Oregon Form OR-243 is the claim you file with the Oregon Department of Revenue to collect a state tax refund owed to a person who has died. You submit it alongside the deceased taxpayer’s final Oregon return, or on its own if the return has already been processed. Only certain people can file it: a surviving spouse or registered domestic partner, a court-appointed personal representative, a trustee of the deceased’s revocable living trust, or the closest surviving relatives when no probate is open. Mail the completed form and required attachments to the Oregon Department of Revenue, PO Box 14700, Salem, OR 97309-0930.1Oregon Department of Revenue. Mailing Addresses
Who Is Allowed to File
The form follows a strict priority order. If someone higher on the list exists, that person must be the one who signs. Filing out of order gets the claim rejected.2Oregon Department of Revenue. Form OR-243 Oregon Claim to Refund Due a Deceased Person
- A surviving spouse or registered domestic partner has first priority. Oregon treats registered domestic partners the same as spouses for this claim.
- A court-appointed personal representative files on behalf of the estate and must attach the court appointment paperwork.
- A trustee of a revocable inter vivos trust the deceased created before death can file if there is no personal representative.
- When none of the above exists, the form moves through family tiers: children (or grandchildren if a child predeceased), then parents, then siblings, then nephews and nieces. You may check only one kinship group, and it must be the closest tier with a living member. A sibling cannot file if the deceased left living children.
The declaration you sign at the bottom of the form swears no closer family exists. False swearing carries penalties under Oregon law.
What to Gather Before You Start
Missing paperwork is the fastest way to reset the clock. Have everything on hand before you fill anything in.
For the form itself, you need the deceased taxpayer’s full legal name, Social Security number, date of death, and last permanent address, plus your own name, Social Security number, phone number, and mailing address. You also need the tax year of the refund and the refund amount from the final return.
For the attachments:
- A photocopy of the death certificate. Don’t send the original.2Oregon Department of Revenue. Form OR-243 Oregon Claim to Refund Due a Deceased Person
- A copy of your Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration if you are the personal representative. These are the documents the probate court issues to prove you can act for the estate.3Oregon Judicial Department. Probate FAQ
- A copy of the small estate affidavit, if you are filing as a responsible party under one instead of opening probate.
Working Through the Form
The top of the form is straightforward identification. Fill in the deceased taxpayer’s information, then your own. Check the Social Security numbers carefully. A single transposed digit is the most common reason paper tax forms get delayed.
Questions 1 through 5 route you based on your legal role. Question 1 asks whether a personal representative has been appointed. If yes, that person is the required filer; skip to question 4 and check box (a), attaching the court appointment. If you are filing under a small estate affidavit instead, check box (b) at question 4 and attach the affidavit.
Question 5 is the one people miss. It asks whether the total owed to the deceased from all Oregon state agencies combined exceeds $10,000. That includes this refund plus any other outstanding state payments. If the answer is yes, OR-243 alone will not release the money.
Question 6 is for filers with no probate and no personal representative. Check one box only, for the closest surviving kinship tier: surviving spouse or registered domestic partner; trustee of a revocable living trust the deceased created; children (or the children of a predeceased child); parents; siblings; or nephews and nieces. If you don’t fit any of those categories, you cannot use OR-243.
At the bottom, you sign under penalty of false swearing. Your signature promises that you will use the refund to pay the deceased’s final medical and funeral expenses if needed, and that you will account for the money to the personal representative if probate later opens, or to other people entitled to share if it doesn’t. The state notes that it is not responsible for that accounting between family members.
The $10,000 Threshold
If the deceased is owed more than $10,000 total from all Oregon state agencies combined, OR-243 on its own will not work. You have to either file a small estate affidavit with the court or open a full probate proceeding, then attach the resulting court document to your OR-243.
Oregon’s small estate affidavit is available when the estate’s personal property is $75,000 or less in fair market value and any real property is $200,000 or less.4Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code 114.510 – Simple Estate Criteria Above those limits, full probate is the only route.
Where to Send It
OR-243 is a paper form. If the final Oregon return (Form OR-40) has not been filed yet, attach OR-243 to the front of it and mail them together. If the return was already filed and processed, mail OR-243 by itself with the death certificate and any court documents.
The address for either situation is:
Oregon Department of Revenue
PO Box 14700
Salem, OR 97309-0930
Use certified mail or another trackable service. Claims are processed by hand, and delivery confirmation is your only protection if an envelope goes missing.
Deadline to Claim the Refund
Under ORS 314.415, you must claim the refund within three years from the date the return was filed, or within two years from the date the tax was paid, whichever period ends later.5Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code 314.415 – Refunds Interest Credits After that, the state keeps the money. If the deceased never filed the return in the first place, the clock hasn’t started, but you still have to file that final return for the refund to exist.
After You File
The Department of Revenue reviews these claims manually. Staff verify the death certificate, your legal standing, and the refund amount against the final return. Because the review is hand-processed on top of the standard paper-return timeline, expect it to take noticeably longer than a routine paper refund.6Oregon Department of Revenue. Paper Return Processing Delays in 2026
If everything checks out, the refund goes to you personally when you filed as a spouse, partner, or heir, or to the estate when a personal representative filed. If the department finds a problem, such as a missing death certificate, the wrong kinship box, or a competing claim, it will contact you before paying anything, which adds time.
OR-243 Does Not Cover Federal Refunds
OR-243 handles only the Oregon refund. A federal refund owed to the same deceased taxpayer is a separate filing with the IRS, generally using Form 1310.7Internal Revenue Service. About Form 1310, Statement of Person Claiming Refund Due a Deceased Taxpayer A surviving spouse filing a joint federal return does not need Form 1310 for the federal side.8Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 356, Decedents Oregon has no equivalent shortcut; a surviving spouse still files OR-243 for the state refund.