Savings Bonds in a Court-Administered Estate

Savings bonds discovered after a death must be handled according to their registration and the estate's status. A surviving co-owner or beneficiary can change the route, while a court-appointed representative may need specific documents to cash or distribute estate-owned bonds. This guide explains how Treasury distinguishes open, closed, and small estates. It helps executors and family members identify the appropriate process before completing forms or promising distributions to heirs.

Adapted from public-domain educational material published by U.S. Treasury. Fynoptic has organized and edited the material and added introductory and practical guidance. Sources were reviewed on October 28, 2026; original publication dates, where available, are listed below.

Death of a savings bond owner

Electronic savings bonds

If the person who died has an online TreasuryDirect account, contact us.

We will put a hold on the account and tell you what to do.

Paper savings bonds

This page tells you what to do with paper savings bonds after the owner dies.

From this page, you can determine which situation applies to you and then go to the page that tells you what to do in that situation.

Who owns the paper savings bonds?

Which situation applies to me?

In this section, we describe these 3 possible situations:

• A survivor – co-owner or beneficiary – is named on the bond(s)
• The estate has (or had) a court-appointed representative, and no surviving co-owner or beneficiary is named on the bond(s)
• The estate never had a court-appointed representative, and no surviving co-owner or beneficiary is named on the bond(s)

Read the following descriptions to see which applies to you and to find the link to details about what to do in that situation.

A survivor is named on the bond(s)

If a surviving co-owner or beneficiary is named on the savings bond, the bond goes directly to that person. It does not become part of the estate of the person who died.

If you are the named co-owner or beneficiary who inherits the bond, you have different options for paper EE or I bonds and paper HH bonds.

Go to Inheriting bonds as a named co-owner or beneficiary

If only one person is named on the bond and that person has died, the bond belongs to that person’s estate.

If two people are named on the bond and both have died, the bond belongs to the estate of the one who died last.

That person's estate (what the person owns) must be "settled" – distributed according to the person's will or the law. With regard to savings bonds, the following are the likely situations for settling the estate:

The estate has (or had) a court-appointed representative, and no surviving co-owner or beneficiary is named on the bond(s)

If an estate contains Treasury securities (including savings bonds) that total more than $100,000 in redemption value as of the date of death, a court must administer the estate.

If a court is involved, you might have one of these situations:

• the estate is being settled under special provisions of state law
• a court-appointed representative is in charge of distributing the estate (an open administered estate)
• a court-appointed representative was in charge but has been discharged before the bonds are distributed (a closed administered estate)

Go to Court-appointed representatives

The estate never had a court-appointed representative, and no surviving co-owner or beneficiary is named on the bond(s)

In this situation, no person named on the bond is living and all of the following are true. The estate of the person who died (or who died last if two people are named on the bond)

• has not been and will not be formally administered through a court
• has not been and will not be settled under special provisions of state law relating to small estates
• has savings bonds and other Treasury securities that in total come to $100,000 or less in redemption value as of the date of death

Go to Non-administered estates

What about taxes?

To understand the tax implications of various situations related to the death of a savings bond owner, consult your tax advisor or these Internal Revenue Service (IRS) publications:

IRS Publication 550, Investment Income and Expense

IRS Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax

IRS Publication 559, Survivors, Executors, and Administrators

Court-appointed representatives

Note: As all Series HH savings bonds have reached final maturity, they can no longer be reissued and must be redeemed. They can be distributed (FS Form 1455 or FS Form 5336) if needed, from the deceased owner(s) to a person entitled who will then complete a FS Form 1522 for redemption of the bonds.

Electronic savings bonds

Paper savings bonds

This page is about paper savings bonds.

When someone dies, that person's estate (what the person owns) must be "settled" – distributed according to the person's will or the law. Sometimes, a court appoints someone to settle the estate.

On this page:

Open-Administered Estate

If the court appointed you as the representative to settle an estate, and that estate is still open and being settled. You may:

• Redeem the bonds to the estate, or
• Distribute the bonds to specific heirs

Open-Administered Estate: Redeem the bonds to the estate

A local bank or other financial institution may be willing to cash E, EE, or I savings bonds for a court-appointed representative of an open-administered estate. Banks cannot cash H or HH bonds. Please contact your bank for instructions.

If the bank is unable to cash your bonds, please submit to our office:

1. The FS 1522 form, with your certified signature and title.
   1. Example Signature: Jane Doe, court-appointed representative for John Doe, deceased.
2. The unsigned bonds.
3. A death certificate for each deceased person on the bonds.
4. Court evidence for the proof of your appointment as the representative authorized to cash the bonds. If your powers are limited, please include documentation.

NOTE: We cannot return legal evidence. Send us legible copies with visible stamps or seals.

Address:

Treasury Retail Securities Services
P.O. Box 9150
Minneapolis, MN 55480-9150

Open-Administered Estate: Distribute the bonds to specific heirs

A court-appointed representative of an open-administered estate may distribute specific bonds to specific heirs. Each heir must complete paperwork to redeem and/or reissue their specific bonds.

Please note, an individual savings bond cannot be split between multiple people. The entire amount of a savings bond must go to one owner as directed by the court-appointed representative.

Please submit to our office:

1. By the Court-Appointed Representative:
   1. The FS 1455 form, with your certified signature and title.
   2. Example Signature: Jane Doe, court-appointed representative for John Doe, deceased.
2. From each Heir:
   1. The FS 1522 form for the bonds they wish to redeem.
   2. The FS 4000 form for the non-matured bonds they wish to reissue.
      1. Note: All bonds will be reissued electronically. This option requires the heir to open a TreasuryDirect account.
      2. Note: Matured bonds must be redeemed.
3. The unsigned bonds.
4. A death certificate for each deceased person on the bonds.
5. Court evidence for the proof of your appointment as the representative authorized to cash the bonds. If your powers are limited, please include documentation.

Closed-Administered Estate

If the court previously appointed a representative, but that person has already fulfilled their duties and been discharged, follow the instructions provided in the Final Account, Decree of Distribution, or other court document.

1. The FS 5394 form, with a certified signature for each person required.
2. Any additional paperwork requested in the FS 5394 form.
3. The unsigned bonds.
4. A death certificate for each deceased person on the bonds.
5. Final Account, Decree of Distribution, or similar court documentation.

Small Estate (special provision of state law)

If the estate was settled involving a special provision of state law relating to small estate, follow the instructions provided in the Small Estate Affidavit or similar document.

1. The FS 5394 form, with a certified signature for each person required.
2. Any additional paperwork requested in the FS 5394 form.
3. The unsigned bonds.
4. A death certificate for each deceased person on the bonds.
5. Small Estate Affidavit, or similar document.

Putting this into practice

First determine whether a surviving person is named on each bond. Then confirm the estate's legal status and who has authority to act. Keep the court documents, bond inventory, and tax records together; the person physically holding the paper may not be the person entitled to redeem it.

Sources and further reading

• Death of a savings bond owner — U.S. Treasury
• Court-appointed representatives — U.S. Treasury