How do I handle a deceased parent's unfiled taxes going back to 2012?

Yes, your friend's advice is on the right track! You can request Wage and Income Transcripts from the IRS that will show all reported income (W-2s, 1099s, etc.) for each tax year. These will give you the basic information needed to complete the returns. To get these transcripts, you'll need to complete Form 4506-T and check box 8 for the Wage and Income Transcript. You'll also need to provide documentation proving you're the executor. Send a copy of the death certificate and your executor appointment papers with your request. The IRS can provide transcripts going back 10 years, so you should be able to get information for tax years 2015-2024, but 2012-2014 might be unavailable. For years where you can't get transcripts, you might need to file returns with the best information available, noting they're being filed by the executor based on available information. For years with little or no income, filing might actually be simple.

After my mom passed, I was in a similar situation with 7 years of unfiled taxes. I was totally overwhelmed until I found https://taxr.ai which analyzes IRS transcripts and creates draft returns automatically. You upload the transcripts you get from the IRS, and it identifies all income, potential deductions, and even flags issues that might trigger audits. The thing that saved me was their deceased taxpayer feature - it handles all the special filing status changes and estate considerations automatically. It even generated a letter explaining the circumstances to include with each return. I was able to file all 7 years in about a week once I had the transcripts.

I was super skeptical about using automated tools for something as serious as back taxes, but I finally tried https://taxr.ai for my aunt's unfiled returns going back 8 years. I'm eating my words now because it worked amazingly well. The IRS accepted all the returns without questions, and the whole process was surprisingly painless. The system even found some deductions from her business expenses that I would have missed. It's especially good for gig worker situations because it categorizes all those random 1099s properly. Wish I'd known about this before spending hours trying to make sense of her paperwork!

When I was handling my brother's estate last year, getting his unfiled tax returns sorted was a nightmare until I could actually talk to someone at the IRS. I spent literally weeks trying to get through on their phone lines. Finally found https://claimyr.com which got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The IRS agent was able to put notes on his account about the situation, extend deadlines while I gathered information, and even waived some penalties since I explained he had been ill before passing. They walked me through exactly what forms I needed to file as an executor and what documentation to include. Completely worth it to actually talk to someone instead of guessing what to do.

I take back what I said about Claimyr sounding like a scam. I finally tried it out of desperation after wasting THREE DAYS trying to get through to the IRS about my father's estate tax issues. Got connected to an IRS agent in 17 minutes. The agent spent almost an hour with me going through my dad's account, explaining exactly what I needed to file and how to handle the missing years. They even helped me set up a payment plan for the small amount he owed and gave me direct instructions on what documentation to include with each return. Saved me from making several mistakes that would have caused more delays. Definitely the most helpful part of this whole executor nightmare.

Have you checked if your parent was even required to file for all those years? The filing threshold depends on filing status, age, and income amount. For example, in 2022 a single person under 65 only needed to file if they made more than $12,950. If your parent had very low income during some years, they might not have been required to file at all.

Has anyone mentioned penalties yet? IRS failure-to-file penalties can be substantial, even if no tax was owed. But there's good news - the IRS has a First Time Abatement policy that can waive penalties for one tax year if there was a clean compliance history before that.

I went through something very similar when my mother passed two years ago. She had 6 years of unfiled returns, and I was completely overwhelmed as the executor. Here's what I learned that might help: First, definitely get those IRS transcripts - they're your lifeline. But also check with your state's revenue department if your dad lived in a state with income tax. Some states maintain their own records that can fill in gaps. One thing that saved me time and stress was creating a simple spreadsheet for each tax year with columns for different income sources (W-2, 1099-MISC, 1099-NEC, etc.). As you go through the transcripts, you can categorize everything clearly. This made the actual filing much more manageable. Also, don't forget about potential deductions he might have been eligible for - standard deduction, any medical expenses if he was older, etc. Sometimes even with unfiled years, the person might actually be due refunds rather than owing money. The whole process took me about 3 months start to finish, but most of that was waiting for transcripts and correspondence with the IRS. The actual filing once I had everything organized was much faster than I expected.