regulation

Bureau of Indian Affairs, Interior

§ 15.108

before we can begin to process the probate package:
(1) Social Security number of the decedent;
(2) The birth certificate or other
record of birth of the decedent, if available;
(3) The death certificate or other reliable evidence of death as required by
§ 15.101;
(4) A list of known creditors against
the estate and their addresses;
(5) Current names and addresses of
potential heirs and beneficiaries;
(6) Any statements renouncing an interest in the estate;
(7) Documents from a court of competent jurisdiction, including but not
limited to:
(i) All marriage licenses of the decedent;
(ii) All divorce decrees of the decedent;
(iii) Adoption and guardianship
records relevant to the decedent;
(iv) Any sworn statements regarding
the decedent’s family, including any
statements of paternity or maternity;
(v) Any name changes; and
(vi) Any order requiring payment of
child support;
(8) All originals or copies of wills and
codicils, and any revocations; and
(9) Any additional documents you
provide or that we request.
(b) You must inform us if any of the
documents or information identified in
this part are not available.

(1) You are responsible for making
the funeral arrangements on behalf of
the family of a decedent who had an
IIM account;
(2) You have an immediate need to
pay for funeral arrangements before
burial; and
(3) The decedent’s IIM account contains more than $2,500 on the date of
death.
(b) You must apply for assistance
under paragraph (a) of this section and
submit to BIA an original itemized estimate of the cost of the service to be
rendered and the identification of the
service provider.
(c) We may approve reasonable costs
up to $1,000 that are necessary for the
burial services, taking into consideration:
(1) The total amount in the account;
(2) The number of probable heirs or
beneficiaries of whom we are aware;
(3) The amount of any claims against
the account of which we are aware; and
(4) The availability of non-trust
funds, and any other relevant factor.
(d) We will make payments directly
to the providers of the services.
§ 15.107 Who prepares an Indian probate package?
The probate specialist or probate
clerk at the agency or tribe where the
decedent is an enrolled member will
prepare the probate package in consultation with the probable heirs or
beneficiaries who can be located.

§ 15.105 Will BIA wait to begin the probate process until it is notified of
the decedent’s death?

§ 15.108 If the decedent was not an enrolled member of a tribe or was a
member of more than one tribe,
who prepares the probate package?

No, we will not wait to begin the probate process until we are notified of
the decedent’s death. If we find out
about the death of a person, and if the
decedent meets the criteria in § 15.3, we
will initiate the process to collect the
necessary documentation. You should
not assume that we will find out about
a death. To assure timely distribution
of the estate, you should notify us as
provided in § 15.101.

Unless otherwise provided by Federal
law, the BIA agency that has jurisdiction over the tribe with the strongest
association with the decedent will
serve as the home agency and will prepare the probate package if the decedent either:
(a) Was not an enrolled member of a
tribe, but owns interests in trust or restricted property; or
(b) Was a member of more than one
tribe.

§ 15.106 Can I get emergency assistance for funeral services from the
decedent’s IIM account?
(a) You may ask BIA for up to $1,000
from the decedent’s IIM account if:

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