My mother filed my deceased brother's tax returen and claimed the refund. She now recieved a letter claiming that she owes his tax debt. Is she liable to pay this debt back?
2007-05-05 19:29:52 · 7 answers · asked by Vanessa F 1 in Business & Finance ➔ Taxes ➔ United States
I assume that she has been appointed personal representative of his estate.
As such she is responsible to pay all debts of his out of his assets. She would never have to use her assets to pay the debts and taxes.
I she is not the personal representative of the estate then the answer is definitely never.
2007-05-05 23:21:10 · answer #1 · answered by waggy_33 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Did she receive the refund? Then she is at least liable for the deceased child's debts up to the amount of the refund.
Did she receive other assets? Then she is required to use those assets to satisfy his debts, including his tax debts.
If she refuses, then the taxing authority could come after her personal assets, so she should take care of this promptly so that she will not have out of pocket expenses.
2007-05-06 11:05:06 · answer #2 · answered by ninasgramma 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I believe most users are on the right track. Your mother will be responsible at a minimum for any tax up to the amount of the refund she received. Beyond that, ANYONE who may have received a part of his estate may be responsible for ponying up to the extent of the assets received. The Personal Representative is especially vulnerable because they are in a Fiduciary position and are responsible for settling what debts they can with the assets remaining.
As far as non-tax debts, state law will vary, but I would think in most states creditors could reach assets that were improperly distributed before all lawful debts were paid, up to the amount of the value of the assets at the time of death.
2007-05-06 08:33:41 · answer #3 · answered by dwagsfive 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The tax debt ought to be paid out of the valuables and it really is the duty of the guy with duty for administering the valuables. it truly is smart to pay any expenditures of the valuables formerly the resources are disbursed to the beneficiaries in the different case the administrator will be in my view in charge for the expenditures without the mandatory money to pay them.
2016-12-05 10:28:11 · answer #4 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
She shouldn't be responsible for his tax debt, but if she received a refund that he wasn't entitled to, then she'd have to pay that much back.
And if he had assets, any additional taxes due would have to be paid from those assets.
2007-05-06 01:33:51 · answer #5 · answered by Judy 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
My understanding of this issue is that you aren't liable for anything. In fact, if you get a number of copies of his "proof of death" (POD, or death certificate) you can contact all the companies and government agencies sending him bills and get them all stopped without paying any of them if you just send in the PODs in lieu of payments. Check with a tax accountant to determine if and how you might be eligible to receive any refunds due to him. You'll need copies of PODs in order to access the money he might have in bank accounts and assets he has in any brokerage accounts.
Good luck with all of this. I'm sorry for your loss.
2007-05-05 19:38:52 · answer #6 · answered by Joe 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yes. It surprised me to learn it but if she was aware that he might owe money and took charge of his affairs the IRS holds her responsible. If he had income that she wasn't aware of, she may be able to be relieved of some of the debt. No matter what, she will need to pay back the portion which was refunded.
2007-05-05 19:50:18 · answer #7 · answered by Kuji 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