Death certificate
This proves the death. By itself, it does not let a relative withdraw money, sell property, sign for the estate, or change a title. Ask each receiving office which version it needs before ordering copies.
Home & Money / Life event
After a death in Florida, start with authority and the right records.
A death certificate proves the death. A will gives instructions. Neither one gives every family member authority over every account or piece of property.
Take care of the immediate needs, keep the home and records safe, then sort each file by ownership, beneficiary, trust, or court authority. There is no need to settle every account in one afternoon.
Begin here
Make one first folder before opening ten separate errands.
The goal is not a perfect estate file on day one. It is a reliable place for the papers, names, property, and open questions that the authorized person will need.
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1.The people and the immediate plan.
Write down the funeral-home and close family contacts. Note who is watching the home or pets and who is keeping one shared list of calls and papers.
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2.The original papers.
Look for the original will, trust, and preneed funeral contract. Add deeds, titles, beneficiary records, insurance policies, and recent statements. Keep originals together and do not write on them.
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3.The property that still needs care.
Keep the home secure and insurance in place. Keep the utilities needed to protect the property, store vehicles safely, and account for the mail while authority is being sorted out.
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4.A simple activity log.
Record each office, person, date, confirmation number, paper sent, and next step. Use a secure route for identity details and certified records when one is available.
The papers are not interchangeable
Four records answer four different questions.
Original will
This records the person's instructions and may nominate a personal representative. It does not appoint that person. Florida gives the custodian a deadline: deposit the original with the clerk that has venue within 10 days after learning of the death.
Letters of administration
These are the court-issued authority for an appointed personal representative to act for the estate. Florida law says that representative's duties and powers begin upon appointment.
Power of attorney
A Florida power of attorney terminates when the principal dies. An agent who handled bills before the death should not keep using that document afterward.
The practical rule: before moving money or property, ask what gives this person authority over this particular file.
Choose the file
Each part of the paperwork has its own front door.
Open only the branch that matches the task in front of you. The office on the other end can tell you which proof belongs in that file.
Record
Death certificate and funeral papers
The funeral director usually starts the death record and reports the death to Social Security. Florida Health can issue certified copies after the record is filed. An adult may request a copy without cause of death. A cause-of-death copy for a death less than 50 years ago has a restricted path.
Pause here: Ask the bank, insurer, court, title office, or benefit plan which copy it needs. More copies are not automatically better.
Authority
Court, probate, trust, or beneficiary path
Start with how each asset is titled and whether it names a beneficiary. Some property may pass outside probate. Other property may need estate administration. A trust has its own trustee and document path. The county clerk or a Florida probate lawyer can match the facts to the right court route.
Pause here: Being a spouse, child, beneficiary, or the person named in a will does not automatically create authority over every asset.
Home
House, homestead, mortgage, and local tax records
Keep insurance and needed services in place while title and authority are checked. Contact the county property appraiser about the exemption record and mailing address. A surviving spouse, joint owner, trust, mortgage, association, or Florida homestead issue can change the next step.
Pause here: Do not sign a deed, promise the house, cancel coverage, or assume the old homestead exemption simply continues until the title and family facts are reviewed.
Vehicle
Cars, mobile homes, and vessels
Match every vehicle or vessel to its title, lien, registration, and insurance record. FLHSMV has a surviving-spouse title-transfer form for a limited path. The right route still depends on ownership, estate status, and the property involved.
Pause here: Do not drive, sell, retitle, or cancel insurance based only on possession of the keys or a death certificate.
Benefits
Social Security, Medicare, pension, VA, and life insurance
Confirm that Social Security received the report. Then ask about survivor benefits. Medicare is notified through Social Security. Contact each employer, pension office, veterans office, and insurer on its own. Each plan sets its eligibility and proof rules.
Pause here: A beneficiary claim is not the same thing as an estate claim. Use the plan or insurer's current claim instructions.
Money
Debts, final taxes, and estate taxes
A final individual income-tax return and an estate's own income-tax return are different questions. The estate may need its own tax ID and Form 1041. Florida no longer requires the old estate-tax affidavit for estates of people who died after 2004. Federal filings, creditor claims, and other tax records can still apply.
Pause here: A relative usually does not owe a deceased person's debt from personal funds unless that relative already has a legal responsibility, such as a joint debt. Do not pay because a caller pressures you.
Accounts
Banks, mail, utilities, subscriptions, and fraud watch
Ask what each institution needs from the beneficiary, joint owner, trustee, or court-appointed representative. Use the proper postal path to forward or monitor mail. Keep services that protect property. Close recurring accounts only when the authorized person can do so without losing records or coverage.
