You didn't ask for this role. We'll help you carry it
If you're managing taxes for a parent, spouse, or family member as a power of attorney, guardian, conservator, executor, or trustee, we'll handle the filings and explain exactly what's required: in plain language, not jargon.
Find the situation that matches yours
Every fiduciary role comes with different authority and different filing obligations. Pick the one that matches your situation and we'll walk you through exactly what's required.
POA & Guardian
Managing taxes for someone under a durable power of attorney or court-appointed guardianship.
ViewConservator
Court-supervised financial management, including tax filing and conservatorship accounting.
ViewDeceased & Estates
Handling the final return, estate income tax, and estate tax filings after someone passes.
ViewTrusts
Ongoing trust tax compliance for trustees, whether the grantor is living or has passed.
ViewBeneficiaries
You received a K-1 from an estate or trust and need help with the return it generates.
ViewFiduciary Accounting
Formal principal and income accounting for trusts, estates, and conservatorships.
ViewManaging someone else's taxes when they can no longer manage them
If you hold a power of attorney or have been appointed as guardian, you may be responsible for filing tax returns, federal and state, on behalf of the person in your care. We handle the tax side so you can focus on everything else.
What this involves
A durable power of attorney that covers financial matters, or a court order appointing you as guardian, gives you authority to act on someone's behalf in tax matters. We file their annual returns, respond to IRS and state notices, and file Form 2848 so we can communicate with the IRS directly on your behalf. Unlike conservators, POA holders and guardians typically don't have formal court accounting requirements, but the tax filing obligation, including state returns, is very real.
Annual Tax Filing - Federal & State
Individual federal and state returns for the person in your care, signed under your authority as POA or guardian.
Learn moreRetiree Tax Returns
RMDs, pension income, Social Security. Many POA and guardian situations involve elderly individuals with complex income streams.
Learn moreInvestments & K-1s
Brokerage accounts, partnership K-1s, and other investment income for the person in your care.
Learn moreEstimated Tax Payments
Quarterly payments may be required if the person in your care has income that is not subject to withholding.
Learn moreSurviving Spouse Returns
If the person you are managing lost a spouse, their filing status, retirement accounts, and income picture all change.
Learn moreChildren's Returns & Kiddie Tax
If you are guardian for a minor with investment income, UTMA accounts, or inherited assets, their return may be required.
Learn moreInherited Assets & Stepped-Up Basis
If the person in your care inherited property, we track the basis and handle the tax when it is sold.
Learn morePrior Year & Unfiled Returns
Catching up on personal federal and state returns that were not filed before your authority was established.
Learn moreCourt-supervised financial management, including the tax and accounting obligations
As a conservator, you're responsible for managing another person's financial estate under court supervision. That includes tax filings, federal and state, and often a formal conservatorship accounting for the court as well.
What makes conservatorships different
Unlike a POA, a conservatorship is court-supervised with periodic reporting obligations, including a formal accounting of all assets, income, and disbursements. We prepare both the ward's tax return and the conservatorship accounting, coordinated so nothing falls through the cracks.
Annual Tax Filing - Federal & State
Individual federal and state returns for the ward, signed under your authority as conservator.
Learn moreConservatorship Accounting
Formal accounting of the ward's estate for court filing: receipts, disbursements, and current inventory.
Learn moreRetiree Tax Returns
Many conservatees are elderly with RMDs, pension income, and Social Security. We handle the full income picture.
Learn moreInvestments & K-1s
Brokerage accounts, partnership K-1s, and other investment income held in the ward's name.
Learn moreEstimated Tax Payments
Quarterly payments from the ward's accounts when income is not subject to adequate withholding.
Learn moreEIN Applications
If the court requires a separate account or entity for the conservatorship estate, we obtain the EIN.
Learn moreInherited Assets & Stepped-Up Basis
If the ward inherited property, we track the basis and handle the reporting when assets are sold.
Learn morePrior Year Returns
Catching up on returns that were not filed before your appointment, federal and state.
Learn moreWhen someone passes, the tax obligations don't
Death triggers a cluster of tax filing requirements: for the decedent, for the estate, and potentially for estate and gift tax. We handle all of them together, coordinated around your probate timeline.
