How to File a Wisconsin Fiduciary Income Tax Return

If you are administering a Wisconsin estate or trust with at least $600 of gross income for the year, you file a Wisconsin fiduciary income tax return on Form 2 with the Department of Revenue. The return starts from the federal Form 1041 you have already prepared, applies a short list of Wisconsin-specific additions and subtractions, and taxes the result at the same graduated rates the state uses for single filers, topping out at 7.65% on income above $323,290 for 2025.¹ For a calendar-year estate or trust, it is due April 15.

Who Has to File Form 2

A resident estate files whenever gross income hits $600 or more during the tax year. Gross income means everything received as money, property, or services before deductions, leaving out anything Wisconsin exempts. One trap catches many personal representatives: if the estate sells the decedent’s home and the gross proceeds top $600, you must file even if the sale produced a loss.²

A nonresident estate files if it receives $600 or more from Wisconsin sources. Those sources include real or tangible property in the state, income from a business or profession carried on in Wisconsin, and gains from selling an interest in a Wisconsin entity.²

Trusts work much the same way. A trust with a Wisconsin-resident grantor or trustee, or one that draws Wisconsin-source income at the $600 level, files Form 2. If a Wisconsin-resident grantor sets up or maintains a trust outside the state, Wisconsin treats it as a tax-avoidance arrangement and taxes the grantor directly on the trust’s income to the extent it would be taxable federally.³

When the Return Is Due

For a calendar-year estate or trust, Form 2 is due April 15 of the following year. Fiscal-year filers have until the 15th day of the fourth month after the close of the tax year. Wisconsin’s dates track the federal Form 1041 dates.²

A federal extension automatically extends the Wisconsin deadline, but only if you do two things. First, pay your estimated Wisconsin tax by the original due date. Second, include a copy of the federal extension form (usually Form 7004) or a statement identifying the federal extension provision when you eventually file the Wisconsin return. For estates and trusts, the federal automatic extension runs five and a half months from the original date.⁴

An extension buys time to file, not time to pay. If your estimate turns out to be unreasonably low, the Department of Revenue can retroactively deny the extension.⁴

How Wisconsin Taxes Estate and Trust Income

Wisconsin runs estate and trust income through the same graduated brackets it uses for single filers. For the 2025 tax year, after inflation adjustment, the brackets are:¹

$0 to $14,680: 3.50%
$14,680 to $50,480: $513.80 plus 4.40% of the amount over $14,680
$50,480 to $323,290: $2,089 plus 5.30% of the amount over $50,480
Over $323,290: $16,547.93 plus 7.65% of the amount over $323,290

This differs from the federal system, which compresses trust brackets so that a trust reaches the top rate at fairly low income. Wisconsin uses the individual thresholds. One narrow exception: an electing small business trust pays tax on all of its income at the highest applicable rate, not the graduated schedule.

Adjustments From Federal to Wisconsin Income

Form 2 begins with federal taxable income from Form 1041 and then reconciles it to Wisconsin taxable income through Schedule A. Most of the real work is in these adjustments, because state and federal rules diverge in a few predictable places.⁵

Common Additions

Interest on obligations of other states and their municipalities. That interest is federally tax-free but taxable in Wisconsin. Add it back, net of related expenses.
State and local taxes deducted on the federal return. Wisconsin does not allow a deduction for state and local taxes paid.
Capital gain and loss differences when Wisconsin cost basis differs from federal basis. The instructions send you to Schedule 2WD to compute the number.
Federal net operating loss carryovers. Wisconsin has its own NOL rules and computes the Wisconsin loss separately.

Common Subtractions

Interest on U.S. government obligations such as Treasury bonds, which federal law exempts from state tax. Subtract the amount net of related expenses.
State and local tax refunds included in federal income, since Wisconsin never allowed the deduction that produced them.
Capital gain and loss adjustments running in the trust’s favor when Wisconsin basis is higher than federal, again through Schedule 2WD.

Other situations can produce adjustments too, including lump-sum distributions reported on federal Form 4972, certain expenses paid to related entities, and differences involving passive foreign investment companies. The Form 2 instructions walk through each line.

