The checklist for what to do when someone passes away moves roughly in this order: get the death legally pronounced and order certified death certificates, arrange the funeral, notify Social Security and other agencies, locate the will and open probate if needed, handle insurance and financial accounts, file final taxes, deal with debts, and close out personal and digital accounts. Some steps have hard deadlines; others can wait weeks. Working through them in sequence keeps you from missing money the family is owed or triggering penalties the estate will have to pay.
The First Few Days
A medical professional or coroner has to formally pronounce the death before anything else can happen. If your loved one died at home under hospice care, the hospice nurse handles it. If the death was unexpected, call 911 and paramedics or a coroner will respond.
Order certified death certificates right away. You will need them for insurance claims, bank accounts, government filings, and property transfers. The funeral home usually files the paperwork with the state vital records office, but you decide how many copies to order. Request at least 10 to 15 certified copies. Photocopies will not work for most financial institutions, and ordering extras later costs more time and fees.
While you are handling those first calls, take care of a few practical items:
- Lock the home, remove perishable food, adjust the thermostat, and ask a neighbor to collect packages if the house will sit empty.
- Check organ donation status through the state donor registry, the DMV, or the National Donate Life Registry. The hospital or organ procurement organization coordinates donation quickly after death if the person was registered.
- Locate the will, trust documents, life insurance policies, bank and investment statements, the most recent tax return, and any pre-paid funeral plans. Check the home safe, filing cabinet, or safe deposit box.
- Pick one family member as the point of contact so you are not repeating the news to everyone individually.
Funeral and Burial Arrangements
If the deceased left written wishes or a pre-paid plan, follow those. Otherwise the family chooses between burial and cremation, picks a funeral home, and plans the service. The National Funeral Directors Association reported the national median cost of a funeral with viewing and burial at $8,300 in 2023, and a funeral with cremation at about $6,280. Neither figure includes the cemetery plot, a vault, or a headstone, which can add several thousand dollars.
Federal law requires funeral homes to give you an itemized General Price List before you commit. You are not required to buy a casket or urn from the funeral home, and they cannot charge a handling fee for one bought elsewhere. Ask for the list, compare it to your budget, and do not let time pressure push you into upgrades.
Veterans Burial Benefits
If the deceased was a veteran discharged under conditions other than dishonorable, the family may qualify for burial benefits through the Department of Veterans Affairs. For deaths occurring on or after October 1, 2025, the VA pays a burial allowance of up to $1,002, plus up to $1,002 for a plot when burial is outside a VA national cemetery.1U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Veterans Burial Allowance and Transportation Benefits Eligible veterans and certain spouses can also be buried in a VA national cemetery at no cost, which includes the gravesite, headstone, and perpetual care.
To qualify for the burial allowance, the veteran must have been receiving VA compensation or pension, died from a service-connected condition, or died while receiving VA care, among other qualifying circumstances. A surviving spouse, child, parent, or the person who paid the funeral expenses can apply.1U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Veterans Burial Allowance and Transportation Benefits
Who to Notify
Several agencies and organizations need to hear about the death, and some tie to money the family is either owed or has to return.
Social Security Administration
The funeral home usually reports the death to Social Security, so you may not need to call.2Social Security Administration. What to Do When Someone Dies If no funeral home is involved, contact the SSA directly. Social Security cannot pay benefits for the month in which a person dies, so any payment received for that month must be returned.3USAGov. Report the Death of a Social Security or Medicare Beneficiary A surviving spouse or eligible child may qualify for monthly survivor benefits and a one-time lump-sum death payment of $255.4Congress.gov. Social Security: The Lump-Sum Death Benefit
Federal Retirement and Military Benefits
If the deceased was a federal retiree, report the death to the Office of Personnel Management so it can process annuity payments for survivors.5U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Report of Death Military retirees’ deaths should be reported to the Defense Finance and Accounting Service, which stops pension payments and sends Survivor Benefit Plan forms if the retiree was enrolled.6USAGov. Agencies to Notify When Someone Dies
Credit Bureaus
Notify one of the three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion) and it will notify the other two.7Equifax. Contacting Credit Bureaus After a Relatives Death The bureau places a deceased notice on the credit file, which helps block fraudulent credit applications. You can also request a credit freeze for additional protection.8Experian. How to Report a Relatives Death to Credit Bureaus Identity theft against the deceased is more common than people expect, and it can create problems for the estate months later.
