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See https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i1041#en_US_2021_publink1000286084
A final return (1041) is filed after termination of the estate or trust.
A final return can be filed even if a small amount of cash is retained to cover administrative, settlement, and other expenses.
See Treas. Reg. § 1.641(b)-3
https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/26/1.641(b)-3
It is always wise to consult with a qualified professional, in person, with respect to winding up affairs of the estate and/or trust and filing a final return.
See https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i1041#en_US_2021_publink1000286084
A final return (1041) is filed after termination of the estate or trust.
A final return can be filed even if a small amount of cash is retained to cover administrative, settlement, and other expenses.
See Treas. Reg. § 1.641(b)-3
https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/26/1.641(b)-3
It is always wise to consult with a qualified professional, in person, with respect to winding up affairs of the estate and/or trust and filing a final return.
Thank you for your comments.
So, what constitutes termination of the trust?
As the Executor, do I have the discretion to file the 1041 return "Not Final"?
If I do file the return Final, does the EIN remain valid ?
I have an account with a small amount of principal I want to be sure that I can access.
I'm curious, do I have more legal standings against Beneficiaries if I don't terminate the trust?
I really appreciate your input.
Thank you
You simply have to read paragraph B of the Regulation to which I linked in my previous post.
Generally, the determination of whether a trust has terminated depends upon whether the property held in trust has been distributed to the persons entitled to succeed to the property upon termination of the trust rather than upon the technicality of whether or not the trustee has rendered his final accounting. A trust does not automatically terminate upon the happening of the event by which the duration of the trust is measured.
A reasonable time is permitted after such event for the trustee to perform the duties necessary to complete the administration of the trust. Thus, if under the terms of the governing instrument, the trust is to terminate upon the death of the life beneficiary and the corpus is to be distributed to the remainderman, the trust continues after the death of the life beneficiary for a period reasonably necessary to a proper winding up of the affairs of the trust.
However, the winding up of a trust cannot be unduly postponed and if the distribution of the trust corpus is unreasonably delayed, the trust is considered terminated for Federal income tax purposes after the expiration of a reasonable period for the trustee to complete the administration of the trust. Further, a trust will be considered as terminated when all the assets have been distributed except for a reasonable amount which is set aside in good faith for the payment of unascertained or contingent liabilities and expenses (not including a claim by a beneficiary in the capacity of beneficiary).
@a_maldonado wrote:I'm curious, do I have more legal standings against Beneficiaries if I don't terminate the trust?
What do you mean by "have more legal standing against Beneficiaries"?
You, as trustee, have a fiduciary duty to the beneficiaries. They have no correlative duty to you.
@a_maldonado wrote:If I do file the return Final, does the EIN remain valid ?
The iRS will not cancel an EIN. You can close your tax account with the IRS, but the EIN remains associated with the entity.
You really do need to seek guidance from a local professional.
What I meant by, "do I have more of a legal standing if the trust isn't terminated", is that
if the trust isn't terminated I would be able to present myself to legal counsel as the "Executor
and Trustee" of an existing Trust. I feel the termination of a trust can have unknown results
when dealing with beneficiaries, IRS....
Thank you for the links I read them thoroughly.
First of all, trusts do not have executors, they have trustees. In other words, the fiduciary of a trust is a trustee, not an executor, which is the fiduciary of a will.
If the trust is not terminated, then you have a continuing fiduciary duty to the beneficiaries thereof and, as a result, there is continuing exposure (legal liability). Once the trust is terminated, the duties and exposure essentially cease to exist.
There are really no "unknown results" that will arise after termination unless those issues arose during the period the trust was being administered.
Again, an in-person consultation with a local professional is highly recommended.
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