The First 30 Days: Death Certificates, the Notice of Trust and the EIN

The First 30 Days: Death Certificates, the Notice of Trust and the EIN

Death certificates come first. Florida releases them through the funeral home, and trustees typically order several certified copies. Banks, brokerages and title companies each want an original, not a photocopy. Running short mid-administration means a return trip to the Bureau of Vital Statistics for more.

The notice of trust is the trustee’s first court filing. Florida law requires the trustee to file the notice with the circuit court in the county where the settlor (the person who created the trust) was domiciled. The filing goes to the probate division even though the trust itself does not go through probate. The notice tells the court and the world that the trust exists and identifies the trustee.

The EIN is the trust’s own tax identification number. While the settlor was alive, a revocable trust reported all income on the settlor’s personal return and used the settlor’s Social Security number. After the settlor dies the trust becomes irrevocable and is its own taxpayer. The IRS issues an EIN online the same day. Banks will not retitle accounts into the trust’s name without the EIN.

Gathering the trust document and any amendments matters just as much. The trustee needs the original signed trust and every amendment the settlor executed. Some settlors signed multiple amendments over the years, each changing different provisions. Missing an amendment can change who inherits or how the property distributes.

Within 60 Days: Notice to the Beneficiaries

Florida law gives the trustee 60 days from accepting the trusteeship, or from the date the trust becomes irrevocable, to notify the qualified beneficiaries. Qualified beneficiaries are the people currently entitled to distributions and the people who would be entitled if the current beneficiaries died or their interests ended.

The notice must include the trustee’s name and address, tell the beneficiaries that the trust has become irrevocable, and inform them of their right to receive a copy of the trust and their right to accountings. A trustee who skips this notice or sends it late loses some of the protections the accounting rules provide.

Sending notice by certified mail with return receipt creates a record. The trustee keeps the green cards that come back signed. If a beneficiary refuses to sign or the letter comes back unclaimed, the trustee documents what happened.

Some trusts name minor children as beneficiaries. A minor cannot receive notice directly. The notice goes to the minor’s parent or guardian.

When beneficiaries live out of state or overseas the trustee still must get them notice within 60 days. Time zones and mail delays do not extend the deadline.

Taking Control of the Assets

The trustee’s job is to collect, protect and eventually distribute the trust assets. Collecting means retitling the assets into the trust’s name with the trustee as the signer.

Bank and brokerage accounts require a death certificate, the trust document, the EIN letter and usually the institution’s own paperwork. Some banks process the retitling in a branch, others route everything through an estate services department that takes weeks. The trustee should start early.

Real property already deeded into the trust stays there. Real property the settlor owned individually may need to pass through a pour-over will and a small probate before reaching the trust. The trustee coordinates with the personal representative of the estate when property must move.

Investment accounts often have beneficiary designations that override the trust terms. Retirement accounts and life insurance policies pass by their own beneficiary forms, not by the trust. The trustee reviews every account to see what actually lands in the trust.

Valuations matter for tax purposes. The trustee obtains date-of-death values for every asset. Brokerage statements and bank statements as of the date of death are enough for most accounts. Real estate may need an appraisal.

The Creditor Period and the Estate’s Bills

The trust pays the estate’s expenses and claims to the extent the probate estate cannot pay them. A trustee who distributes everything to the beneficiaries before the creditor period ends may face personal liability if a legitimate claim appears and the trust is empty.

Florida law ties the trust’s creditor exposure to the probate estate. If there is a probate the creditor period runs in probate and the trustee monitors it. If there is no probate the trustee still has to worry about known creditors. Medical bills from the settlor’s final illness are the most common.

The cautious course is to hold back enough to cover any expected bills. A trustee who knows about a hospital stay, a pending lawsuit or an unpaid tax balance should not distribute those funds until the claim resolves.

Beneficiaries sometimes pressure the trustee to distribute quickly. The trustee can make partial distributions after reserving enough for known and expected debts. A full distribution comes only when the creditor period is behind.

Accounting to the Beneficiaries

An accounting shows what the trust owned, what came in, what went out and what remains. Florida law requires the trustee to account to the qualified beneficiaries, and the timing of the accounting determines how long a beneficiary has to object.

A beneficiary who receives a proper trust disclosure document (the accounting plus the required notice of limitations) has six months to file any objection. After six months the beneficiary loses the right to challenge those transactions. A beneficiary who never receives that disclosure has up to four years.

The six-month rule protects the trustee. A beneficiary who sits on a complaint cannot come back years later and sue over distributions that were disclosed in the accounting.

Florida law specifies what the accounting must contain. The trustee reports the accounting period, the assets and their values at the start and end, all receipts, all disbursements, gains and losses, trustee compensation, and liabilities. No court form is required, and many trustees use spreadsheets or accounting software. What matters is completeness.

After the final distribution the trustee provides a final accounting. The beneficiaries review it and, if satisfied, sign a receipt and release. The release closes the administration.

Taxes the Trustee Files

The trust files its own income tax return for any year after the settlor’s death when the trust had income. The form is IRS Form 1041. The return reports the income the trust earned and the deductions it claimed.