Employer and DMV
Contact the deceased’s employer about a final paycheck, unused vacation pay, employer-sponsored life insurance, and retirement accounts. If the deceased carried health insurance that covered dependents, those dependents may be eligible for COBRA continuation coverage, since death of the covered employee is a qualifying event under federal law.9eCFR. 26 CFR 54.4980B-4 – Qualifying Events COBRA coverage can last up to 36 months for dependents who lose coverage because of the employee’s death, but you pay the full premium yourself.
Notify the DMV to cancel the driver’s license and handle vehicle registration or title transfers. This prevents the license from being used for identity fraud. Rules vary by state, but you will generally need a death certificate.
Handling Bank Accounts, Insurance, and Retirement Assets
Gather every account you can find: bank, brokerage, retirement, life insurance, annuities, and outstanding loans. Each institution has its own process, but almost all require a certified death certificate and proof of your legal authority to act on behalf of the estate.
That authority comes from the probate court. If the deceased had a will naming an executor, the court issues Letters Testamentary. If there was no will, the court appoints an administrator and issues Letters of Administration. Either document proves to banks, insurers, and brokerages that you are authorized to access, close, or transfer accounts.
Life Insurance
If you are named as a beneficiary, file the claim directly with the insurer. You will need the policy number, a certified death certificate, and your personal identification. Policies with named beneficiaries pay out directly and do not pass through probate, so the money is usually available within a few weeks.
Retirement Accounts and Beneficiary Designations
Accounts with named beneficiaries, including 401(k) plans, IRAs, and payable-on-death bank accounts, transfer directly to the beneficiary outside of probate. The beneficiary contacts the financial institution, provides a death certificate and identification, and follows the transfer process. Beneficiary designations control regardless of what the will says, so if an ex-spouse was named years ago and never updated, that ex-spouse may still receive the account.
Safe Deposit Boxes
Access to the deceased’s safe deposit box is typically frozen until the court appoints a personal representative. You will usually need to present Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration along with the death certificate before the bank will let you open it. Some states allow limited access to search for a will or burial instructions beforehand, but the bank often requires a court order even for that.
Probate and the Executor’s Role
Probate is the court-supervised process of validating the will, paying debts, and distributing what is left. With no will, the estate goes through intestate administration, where state law determines who inherits. Not every asset goes through probate. Anything with a named beneficiary or joint ownership transfers automatically.
The executor or administrator notifies beneficiaries and heirs, inventories estate assets, manages those assets during the process, pays valid debts and taxes, and distributes what remains. The role is fiduciary, meaning the executor must act in the beneficiaries’ interest rather than their own.
Timelines vary widely. A straightforward estate with a clear will and cooperative heirs might close in six months. Complex estates with contested wills, out-of-state real estate, or business interests can take two years or longer. Many states offer simplified procedures for smaller estates, often called small estate affidavits, when the total value of probate assets falls below a state-set threshold that typically ranges from roughly $75,000 to $150,000. If the estate qualifies, the process is faster and much cheaper.
Executors are entitled to compensation. Some states set a percentage of the estate’s value; others use a reasonable compensation standard. The range is typically 1.5% to 4% of the estate’s gross value, depending on the complexity of the work.
Taxes to File
Several tax filings may be required, and missing them creates penalties or delays closing the estate.
Final Individual Tax Return
The personal representative files a final Form 1040 covering January 1 through the date of death. The deadline is the same as any other return, typically April 15 of the following year, though you can request an extension.10Internal Revenue Service. Filing a Final Federal Tax Return for Someone Who Has Died A surviving spouse can file a joint return for the year of death. If there is no surviving spouse, the personal representative signs on behalf of the deceased.11Internal Revenue Service. Topic No 356, Decedents
If the deceased is owed a refund and you are not a surviving spouse filing jointly, you may need to file Form 1310 with the return to claim it.12Internal Revenue Service. Form 1310 – Statement of Person Claiming Refund Due a Deceased Taxpayer Court-appointed personal representatives who attach their court certificate to the return are exempt.
