Executor Guide · NJ · PA · MD · NY

Executor Checklist: Every Step, in Order

Being named executor is mostly a sequence of filings, notices and dates. This is the whole job in order, from the first days to closing the estate, with the dates that change from state to state.

1. The first days: secure everything

• Find and secure the original will. Keep it intact and don’t remove anything attached. Courts generally need the original, not a copy.
• Order certified death certificates. Banks, courts and title companies each want one; many executors order 10 to 12.
• Secure the home, vehicles and valuables. Lock up, keep the insurance in force and collect the mail.
• Watch for payments after death. Social Security is usually reported by the funeral home; a benefit paid after the date of death has to be returned.

2. Get appointed by the court

• File with the county probate office where the person lived — the Surrogate’s Court in New Jersey and New York, the Register of Wills in Pennsylvania and Maryland. The court issues letters, the document that gives you authority to act.
• Check whether a small-estate route applies. Every state here has one, with its own limits (see the state table). A small estate can skip parts of the full process.
• Order extra certified copies of your letters. Institutions keep them; many executors order more than they expect to need.

3. Set up the estate

• Get the estate its own EIN from the IRS. It’s free and takes minutes online. The estate is a separate taxpayer, so it doesn’t use the decedent’s Social Security number or yours.
• Open an estate bank account under that EIN. Every dollar in and out of the estate flows through it, never through a personal account. More: the estate bank account.
• Start a record log of every date, dollar and document. If the court or a beneficiary ever asks for an accounting, this is what protects the executor.

4. Notify and take inventory

• Notify heirs and beneficiaries as the state requires.
• Notify banks, employers, pension plans and insurers.
• State-specific notices:
  • In Pennsylvania, the grant of letters is advertised in a newspaper of general circulation and the county legal journal.
  • In Maryland, the Register of Wills publishes the creditor notice, and the List of Interested Persons is due 20 days after appointment.
• List every asset with its date-of-death value. Maryland requires a formal inventory within 3 months of appointment.

5. Handle creditor claims

• Put the state’s creditor date on the calendar. It differs a lot between states (see the table).
• Log every claim. For each one there are options: ask for documentation, pay it, negotiate it, dispute it, or bring in a professional. Record which you chose and why.
• Hold back enough for debts and taxes before distributing anything. If the estate may owe more than it has, state law sets the order in which debts are paid. That is a common point to bring in an attorney.

6. File the tax returns

• The decedent’s final income tax returns, federal and state, are due on the same date they would have been if the person had lived.
• The estate’s own income tax return, IRS Form 1041, is required if the estate has more than $600 of gross income in a year.
• State death-tax returns, where they apply: the New Jersey and Pennsylvania inheritance taxes, Maryland’s inheritance and estate taxes, and New York’s estate tax (see the table).

7. Account, distribute and close

• Prepare an accounting of everything received, paid and still held. Some courts require a formal one: in Maryland the first Administration Account is due 9 months from appointment, and a New York Surrogate can order one at any time.
• Distribute what is left under the will, or under the state’s intestacy law if there is no will. In New Jersey each beneficiary signs a refunding bond and release when receiving their share (N.J.S.A. 3B:23-24).
• Close the estate account and keep the records.

The dates that change by state

State guides: New Jersey · Pennsylvania · Maryland · New York. The free deadline calculator turns a date of death into every one of these dates.

Things that commonly go wrong

• Mixing estate money with personal money. That makes the accounting hard to prove later.
• Distributing before the creditor period has run without holding enough back for debts and taxes.
• Missing a state tax date. In Pennsylvania, paying within 3 months earns a 5% discount, and late state tax payments generally accrue interest.
• Not keeping a record of each decision on a claim.

Can an executor be personally liable?

In these four states, the statutes focus less on being named executor and more on how money leaves the estate: paying or distributing before the rules allow.

• New York. An executor who pays estate debts (other than debts owed to the United States or New York) or distributes assets before the New York estate tax is paid in full “shall be answerable in his or her own person and estate” for that tax, to the extent of what was paid out (Tax Law § 975(b)). Separately, good-faith payments made more than 7 months after letters issue are protected against claims presented later (SCPA 1802).
• Pennsylvania. A personal representative may distribute “at his own risk”. The distribution is protected against a creditor’s claim unless that claim is known within one year after the first complete advertisement of letters, or later but before the distribution (20 Pa.C.S. § 3532).
• New Jersey. Before receiving a share, each beneficiary signs a refunding bond and release, filed with the Surrogate (N.J.S.A. 3B:23-24). It obligates the beneficiary to refund part of the share if it is needed for proper estate debts, and it releases the executor.
• Maryland. Failing to pay inheritance tax when due can lead the court to reduce or forfeit the personal representative’s commissions, and it exposes the personal representative’s bond to liability (Estates & Trusts § 7-307).

Whether a particular executor is exposed depends on the facts of the estate. That is a question for an attorney licensed in the state.

When do people typically bring in an attorney?

Common points are a contested will, an estate that may owe more than it has, a beneficiary dispute, a lawsuit or a business interest, a minor or incapacitated beneficiary, property in another state, or an estate near a state estate-tax threshold.

Frequently asked questions

What does an executor have to do?

In broad strokes: secure the will and the property, get appointed by the county probate court, open an estate account under its own EIN, notify heirs and institutions, list the assets, deal with creditor claims, file the final tax returns and any state death-tax return, keep a record of every dollar, and then distribute what is left and close the estate. The order and the deadlines depend on the state.

What do executors usually do first?

Most checklists start the same way: secure the original will, order certified death certificates, and secure the home, vehicles and valuables. The next step is filing with the county probate office — the Surrogate’s Court in New Jersey and New York, the Register of Wills in Pennsylvania and Maryland — to be formally appointed.

How long does an executor have to settle an estate?

There is no single national deadline. Each state sets its own clocks: for example, the creditor period is about 9 months from death in New Jersey, 1 year from the first complete advertisement of letters in Pennsylvania, the earlier of 6 months after death or 2 months after notice in Maryland, and 7 months from letters in New York. Maryland also sets a distribute-by date: within 9 months of appointment for a regular estate unless the court extends it (Est. & Trusts § 7-101(b)), or within 12 months under modified administration.

Is there a printable executor checklist?

Yes. The free First 30 Days checklist is a two-page printable PDF covering New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland and New York. Enter your email and state on this page and the download link appears immediately.

Is an executor personally liable for the estate’s debts?

The statutes in these states focus on how money leaves the estate rather than on the role itself. New York’s Tax Law § 975(b) makes an executor personally answerable for unpaid New York estate tax to the extent estate assets were paid out or distributed before that tax was paid. Pennsylvania’s 20 Pa.C.S. § 3532 lets a personal representative distribute at their own risk, with protection against creditor claims not known within one year after the first complete advertisement of letters. New Jersey uses a refunding bond and release from each beneficiary before distribution. Whether a particular executor is exposed depends on the facts, and that is a question for an attorney in the state.

Does an executor need a lawyer?

Not always. Much of the job is staying organized and on schedule. People commonly bring in an attorney when the will is contested, the estate may owe more than it has, beneficiaries disagree, there is a lawsuit or a business, or anything is unclear. An attorney licensed in the state can advise on a specific estate; this checklist cannot.

Does the estate need its own tax return?

It may. The decedent’s final Form 1040 is due on the same date it would have been if they had lived. Separately, the IRS requires Form 1041 if the estate has more than $600 of gross income in a year. State death-tax returns are different again: New Jersey and Pennsylvania have inheritance taxes, Maryland has both an inheritance tax and an estate tax, and New York has an estate tax only above its exclusion.