Estimated Tax Payments During Administration

If the estate or trust expects to owe $500 or more when it files, it must make quarterly estimated payments.⁶ For a calendar-year filer, the 2026 installment dates are:

First installment: April 15, 2026
Second installment: June 15, 2026
Third installment: September 15, 2026
Fourth installment: January 15, 2027

You can also pay the full annual estimate with the April installment and skip the rest.⁶ Missing an installment or paying too little triggers underpayment interest. Estates and trusts with taxable income of $20,000 or more lose access to the safe-harbor exceptions that shield smaller filers from that interest.⁷

Preparing and Filing the Return

Finish the federal Form 1041 first. Every figure on Form 2 flows from or references the federal return.² Enter the estate or trust name, federal employer identification number, and the fiduciary’s contact information at the top of Form 2. Transfer federal taxable income to the appropriate line, then work through Schedule A for the additions and subtractions to reach Wisconsin taxable income. Apply the rate schedule to that figure.⁵

You can file Form 2 electronically through the modernized e-file system, which most professional tax software supports, or on paper. E-file provides immediate confirmation of receipt.⁵

For a paper return with tax due, or if you are including Schedule CC to request a closing certificate, mail to:

Wisconsin Department of Revenue
PO Box 8918
Madison, WI 53708-8918

All other paper trust and estate returns go to:

Wisconsin Department of Revenue
PO Box 8965
Madison, WI 53708-8965⁸

Paying What You Owe

Paying electronically on the Department of Revenue website is the simplest option. A direct debit from a checking or savings account carries no fee. Credit cards, Apple Pay, and PayPal are accepted, with a $1.00 transaction fee plus a 2.25% processing fee.⁹ If you file electronically but want to pay by check, send Form PV with the check so the payment gets matched to the right account.¹⁰

Reporting to Beneficiaries

Form 2 requires you to list each beneficiary’s Social Security number and their share of distributed income. The fiduciary must also give each beneficiary a schedule showing their individual share of income, deductions, and credits on or before the return’s due date, including extensions. Beneficiaries need this to report their share on their own Wisconsin returns.¹¹

What Happens If You Pay Late

Wisconsin charges 1.5% interest per month on delinquent income tax, which works out to 18% annually.¹² Interest accrues from the date the taxes became delinquent until they are paid in full. Paying estimated taxes on time and settling any balance by the filing deadline is the way to avoid it.

Income taxes owed by a decedent, estate, or trust are first the personal representative’s or trustee’s responsibility. If the fiduciary has already been discharged and a balance surfaces later, liability shifts to the beneficiaries in proportion to their interests in the estate or trust.³

Requesting a Closing Certificate

A closing certificate is the Department of Revenue’s confirmation that all income tax returns have been filed and all taxes paid for the estate or trust. Before issuing one, the department reviews whether all income from estate or trust assets, including assets outside probate, was properly reported.¹³

You request one by filing Schedule CC with Form 2. Important limit: the department only issues a closing certificate when a Wisconsin probate court requires one to close a proceeding. If your court doesn’t require it, don’t submit Schedule CC.¹⁴

Before a personal representative or trustee applies to court for discharge, Wisconsin law requires filing all outstanding income tax returns with the department. That includes returns for the decedent covering each year still open to assessment, returns for income received during administration, and any required sales and use tax or withholding returns still outstanding.¹¹

1
Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Tax Rates
2
Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Estates, Trusts, and Fiduciaries
3
Wisconsin State Legislature. Wisconsin Code 71 – General Provisions
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Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Extensions of Time to File
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Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Wisconsin Fiduciary Income Tax Return Instructions
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Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Estimated Tax Payments
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Wisconsin State Legislature. Wisconsin Code 71 – Estimated Tax
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Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Tax Return Mailing Addresses
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Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Credit Card and Other Payment Options
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Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Form PV Wisconsin Payment Voucher
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Wisconsin State Legislature. Wisconsin Code 71 – Fiduciary Returns
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Wisconsin State Legislature. Wisconsin Administrative Code Tax 2.88 – Interest Rates
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Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Schedule CC Instructions – Request a Closing Certificate
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Wisconsin Department of Revenue. Request for a Closing Certificate for Fiduciaries