PA Inheritance Tax Schedule E: Assets, Valuation, and Filing

Schedule E of the Pennsylvania inheritance tax return, filed on form REV-1508, is where you report the decedent’s cash, bank deposits, and miscellaneous personal property that isn’t captured on any other schedule. The Department of Revenue treats it as the catch-all for “all gross probate estate assets not reportable under any other schedule.”¹ One boundary matters up front: anything the decedent held jointly with right of survivorship belongs on Schedule F (REV-1509), not here. Schedule E covers only solely owned property.

What Belongs on Schedule E

The REV-1508 instructions list the categories you’re expected to report:²

Cash on hand, checking and savings accounts, money market funds, and certificates of deposit.
Household and personal items such as jewelry, clothing, furniture, household furnishings, books, and paintings.
Automobiles, boats, and time shares.
Unpaid wages or salaries, rents due but uncollected, rent accrued but not yet due at death, royalties, and leaseholds.
IRAs, annuities, and pension plans where the estate itself (rather than a named beneficiary) receives the proceeds.
Patents, judgments, and reversionary or remainder interests.
Money the estate receives from a personal injury claim the decedent filed before death, and proceeds paid to the estate from wrongful death or survival action settlements.

One less obvious inclusion: out-of-state real estate the decedent had contracted to sell but hadn’t settled before death goes on Schedule E, provided the property isn’t subject to a death tax in the state where it sits. Tangible personal property physically located outside Pennsylvania, on the other hand, isn’t subject to Pennsylvania inheritance tax and doesn’t appear here at all.

What Does Not Belong on Schedule E

Schedule E is a catch-all only after every other schedule has been considered. Schedule E itself warns in bold that “All property jointly owned with right of survivorship must be disclosed on Schedule F.”² A checking account the decedent shared with a child with survivorship rights belongs on Schedule F, no matter how much of the money the decedent contributed.

Other assets have their own designated schedules:¹

Schedule A (REV-1502) for Pennsylvania real estate held solely or as tenants in common.
Schedule B (REV-1503) for stocks and bonds held solely or as tenants in common.
Schedule C (REV-1504) for closely held business interests and sole proprietorships.
Schedule D (REV-1507) for mortgages and notes receivable owed to the decedent.
Schedule G (REV-1510) for lifetime transfers and other non-probate property.

Work through those first. Whatever’s left is Schedule E.

How to Value and Report Each Asset

Every asset on Schedule E is reported at fair market value on the date of death. The form uses columns for an item number, a description, and the date-of-death value; you total the entries and carry the figure to Line 5 on Page 2 of the REV-1500.²

For bank accounts, list the institution’s name and address, the account number, the account type (checking, savings, and so on), and the balance on the date of death. Attach a statement from each institution confirming the reported balance. Interest that had accrued but not yet posted as of the date of death is still part of the value.

For household goods, furniture, vehicles, and similar personal property, the executor can estimate value in most cases. The Department of Revenue doesn’t expect a formal appraisal of a used sofa or an older car. The standard is what a willing buyer would pay a willing seller, not the original purchase price and not the family’s sentimental figure. Undervaluing routine personal property creates problems later if the Department disputes the numbers.

When You Need a Professional Appraisal

The Department draws a bright line. Any single article worth more than $3,000, or any collection of similar items with a combined value over $10,000, requires an appraisal from a qualified expert and a statement of the appraiser’s credentials. This typically comes up with fine jewelry, artwork, antiques, and firearms collections. The appraisal must reflect fair market value as of the date of death, not the date the appraisal is performed.

Litigation proceeds carry their own paperwork. If the estate received money from a personal injury claim the decedent filed before death, or from a wrongful death or survival action settlement, attach the court petition approving the settlement and the signed court order. If the Department already reviewed and accepted the settlement, attach that verification instead. Structured settlements need enough detail for the Department to calculate the present value of future payments.