A revocable trust that distributes all income to the beneficiaries in the same year often shows little or no tax at the trust level. The income passes through to the beneficiaries and they pay the tax on their own returns. The trustee issues a Schedule K-1 to each beneficiary showing that beneficiary’s share.

The settlor’s final personal return for the year of death is filed by the personal representative of the estate. When there is no probate the trustee files that return instead.

Estate tax is a separate question. Florida has no state estate tax. The federal estate tax applies only when the gross estate exceeds a high threshold (currently $15,000,000 per person in 2026, indexed for inflation). Most estates fall below the threshold and owe nothing, but the trustee should confirm the numbers.

Distribution and the Release

Distribution happens after the debts are paid, the taxes are filed and the accountings are delivered. The trustee reads the trust document to see who gets what.

Some trusts distribute everything outright in a single payment. Other trusts hold property in continuing trusts for minor children or provide for staggered distributions at certain ages. The trustee follows the document.

A receipt and release is the document each beneficiary signs acknowledging receipt of the distribution and releasing the trustee from further claims. The release protects the trustee against later complaints about the administration.

A beneficiary who refuses to sign the release still receives the distribution if the trust document requires it. The trustee documents the distribution and keeps a record of the refusal. A beneficiary who takes the property and later sues may face the argument that accepting the distribution waived the objection.

A trustee who has followed the accounting rules and provided full disclosure to a reluctant beneficiary may petition the court for approval of the final accounting. The court order substitutes for the release.

Trustee Compensation and What Administration Costs

Florida law allows a trustee to receive reasonable compensation. Family members who serve as trustees often waive the fee. Professional trustees and trust companies charge based on a percentage of assets or an hourly rate.

A trustee who wants to be paid should keep time records showing the work performed. Hours spent gathering assets, corresponding with beneficiaries, meeting with accountants and preparing accountings all count.

Trust administration at this firm is quoted as a flat fee at the consultation. The fee covers the notices, the accountings, the creditor period and the distribution. A dispute between the trustee and a beneficiary, or a fight over the accounting, is a different matter and quoted separately. Government costs and recording fees are additional and passed through at cost.

The free 30-minute consultation is by phone, Zoom or WhatsApp. Fees posted September 2026 are honored for 90 days.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common Situations

A son served as successor trustee after his mother died. He distributed the entire trust to himself and his siblings within three weeks, wanting to close things quickly. Two months later a $40,000 claim arrived from the hospital where his mother spent her final days. The trust was empty. The trust pays the estate’s bills to the extent the probate estate cannot, and the son had nothing left to pay with.

A daughter served as trustee for her father’s trust. She sent every beneficiary a full accounting with the required disclosure of the six-month limitations period. Her brother received the accounting and said nothing. A year later he filed a complaint challenging several distributions. The complaint was out of time. A beneficiary who receives a proper trust disclosure document has six months to object, and the deadline had passed.

Sources of Law

• Duty to inform and account: Fla. Stat. §736.0813 (annotated)
• Notice of trust: Fla. Stat. §736.05055
• Collecting trust property: Fla. Stat. §736.0812 (annotated)
• Trust accountings: Fla. Stat. §736.08135 (annotated)
• Limitations on actions against a trustee: Fla. Stat. §736.1008
• Trust liable for estate expenses: Fla. Stat. §733.707(3)
• Trustee's duty to pay expenses and claims: Fla. Stat. §736.05053 (annotated)
• Distribution on termination: Fla. Stat. §736.0817 (annotated)
• Compensation of trustee: Fla. Stat. §736.0708 (annotated)
• Duty of loyalty: Fla. Stat. §736.0802 (annotated)

Related Guides

Florida trust administration · Trust accountings · Trustee fees · Beneficiary rights · What a trustee cannot do

The Order I Make Every New Trustee Follow

In 14 years of law practice, I have seen successor trustees make the same mistake repeatedly. They distribute the trust assets quickly because the beneficiaries want their inheritance and the trustee wants the job finished. Then a bill arrives from the settlor’s final hospital stay or a tax notice appears from the IRS, and the trust is empty.

I have a few take-home points.

The first is that the accounting with the limitation notice starts the clock. A beneficiary who receives a proper trust disclosure document has six months to file any objection. After that the beneficiary loses the right to challenge those transactions. A beneficiary who never receives that disclosure has up to four years. The difference between six months and four years of exposure is whether the trustee sends the accounting with the required notice.

The second is that the 60-day beneficiary notice matters. Florida law requires the trustee to notify the qualified beneficiaries within 60 days of accepting the trusteeship or the trust becoming irrevocable. The notice must include the trustee’s name and address, tell the beneficiaries the trust has become irrevocable, and inform them of their right to a copy of the trust and to accountings.

Avoid distributing everything before you know what the estate owes. The trust pays the estate’s expenses and claims to the extent the probate estate cannot. Hold back enough to cover the bills you know about and the ones you expect.

One honest limit is that a dispute between the trustee and a beneficiary, or a fight over the accounting, cannot be handled for a flat fee and is quoted separately.

Kevin D. Klagge, Esq., admitted in Florida since 2012. General information rather than advice on your situation.

Updated on October 29, 2026. Reviewed by Kevin D. Klagge, Esq., Fla. Bar No. 99502. General information about Florida law, not legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created. Do not send confidential information until we have agreed to represent you.