(a) No decree of final settlement of an executor's or administrator's account or of the discharge of an executor or administrator shall be signed unless the petition is accompanied or preceded by a copy of the letter from the Estate and Gift Tax Section of the New York Department of Taxation and Finance captioned “New York Estate Tax Discharge from Liability” showing that no final estate tax is due or that the final estate tax plus interest and penalties, if any, have been paid.

(b) Nothing herein shall preclude the discharge of an executor or an administrator who has complied with the requirements of section 1804(3) of the Surrogate' s Court Procedure Act where a tax has been fixed but not paid because of insufficient funds in the estate, or the representative seeks a discharge before the estate has been administered, or where no return has been filed, or for other sufficient cause.