Thanks. I think 2023 is the final return if the deceased died prior to filing. Your understanding would be correct if the deceased filed their 2023 tax return prior to their death. In my case, my mother-in-law died prior to filing her 2023 form 1040, therefore her executor will file (and sign) her final 2023 tax returns on her behalf. This is consistent with TurboTax programming. The Personal Info interview directly asks if the Taxpayer: "passed away before filing this return," in which case an affirmative response automatically adds the Taxpayer Deceased notation at the top of the 1040 and generates Form 1310 for the executor to sign on behalf of the deceased for a refund. My guess is that TurboTax got this part of the programming correct.
