The IRS recently announced that estates of married individuals where a spouse died during the 1/1/11-6/30/11 period, with assets of $5 million or less, will now have 15 months after the date of death to create a portability election. The portability election permits a surviving spouse to take into account any unused exclusion amount from the deceased spouse. The executor will need to file Form 4768 and Form 706 no later than 15 months after the date of death. The extra time can be utilized even if the estate did not request an automatic six-month extension before the normal nine-month filing deadline. Executors should file Form 4768 with the IRS and enter the notation “Notice 2012-21, Extension for Good Cause Shown” at the top of the form.