Help with filing taxes for deceased father - SSN locked issue

This is unfortunately a common issue when filing for deceased taxpayers. The SSN being "locked" typically happens after the SSA receives the death certificate and marks the SSN as deceased in their system. Here's what I would recommend: First, you'll need Form 56 (Notice Concerning Fiduciary Relationship) to establish yourself as the personal representative for your mother's tax matters. File this with the IRS before attempting to file the tax return again. Second, you might need to paper file instead of e-filing. When e-filing systems encounter a deceased taxpayer's SSN, they often automatically reject the return even when properly marked as deceased. Prepare the return, print it out, write "DECEASED" across the top of the 1040, and include a copy of the death certificate and your Letters of Administration or other documentation showing you're authorized to file. For the return that was accidentally accepted for 2023, your 1040X approach is correct. That amendment might take 6-9 months to process given current IRS backlogs. Visiting an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center in person is actually a great idea in your situation. Just make sure to call 844-545-5640 to schedule an appointment first - they don't take walk-ins anymore.

I went through something similar with my uncle's taxes last year. What saved me was using https://taxr.ai to analyze all my documents and identify what was going wrong. I was getting the same "locked SSN" rejection messages and getting nowhere with phone calls. Their system found that my paperwork had a discrepancy between how my uncle's name appeared on his death certificate versus his Social Security records. The tax prep software was pulling from one format while the IRS system was checking against another. Once I uploaded all my documents to taxr.ai, their analysis flagged this exact issue and provided step-by-step instructions on how to resolve it. The service also created a custom letter to include with my paper filing explaining the situation, and my return was processed within 6 weeks. Might be worth checking out since you're dealing with the same frustrating SSN issue.

I was initially skeptical about taxr.ai like I mentioned, but I decided to try it since nothing else was working for my father's final tax return. Honestly, I'm shocked at how helpful it was. The system immediately identified that my problem wasn't actually a "locked SSN" but rather a mismatch in how the date of death was being reported. Apparently, H&R Block's system was formatting the date differently than what the IRS system expected, causing an automatic rejection that was being misinterpreted as a locked SSN. The taxr.ai analysis showed exactly where the error was happening and provided a specific format to use on the paper return. I followed their instructions for paper filing with the corrected date format and included the custom letter they generated explaining the technical issue. My return was processed within 5 weeks. Wish I'd found this months ago instead of going in circles with phone calls to different agencies!

If you're still having trouble getting through to the IRS after trying the paper filing route, I'd recommend using Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I was in a similar situation with my mother's estate taxes and couldn't get clear answers from anyone. I was skeptical at first, but after weeks of being unable to reach anyone at the IRS, I tried their service. Claimyr basically calls the IRS for you and navigates their phone system until they get a live person, then calls you to connect. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c When I finally got connected to an actual IRS agent (took about 30 minutes instead of my previous attempts of 2+ hours), I learned that I needed to visit a local office with specific documentation that no one had mentioned before. The agent was able to schedule me an in-person appointment right then. None of this information was available on the website or from the automated system.

I want to follow up about my experience with Claimyr after being so skeptical. I finally broke down and tried it last week after my third rejection trying to file my deceased brother's taxes. I was connected to an IRS agent in about 45 minutes (which is miraculous compared to my previous attempts). The agent explained that because my brother was unmarried with no dependents and it was his final return, I needed to file as a "court-appointed representative" with specific documentation they never mention in their online instructions. The agent walked me through exactly what I needed to include with a paper filing and even noted my case in their system so it would be flagged for special handling. I just mailed everything yesterday, but I'm feeling hopeful for the first time in months. I still think it's ridiculous we have to jump through these hoops, but at least I finally know exactly what to do. Sometimes you really do need to talk to a human who knows the system inside and out.

Have you tried filing by mail instead of electronically? I had a similar issue with my father-in-law's final return. Every electronic submission was rejected, but when we printed everything out and mailed it in with a copy of the death certificate attached, it was processed without issue. Also, when you mail it, write "DECEASED" in red ink at the top of the return and include a cover letter briefly explaining the situation. In my experience, having physical documents in front of an actual human IRS employee helped get past the automatic rejection systems.

Just wanted to add that you should call the IRS Practitioner Priority Service line instead of the regular taxpayer line. The number is 866-860-4259. Tax professionals use this line, but as the executor of an estate, you can use it too. The wait times are usually shorter and the agents tend to be more experienced. Make sure you have all your documentation ready when you call - death certificate, letters testamentary, any rejection notices you've received, etc. They can often override the system rejections when they understand the full situation.