Financial Steps to Take if Your Spouse Passes Away

by MMBB Financial Planning Specialist Keith R. Davenport, CFP®, MPAS^TM, RICP® 

This article covers the following steps:

• Reviewing your finances
• Records that should be gathered
• Notifying key institutions
• Understanding immediate expenses
• Working with MMBB if you’re a member

Losing a spouse is one of life’s most painful experiences, and the emotional weight can feel overwhelming. Yet even while grieving, important decisions may require attention in the days and weeks that follow. Surviving spouses are often faced with immediate tasks—planning a funeral, notifying institutions, and addressing urgent financial matters—at a time when clear thinking is difficult. While finances may be the last thing a widow or widower wants to consider, taking thoughtful steps is essential for long term stability. The guidance below outlines what to do if your marital partner passes and underscores the value of organizing key documents in advance to ease the burden for those we leave behind.

Review Your Finances

If you’ve just lost your spouse, before you take any action, ensure you understand your entire financial picture. Most couples have bills and expenses coming in every month, and they may not even know what they’re paying or their spouse’s outstanding debts. Start by creating a list of known assets and recurring expenses. This exercise may even help to reveal assets you didn’t know you had, like additional life insurance policies.  
In the initial days and weeks following a loss, avoid significant financial decisions until you’ve had time to process your initial grief and consult with trusted family members and financial advisors. Dealing with emotional loss and financial decisions too quickly can impair your ability to make thoughtful and informed decisions while you’re mourning.

Gather Records 

Gathering important documents is often a daunting task. Locate wills, trusts, insurance policies (life, health, home, auto), bank statements, investment accounts, credit card information, mortgage documents, and recent tax returns. Create a dedicated folder or digital file for these. Once assembled, these will be important for many reasons, including getting a fuller perspective of your late spouse’s affairs and what records will be needed for settling matters of the estate.  

While your marital partner may have organized some of these documents, you may have to search for some of them. It might be tempting to throw things away, but create a file for those items since they might become more important later.  It may also be helpful to ask family members or close friends you trust to help you go through documents, if only for support during this task. To access other documents, you may require a court order.  For example, in some states, safe deposit boxes are sealed when someone dies and then you need a court’s consent to access the boxes.

Here is a list of some important documents you’ll require: 

• Death certificates - You will need to provide a copy of the death certificate every time you either make a claim for benefits or need to retitle assets from your late spouse’s name.  So, you may want to gather multiple copies initially. If you work with a funeral director, they can help you here.  If not, you can retrieve copies from the county health department. There is usually a charge for each certified copy.
• Insurance policies - If you can’t locate policies, you can call the insurance company or reach out to your late spouse’s life insurance agent. 
• Marriage license - You may need a copy of your marriage certificate to apply for certain benefits. If you can’t find it, you can usually get copies from the county clerk where the marriage license was issued.
• Social Security information - Be sure to have your social security number along with your late spouse’s and any dependent children’s social security numbers. If you don’t know your marital partner’s social security number, try checking past tax returns, employment records or other benefits records. If you can’t locate that paperwork, copies are available from the public health office of the state or county where your spouse was born.

Notify key institutions

Inform banks, credit card companies, insurance providers, employers (if applicable), and any other financial entities of your spouse’s passing. They usually outline their specific processes for account transfers or closures.

Understand immediate expenses

Be prepared for funeral and memorial costs. If your spouse had life insurance, initiate the claim process promptly. This payout can help cover immediate expenses and provide a crucial buffer.

Working with MMBB

If your spouse was an MMBB member, notify MMBB as soon as possible to start the death settlement process, which may include continuing benefits for you and transferring your spouse’s remaining asset balance to your name.  Once notified, we will log the date of death into our records, and a Senior Benefits Specialist will work with you to start drafting a letter outlining the next steps.  You will need to provide us with a certified copy of the death certificate. As funds are transferred into your account if more advanced planning is needed, you can ask to speak with one of MMBB’s certified financial planners for additional guidance on options that best fit your needs. Note: This service is offered at no cost to you as a benefit of your late spouse’s membership with MMBB.

Losing a spouse reshapes life in profound ways, and navigating financial responsibilities during such a vulnerable time can feel daunting. Yet taking these steps — gathering documents, understanding the full financial picture, and seeking guidance before making major decisions—can help bring clarity and stability when it’s needed most. Remember, you do not have to manage this journey alone. Lean on trusted family members and financial advisors. If you are an MMBB member, remember, we stand ready to support surviving spouses with compassion, expertise and resources designed to safeguard their financial future.