Estates

• Filing Form 56 is mandatory for the guardian, trustee, administrator or other person who is responsible for a decedent's estate. A single Form 56 only establishes a relationship between a single trustee and a single estate. If there are multiple trustees and one estate, each trustee files the form; and if there are multiple estates and one trustee, the trustee files a form for each estate. An estate trustee must specify whether the decedent had a valid will and list the date the decedent died.
  
  

Bankruptcy

• A bankruptcy trustee, an assignee or receiver can also file Form 56. According to the Internal Revenue Service, filing this form shows that the trustee is qualified to manage the debtor's assets. The trustee must include the date that the court assigned the assets on Form 56. The trustee can file Form 56 for a bankrupt company or a bankrupt individual.
  
  

Supplemental Forms

• When a fiduciary files Form 56 to cancel the relationship, the fiduciary is still responsible for paying federal and state taxes on the estate, which may include tax liabilities in future years. According to the Internal Revenue Service, the fiduciary can file Form 4810, which asks the Internal Revenue Service to calculate and quickly assess all future years' taxes on the estate. The fiduciary can also file Form 5495 to remove any future responsibility to pay debts that the estate incurs. Filing Form 4810 or Form 5495 is optional.
  
  

Failed Bank

• The purpose of filing Form 56F is when the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or another federal financial agency takes over a failed bank. According to the Internal Revenue Service, if the agency becomes the fiduciary before the other bank becomes insolvent, the agency has to file Form 56F again. The agency has to file Form 56F every year that it manages the assets of the failed bank.