When someone has just died, only a few things can’t wait: having the death officially pronounced, passing on any organ donation wishes, and making sure children, pets or dependent adults are looked after. Banks, bills and taxes can wait days or weeks.
This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. Estate law varies by state and changes. Ask the court clerk, or a lawyer or tax professional, about your case.
If you’re reading this because of a death in your family, we’re sorry. This section covers the first weeks, in the order they usually go, and links to the full guide for each stage. Much of it doesn’t need an executor, the person who handles the estate, so it can be shared out. Executor Handbook sells nothing and refers no one.
Today: the few things that can’t wait
If the death was expected, you don’t have to hurry. The National Institute on Aging says there is no need to move someone who dies at home right away. The one firm step is that someone in authority, such as a doctor or hospice nurse, has to pronounce the death, and that makes an official death certificate possible.
Who you call depends on where it happened: the hospice, the hospital or nursing home staff, or 911 if the death was unexpected or there is any doubt. If the person wanted to donate organs, tell the doctor or nurse now, because that decision has to be made quickly. Then ask who is with anyone who depended on them tonight.
Our checklist for when someone dies is the page to keep open. It runs from these first hours to the months after and says who can do each job.
The first few days: funeral, home and papers
Three jobs fill these days. The first is the funeral. State law sets who decides, and it isn’t always the executor. The FTC’s Funeral Rule means a funeral home must give prices by phone and hand you a price list to keep.
The second is the home and car: lock them, bring in the mail, and ask the insurers what changes now that the owner has died. The third is finding the will, and any trust. There is no national deadline for handing in a will, but whoever holds one may have a state deadline. In Florida it’s 10 days from learning of the death (Fla. Stat. 732.901). In California it’s 30 days, unless a probate petition has already been filed (Prob. Code 8200). Both were read 5 November 2026. Elsewhere, ask the court clerk.
The first two weeks: certificates and calls
Many of the next steps ask for a certified death certificate. The CFPB’s booklet for surviving spouses suggests 10 to 12 copies, which is a guideline, not a rule. We found no law that sets a number, and our examples came to 7 and 12.
The better way is to count: one for each place that will keep one, plus two spares as our own planning assumption. Price and waiting time change the sum. In Texas, an extra copy in the same order is $3, against $20 for the first, as read 5 November 2026. In Michigan, a regular order was taking 10 to 12 weeks on the same date. Our guide to how many death certificates you need has the counting list, fees in 12 places and which version to ask for.
The same weeks are for the calls. Funeral homes generally report the death to Social Security, so give yours the Social Security number. Then come the employer, insurers and, for a veteran, the VA. If family members were on the person’s job health plan, COBRA gives them at least 60 days to choose whether to stay on, where it applies.
Who can act for the estate, and when
Two rules here matter more than they look. A power of attorney generally ends at death, and that includes a durable one. All eight state laws we read say so. The CFPB’s guide for agents tells them “your authority ends when she dies”. A card or login that still works changes nothing. Our page on whether a power of attorney ends at death covers what stops, the narrow exceptions and what a former agent still has to do.
Being named in a will gives you very little power yet either. Courts issue letters testamentary or a similar document, and the IRS says that is what authorizes you to act. If there is no will, the court appoints an administrator, and our page on how to become executor walks through it.
Until someone is appointed, family can make calls, secure the home, gather papers and ask questions. As a rule, they can’t sign for the estate or sell its property. Some money doesn’t wait for the court, though: a named beneficiary on an account or insurance policy claims it directly.
The first month or two: does this need court?
Not every estate does. Our guide to when probate is required starts with that question. Many states have a shorter route for a small estate, often with a wait: 30 days in Texas, only for someone who died without a will (Estates Code ch. 205), 40 in California (Prob. Code 13100) and 60 in Virginia (Va. Code 64.2-601), all read 5 November 2026. Our small estate affidavit guide covers the states we have read.
One date moves faster than the rest. On the most common reverse mortgage, heirs get 30 days from the due-and-payable notice to buy, sell or hand over the home, and the CFPB says that may be extended.
What can wait for the months after
Debts and tax returns come later, and passing on what’s left comes last. This is the work of the executor or court-appointed administrator.
- Debts. “You are not responsible for someone else’s debt,” says the CFPB. Debts are paid from what the person left, and there are exceptions, including co-signers. Our page on whether debt dies with you goes through them.
- Taxes. The final income tax return is generally due April 15 of the following year, so April 15, 2027 for a death in 2026. Our page on filing taxes for someone who has died has the steps.
- Passing on what’s left. This comes last. There’s no national deadline for it, and state law and the court set the timing. The executor’s job, in order covers those months.
Two things are best left alone until then. Until you know what the will says and who has authority, belongings stay where they are. And if an estate can’t pay all its debts, an executor who pays others ahead of a debt to the US can become personally liable for it (31 USC 3713).
Your next step
Today, only the first section above needs doing. When you have a quiet hour, find the will and write down what you know about accounts, insurance and debts. Then the probate court clerk in the county where the person lived can answer three questions: does this estate need to be opened, is there a small estate route, and what do you need to bring?
It’s time to talk to a lawyer if a deadline is running, the will is disputed, you suspect fraud, the estate may not cover its debts or owes the IRS, there’s a business, or heirs are in conflict. Nothing here has to happen all at once.
Sources checked on 5 November 2026.
