971-A - Additional proceedings in estates of non-domiciliary decedents.
§ 971-a. Additional proceedings in estates of non-domiciliary decedents. (a) Condition to appointment of executor for nonresident. Every petition for ancillary letters testamentary or of administration and every petition for original letters testamentary or of administration in the estate of a decedent who at the time of his death was not domiciled in this state, shall set forth the commissioner of taxation and finance as a party to be cited, and upon the presentation thereof the surrogate shall issue a citation directed to the commissioner. The decree of the surrogate awarding the letters may contain any provision for the payment of the tax imposed by this article or the giving of security therefor which might be made by such surrogate if the commissioner of taxation and finance were a creditor of the decedent. (b) Notification in case of estate of nonresident. Whenever the commissioner of taxation and finance is cited on the issuance of original letters testamentary or of administration in the estate of a decedent not domiciled in this state as provided in subsection (a) of this section, the commissioner shall notify the proper taxing authorities of the state in which such decedent was domiciled of the fact of the filing of the petition and shall furnish information submitted by the executor to the commissioner as to the decedent's property and value thereof. No executor shall be entitled to a final accounting or discharge in a surrogate's court of this state unless he shall have filed with the surrogate, in addition to the certificate or final receipt required under section nine hundred eighty-one of this article, (i) proof that all death taxes, together with interest and penalties thereon, due to the state of domicile of such decedent or to any political subdivision thereof have been paid or secured, or (ii) a consent by the proper taxing authorities of the state of domicile to such final accounting or discharge. (c) Domiciliary state's tax authority as interested party. The official charged with administration of the death tax laws of the domiciliary state shall be deemed a party interested in the estate of a deceased individual who at his death was not a resident of New York state, to the extent that such official may petition for an accounting therein if the death taxes, interest and penalties due to such domiciliary state or a political subdivision thereof are not paid or secured. Upon such petition the surrogate may decree such accounting and may decree the remission to a fiduciary appointed by the domiciliary probate court of so much of the personal property of such estate as may be necessary to insure the payment to the state of domicile, or political subdivision thereof, of the amount of death taxes, interest and penalties due to such state or political subdivision. (d) Requirement of reciprocity. This section shall apply to the estate of a deceased individual who at his death was not a resident of New York state only (i) if the laws of the state of his domicile contain a provision, of any nature or however expressed, whereby this state is given reasonable assurance of the collection of its death taxes, interest and penalties, from the estates of decedents dying domiciled in this state in cases where the estates of such decedents are being administered by the probate court of such other state by virtue of original letters testamentary or of administration, or (ii) if the state in which such decedent was domiciled does not grant letters testamentary or of administration in estates of nonresidents, until after letters have been issued by the state of domicile. (e) Cooperation by commissioner of taxation and finance. The commissioner of taxation and finance shall cooperate with the taxing authorities of the state of domicile of a deceased individual who at hisdeath was not a resident of New York state and shall furnish them with such information as may be requested with respect to any such estate. The provisions of this section shall be liberally construed to insure that the state of domicile of a decedent shall receive any death taxes together with interest and penalties thereon, due to it from such decedent's estate. (f) Definition of state. For the purpose of this section, the term "state" means the states of the United States, the District of Columbia, any territory of the United States and the Dominion of Canada or any province thereof.