The short version: it goes through myTax Mail, not a form
There's no dedicated "deceased person's tax return" form to download. IRAS handles this through myTax Mail, its digital correspondence service on the myTax Portal. The Legal Personal Representative writes in with the details, and IRAS raises the assessment from there. It's a conversation, not a form-filling exercise, which tends to surprise families expecting something more formal.
What to send, in one message
| What's needed | Why IRAS asks for it |
|---|---|
| Name, address, and NRIC of the LPR | Confirms who has legal authority to act on the deceased's behalf |
| A copy of the death certificate | Confirms the date of death, which sets the cut-off for taxable income |
| Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration, if available | Confirms formal authority, though IRAS can begin corresponding before this is issued |
| Income details up to the date of death, broken down by source | Employment, rental, self-employment, and any other income each need to be itemised separately, not lumped together |
| Any reliefs the deceased was entitled to | The same reliefs that would normally reduce their tax bill still apply for the portion of the year before they passed |
That last point catches people out: reliefs don't disappear just because the person has died. If the deceased was entitled to a relief for the year, it still reduces the assessable amount for the period up to their date of death.
If a tax bill has already arrived
Sometimes a Notice of Assessment lands in the deceased's name before the family has had a chance to notify IRAS — mail doesn't stop just because someone has passed. If you've got updated income information after that bill has already been issued, the same channel applies: reply via myTax Mail with the correction. IRAS will revise the assessment accordingly rather than requiring you to dispute it through a separate process.
Paying it — and what happens if the estate can't
Whatever tax is owed gets paid from the estate's own assets before anything is distributed to beneficiaries — the same principle covered in Does Singapore Have Estate Tax?. If the estate genuinely doesn't have enough to cover it, the LPR sends IRAS: the same LPR details, a copy of the Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration, a Schedule of Assets, and a Declaration Form for Tax (which IRAS sends to the LPR directly for this situation). IRAS then works from what the estate can actually provide — the shortfall does not become a personal debt for the family.
💡 Tip
The Schedule of Assets is usually the document that slows this whole process down, not IRAS's side of it. If you're also working through probate, starting to compile that list early — even informally — tends to shorten both processes at once.
No LPR appointed yet?
IRAS will only correspond with a formally recognised LPR. If nobody has been appointed — no executor confirmed, no administrator via Letters of Administration — that has to happen first. See No Legal Personal Representative Yet? What to Do First for the practical next step.
One thing that doesn't need to happen first
None of this needs to be sorted before the funeral. Income tax settlement typically happens over weeks or months as part of broader estate administration, not in the first days. If you're in the acute early stage and looking for what actually needs doing first, the C.A.L.M. Guide covers that — this article is for later. For the fuller picture of everything else that unfolds in the weeks after, see the C.A.R.E. Guide.
