Tax Deadlines After Death in Pennsylvania: The Complete Timeline

The phone keeps ringing, the funeral arrangements need to be made, and someone hands you papers saying you are the executor. What most people do not realize in those first days is that the tax clock is already running — and some of the most consequential deadlines arrive before most families have even started to organize the estate.

Pennsylvania imposes a series of overlapping tax deadlines that operate on three different calendars simultaneously: a countdown from the date of death, a standard April 15 calendar year deadline, and a federal deadline tied to the size of the estate. Missing any one of them triggers interest, penalties, or in the worst case, personal liability for the executor.

This guide maps every deadline from Day 0 through the end of the first year and beyond, in the order they actually hit.

Day 0: Date of Death

The date of death is not just the starting point — it is the valuation date for nearly every asset in the estate. Every account balance, every stock price, every piece of real estate must be valued as of this specific day. The clock for every downstream deadline starts here.

From a tax perspective, two things happen immediately on Day 0:

1. The decedent ceases to be a taxpayer. Their personal income tax obligation ends at the moment of death.
2. The estate springs into existence as a separate taxable entity. Any income generated by estate assets after this date belongs to the estate, not the decedent.

Days 1–15: Immediate Priorities

Secure a federal Employer Identification Number (EIN) for the estate. The estate is a separate legal entity and needs its own tax identification number. This is required to open an estate bank account and to file the PA-41 Fiduciary Income Tax Return later. Apply online through the IRS; the EIN is issued immediately. Never use the decedent's Social Security number or your own personal SSN for estate financial accounts.

Order certified death certificates. Pennsylvania death certificates are issued by the Division of Vital Records and cost $20 each. Order at least five to ten copies — banks, insurance companies, real estate title companies, and the Register of Wills all require originals. If ordered online through VitalChek, an additional $10 service fee applies per transaction. Certificates are available with or without the medical cause of death; life insurance companies require the medical version, while financial institutions generally prefer the version without.

Month 1 (Days 15–30): Safe Deposit Box and Probate Filing

Safe deposit box inventory: Pennsylvania restricts post-mortem access to safe deposit boxes. Before entering the box for a full inventory, the estate representative must send Form REV-1845 (Notice of Intent to Enter Safe Deposit Box) to the Department of Revenue via certified mail, at least seven days before the intended entry. All contents must be recorded on Form REV-485 and returned to the Department of Revenue within 20 days of the entry.

File for probate with the county Register of Wills: If the estate requires formal administration, the executor files the original will, a death certificate, and a Petition for Grant of Letters with the Register of Wills in the decedent's home county. Probate fees are not uniform — they scale to the estimated value of the estate and are set independently by each county.

Once letters testamentary issue, the executor must begin the creditor advertising requirement: running a notice in both a local newspaper of general circulation and the designated county legal journal for three consecutive weeks.

Month 3: The Most Important Deadline Most Executors Miss

5% Discount Deadline — Month 3 (Day 90 from Date of Death)

This is the most financially consequential early deadline in Pennsylvania estate administration. The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue offers a five percent discount on any inheritance tax paid within three calendar months of the decedent's date of death. On a $200,000 taxable estate with a 4.5 percent inheritance tax rate, that discount is worth $450. On a larger estate, it can run into the thousands of dollars.

The payment goes to the county Register of Wills — not directly to the Department of Revenue.

The practical problem: formal real estate appraisals take time, safe deposit box inventories must be completed before assets can be properly valued, and financial institutions move slowly in releasing account information for estate inventories. Most executors cannot assemble a fully verified, final tax calculation within 90 days of the death.

The solution: estimated prepayment. Pennsylvania allows the executor to remit a good-faith estimated payment to the Register of Wills before the three-month deadline. The discount applies to whatever amount is paid within the window. The executor calculates a conservative estimate of the total inheritance tax liability, pays it to the Register of Wills, and then trues up the exact figure when the formal REV-1500 is filed at the nine-month mark. Any overpayment is refunded; any underpayment is paid at that time without the discount.

Executors who wait until the nine-month deadline to make their first payment permanently lose the five percent discount. There is no exception and no waiver available.

Months 3–5: Medicaid Estate Recovery (If Applicable)

If the decedent was 55 or older and received Pennsylvania Medical Assistance (Medicaid) at any point within the five years before death, the executor must notify the Department of Human Services (DHS) Estate Recovery Program.

The notification: The executor sends a written request by certified mail to the DHS Third Party Liability Section. The notice must confirm the decedent's identity and include written verification of the gross estate value. Once DHS receives a properly formatted notice, a 45-day statutory clock begins. If DHS fails to provide a statement of claim within 45 days, the department permanently forfeits its right to collect the debt.

This is an extremely powerful tool for families managing Medicaid recovery risk — but it requires the executor to take the first step by sending the formal notice. DHS does not proactively monitor deaths and send claims automatically. An executor who ignores this obligation and distributes the estate without clearing the DHS claim becomes personally liable to DHS for the recovery amount, even if all the estate funds have already been paid to heirs.

Executors who successfully trigger the 45-day clock and receive no claim within that window should obtain written confirmation from DHS before making distributions.

Month 9: The Primary Pennsylvania Filing Deadline

REV-1500 Due — 9 Months from Date of Death

The Form REV-1500 (Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax Return for Resident Decedents) must be filed in duplicate with the county Register of Wills within nine months of the date of death. The inheritance tax payment is also due at this deadline.

