Filing Taxes for a Deceased 100% Disabled Vet Estate Rec'd 1099-R 401K Payout

[stebbinsgr1]

My wife is executrix for brother's estate.  He was a 100% disabled vet starting in 2011. He passed away in Oct 2016. When he was still working he had a 401K where he worked.  He did not designate a beneficiary and we fought with the holder of the 401K to pay the money to the estate.  We finally succeeded.  The amount was about $35K paid in 2017.  As a  single 100% disabled vet he was not paying any taxes and was not required to.  We received a 1099-R for the Estate and we do have an EIN.  There was NO dividend income since this was a gross distribution.  The 1099-R shows the full amount as taxable.  We did NOT have any taxes withheld from the distribution. Can we file his final taxes on a 1040EZ or 1040?  He was single and never married.

[macuser_22 · Accepted solution]

No.   It was not distributed prior to death so it is income to his estate, not to his personal final tax return.  That would be reported on an estate 1041 return that can only be reported using TurboTax Business, for corporations, trusts and estates.  The estate would distribute the proceeds in accordance to the will and issue K-1 forms to the beneficiaries of the estate.

Suggest that you read IRS Pub 559 (Survivors, Executors, and Administrators) for a lot of good information about filing the final return and estate return and other requirements.

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p559.pdf

You might want to see a tax professional that deals with estates since it can get complicated to file a proper estate tax return and if property like a home is involved.

His final tax return would include income and taxes up to the date of death.