How to Endorse Savings Bonds as the Personal Representative of Estates
An executor can cash savings bonds for the deceased person he represents..
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When the owner of a savings bond dies, the U.S. Treasury has procedures for redeeming the bonds. As an estate executor, you have the authority to endorse savings bonds because you are the personal and legal representative of the estate. Visit a bank and follow specific requirements for signing and redeeming the bonds to make sure the bonds distribute correctly.
Gather the documents you need to redeem the savings bonds as the representative of the estate. According to the Treasury Direct website, you need to show a death certificate (or a certified copy) with the official seal for every person named on the bond. Also provide documentation of your court appointment as a representative of the estate. The documentation must have a court clerk’s statement and a date within 12 months of the date on which you are presenting the bonds for redemption.
Step 2Complete PD F 1455 – Request by Fiduciary for Distribution of U.S. Treasury Securities. The form includes your reason for distribution, the name and information for the person receiving distribution, and a description of the bonds. Do not sign the form until you are in the presence of a bank representative.
Step 3Visit your bank with the supporting documents and the completed form and tell the representative that you wish to redeem the bonds as a personal representative of the estate. Sign the back of the bonds in the presence of the representative, signing, for example: “Nancy Johnson, executor of the will of Barney Wilson, deceased.” Sign and date Form 1455 also.
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Tips
- The bank representative will check to make sure the taxpayer identification number on the bond matches that of the estate (found in your court appointment documentation). The representative will also check the address on the bond to make sure it matches the estate address. If these addresses do not match, the representative will ask you to write the correct mailing address on the back of the bond.
Warnings
- You must report interest earned from the bonds for federal income taxes. Report the interest accrued on the deceased person’s final income tax return as a part of the estate.
Writer Bio
Kathryn Hatter is a veteran home-school educator, as well as an accomplished gardener, quilter, crocheter, cook, decorator and digital graphics creator. As a regular contributor to Natural News, many of Hatter's Internet publications focus on natural health and parenting. Hatter has also had publication on home improvement websites such as Redbeacon.