For how long must income tax returns be filed for a deceased person’s estate?

If a valid will exists covering all or some of the assets, the executor of the will must file an ITR until all assets are distributed as per the instructions in the will.

Balwant Jain

December 16, 2025 / 08:08 IST

Executors of the Will have to file an ITR till all assets are distributed.

Filing income tax returns after a person’s death can be confusing, especially when a will delays asset distribution. Today's Ask Wallet Wise query decodes how long executors or legal heirs must continue filing ITRs for the Estate of the Deceased.Ask Wallet-Wise initiative offers expert advice on matters related to personal finance and money-related queries. You can email your queries to askwalletwise@nw18.com, and we will try and get a top financial expert to address your queries.

I understand that the Income Tax Return (ITR) of a deceased person has to be filed by the legal heir after registering as a legal heir, for the period from 1st April to the date of death. Another ITR also needs to be filed from the date of death to 31st March, and thereafter every year until all the assets are distributed by the executors of the will, after obtaining a PAN in the name of “The Estate of the Deceased”, in case a valid will has been made.

For how many years can the ITR of “The Estate of the Deceased” be filed? If the estate is distributed among the legal heirs after 15–18 years, as per the will (for example, till the grandchildren attain majority), can the executor or administrator continue filing the ITR until the distribution of assets?

Expert Advice: After the death of a person, assets pass on in two different ways depending on whether a valid will has been made. If no will is made, or if all assets are not covered under the will, the person is said to have died intestate. In such cases, the assets for which no will exists pass immediately to the legal heirs as per personal law, and only one ITR, from 1st April to the date of death, is required to be filed by the legal heirs.

However, if a valid will exists covering all or some of the assets, the executor of the will must file an ITR until all assets are distributed as per the instructions in the will. The first ITR will be filed for the period from the date of death to 31st March of the financial year in which the testator dies.

The Income Tax Act does not prescribe any specific time limit for filing ITRs in the name of the “Estate of the Deceased.” However, the distribution of assets must be carried out within a reasonable time as per the testator’s instructions and cannot be delayed indefinitely without valid reasons.