What typically needs to be filed
Most estates involve several returns that each serve a different purpose. The final 1040 covers the decedent's income up to the date of death. The estate's Form 1041 covers income earned after death. Form 706 is the estate tax return. With a $15 million exemption in 2026, many estates won't owe tax, but it's still worth filing to preserve the portability election (DSUE) for a surviving spouse. Form 709 covers gifts made in the year of death. We look at the full picture and make sure nothing is missed.
A note on who has authority: In most estates the executor named in the will files everything. When there's no will, a court-appointed administrator fills that role. In contested or time-sensitive situations, a court may appoint a special administrator, someone with limited authority to preserve assets or handle a specific task while the full appointment is pending. If you've been appointed in any capacity, we can work with whatever authority you hold and advise on the scope of your filing obligations.
Estate Administration Tax Compliance
The full sequence from date of death through closing: EIN, transcripts, accounting, filings, and prompt assessment.
Learn moreInsolvent Estates
More bills than assets? Federal taxes generally come first, and paying out of order can make the executor personally liable.
Learn moreForm 56: Notice of Fiduciary Relationship
How the IRS learns you are the executor or trustee. File it early so notices come to you, and again when you finish.
Learn moreExecutor & Trustee Fees
A fee is taxable income; an inheritance is not. Whether a family executor should take one, and why to decide early.
Learn moreIncome in Respect of a Decedent
Some income earned before death is not on the final return. It shows up later, with no step-up. If estate tax was paid, there is a deduction most people miss.
Learn moreInherited IRAs & the 10-Year Rule
Most inherited IRAs must be emptied within 10 years, some with yearly withdrawals. What changes when a trust or the estate inherits.
Learn moreFinal 1040 - Deceased Taxpayer
The decedent's last individual return: income from January 1 through the date of death.
Learn moreEstate Income Tax (Form 1041)
The estate's income tax return: covers income earned after death, with K-1s for each beneficiary.
Learn moreFederal Estate Tax (Form 706)
Required for larger estates, and worth filing for the DSUE portability election even when no tax is owed.
Learn moreState Estate & Inheritance Taxes
No federal estate tax does not mean no estate tax. Twelve states and DC start far below $15 million, some at $1 million.
Learn moreForm 8971 - Basis Reporting
After filing a 706, the IRS requires you to report asset values to each beneficiary, and those values lock in their basis.
Learn moreDSUE & Portability Election
Preserving the deceased spouse's unused exemption, a nine-month deadline that can't be missed.
Learn moreQTIP & the Marital Deduction
A trust that provides for the surviving spouse and protects the final heirs, if the executor makes the election on Form 706.
Learn moreDisclaimer Planning
Refusing an inheritance so it passes to the next in line, without a gift. How families use it within the 9-month window.
Learn moreAlternate Valuation Date
If values dropped after death, you may be able to use a later date for estate tax. It can save tax, but it also changes what heirs pay when they sell.
Learn moreSection 6166 Installment Payments
If the estate includes a family business, you may be able to spread the estate tax over up to 14 years instead of paying it all at once.
Learn moreGift Tax Return (Form 709)
Gifts made in the year of death require a final 709, coordinated with the estate tax return.
Learn moreProbate Tax Support
Prior year unfiled returns, amended filings, and IRS notices that surface during estate administration.
Learn moreFiduciary Accounting (UPIA)
When distributions are unequal or complex, a formal accounting tracks every beneficiary's share correctly.
Learn moreEIN Applications
The estate needs its own tax ID number before you can open a bank account or file returns. We handle the application.
Learn moreSection 645 Election
If there's both a trust and an estate, this election combines them into one tax filing, simpler and often cheaper.
Learn moreSection 642(g) Election
Estate expenses can be deducted on the estate tax return or the income tax return, not both. Choosing the right one.
Learn moreFiscal Year Election
The estate can pick its own year-end. The right choice can defer taxes for beneficiaries by up to 11 months.
Learn moreEstimated Tax Payments
Trusts and estates may need to make quarterly payments. Estates get a two-year exemption; trusts do not.
Learn moreTrust tax compliance, whether the grantor is living or gone
Trusts can exist entirely independent of a death event, and their ongoing tax obligations are often misunderstood by the trustees responsible for them. We handle trust income tax returns and the accounting that goes with them.
