The short answer
Texas doesn't use one estate accounting form. The Estates Code lists what each kind of account must contain, and which list applies depends on whether the estate is under court supervision. In a dependent (court-supervised) administration, the personal representative files a sworn annual account under chapter 359 and a verified final account under chapter 362. In an independent administration, which many Texas estates use, there's no annual court account, but an interested person can demand a sworn accounting under §404.001, and the executor closes with a closing report or a notice of closing under chapter 405.
This guide walks through each of those accounts item by item: what goes in, what must be attached, the deadlines, what happens if an account is late, and how the court or the beneficiaries act on it. For the trustee side (Property Code §113.151 and §113.152) and the executor's commission, see our Texas formats page.
Which Texas account do you need?
| Situation | Account | Statute | Filed with the court? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dependent administration, each year | Annual account | §§359.001–.002 | Yes, with the county clerk |
| Dependent administration, closing | Verified account for final settlement | §§362.003–.004 | Yes |
| Independent administration, on demand | Sworn exhibit and accounting | §404.001 | No; delivered to the person who asked |
| Independent administration, two years on | Accounting and distribution, if ordered | §405.001 | If the court orders it |
| Independent administration, closing | Closing report or notice of closing | §§405.004–.006 | Yes |
| Trust | Statement of accounts | Prop. Code §113.152 | No, unless in litigation |
We're not aware of a mandatory statewide Judicial Council form for these estate accounts, the way California has its GC-400 series. Some county probate courts publish their own checklists or preferred formats, so check the local rules and the court's website for the county where the estate is pending before you finalize anything.
The annual account in a dependent administration
When it's due
The first account is due within 60 days after the first anniversary of the date the personal representative qualified, and it must be sworn (§359.001(a)). After that, an annual account is due within 60 days after each later anniversary for as long as the estate remains in administration (§359.002(a)). The court can order an account at other times too.
What the first account must contain
Section 359.001(b) is a checklist, and a court clerk or auditor will read the account against it. The account must include:
- A claims exhibit. Every claim against the estate presented to the representative during the first 12 months after qualifying, showing which were allowed, which were paid, which were rejected and the date of rejection, and which have been sued on, with the status of each suit.
- Property not previously inventoried. Anything that came into the representative's possession or knowledge that wasn't on the inventory.
- Changes in the estate's property. Any change not previously reported.
- A complete account of receipts and disbursements for the period, with their source and nature. Principal receipts and income receipts must be listed separately.
- A description of all estate property, including its condition, how it's being used, and, if rented, the terms and price of the rental.
- The cash balance on hand, with the name and location of the depository holding it, and any balance deposited as ordered by the court.
- Where personal property is held for safekeeping, if it's in someone else's custody.
- A tax statement: that all tax returns due during the period have been filed and all taxes due have been paid, with the amount, the date paid and the governmental entity paid. If a return or a tax is delinquent when the account is filed, the account must describe the delinquency and give the reasons.
- A bond premium statement: that the representative has paid all bond premiums for the period.
If the estate holds bonds, notes or other securities, §359.001(c) adds more detail for each one: the names of the obligor and obligee (or a statement that it's payable to bearer), the dates of issue and maturity, the interest rate, the serial or other identifying number, how it's secured, and anything else needed to identify it fully.
Building each later account
An annual account can't simply list the year's transactions. Section 359.002(b) requires it to start from the balances in the previous account, add the receipts, subtract the disbursements and arrive at the new balances, so that anyone can rebuild the estate's position year to year. Property already described in a prior account can be described by reference to it rather than repeated.
In practice, that means the closing balance of every account on last year's account has to match the opening balance on this year's, to the cent. That continuity is where most annual accounts go wrong, especially when a bank changes an account number or a brokerage merges accounts mid-year.
What has to be attached
Three kinds of proof go with the account:
- Vouchers for each item of credit claimed, or other evidence the court accepts in place of a voucher (§359.003). Keep the receipt, cancelled check image or invoice for every disbursement, filed in the order the items appear.
- An official letter from the bank or other depository where the estate's money is deposited, showing the amounts on deposit.
