After satisfying your immediate need for cash, you should inform the Social Security Administration (1-800-772-1213) of your spouse’s death, and begin the Social Security benefits claims process. You may apply either by phone or complete a claim form at the local Social Security Administration office. The claims process is discussed in greater detail in Chapter Four.

Make sure you order at least 15 certified death certificates from the funeral director. You will need to provide a certified copy to claim your spouse’s benefits, transfer investments, file tax returns, and sell real estate. Things will go much more smoothly if you don’t run out.

Notify your spouse’s employer of his death, and file for any benefits owed you, such as life insurance payments, pension income, and health insurance coverage. Call the Human Resources Department, or similar department, to find out which benefits you are entitled to and how to obtain them. Then, notify relevant life insurance companies of your spouse’s death. Have the actual policy, or at least the policy number, before calling (see “Claim Procedure” in Chapter Four). Eventually, you will have to write a letter to both the employer and each insurance company to formally request benefits. Your letter should request payment of benefits and contain your spouse’s full name, his social security number and date of death. Attach a copy of the death certificate to each letter.

Contact the financial institutions where you and your spouse have accounts. Find out which accounts you may access (checking and savings) and which accounts you can’t. If you and your spouse had joint accounts, transfer them to your name alone or to your revocable trust. You will be asked to produce a copy of the death certificate at the bank to complete these transfers.

Assets owned by your spouse alone (and not owned in trust), that do not name a beneficiary, will be part of his probate estate (see “Assets Passing Through Probate” in Chapter Seven). Once you have been appointed as the personal representative of your spouse’s estate (see “Appointment of Personal Representative in Formal/Informal Probate” in Chapter Seven), you should re-title such accounts to the “Estate of [your spouse].” You will need to present the financial institution with a copy of the letter authority received from the probate court formally appointing you. You should apply for and obtain a tax identification number for your spouse’s estate and use that number to open the account. Your attorney or accountant should apply for the tax identification number using IRS Form SS-4.

Your late spouse’s revocable trust became irrevocable at his death. You will need to present the financial institution with a copy of the trust appointing you as successor trustee (even though they likely already have a copy somewhere in their archives), and establish your authority over the account. Although the name of trust accounts stays the same, you must remove your spouse’s social security number f and replace it with a new tax identification number received from the IRS from information supplied on Form SS-4 (see Chapter Eight: “Tax Reporting”).

Finally, you should assemble a professional team of advisors including an accountant, an attorney, and a financial advisor. If you are already working with professional advisors, simply give them a call as soon as you can (but not more than thirty days) after your spouse’s death. If you haven’t been working with professional advisors, specific recommendations for locating a qualified accountant, attorney, and financial planner are located at the end of Chapters Eight, Nine, and Five, respectively.

Valuable resource materials can also be found in the Directory of Resources. An accountant will help you with your spouse’s final income tax return and other tax reporting (see Chapter Eight). The attorney will assist you in administering your spouse’s trust, or probate estate (if applicable), as well as to evaluate your own estate planning needs (see Chapter Seven and Chapter Nine, respectively). Ask your advisors what you should bring to your first meeting so that your time together can be as productive as possible.