Filing Final 1040 For deceased with Refund Due

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I will be filing my deceased father's final 2022 1040 return. I am the Executor of the Estate (with court Letters Testamentary). Questions:

-There will be a refund due with the return...Can I E-file the return and send the Court appointment papers separately?

-Do I need attach form 1310?

-Do I add my name as rep (c/o...) after his name on the return?

-Is IRS form 56 required to be filed?

-Generally, will the refund be issued to me as representative or to his estate?

Critter-3

Level 15

Can I E-file the return and send the Court appointment papers separately? Actually you will have to mail in the return.

-Do I need attach form 1310? YES

-Do I add my name as rep (c/o...) after his name on the return? The program will do this automatically ... in the MY INFO section you will indicate this is a decedent's return.

-Is IRS form 56 required to be filed? NO

-Generally, will the refund be issued to me as representative or to his estate? You if you file a 1310 form.

Good info here : https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc356

Anonymous_

Level 15

I agree with @Critter-3, 100%.

I would simply add that filing the 1310 in this instance is optional but it should be filed. If not, the IRS will typically mail a check payable to the "Estate of...." rather than made payable to the PR.

dmertz

Level 15

You should include Form 1310, which must be signed separately from Form 1040, but there is a chance that the IRS will ignore this Form 1310 and send you a request to provide Form 1310 as if you never sent one. (I suspect that they make this request to restart the clock on needing to pay any interest on a return that waits in the queue a long time before being processed.)

My experience is that the refund check will be mailed to the address on the Form 1040, not the address on the Form 1310.