been appointed | Both of you | Each signs |
| Surviving spouse, joint return, nobody appointed | You alone | "Filing as surviving spouse" in the signature area |
| No appointment, no spouse | Whoever is in charge of their property | Sign as "personal representative" |
Filing Jointly as a Surviving Spouse
If you were married when they died, you can usually file a joint return for that year. Your income covers the whole year and theirs runs up to the date of death. For many couples that is the most favourable status available.
There is one exception. If you remarry before the end of the year of death, you can't file jointly with the person who died. Their return then has to be filed as married filing separately.
Getting the Refund: Form 1310
Refund cheques made out to someone who has died are a problem for banks. Form 1310 (Statement of a Person Claiming Refund Due a Deceased Taxpayer) is how you tell the IRS who should be paid instead.
According to Publication 559, you don't need Form 1310 when:
- you are a surviving spouse filing an original or amended joint return with them, or
- you are a court-appointed or certified personal representative filing their original return. In that case you attach a copy of the court certificate instead.
Everyone else claiming the refund, such as an adult child handling things without a court appointment, generally attaches Form 1310. If the form is missing, the refund is delayed while the IRS asks for it.
If they owed tax instead, it is paid from what they left. The estate pays it, not you personally, which is the same principle that governs debts after a death.
Telling the IRS You Are Acting for Them
If you are acting as their representative, you can file Form 56, which notifies the IRS of the role. The IRS says: "If you are appointed to act in a fiduciary capacity for another, you must file a written notice with the IRS stating this." It is how letters about their tax start coming to you rather than to an empty mailbox. Add the IRS to your list when you work through who to notify after a death.
When It's Due
"The final income tax return is due at the same time the decedent's return would have been due had death not occurred." Publication 559's own example is someone who died on March 21, 2025, whose final return is due April 15, 2026.
So if they died early in the year, you have more than a year. If they died in December, the time is short, and the previous year's return may not have been filed yet either. If you need more time, ask an accountant about an extension before the due date, not after.
A Short Checklist
- Find last year's return and this year's paperwork: W-2s, 1099s for pension, Social Security and interest, and any brokerage statements.
- Work out who signs (the table above).
- Split income into before and after the date of death.
- File the 1040 with "DECEASED," the name and the date across the top.
- Attach Form 1310 if you are claiming a refund and are not the spouse or a court-appointed representative.
- File Form 56 if you are acting as their representative.
- Ask an accountant about anything after the date of death, and about whether an estate return or estate tax applies. We don't give thresholds or rates here, because they change and they depend on the state.
Questions People Ask
Do I have to pay their taxes myself? No. Tax they owed is paid from the estate. If the estate has nothing, family members do not inherit the bill.
The refund cheque came in their name. What now? If you are the spouse on a joint return, your bank may accept it. Otherwise contact the IRS. Form 1310 is the usual fix.
What if the death certificate has the wrong date? Fix the certificate first. The IRS, Social Security and banks all work from it. Here is how to correct a death certificate.
Is a life insurance payout taxable on this return? A life insurance death benefit paid to a beneficiary is generally not income on the person's final return. See how to claim life insurance for the rest.
When the forms are done, there is room for the part that isn't paperwork. GetMemorial gives your family one place to keep their photos, stories and tributes. Start an online memorial when you are ready.
