First Steps After a Death in Maryland

A medical professional must pronounce the death. If death was expected under hospice, the hospice nurse can pronounce; if unexpected, call 911. Then choose a licensed Maryland funeral home or cremation provider to transport and care for your loved one.

Lock the residence, keep utilities and insurance active, and avoid distributing property until authority and ownership are clear. Do not remove or give away household items before the estate is opened and the personal representative is appointed.

A custodian of a will must deliver the original to the Register of Wills promptly after learning of the death (Md. Code, Est. & Trusts 4-203). Also look for codicils, trusts, deeds, vehicle titles, account statements, and life insurance policies.

Certified copies are issued by the Maryland Department of Health, Division of Vital Records, and cost $10 for the first copy and $12 for each additional copy in the same order. The funeral home usually orders them for you. Order more than you think you need, because banks, insurers, the MVA, and the Register of Wills all ask for one.

Probate is opened with the Register of Wills in the county (or Baltimore City) where the decedent was domiciled. Maryland has 24 jurisdictions, each with its own elected Register of Wills and Orphans' Court. Baltimore City is an independent city with its own Register of Wills and is distinct from Baltimore County; do not confuse the two.

Separate probate assets (solely owned, no beneficiary) from non-probate assets such as joint survivorship accounts, beneficiary-designated accounts, life insurance, and trust property. This list becomes the basis for the inventory and for deciding whether a regular, modified, or small estate is needed.

If the property subject to administration is $50,000 or less as of the date of death ($100,000 or less if the surviving spouse is the sole legatee or heir), the estate may be administered as a small estate (Md. Code, Est. & Trusts 5-601 through 5-607). A solvent estate whose residuary passes to the personal representative and a narrow exempt class may use streamlined modified administration (Est. & Trusts 5-701). Otherwise the estate is administered as a regular estate (administrative probate under Est. & Trusts 5-301 et seq.; judicial probate under 5-401 et seq.).

The person named in the will (or an eligible person if there is no will) files a petition for probate with the Register of Wills in the county of domicile, along with the original will, a certified death certificate, and a list of interested persons. The Register of Wills appoints the personal representative and issues letters of administration confirming authority to act for the estate. The Register of Wills collects the statewide value-based probate fee (Est. & Trusts 2-206) and the inheritance tax.

Apply for a free estate EIN from the IRS, then open a bank account in the estate's name (for example, 'Estate of Jane Doe'). Keep estate money completely separate from personal money and keep receipts for every payment and distribution.

After appointment, publish notice of the appointment in a newspaper of general circulation in the county once a week for 3 successive weeks, and mail written notice to known creditors and interested persons (Md. Code, Est. & Trusts 7-103). Mailing written notice to a creditor starts a shorter 2-month claim window for that creditor.

The personal representative files an inventory of the property owned by the decedent at death, with fair market values, within 3 months after appointment (Md. Code, Est. & Trusts 7-201), and files an information report listing non-probate and trust property that may be subject to Maryland inheritance tax at the same time.

A claim against the estate is barred unless presented within the earlier of 6 months after the date of death or 2 months after the personal representative mails written notice to the creditor (Md. Code, Est. & Trusts 8-103). Report the death to the Social Security Administration (1-800-772-1213), notify each bank and brokerage, and file life insurance claims.

The first administration account is due within 9 months after appointment, and later accounts are due every 6 months until a final account closes the estate (Md. Code, Est. & Trusts 7-305). The Orphans' Court supervises the accounts (in Montgomery, Harford, and Howard counties the Circuit Court judges sit as the Orphans' Court).

The Register of Wills collects the 10% Maryland inheritance tax on property passing to non-exempt takers before distribution; property passing to a spouse, child or other lineal descendant, parent, grandparent, or sibling is exempt. Review the decedent's final federal Form 1040 and Maryland Form 502, a Maryland fiduciary return (Form 504) if the estate earns income, the Maryland estate tax return (Form MET-1) only for estates over the $5,000,000 Maryland exemption, and federal Form 706 only if the estate exceeds the federal exemption.