Trusts have their own tax obligations
An irrevocable, special needs, or charitable trust is its own taxpaying entity. It needs its own EIN, its own annual Form 1041, and K-1s for any beneficiaries who received distributions. If the trust has multiple beneficiaries with different interests, a UPIA accounting ensures every distribution is properly allocated between income and principal.
Trust Income Tax (Form 1041)
Annual income tax return for the trust, with K-1s for each beneficiary who received a distribution.
Learn moreFiduciary Accounting (UPIA)
Principal and income accounting, especially important when income and remainder beneficiaries have different interests.
Learn moreGrantor Trust Returns
If the trust is a revocable living trust, income is reported on the grantor's 1040. We handle the coordination.
Learn moreSpecial Needs Trust Returns
Trust tax filing for a loved one with a disability, with benefits preservation in mind.
Learn moreILIT Returns
If the family has an irrevocable life insurance trust, it has its own annual return. We handle the filing and Crummey compliance.
Learn moreGRATs
Serving as trustee of a grantor retained annuity trust: annuity payments, investment management, and what happens when the term ends.
Learn moreQPRTs
Serving as trustee of a qualified personal residence trust: maintaining the home, insurance, and the post-term transition.
Learn moreGST Tax
If your trust has grandchildren as beneficiaries, distributions to them can trigger a 40% tax. Find out if the trust is exempt before distributing.
Learn morePassive Activity for Trusts
If the trust owns rental property, the losses may be stuck. The passive activity rules treat trusts more strictly than individuals.
Learn moreMulti-State Trust Taxation
If the trust has connections to more than one state, it may owe taxes in each. We sort out the filings and credits.
Learn moreForeign Trust Reporting
An overseas trust or a foreign inheritance in the estate means Form 3520 reporting, with penalties starting at $10,000.
Learn moreCharitable Deductions
The trust can make charitable contributions, but only if the trust document authorizes it and the money comes from income, not principal.
Learn moreTrust Termination
When it's time to close out a trust: the final tax return, distributing assets, and deductions that pass to beneficiaries.
Learn moreIn-Kind Distributions
Distributing property instead of cash. The tax rules are different, and the decision to sell first or distribute can save significant money.
Learn moreThe 65-Day Rule
A window to make early-year distributions that count for the prior year's taxes, saving the trust from paying at the top rate.
Learn moreNet Investment Income Tax (NIIT)
Trusts pay a 3.8% surtax on investment income starting at ~$16,000. Individuals do not pay until $200K. Distributions can eliminate it.
Learn moreTAI vs. DNI
Trust accounting income determines what gets distributed. Distributable net income determines how much is taxable. They almost never match.
Learn moreQBI Deduction (Section 199A)
If the trust owns a business or partnership interest, there may be a 20% deduction available. Whether the trust or beneficiaries claim it depends on distributions.
Learn moreBeneficiary 1040 with K-1s
We can prepare beneficiary returns alongside the trust return to keep everything coordinated.
Learn moreYou received a K-1. Now what?
K-1s from estates and trusts have unique rules that most preparers don't deal with regularly. We handle them correctly, including the final-year excess deductions and inherited IRA situations that are frequently missed.
Beneficiary 1040 with K-1s
Individual return preparation for beneficiaries receiving K-1s from estates or trusts.
Learn moreInherited Assets & Stepped-Up Basis
Sale of inherited property and basis questions that arise when assets pass through an estate.
Learn moreInherited IRA & Retirement Accounts
The 10-year rule, annual RMD requirements, and the distribution planning that determines your tax exposure.
Learn moreInvestments & K-1s
If the estate or trust passed through partnership K-1s or complex investment income, we handle those too.
Learn moreChildren's Returns & Kiddie Tax
Filing for a child who received a K-1 from an estate or trust, or has a custodial investment account. We coordinate their return with the entity filing and the parent's return.
Learn moreA clear record of every dollar in and every dollar out
Whether a court requires it or beneficiaries are asking questions, a formal fiduciary accounting shows exactly where the money went. We prepare accountings under the Uniform Principal and Income Act that hold up to scrutiny.
When you need a formal accounting
Conservators typically file an accounting with the court each year. Trustees may need one when beneficiaries request it, when distributions are unequal, or when the trust is terminating. Estate executors may need one for probate. In each case, the accounting must properly classify every transaction as income or principal and show the effect on each beneficiary's interest.