Streamlined Filing for a Deceased Taxpayer: Executor's Guide

Streamlined filing for a deceased taxpayer is possible, because the IRS says its procedures cover estates of individual taxpayers. The executor files the missing returns and FBARs and signs the non-willful certification, usually Form 14653 for someone who lived abroad. The hard part is evidencing a dead person's state of mind, using records rather than memory.

This situation normally surfaces the same way. A family in Britain is sorting out a parent's papers, finds a US passport or a US birth certificate, and realises that nothing was ever filed with the IRS. The IRS gives very little estate-specific guidance.

What the IRS actually says about estates

The Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures page describes the programme as designed only for individual taxpayers, "including estates of individual taxpayers." The Foreign Offshore page repeats that estates can meet the non-residency requirement. Neither page explains how an executor certifies, and the Internal Revenue Service does not acknowledge receipt of a submission, so you will get no comfort letter either.

Everything else follows the ordinary rules:

• Three years of delinquent Form 1040 returns with the required information returns, or Form 1040-X for filed years.
• Six years of FBARs (FinCEN Form 114), filed electronically with "Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures" given as the reason.
• A signed Form 14653, with copies attached to each return.
• Full payment of tax and interest.

Disqualifiers apply as usual. An IRS civil examination of the decedent's returns for any year or a criminal investigation ends eligibility. See our guide to Form 14653 for how the certification itself is built.

Testing non-residency on a life that has ended

The test looks at the decedent, not the executor. A US citizen or green card holder qualifies if, in any one or more of the three most recent years with a passed due date, they had no US abode and spent at least 330 full days outside the United States. Our non-residency guide covers the detail.

Death creates a timing quirk. A person who dies in March cannot reach 330 days in that calendar year, but one qualifying year is enough, so earlier years normally carry the test. The risk case is a parent who returned to the US for care in their final years. If the last three due-date-passed years all fail, the Streamlined Domestic Offshore route, with its 5% miscellaneous offshore penalty, is likely the alternative. An executor who delays can also push a qualifying year out of the look-back, so an early decision matters.

Certifying what someone else was thinking

Form 14653 requires a specific narrative of why the failure was non-willful, signed under penalties of perjury. An executor signs on knowledge and belief, so the statement should say plainly who is speaking, what was reviewed and what cannot be known. Do not write "my mother did not know" unless you can show why you believe that.

This evidence hierarchy is our own working framework, strongest first:

If the review turns up something suggesting willfulness, stop before signing. The certification is the executor's own statement, and it is not one to give on an optimistic reading of a difficult file. Take legal advice at that point.

Who signs, and in what capacity

IRS Publication 559 sets out the mechanics for returns of a decedent:

In a UK estate, we attach a copy of the grant of probate or letters of administration to show authority, and we state the fiduciary capacity beside every signature. If an adviser will deal with the IRS, a Form 2848 needs to be signed by the personal representative, not given in the decedent's name.

A separate trap is the taxpayer identification number. The streamlined page insists on a valid number on every return. An "accidental American" who died without ever having a Social Security number leaves the executor with an awkward application problem, so raise this first, because it can take longer than everything else combined.

Worked example: a late parent in Bath

Illustrative figures only. A US-born woman, resident in Bath for 40 years, dies on 14 March 2026. In November 2026 her son, the UK executor, finds no US returns have ever been filed. She held three UK bank accounts and a small share portfolio with dividend income.

• Returns under the procedure: 2023, 2024 and 2025. Her 2026 final return is not yet due, and is filed in the ordinary way afterwards.
• FBARs: 2020 to 2025, since the 2025 FBAR's automatic 15 October 2026 date has passed.
• Non-residency: met on 2023, 2024 or 2025 alone.
• US tax after UK credits: our illustrative $1,900, $2,350 and $3,100, totalling $7,350, plus interest of about $1,140, so about $8,490 to pay.

Compare the failure-to-file addition if these were treated as ordinary late returns: up to 25% of the tax, or $1,837.50, plus FBAR penalty exposure on six years of filings. The Foreign Offshore route carries no title 26 miscellaneous penalty, and its value here lies mainly in closing the FBAR question. It does not guarantee no audit, as the IRS reserves the right to examine.

Personal exposure for the executor

This is the point that should change how quickly an executor acts. Under 31 USC 3713(b), a representative who pays other debts or distributes an estate before paying a US government claim can be personally liable to the extent of that payment.

FBAR exposure does not necessarily die with the account holder. As the Journal of Accountancy reported in February 2025, a court has held that FBAR penalties were not extinguished by death, and other district courts have reached similar conclusions, though much of that case law concerns willful penalties. See our FBAR and FATCA reporting pillar for how the regime fits together.

Our order of work for an executor:

1. Hold back distributions, or at least retain a reserve, until the US position is quantified.
2. Secure papers, UK returns and at least six years of account statements before banks close the accounts.
3. Confirm citizenship and the taxpayer identification number, test non-residency and the willfulness evidence, then choose the route.
4. File the submission, then the final-year Form 1040, and any estate income return on Form 1041, which sits outside the procedure.
5. Once filed, consider Form 4810 to request prompt assessment within 18 months and Form 5495 to seek discharge from personal liability, which gives the IRS nine months to respond.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can an executor use the IRS Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures?

Yes. The IRS describes the Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures as available to individual taxpayers, including estates of individual taxpayers. An executor can file the delinquent returns and FBARs and sign the non-willful certification on the decedent's behalf, provided the decedent's failure was non-willful and no IRS examination or criminal investigation is open.

Which form does an estate use, Form 14653 or Form 14654?

Form 14653 is the certification for the Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures, used where the decedent met the non-residency requirement in at least one of the three most recent due-date-passed years. Form 14654 is used under the Streamlined Domestic Offshore Procedures, which carry a 5% miscellaneous offshore penalty. The decedent's residence history decides which applies, not where the executor lives.

Do FBAR penalties survive the death of the account holder?

US district courts have repeatedly held that FBAR civil penalties can survive an account holder's death and be collected from the estate, with much of that case law concerning willful penalties. Executors should not assume that death ended the exposure. Filing delinquent FinCEN Form 114 reports through a streamlined submission is the usual way to address missed years if the failure was non-willful.

Does the UK executor of an American's estate have to deal with HMRC as well?

Yes. A UK personal representative deals separately with HMRC on the decedent's final Self Assessment position and on UK Inheritance Tax, and the US filing does not replace any of it. UK income tax already paid is a key input for the Form 1116 foreign tax credit on the US returns, so the UK figures are normally settled first or at the same time.

What if the American who died was living in the UAE?

The same IRS procedures apply, as the UAE is outside the United States for the non-residency test. The main difference is on the tax figures. The UAE levies no personal income tax on salaries and there is no US-UAE income tax treaty, so foreign tax credits usually shelter little, and the foreign earned income exclusion on Form 2555 tends to matter more on the catch-up returns.

Can a surviving spouse file a joint streamlined return with the decedent?

A joint return may be possible for eligible years. IRS Publication 559 allows a surviving spouse and personal representative to file jointly for the year of death, unless the spouse remarried before the end of that year, and a court-appointed representative can revoke an election made by the spouse. A non-US spouse also raises separate eligibility and taxpayer identification issues, so model both filing positions first.

Speak to us before you distribute the estate

Finding an unfiled American parent or relative in the middle of probate is stressful, but it is usually fixable when handled in the right order. Book a consultation and our team will review the papers, test eligibility and tell you what you can safely distribute in the meantime.