Safe Deposit Box Contents

If the decedent owned or co-owned a safe deposit box, other than one held jointly with a still-living spouse, its contents typically flow onto Schedule E, and Pennsylvania requires a formal inventory before anyone can access the box. Until the inventory happens, no one may enter the box except to remove a will or burial instructions, and even that limited entry has to occur in front of a bank employee who files form REV-487 with the Department of Revenue.³

To schedule the inventory, the estate representative sends written notice to the Department at least seven days in advance using form REV-1845, by U.S. mail with return receipt service, with a copy to the financial institution. The estate representative, any surviving co-owner, and the estate’s attorney may attend. Within 20 days after the box is opened, the representative files a completed inventory (form REV-485) with the Department’s Safe Deposit Box Unit.³ Cash and personal items from the box land on Schedule E; stock certificates would go on Schedule B; real estate deeds would affect Schedule A.

How the Tax on Schedule E Assets Is Calculated

The rate applied to Schedule E assets depends on the beneficiary’s relationship to the decedent, not on the type of asset. Pennsylvania’s rates are:⁴

0% on transfers to a surviving spouse, transfers between a parent and a child aged 21 or younger, and transfers to qualifying charitable organizations.
4.5% on transfers to direct descendants (adult children, grandchildren), lineal heirs, and the spouse of a deceased child.
12% on transfers to siblings.
15% on transfers to everyone else, including nieces, nephews, friends, and unmarried partners.

When property passes to a married couple with right of survivorship and one spouse would face a higher rate than the other, the lower rate applies to the entire interest.⁴ Charitable organizations, government entities, and certain exempt institutions pay nothing.⁵ The beneficiary identification on Schedule J (REV-1513) is what links each asset to the correct rate, so accuracy there matters as much as accuracy on Schedule E itself.

Filing Schedule E With the REV-1500

Schedule E is never filed on its own. It goes in with the complete REV-1500 return, submitted in duplicate to the Register of Wills in the county where the decedent lived at death.¹ The Register acts as agent for the Department of Revenue, taking the return and any initial payment before forwarding everything to the state.

Attach supporting documentation for every asset listed. Bank statements, account confirmations, appraisals for high-value items, and court orders for litigation proceeds all travel with the return. Missing documentation is one of the most common reasons the Department comes back with questions or adjusts the numbers.

Deadlines, the Early-Payment Discount, and Penalties

The return is due within nine months of the decedent’s death. Pennsylvania offers a real incentive to pay early: if the tax is paid in full within three months of death, the estate receives a 5% discount on the amount paid.⁵ The discount applies even if the final return isn’t ready yet, so estates often submit an estimated payment inside the three-month window and file the completed return later.

The three-month deadline is firm. It doesn’t shift for weekends, holidays, or the complexity of the estate. Miss it and the discount is gone.

Failure to file can result in a penalty of 25% of the tax ultimately found due or $1,000, whichever is less.⁶ Tax not paid within the nine-month window also starts accruing interest, which is where the real cost of delay shows up on larger estates.

After Filing: The Appraisement and Your Appeal Window

Once the return is in, the Department reviews the schedules and issues a Notice of Appraisement setting out its valuation of the estate’s assets, the allowable deductions, and the tax due.⁶ If the Department accepts your figures, the notice matches what you filed. If it disagrees, the notice shows adjusted numbers and a different tax.

The estate has 60 days from receiving the Notice of Appraisement to file an appeal with the Board of Appeals.⁷ The clock starts on receipt, not on mailing. Appeals do best when the estate can hand over additional documentation, such as a competing appraisal or bank records that weren’t in the original filing. Once the window closes, there’s generally no second chance to contest the Department’s valuation.

1
Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. REV-1500 – Inheritance Tax Return
2
Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. REV-1508 – Schedule E Cash, Bank Deposits and Misc. Personal Property
3
Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax and Safe Deposit Boxes Frequently Asked Questions
4
Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 72 P.S. 9116 – Rates
5
Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. Inheritance Tax
6
Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax General Information
7
Pennsylvania Department of Revenue. Time Limitations on Filing Petitions for Appeal – REV-1799A