Pause here: Do not share a Social Security number or certified record more widely than the receiving office requires. Watch deeds and identity records for unexpected activity.
When the usual path bends
These facts deserve their own question.
There is no will
Florida intestacy law may control probate property. The absence of a will does not turn the first relative at the door into the personal representative.
There is a revocable trust
Find the complete trust and amendments, then contact the named successor trustee. Assets outside the trust may still need a separate route.
The person lived elsewhere but owned Florida property
Florida real estate can create an ancillary-administration question. Start with the county where the property sits and counsel familiar with both states.
A spouse or heir lives in the Florida home
Florida homestead, title, family status, mortgage, insurance, and property-tax records can overlap. Check before changing occupancy or signing anything.
A Medicaid estate-recovery notice arrives
Keep the notice and deadlines with the estate file. Florida Medicaid's recovery and hardship rules need a case-specific response from the authorized person or counsel.
The person was a veteran or public employee
Contact the VA, employer, or pension plan directly. Survivor benefits, final pay, insurance, and beneficiary records follow separate program rules.
FAQ
After-a-death records and authority answers
Is a death certificate enough to access an account or sell property?
No. It proves the death, but the institution still needs to identify who may act. That authority might come from the account title, a beneficiary, a trust, a court order, or court-issued letters of administration.
Can someone keep using a Florida power of attorney after the death?
No. Florida law says a power of attorney terminates when the principal dies. A surviving owner, beneficiary, trustee, or court-appointed personal representative uses the authority that applies after death.
Does a will avoid probate or appoint the executor by itself?
Not necessarily. A will gives instructions and may nominate a personal representative, but the court appoints the representative. Whether an asset needs probate depends on its title, beneficiary, trust, and other facts.
Does every Florida estate need formal probate?
No. Florida has more than one estate path, and some assets may pass outside probate. The asset type, title, value, debts, family facts, and time since death can change the route. Start with the county clerk or a Florida probate lawyer instead of choosing a court process from a generic checklist.
Which Florida death certificate should I order?
Ask whether the office needs a certified copy and whether it needs the cause-of-death section. An adult may request a Florida copy without cause of death. For a death less than 50 years ago, a copy with cause of death has a restricted eligibility and proof path.
Am I personally responsible for a relative's debts?
Usually not merely because you are related. The estate generally handles the deceased person's debts. A survivor can still have responsibility for a joint debt, a co-signed debt, or another obligation already tied to that person, so check the exact account before paying or promising anything.
What should happen to the Florida home and homestead record?
Keep the property protected, then check the deed, mortgage, insurance, family facts, and any trust or court record. Contact the county property appraiser promptly about the exemption and mailing record. Do not assume the old exemption or ownership path continues unchanged.
Who tells Social Security and Medicare?
The funeral home usually reports the death to Social Security. If you are not sure it happened, contact Social Security. Medicare receives the report through Social Security, while survivor-benefit questions need their own Social Security review.
Next steps
Related directory paths
The useful next page depends on the county, record, property, or person whose authority needs to be checked.
Your Town
Find the Florida county
Start with the place page for the county clerk, property appraiser, tax collector, and recorded-property paths.
Find the county ->Vital records
Florida death-certificate copies
See why the cause-of-death line changes who may request a recent record.
Read the note ->Professional check
Verify a Florida lawyer
Use the Florida Bar directory to check status, contact information, and practice details.
Open the note ->Inherited home
Start with the deed and authority
Sort protected homestead, the property-tax file, mortgage, insurance, occupancy, and the keep-or-sell decision.
Open the inherited-home guide ->Official checks
Records and authority behind this guide
Florida law separates proof of death, a will, court appointment, title, beneficiary records, and a trust. Federal and state agencies then control their own benefit, tax, debt, and account processes.
Last reviewed: July 14, 2026
- Florida Department of Health - death certificates
- Florida Statutes 732.901 - deposit of an original will
- Florida Statutes 731.201 - letters and personal representative definitions
- Florida Statutes 733.601 - when a personal representative's powers begin
- Florida Statutes 709.2109 - termination of a power of attorney
- The Florida Bar - Probate in Florida
- FLHSMV - title-transfer questions after a death
- Social Security - what to do when someone dies
- IRS - final income-tax return of a deceased person
- IRS - estate income-tax return
- Florida Department of Revenue - estate tax
- Florida Department of Revenue - property-tax exemption after an owner's death
- CFPB - debts after a death
- Florida Medicaid - third-party liability and estate recovery
Use this carefully: This page routes records; it does not decide who inherits, whether a particular asset needs probate, who is personally liable, or which court process fits an estate. For those decisions, use the county clerk and a Florida probate lawyer with the actual title, family, debt, and document facts.
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