The nine-month deadline covers the following taxes:

• Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax: Calculated on the fair market value of each asset passing to each beneficiary class. Rates are 0% (spouse, children under 21), 4.5% (lineal descendants), 12% (siblings), and 15% (all other heirs).

Note: the nine-month deadline applies to the payment of the tax. Filing an extension is possible — Form REV-1846 grants a six-month extension to file the paperwork — but the extension does not extend the payment deadline. Interest begins accruing on any unpaid tax balance from the day after the nine-month deadline, at a rate set annually by the Secretary of Revenue. The late filing penalty is 25% of the ultimate tax due, or $1,000, whichever is less.

What the REV-1500 must include:

All real estate, bank accounts, investment accounts, jointly held property, retirement accounts, life insurance payable to the estate, business interests, vehicles, jewelry, household goods, and any gifts made within one year of death — all reported at fair market value as of the date of death. Each asset is allocated to the beneficiary receiving it, and the applicable tax rate is applied based on that beneficiary's relationship to the decedent.

April 15 (Year After Death): Income Tax Deadlines

Two separate income tax returns are due on or before April 15 of the year following the year of death (or the next business day if April 15 falls on a weekend or holiday).

Final PA-40 (Pennsylvania Personal Income Tax Return)

The executor files the decedent's final Pennsylvania PA-40 personal income tax return covering income from January 1 of the year of death through the exact date of death. Income received after the date of death is not included — it belongs to the estate and is reported on the PA-41 instead.

If the decedent had a surviving spouse, the surviving spouse may file a joint PA-40 for the year of death, provided they did not remarry during that calendar year. The joint return includes all of the surviving spouse's income for the full year, but the decedent's income only up to the date of death.

Pennsylvania's treatment of Income in Respect of a Decedent (IRD) differs from federal law: on a cash-basis decedent's final PA-40, only income actually received before death is included. Compensation earned but not yet paid at the date of death is excluded from the final PA-40 and handled within the estate's income tax return.

PA-41 (Pennsylvania Fiduciary Income Tax Return)

The PA-41 is the estate's own income tax return. It must be filed if the estate receives any taxable Pennsylvania income during its administration — even as little as $33 in Pennsylvania-taxable income triggers the filing obligation. This threshold is dramatically lower than the federal $600 threshold for IRS Form 1041, and it catches many executors off guard.

Income that triggers a PA-41 filing obligation includes:

• Interest earned in the estate bank account
• Dividends from stocks held by the estate
• Rental income from estate real property
• Capital gains from securities or real estate sold during administration

Nonresident beneficiary withholding: If the estate distributes Pennsylvania-source income to a beneficiary who does not live in Pennsylvania, the executor is legally required to withhold Pennsylvania personal income tax on that distribution and remit it to the Department of Revenue. The estate reports this withholding on PA-41 Schedule N and issues the beneficiary a PA-41 Schedule NRK-1 — the equivalent of a W-2 — so the nonresident beneficiary can claim a credit when they file their own return. Failure to withhold and remit makes the executor personally liable for the withheld amount, plus penalties and interest.

IRS Form 1041 (Federal Fiduciary Income Tax Return)

The federal equivalent of the PA-41 is due on April 15 as well (or the 15th day of the fourth month after the estate's fiscal year ends, if the estate uses a non-calendar fiscal year). The federal filing threshold is $600 in gross income — significantly higher than Pennsylvania's $33 threshold, which means many estates will owe a PA-41 but not a federal 1041.

9 Months After Death (If Estate Exceeds $15 Million): Federal Estate Tax

For estates of decedents dying in 2026, the federal basic exclusion amount is $15,000,000. Estates below this threshold owe no federal estate tax and generally do not need to file IRS Form 706. The vast majority of Pennsylvania estates fall well below this threshold.

However, there is one exception where filing Form 706 is required even when no tax is owed: portability. If the decedent was married and did not fully use their $15 million federal exemption, the executor can elect to transfer the unused portion of the exemption to the surviving spouse — effectively shielding up to $30 million in combined wealth from federal estate tax. To make this election, the executor must file a complete and timely Form 706, even if zero tax is due. The deadline is nine months from the date of death, with a six-month extension available by filing IRS Form 4768. Failure to file 706 for the portability election permanently forfeits the deceased spouse's unused exclusion.

Month 12 and Beyond: Final Accounting and Distribution

Pennsylvania law prohibits distributing estate assets until all debts, taxes, and administrative expenses are paid. The estate cannot be closed — and the executor cannot obtain their discharge from liability — until one of two things happens:

• All beneficiaries sign a notarized Family Settlement Agreement approving the executor's accounting and releasing the executor from liability; or
• The executor files a formal First and Final Accounting with the Orphans' Court, completes the audit process, and receives a judicial decree authorizing distribution.

The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue typically issues an inheritance tax clearance certificate after the REV-1500 is processed and the tax is confirmed as paid. Many title companies and financial institutions will not release their final holds on estate assets until this clearance certificate is in hand.

At a Glance: Pennsylvania Estate Tax Deadlines

The three-month discount window and the nine-month payment deadline are the two dates that determine whether the estate administration cost hundreds of dollars more than necessary. Missing the discount window is permanent — it cannot be recaptured.

If you are managing a Pennsylvania estate and need the full sequence of steps, forms, and decision points, the Pennsylvania Final Tax and Estate Settlement Guide provides a chronological roadmap from Day 0 through final distribution.

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