To ensure proper income tax reporting, you should promptly notify the appropriate financial institutions of your spouse’s death. Your spouse’s name should be removed from your joint accounts, with your social security number added in place of his on each account.

Trust and probate assets should be changed to reflect the new tax identification numbers issued by the IRS from information you submit on Form SS4. Financial institutions are required to file information returns (Form 1099) with the IRS.

The IRS uses this information to determine whether taxpayers have accurately reported their dividend, interest and other income. Failure to promptly change tax identification numbers, especially on estate or trust assets, will result in misreporting of 1099 income.

Post-death income would be improperly reported to the IRS as income of your late spouse rather than income of the estate or trust. If, in fact, you receive 1009s that do not reflect the responsible taxpayer, you must first report the income on the return of the taxpayer listed on the 1099.

You then deduct the erroneous income from the return in what is called a “nominee distribution,” identifying the correct taxpayer. The responsible taxpayer must then report the income.

The following is an example of page one of Form SS-4: