Being named executor in Michigan is a 12–18 month job nobody trained you for. This is the whole sequence — what Michigan requires of you, what is merely sensible, and which statute each requirement comes from.
Claims barred 4 months after publication of the notice to creditors; if that notice is never properly given, claims stay open for 3 years from the date of death.read at source
4 months / 3 years
MCL 700.3801, 700.3803 · last checked 2026-09-05
Personal representative generally serves and files an inventory within 91 days of appointment.not yet confirmed
91 days
MCR 5.307 / MCL 700.3706 · last checked 2026-07
Michigan specifics (verify current law with the Probate Court or an attorney): Michigan offers both informal and formal probate under EPIC; the personal representative generally serves and files an inventory within 91 days of appointment (MCR 5.307 / MCL 700.3706); a notice to creditors is published and known creditors are notified, with claims generally barred 4 months after publication of the notice — but if that notice is never properly published, claims stay open for 3 years from the date of death (MCL 700.3801, 700.3803); smaller estates may use simplified procedures; Michigan has no estate or inheritance tax. General information, not legal advice.
Steps are grouped the way the work actually arrives. Required marks a duty backed by a citation; Recommended marks something that protects you or the estate but is not itself a legal obligation.
Nearly every institution requires an original certified copy.
How: Order through the funeral home or the Michigan Vital Records office.
Michigan law directs the person holding the will to deliver it to the Probate Court after death.
How: Take the original will to the Probate Court in the county where they lived.
You are responsible for protecting estate property from loss.
How: Lock up, collect keys, consider re-keying, keep utilities on for now.
The mail reveals accounts and bills you don't know about.
How: You cannot do this online. To redirect the deceased's mail to yourself you must go to a Post Office IN PERSON and show documented proof that you are the appointed executor or administrator — USPS says plainly that a death certificate alone is NOT enough, so take your Letters. If you already shared the address, you may simply open and manage the mail, no filing needed. Register the name at DMAchoice.org too: advertising mail should drop within about three months. Photograph everything into Settle.
USPS, Mail addressed to the deceased · last checked 2026-09-28read at source
Stops benefit payments that would have to be repaid. Survivor benefits are separate — nobody starts them for you.
How: The funeral home usually reports the death — confirm by calling SSA on 1-800-772-1213. Ask about the benefit paid for the month of death, which often has to be returned. A surviving spouse, or an eligible child if there is no spouse, may claim the $255 lump-sum death payment, and survivors benefits are a separate claim — nobody starts either for you. There is a hard deadline: the lump sum must be applied for within TWO YEARS of the death. Apply online with an SSA account, or by phone.
SSA, Lump-sum death payment · last checked 2026-09-28read at source
Gets you Letters of Authority. Informal probate is faster and handled administratively; formal probate involves a judge and is used when there are disputes.
How: File with the Probate Court in the county where they lived; ask the register about informal vs formal.
Statements, deeds, titles, and tax returns recur constantly through settlement.
How: Photograph everything into Settle as you find it.
Vacancy can limit or void coverage; an uninsured loss drains the estate.
How: Call the insurer and ask about a vacancy endorsement.
Needed for the estate bank account and tax filings.
How: Free, direct from the IRS — never pay a site that charges for one. Apply online, but know three things first. You must finish in ONE session: it cannot be saved and it times out after 15 minutes of inactivity. You need the responsible party's own Social Security number or ITIN — yours, as the executor. And the tool is not always open: Mon-Fri 6am-1am, Sat 6am-9pm, Sun 6pm-midnight Eastern, one EIN per responsible party per day.
IRS, Get an employer identification number · last checked 2026-09-28read at source
Never mix estate money with your own.
How: Bring Letters of Authority, EIN, and a death certificate to the bank.
Michigan creditors are generally barred 4 months after publication of the notice to creditors (MCL 700.3801); known creditors must also be notified.
How: Publish the notice and notify known creditors. Track claims in Settle.
Freezes accounts against fraud; starts transfers.
How: Write to each institution with a certified death certificate and, once the court issues them, a copy of your Letters. Log who you contacted and when in Settle so you can show the follow-up trail.
Policies pay beneficiaries directly and often quickly.
How: Call each insurer with policy number + death certificate.
Stops fees and identity theft.
How: Notify issuers, then Equifax, Experian, TransUnion.
Michigan generally requires the personal representative to serve and file an inventory within 91 days of appointment (MCR 5.307 / MCL 700.3706).
How: Settle's inventory report gives you the asset list; serve interested persons and file with the court.
MCR 5.307 / MCL 700.3706 · last checked 2026-07not yet confirmed
Date-of-death values set tax basis and drive distribution.
How: Real estate: appraisal or broker opinion. Keep reports in Settle.
Protects estate value; order of payment matters if funds are tight.
How: Estate account only. If the estate may be insolvent, pause and get advice.
A final personal return (and possibly an estate income return) is due; Michigan has no estate or inheritance tax, but federal filing still applies.
How: Three federal filings can apply, and they are not the same thing. The final Form 1040 covers income up to the date of death and is filed on the ordinary deadline, as if they were alive — prior years may also be outstanding. If a refund is due, it will NOT arrive on its own: file Form 1310 to claim it. Separately, the estate itself files Form 1041 for any tax year it has gross income of $600 or more. IRS Publication 559 is written for executors. A CPA experienced with estates is usually worth it — hand them Settle's reports.
IRS, File the final income tax returns of a deceased person; Instructions for Form 1041 · last checked 2026-09-28read at source
Documented expenses come back to you from the estate.
How: Settle's ledger tracks 'paid personally' items; reimburse with a paper trail.
Distributing before the creditor period closes and debts/taxes are paid can create personal liability.
How: Follow the will (or Michigan intestacy rules). Get signed receipts; keep them in Settle.
Michigan estates close with a sworn statement (informal) or a final account approved by the court (formal).
How: Generate Settle's Ledger and Inventory reports; file the closing statement or final account. Keep records for several years.
Settle builds this checklist into a plan you can actually work
The steps above, ordered for your situation in Michigan, with the deadlines on a calendar, your documents attached to the step that needs them, and an expense ledger for everything the estate owes you back. The plan itself is free.
Every figure on this page links to the statute or court source it came from and shows the date we last read it. 2 of the 7 citations on this page carry the “not yet confirmed” tag. That means we recorded the citation from a secondary source and have not yet read it against the primary statute text ourselves. We could have left those rows out and the page would look better — but it would imply the rest were checked too, which is exactly the impression nobody should be given about a court deadline.
The full registry, including everything we have not confirmed, is published at Where the state information comes from. If the court or your attorney gave you a different date, please tell us at support@vertexlabsolutions.com — it is the fastest way to get it fixed for the next executor.