Members of the Maryland Association of Certified Public Accountants are answering readers' tax questions through April 15. See below for how to submit a question.

Are expenses incurred as a paid executor of an estate, e.g., travel, telephone calls etc., deductible and if so, where? What about for a paid trustee of a trust fund?

Generally, the administrative expenses of estates and trusts are deductible to the extent they are allowable by the applicable laws of the jurisdiction under which the estate or trust is being administered.

If deductible expenses are in connection with the administration of the estate or trust and are incurred solely because the assets are held in an estate or trust, report on Line 15a of Form 1041, U.S. Income Tax Return for Estates and Trusts.

Frank E. Brodnax, CPA, Ellin & Tucker, Chartered

The above advice is for general purposes only and is not intended as legal, accounting or tax advice. Specific situations may vary.

To ask a tax question, call Sundial, The Sun's telephone information service, at 410-783-1800. Call 410-268-7736 in Anne Arundel County, 410-836-5028 in Harford County, 410-848-0338 in Carroll County. Using a Touch-Tone phone, punch in the four-digit code 6225 after the greeting. To submit questions by e-mail and access an online tax guide, go to The Sun's Web site at www.sunspot.net/tax.

Selected questions will be answered in the Business section. No questions will be answered personally.

Pub Date: 3/27/99