Opening an estate bank account
Updated 20 August 2026 · 5 minute read
Once money starts moving — asset sales, released balances, bills to pay — it needs somewhere to live that isn't your personal account. An estate account, opened in the name of the estate, is the executor's basic hygiene tool: it keeps estate money separate, visible and defensible.
Why not just use my account?
- Mixing estate and personal funds is the fastest way to look like a thief, even when you aren't one
- Beneficiaries are entitled to accounts — one statement that IS the accounting saves hours of reconstruction
- The estate may earn interest and owe tax — its income needs its own trail for the estate tax returns
- If you're ever challenged, the clean account is your defence
Opening one
Choose the bank
Any major bank opens estate accounts — often easiest where the deceased already banked, since the estates team has the file. Style: 'The Estate of the late [name]'.
Bring the authority
Before the grant: death certificate, will and executor ID usually suffice. After the grant: the grant itself. Requirements vary — ring the estates team first.
Route everything through it
Released balances in; funeral, debts, filing fees and distributions out. Nothing estate-related touches personal accounts again.
Open the account requiring both signatures for payments. Slightly slower, completely argument-proof — and it protects each executor from the other's mistakes.
Setting up the administration properly?
A fixed-fee firm can run the whole financial side — account, creditors, distributions, final accounts — while you make the decisions.
Get fixed-fee probate quotesDoes the estate account need its own TFN?
If the estate earns income across tax years, yes — the estate gets a trust TFN for its returns. The bank will ask; 'applied for' is an acceptable answer early on.
Can I pay estate bills before the account exists?
Yes — keep receipts and reimburse yourself from the account later. Banks also pay funeral invoices directly from the deceased's frozen account.
When does the account close?
After final distribution and the last tax clearance — commonly 9–18 months from death. Keep the closing statement with the estate records for seven years.
Sources
- Major bank deceased estate teams — estate account requirements
- ATO — deceased estate trust TFNs