When a parent dies in Texas

Where do you get death certificates?

From Texas Vital Statistics, part of the Department of State Health Services, which takes orders online through Texas.gov, by mail or at local offices. Banks, Social Security, the credit bureaus and the courts each ask for one.

What happens to the will?

Whoever has the original will must deliver it to the county clerk on learning of the death, under Estates Code section 252.201. A will generally can’t be admitted to probate after the fourth anniversary of the death unless the person applying wasn’t at fault for the delay, under section 256.003.

How does Social Security find out?

Usually through the funeral home. The Social Security Administration says funeral homes generally report deaths, so families often don’t need to, and suggests giving the funeral director your parent’s Social Security number. If no funeral home reports it, SSA asks family to call 1-800-772-1213 with the name, Social Security number, date of birth and date of death.

Two things follow. A one-time $255 payment can go to a surviving spouse who lived with your parent, or in some cases lived apart, and otherwise to certain children; it must be applied for within two years of the death. And under SSA’s survivors guide, the benefit paid for the month of death and any later months must be returned: uncashed checks are sent back, and direct deposits are returned through the bank.

How do you tell the credit bureaus?

By mail or online, with a copy of the death certificate, sent to one bureau. Equifax, Experian and TransUnion each say that the bureau you contact notifies the other two. Only a spouse or a legally authorized person, such as an executor or administrator, can ask; Equifax asks anyone other than the spouse to include the court papers that authorize them. The bureaus call the result a deceased notice or deceased alert on the file.

What does the IRS need?

• Form 56. The executor, administrator or person holding the estate’s property tells the IRS they’re acting for your parent with Form 56, generally when that role begins: one form in your parent’s name and one in the estate’s. Publication 559 says to file it as soon as the information, including the estate’s EIN, is available.
• An EIN for the estate. Publication 559 calls this the first step for a personal representative. It’s applied for online at IRS.gov/EIN or with Form SS-4.
• The final Form 1040. It covers your parent’s income up to the date of death and is generally due April 15 of the year after the death.
• Form 1041, if needed. An estate files an income tax return for any year it has gross income of $600 or more, under the Form 1041 instructions.

How are the bank accounts collected?

When there’s no will and the estate, not counting the homestead and exempt property, is worth $75,000 or less, the heirs can file a small estate affidavit with the county court 30 days after the death, and a judge approves it. For real estate, families often record an affidavit of heirship, a sworn family history, in the county deed records. Other estates go through a court procedure such as probate.

What other Texas deadlines are there?

If a court appoints a personal representative, Estates Code chapter 308 sets two early deadlines: notice to creditors within one month after letters are issued, published in a newspaper, and notice to the will’s beneficiaries within 60 days after the order admitting the will to probate.

Is Kin Papers a law firm?

No. Kin Papers isn’t a law firm and doesn’t give legal advice. This page lists what Texas’s statutes and the federal agencies’ own pages say, with links to each, in the order families usually meet them. It doesn’t say which steps apply to your parent’s estate. The probate court clerk can explain filings, and a lawyer can advise on your situation.