Estate Administrator Duties
When
a person dies, a probate proceeding may be opened. Depending on state law,
probate will generally open within 30 to 90-days from the date of death.
One of the probate court’s first actions will be to
appoint a legal
representative for the decedent and his or her estate. The legal
representative may be a surviving spouse, other family member, executor
named in the decedent’s will, or an attorney. We will use the term “estate
administrator” to refer to the appointed legal representative. The probate
court will issue
Letters Testamentary authorizing
the estate administrator of the decedent to act on the decedent’s behalf.
You will need the Letters Testamentary to handle the decedent’s tax and
other matters.
General Duties of the Estate Administrator:
In
general, the responsibilities of an estate administrator are to collect all
the decedent’s assets, pay creditors and distribute the remaining assets to
heirs or other beneficiaries. As an estate administrator your first
responsibility is to provide the probate court with an accounting of the
decedent’s assets and debts. Some assets may need to be appraised to
determine their value. All debts will need to be verified and creditor
claims against the estate must be filed.
Madison Consulting is highly
experienced in the final accounting process.
Tax Responsibilities of the Estate
Administrator:
A decedent and their estate are separate
taxable entities. So if filing requirements are satisfied, an estate
administrator may have to file different types of tax returns.
First,
an estate administrator may need to
file income tax returns for the
decedent. The decedent’s tax return for the year of death, and for
any preceding years for which a return was not filed, are required if the
decedent’s income for those years was above the filing requirement.
Second, an estate administrator may need to
file income tax returns
for the estate. An estate is required to file an income tax return
if assets of the estate generate more than $600 in annual income. For
example, if the decedent had interest, dividend or rental income when alive,
then after death that income becomes income of the estate and may trigger
the requirement to file an estate income tax return. If the estate
operates a business after the owner’s death, the estate administrator is
required to secure a new employer identification number for the business,
report wages or income under the new EIN and pay any taxes that are due.
Let Madison Consulting assist you with the burden of tax and filing
compliance.Some or all of the information you need to file
income tax returns for the decedent and their estate may be in the
decedent’s personal records. If access to these records is challenging, let
Madison Consulting assist you by working directly with the IRS to obtain
records.
Third,
an estate administrator may need to
file an estate tax return.
Estate tax is a tax on the transfer of assets from the decedent to their
heirs and beneficiaries. In general, estate tax only applies to large
estates. For help with determining whether an estate tax return is required
and how to file it,
contact
Madison Consulting for more info.
Additional information on the duties of an estate administrator is available
in
IRS
Publication 559, Survivors, Executors and Administrators.
Excerpts
from: IRS.GOV. As of Update: 03-May-2016