Form 56 Notification
File IRS Form 56 to formally tell the IRS you are acting on behalf of the deceased. This ensures notices and correspondence go to the right person and establishes your authority to handle tax matters for the estate.13Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 56
Federal Estate Tax
For 2026, the federal estate tax exemption is $15,000,000 per person.14Internal Revenue Service. Whats New – Estate and Gift Tax Estates below that amount owe no federal estate tax. Married couples can effectively shield up to $30,000,000 through portability of the unused exemption. If the estate exceeds the exemption, the executor files Form 706 within nine months of death, with a six-month extension available. Some states also impose their own estate or inheritance taxes at lower thresholds, so check your state.
Debts and What the Family Owes
The general rule: debts are paid from the estate’s assets, not from the pockets of surviving family. If the estate cannot cover all debts, those debts generally go unpaid.15Federal Trade Commission. Debts and Deceased Relatives
The exceptions catch people off guard. You may be personally responsible for a deceased person’s debt if you co-signed the loan, if you are the surviving spouse in a community property state, or if your state requires spouses to pay certain debts like healthcare expenses.15Federal Trade Commission. Debts and Deceased Relatives
Debt collectors can only discuss the deceased’s debts with specific people: the spouse, a parent if the deceased was a minor, a guardian, an attorney, or the executor or administrator. They cannot discuss the debt with other relatives, friends, or neighbors. If a collector contacts someone outside that list, they are limited to asking for the executor’s contact information, and generally only once.15Federal Trade Commission. Debts and Deceased Relatives You can file a complaint with the FTC or your state attorney general if a collector violates these rules.
Medicaid Estate Recovery
If the deceased received Medicaid benefits after age 55, federal law requires the state to seek recovery of certain costs from the estate, primarily nursing home care, home and community-based services, and related hospital and prescription drug expenses.16Medicaid.gov. Estate Recovery Recovery cannot happen while a surviving spouse is alive, or while a child under 21 or a blind or disabled child of any age survives the deceased.17Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 1396p – Liens, Adjustments and Recoveries, and Transfers of Assets Every state must also have a process for waiving recovery when it would cause undue hardship.
Keeping Property and Insurance in Place
If the deceased owned a home, contact the homeowner’s insurance company within 30 days and provide a death certificate. The policy stays in effect after death but can lapse if no one pays the premium. A surviving spouse can typically be added as the named insured. Otherwise, the executor takes over premium payments until the property is sold or transferred. An insurer may require a vacant property policy if the home will sit empty during the estate process.
Keep paying the mortgage, property taxes, and HOA fees if the estate has funds. Falling behind triggers foreclosure, tax liens, or penalties that eat into the estate’s value. Letting insurance lapse or property taxes go unpaid is a common and expensive executor mistake.
For vehicles, maintain registration and insurance until the estate decides whether to sell or transfer each one. An unregistered, uninsured vehicle sitting in a driveway creates liability if something happens to it or someone is injured around it.
Mail, Subscriptions, Utilities, and Digital Accounts
Cancel subscriptions, memberships, and recurring charges quickly to stop money from draining out of estate accounts. Go through recent bank and credit card statements to find charges you might not know about: streaming, gym memberships, apps, cloud storage.
Mail Forwarding
To redirect the deceased’s mail, visit a Post Office in person with documentation proving you are the executor or administrator. A death certificate alone is not enough. You need Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.18United States Postal Service. Mail Addressed to the Deceased Forwarding catches bills, account statements, and tax documents that would otherwise pile up at an empty house.
Social Media and Digital Accounts
Most major platforms have a process for handling a deceased person’s account. Facebook and Instagram allow you to request that an account be memorialized, placing a “Remembering” label on the profile, or permanently deleted. Both require proof of death. Google’s Inactive Account Manager lets users pre-select what happens to their data after a period of inactivity. Apple offers a Legacy Contact feature that gives a pre-designated person access using an access key shared during the account holder’s lifetime.
If the deceased did not set these up in advance, you will generally need to submit a death certificate and proof of your relationship or legal authority to each platform. Address email accounts early, since they are often tied to password resets for banking, insurance, and other critical services.
Utilities
Contact electricity, gas, water, internet, and phone providers to disconnect or transfer each account. If a surviving spouse or family member stays in the home, a simple name change is usually enough. If the home is going on the market, keep utilities running until the sale closes, since buyers and inspectors need working systems. Shut off or winterize only when you are certain no one needs access.