PayPal, Venmo, and Cash App After a Death

Digital payment apps — PayPal, Venmo, Cash App, Zelle — have become routine parts of how people handle money. When someone dies, these accounts may hold balances that are part of the estate, and they may be linked to recurring payments or subscriptions. Here's how to handle each platform.

General Principles

Digital payment account balances are estate assets — they belong to the estate just like bank account balances. The executor has the responsibility to identify all accounts, recover any balances, and close the accounts. Balances are typically transferred to the estate bank account.

Most platforms do not allow account access to be granted to a third party — you'll need to either use the deceased's login credentials (if available) or go through the platform's official deceased account process. The official process is slower but more reliable.

PayPal

PayPal allows estate representatives to recover account balances and close accounts. The process:

1. Go to PayPal's Help Center and search for "deceased" or "bereavement"
2. Submit a request through their deceased customer process, providing:
   • Your name and contact information
   • Your relationship to the deceased
   • A certified copy of the death certificate
   • Proof of your authority to act (letters testamentary or proof of relationship)
3. PayPal's specialist team reviews the documentation and processes the claim
4. Balances are transferred to the estate via check or bank transfer

Note that PayPal also offers PayPal Credit — a line of credit linked to PayPal accounts. If the deceased had PayPal Credit balance owed, this is a debt of the estate. Notify PayPal Credit separately.

Venmo

Venmo (owned by PayPal) has a similar but separate process. Contact Venmo Support through their Help Center and indicate that you're reporting the death of an account holder. Provide the death certificate and your relationship documentation.

Venmo balances are smaller in most cases than PayPal — many users transfer Venmo balances to their bank accounts regularly — but they should still be claimed if there is a balance.

Cash App

Cash App (owned by Block, Inc.) allows next of kin or legal representatives to request account closure and balance transfer after a death. Contact Cash App Support through the app or website. You'll need to provide documentation of the death and your relationship or authority.

Cash App also offers Cash App Investing (stock purchases) — if the account has an investment account, this needs to be handled as part of the estate investment account process.

Zelle

Zelle is slightly different from the others — it's a bank-to-bank transfer service integrated into many banking apps (Bank of America, Chase, Wells Fargo, etc.) rather than holding a balance. Zelle itself doesn't maintain balances; transfers go directly between bank accounts.

If the deceased used Zelle, notify the bank where it was linked. The Zelle service will be disabled when the bank account is notified of the death and closed or updated. There is typically no separate Zelle balance to recover.

Apple Pay and Google Pay

These are primarily payment methods, not balance-holding accounts. However:

• Apple Cash: Part of the Wallet app — this does hold a balance. Contact Apple with the death certificate to claim this balance. Apple will typically require the executor to go through their process.
• Google Pay balance: If the deceased had a Google Pay balance, notify Google through their deceased account process.

Cryptocurrency Wallets Within Apps

Some payment apps include cryptocurrency wallets (PayPal, Cash App, and others offer crypto). These are handled separately from cash balances — see our article on cryptocurrency after a death for details.

Timing

Process these accounts within the first month of estate administration. Balances may accrue fees or be affected by inactivity policies if left unattended. Also watch for any incoming payments to these accounts — friends or family may not know the person has died and send money that should be returned or handled as estate income.

For the complete accounts management overview, see our managing accounts guide. For protecting these and other financial accounts from identity theft, see our article on protecting online financial accounts after a death.