- Proof of the securities and other assets held under court order, by one of the methods in §359.004: an official letter from the depository holding them for safekeeping, a certificate from the corporate surety on the bond, a certificate from a clerk of a Texas court of record, or an affidavit of another reputable person the court designates. A certificate or affidavit has to say the person examined the assets, identify them and state when and where they were shown. Instead, the representative can exhibit the securities to the judge, who notes on the account or in the order that they matched. If the representative is itself the depository, the letter has to be signed by someone other than the person verifying the account.
The account itself ends with the representative's affidavit that it contains a correct and complete statement of the matters it covers (§359.005).
What the court does with it
The account is filed with the county clerk, and the judge considers it any time after it has been on file for 10 days (§359.051). The court can't approve it until possession of the cash, listed securities and other assets held under court order has been proven. If the account is incorrect, it has to be corrected before the court approves it (§359.052). Once it's approved, the court can order claims paid, in full if there's enough money or pro rata if there isn't (§§359.053–.054).
Late and missing accounts
Texas treats a missing account seriously. If a representative doesn't file a required annual account, an interested person or the court can have the representative cited to file it and show cause. If the representative still doesn't file, or can't show good cause, the court can revoke the letters and impose a fine of up to $500 (§359.101), and the representative and the sureties are liable for resulting damages and costs. Failing to file another required exhibit or report can, absent good cause, lead to revocation and a fine of up to $1,000 (§359.102). Separately, once 15 months have passed after original letters were granted, an interested person can file a written complaint asking the court to require a sworn exhibit of the estate's condition (§359.006).
The final account in a dependent administration
Contents
When the estate is ready to close, the representative files a verified account for final settlement (§362.003). It can refer to the inventory and to earlier approved accounts rather than restate them, but §362.004 requires it to show, fully and in detail:
- the property belonging to the estate that came into the representative's possession, and how it was disposed of;
- the debts paid;
- any debts and expenses still owing;
- the property still on hand;
- the persons entitled to receive the estate, their relationship to the decedent, their residence if known, and whether each is an adult or a minor (and, for a minor, the name of any guardian);
- any advancement or payment made to those persons;
- the tax returns filed and taxes paid, with amounts, dates and the entities paid, and the reasons for any delinquency; and
- the bond premiums paid.
Vouchers go with it for each item not already accounted for in an earlier approved account.
Notice and approval
When the account is presented, the county clerk issues citation, given to each heir or distributee by a qualified delivery method unless the court orders otherwise, stating the time and place the court will consider the account and that the person may appear and contest it (§362.005). The representative also sends each of them a copy of the account, by qualified delivery or electronically. The representative then files an affidavit, or the attorney files a certificate, confirming citation and delivery. The court may allow citation to be waived.
The court then audits and settles the account, and it can restate it if it finds errors (§362.006). After the court orders distribution and the representative delivers the property and files the receipts, the court discharges the representative (§§362.012–.013). A representative found to have neglected, after demand, to deliver estate property ordered to be delivered can be liable for damages of 10% of the amount withheld for each month it's withheld (§362.052), which is reason enough to have the final account ready before the hearing.
Accounting in an independent administration
The §404.001 demand
An independent executor files no annual account with the court. Instead, at any time after 15 months from the date the clerk first issued letters, any person interested in the estate can demand an accounting, which the executor furnishes as a written, sworn exhibit (§404.001). Any other interested person is entitled, on demand, to a copy of it.
The accounting has to set out, in detail:
- each item of property that came into the executor's possession or knowledge;
- how each item has been disposed of;
- each debt paid;
- each debt still owing;
- the property still in the executor's possession;
- any other facts needed for a full and definite understanding of the estate's exact condition; and
- the facts, if any, that show why the administration shouldn't be closed and the estate distributed.
The executor has 60 days after receiving the demand to comply. If not, the person who asked can bring an action in the probate court to compel it. After the first accounting, later demands can be made at intervals of at least 12 months. An executor who fails to make an accounting required by law can also be removed after citation (§404.0035).
