Reference · US taxation

Releasing US assets in an estate

What it takes to unlock US-situs securities for the heirs of a non-resident — beyond the question of tax.

For a decedent who was neither a US citizen nor a US resident (a “NRNC”, nonresident not a citizen), an estate tax treaty can reduce — often to zero — the US estate tax on securities held at a US broker or custodian. (See the US estate tax page and the country sheets for what each treaty provides.)

But the absence of tax does not mean the absence of procedure. As long as the securities are held at a US institution, they are “US-situated assets”, and the institution releases them to the heirs only after an authorization from the US tax authority (the IRS). Whatever treaty applies, this procedural machinery is the same. This page describes it.

General information, not legal or tax advice. Have your situation reviewed by a qualified professional.

The $60,000 threshold

If the gross value of the US-situated assets on the date of death (plus certain prior gifts) exceeds $60,000, the estate has a filing obligation for Form 706-NA — the US estate tax return for NRNC decedents.

• The threshold is not indexed to inflation; it is very low compared with the exemption of US citizens and residents (about $15 million per person in 2026). (Last checked: June 2026.)
• It is assessed before any application of a treaty: you may have to file even though no tax will be due.
• A securities portfolio at a US broker crosses this threshold, in practice, from a few tens of thousands of dollars.

Form 706-NA

Filed by the estate's executor or representative — and, importantly: if no executor is appointed and acting in the United States, US law treats as “executor” every person in possession of the decedent's property, who then bears the filing obligation themselves (the typical case of the beneficiary of a TOD account — see below).

• Deadline: 9 months after death; a 6-month extension of filing is available (Form 4768) — an extension of filing, not of payment (interest runs from the original due date). An executor outside the United States may request an additional extension (a second, reasoned 4768).
• Why file even with no tax due: the return is the vehicle to claim the treaty (a “treaty-based” position to be flagged in an attachment), and it conditions the issuance of the transfer authorization below.
• Absent a treaty (or outside its scope): a marginal rate of up to 40%, a credit limited to $13,000 (effective exemption ≈ $60,000). (Last checked: June 2026.)

→ Download the form, help with filling and filing: see the dedicated 706-NA page.

The transfer certificate

The authorization by which the IRS tells the custodian that the assets may be released. Until it has received it, the institution blocks the transfer.

• Concerns NRNC decedents (deaths after 1976). Exception: not required for property administered by an executor appointed, qualified and acting within the United States — without a US proceeding opened, the exception does not apply.
• Path A (706-NA required, a portfolio above the threshold): send the IRS a copy of the filed 706-NA (two pages + schedules), by fax.
• Path B (706-NA not required, assets below the threshold): a documentary file — will and codicils (translated into English if needed), estate-tax returns filed outside the United States, death certificate, and a notarized affidavit listing all of the decedent's US assets and their values at the date of death, the decedent's citizenship and residence. Do NOT file a 706-NA on this path (it delays issuance). Processing: 12 to 18 months after receipt of the complete file.

IRS fax (last checked: June 2026): 855-201-8011 (from the United States), 304-707-9970 (from abroad).

The TOD designation (transfer on death)

The TOD (transfer on death) is a beneficiary designation, provided for under US state law, that passes the securities account directly to the named person, outside court proceedings (probate). It is the key planning tool for a US account — but it erases neither the 706-NA nor the transfer certificate: the account remains counted in the estate for tax purposes, and it is even the beneficiary who, absent a US executor, bears the filing obligation. Its availability is, moreover, not guaranteed: some institutions offer no beneficiary designation at all, others refuse it to non-US-resident holders.

→ How it works, limits, the beneficiary's path and good practices: see the dedicated TOD page.

The practical sequence

1. Gather: certified death certificate (with English translation), will, and the document establishing the authority of the estate and beneficiaries (a court decision or national probate instrument, apostilled and translated into English — some institutions accept them without a US court proceeding, case by case; your own custodian's policy is to be checked during your lifetime).
2. Value the US-situated assets at the date of death; check the $60,000 threshold (crossed, in practice, for a portfolio).
3. File the 706-NA within 9 months (or request the extension), claiming the applicable treaty where relevant. (Dedicated page: download and filling.) → Form 706-NA
4. Request the transfer certificate (Path A or B as the case may be).
5. Present the certificate to the custodian → release of the assets to the heirs (or to the TOD beneficiary).

The timelines add up: 9 months for the 706-NA, then months (Path A) to 12–18 months (Path B) for the certificate. Prepare the file and beneficiary designations ahead of time.

Removing the source of the problem: substitution

This whole procedure rests on a single fact: the securities are US-situated (issued in the United States, held at a US institution). Holding the equivalent exposure through non-US funds (UCITS) removes that qualification: no 706-NA and no transfer certificate. It is the difference between an arithmetic protection (the tax falls to zero but the machinery still engages) and a structural protection (the asset never enters the US scope). (See the US estate tax page and the country sheets.)