This is a proper step taken by the financial institution because when a person passes away, their social security number expires with them. Therefore, once the Trustor (creator of the trust) passes away and the trust has become irrevocable, a new tax identification number needs to be requested and issued by the IRS.
This new number can be requested by filling out and submitting form SS-4. The new tax identification number is to be used in lieu of the social security number for all tax reporting purposes.
This is a proper step taken by the financial institution because when a person passes away, their social security number expires with them. If you have questions about how to obtain a tax identification number, please don’t hesitate to call our office at (714) 282-7588 and one of our experienced estate planning attorneys at the Law Office of James F. Roberts & Associates, APC, will be happy to walk you through this process.