Benjamin Franklin coined the saying, “In this world, nothing is certain but death and taxes.” But what about when death and taxes coincide, such as when someone dies during the year and has a tax filing obligation?
When someone is deceased, the decedent's personal representative is generally required to file any final tax returns for the deceased person. That includes federal income tax returns that the decedent would have been required to file for the year of his or her death. A personal representative can be an executor, administrator, or anyone else who oversees the decedent’s property.
