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How to File BIR Form 1801: Estate Tax Return Requirements and Deadlines

·4 mins
Forms Income Tax Tax Forms BIR Compliance Philippines

BIR Form 1801 is the Estate Tax Return, filed by the executor, administrator, or heirs of a deceased person to report and pay tax on the net estate. Under NIRC Section 84, as amended by the TRAIN Law (Republic Act No. 10963), estate tax is a flat 6% of the net estate, and the return is due within one year from the decedent’s date of death.

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Who must file BIR Form 1801 and what is the estate tax rate? #

BIR Form 1801 must be filed for the estate of any decedent — Filipino citizen, resident alien, or nonresident alien with Philippine-situated property — whose estate is subject to estate tax under the NIRC. The TRAIN Law replaced the old graduated estate tax schedule (which ran up to 20% on larger estates) with a single flat rate of 6% applied to the net estate: the gross estate minus allowable deductions.

Who typically files: the executor or administrator named in a will or appointed by a court; in the absence of either, any of the heirs may file on the estate’s behalf.

What deductions reduce the net estate, and when is the return due? #

The net estate — not the gross estate — is what gets taxed at 6%, and the TRAIN Law simplified the deductions available so most estates no longer need to substantiate every expense individually. The return itself is due within one year of death, a strict deadline that starts running immediately regardless of how long it takes heirs to settle the estate informally.

Key deductions for a citizen or resident decedent:

  • A standard deduction of ₱5,000,000, allowed automatically without needing to prove actual funeral or judicial expenses
  • A family home deduction up to the home’s fair market value — but if that value exceeds ₱10,000,000, the excess above ₱10,000,000 is still taxable
  • Other allowable deductions such as unpaid mortgages, claims against the estate, and transfers for public use, subject to standard substantiation

Filing deadline: BIR Form 1801 and the estate tax due must be filed within one (1) year from the date of death. The BIR Commissioner may grant a reasonable extension — in practice up to 30 days on meritorious grounds — but the extension request must be filed before the one-year deadline lapses, not after.

How do you file BIR Form 1801 step by step? #

Filing follows a defined sequence because the estate tax return, once processed, is what unlocks the eCAR needed to transfer any real property in the estate to the heirs’ names.

  1. Secure a TIN for the estate itself (separate from the decedent’s personal TIN) at the Revenue District Office with jurisdiction over the decedent’s residence
  2. Prepare the estate’s inventory of assets and liabilities, including real property, bank accounts, shares, and vehicles
  3. Compute the net estate by subtracting allowable deductions (standard deduction, family home, unpaid debts) from the gross estate
  4. File BIR Form 1801 and pay the 6% estate tax due, generally through electronic channels under the EOPT Act (Republic Act No. 11976)
  5. Submit supporting documents (death certificate, TINs of heirs, proof of deductions claimed) to the RDO
  6. Receive the eCAR needed to transfer any real property in the estate at the Registry of Deeds

A worked example #

An estate has a gross value of ₱13,000,000, consisting of a family home worth ₱9,000,000 and other assets worth ₱4,000,000. After applying the ₱5,000,000 standard deduction, the net estate is ₱8,000,000. Estate tax due is 6% × ₱8,000,000 = ₱480,000. Because the family home’s ₱9,000,000 value falls below the ₱10,000,000 cap, the full family home value was already accounted for within the estate’s gross figure with no additional excess added back.

Settling this return is also what allows the eCAR to be issued — see RMC No. 75-2026: BIR Clarifies eCAR Issuance and ONETT Processing Rules for the current rules on TINs and manual CAR validity, and BIR Form 1706: How to File Capital Gains Tax on Sale of Real Property for the equivalent process when property is sold rather than inherited.

Summary #

BIR Form 1801 reports a flat 6% estate tax on the net estate, due within one year of death, with a ₱5,000,000 standard deduction available without proof of expenses. Missing the one-year deadline adds surcharge and interest on top of the tax due, and until the return is filed and settled, the estate’s real property cannot be legally transferred to the heirs. For a case on which assets escape estate tax entirely under a special law, see CIR v. Estate of Romig in the Day in Court series.