Even though no court reviews it, treat the §404.001 accounting as if one might. It's sworn, it's the record a beneficiary will use to decide whether to sue, and it often ends up attached to a petition.
After two years
At any time after two years from the date the clerk first issued letters, a person interested in an estate still under independent administration can petition for an accounting and distribution (§405.001). The court can order an accounting with the information it needs to decide whether to distribute, and if everything is distributed, it can order a final account and close the administration. An executor who wants a court's blessing before closing can instead ask for a judicial discharge (§405.003); the court can require a final account in that proceeding too.
Closing: report or notice
Once the known debts have been paid (or paid as far as the assets allow), no litigation is pending and the remaining assets have been distributed, an independent executor can close the estate in one of two ways (§405.004):
- A closing report under §405.005, verified by affidavit, showing the property that came into the executor's possession, the debts paid, the debts still owing, the property remaining after the debts were paid, and the names and addresses of the distributees who received it. If property remained to distribute, signed receipts or other proof of delivery go with it.
- A notice of closing estate under §405.006, verified by affidavit, stating that the known debts have been paid (or paid as far as the assets permitted), that the remaining assets have been distributed, and the names and addresses of the distributees. Before filing it, the executor gives each distributee a copy, and the filing includes signed receipts or other proof that they got it.
Under §405.007, the administration is considered closed 30 days after the report or notice is filed unless an interested person files an objection in that time. If the executor gave bond, filing a closing report (with proof of delivery, where required) releases the sureties from liability for future acts; filing a notice of closing doesn't. Texas doesn't require an independent executor to use either closing procedure (§405.012), but many do, because closing ends the executor's authority and cancels the letters.
The notice of closing is shorter, but the closing report gives distributees and the court a full account of what happened, which can head off disputes. Either way, the numbers behind it come from the same ledger.
Preparing a Texas estate account, step by step
- Confirm the type of administration from the letters: dependent or independent. That decides which list above applies.
- Fix the period. For an annual account, it runs from qualification (or the last account) to the anniversary. For a §404.001 accounting, it usually runs from letters to a recent month end.
- Start from the inventory, or last year's closing balances, account by account.
- Record every receipt and disbursement from the statements, with source and nature, keeping principal and income receipts separate.
- Tie each account to its statement balances at the start and end of the period.
- Assemble the extras: the claims exhibit, the property descriptions and rental terms, tax and bond-premium statements, and securities details.
- Collect the proof: vouchers, depository letters and securities proof for a dependent administration; distributee receipts for a closing report.
- Swear to it and file it, or deliver it to the person who asked.
Common problems
- An annual account whose opening balances don't match last year's closing balances.
- Principal and income receipts lumped together, which §359.001 and §113.152 both forbid.
- Missing vouchers for routine items such as utility autopays and bank fees.
- A §404.001 accounting that lists transactions but never explains why the estate is still open.
- Filing a closing report without distributee receipts.
Frequently asked questions
Does an independent executor have to file annual accounts?
No. Annual accounts are a feature of dependent administration. An independent executor accounts when an interested person demands it under §404.001, when a court orders it, and at closing.
Is there a statewide Texas accounting form?
Not one we're aware of for these estate accounts. The statutes set the required contents. Some counties publish local requirements, so check with the court where the estate is pending.
How long do beneficiaries have to object to a closing report?
The estate is considered closed 30 days after the closing report or notice of closing is filed, unless someone files an objection in that time (§405.007).
What's the penalty for not filing an annual account?
The court can fine the representative up to $500 and revoke letters (§359.101), and a missing exhibit or report can bring a fine of up to $1,000 (§359.102).
Does Summafolio file the account?
No. Summafolio is software, not legal advice, and not a law firm. It doesn't file anything, fill in official forms or cite anyone. Have an attorney review the account and handle the filing and notice requirements.
How Summafolio handles it
Summafolio builds the receipts and disbursements, principal and income separately, from the statements for each account, and checks every account against its statement balances so each year's account picks up exactly where the last one ended. You add the claims exhibit, the tax and bond statements and the oath. See the Texas formats page, the sample accounting, or the Texas executor fee calculator.