Virginia Executor Duties: Letters Testamentary, EIN, and What Comes First

The appointment went smoothly. The Circuit Court Clerk swore you in, handed you a stack of blank forms, and told you that state law prohibits them from explaining how to fill them out. You walked out as the official executor of the estate — with full legal responsibility and no roadmap.

Virginia places every fiduciary duty squarely on the executor's shoulders. Miss a deadline, pay the wrong creditor, or distribute assets too early, and you are personally liable for the shortfall. Here is what you are legally required to do, and when.

What "Letters Testamentary" Actually Means in Virginia

If a bank, brokerage, or the DMV asks for "Letters Testamentary," Virginia uses different terminology. The document issued by the Circuit Court Clerk upon qualification is called a Certificate of Qualification. It functions identically to what other states call Letters Testamentary — it proves you have legal authority to act on behalf of the estate. Request multiple certified copies at qualification, because every financial institution will demand an original.

For intestate estates (no will), the equivalent document is called Letters of Administration.

The First Week: Secure and Inventory

Before anything else, your job is to prevent assets from disappearing.

Open an estate bank account. You need a dedicated account for all estate receipts and disbursements. No commingling with your personal funds — ever. Mixing estate and personal money is one of the fastest paths to personal liability.

Obtain an EIN. The estate is a separate taxable entity and needs its own Employer Identification Number from the IRS. Apply online at irs.gov — it takes about ten minutes and you receive the number immediately. You will need this to open the bank account and to file the estate's income tax return (IRS Form 1041) if the estate earns more than $600 in income during administration.

Secure physical assets. Change locks on vacant real estate, move vehicles to a secure location, and transfer perishable personal property into safekeeping. You are liable for assets that disappear on your watch.

The 30-Day Deadline: Notice to Heirs

Within 30 days of qualification, you must send a Notice of Probate by first-class mail to:

• All heirs at law
• All beneficiaries named in the will
• Any surviving spouse

This notice informs them that the estate has been opened, identifies you as the representative, and advises them of their right to request copies of the inventory and accountings. To prove you complied, you must file an Affidavit of Notice (Form CC-1617) with the Circuit Court Clerk within four months of qualification.

Skipping this step does not make it go away. A beneficiary who was never notified can later contest distributions and — in some cases — hold you liable.

The 4-Month Deadline: Inventory

The Inventory for Decedent's Estate (Form CC-1670) is due to the Commissioner of Accounts within four months of your qualification date. This is not due to the Circuit Court — it goes directly to the Commissioner, a court-appointed attorney who audits all fiduciary filings in your jurisdiction.

Several rules for this filing catch executors off guard:

Date of death values only. Every asset must be reported at its fair market value as of the exact date of death, not the day you complete the form. A brokerage account worth $180,000 at death but $165,000 when you file in month four goes on the inventory at $180,000.

No netting. A house worth $350,000 with a $200,000 mortgage goes on the inventory at $350,000. You do not subtract the lien.

Formatting rules are enforced. Some jurisdictions (notably Henrico County) require 10–12 point font and one-inch margins. Filings that do not comply will be rejected.

Real estate is generally excluded unless the will grants you an explicit power of sale. Virginia real estate passes directly to heirs by operation of law at the moment of death and is not an inventory asset unless you intend to sell it as part of settling the estate.

The inventory fee charged by the Commissioner scales with estate size: $135 for estates up to $50,000; $200 for estates between $50,001 and $200,000; and $350 for estates exceeding $500,000.

The 16-Month Deadline: First Account

The First Account for Decedent's Estate (Form CC-1680) is due to the Commissioner of Accounts 16 months after your qualification date. It must cover every financial transaction during the first 12 months of administration — every dollar received, every dollar paid out, with receipts and bank statements to back it all up.

The Commissioner's auditing fee for the First Account scales steeply with estate size. An estate with $100,000 in assets incurs a $550 accounting fee. A $500,000 estate incurs $1,030. There is no upper cap, and the fees are payable by the estate before distributions can be made.

There is an important shortcut: if you are the sole residuary beneficiary (meaning you inherit whatever is left after debts and specific bequests), you do not have to file the full itemized accounting. Instead, you can file a Statement in Lieu of Settlement (Form CC-1681) — a sworn, notarized declaration that all debts have been paid and the residue distributed to yourself. The Commissioner charges a flat $250 fee for this filing, regardless of estate size.

Executor Compensation

Virginia allows executors to collect reasonable compensation. The standard sliding-scale used by courts is 5% of the first $400,000 of the estate's value, 4% of the next $300,000, 3% of the next $300,000, and 2% of assets exceeding $1 million. The Commissioner must approve any compensation you take, and you must document it in your accounting.

Compensation is taxable income to you — report it on your personal tax return.

Where Personal Liability Comes From

The most dangerous error an executor can make is distributing assets to beneficiaries before all debts are paid. Virginia law imposes a strict statutory priority for creditor payments. If you write a check to a beneficiary and a higher-priority creditor surfaces afterward, the money comes out of your personal pocket — not the estate.

A creditor generally has one year from your qualification date to file a claim, or six months after you give them direct written notice. Neither clock has elapsed when most executors feel the pressure to distribute. Wait for the Show Cause order from the Circuit Court before finalizing distributions.

Personal liability also arises from:

• Failing to file the inventory on time (the Commissioner can pursue a court order)
• Commingling estate funds with personal accounts
• Failing to file the decedent's final income tax return
• Paying out of statutory creditor priority order

The Virginia Probate Process Guide at /us/virginia/probate walks through the complete executor timeline with the specific forms, deadlines, and Commissioner of Accounts requirements you will encounter from qualification through final closing.

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