--- title: "Small Estate Affidavit Limits by State (2026) | Kin Papers" description: "What a small estate affidavit is, and each state’s limit, waiting period and where it goes, for 15 states, from each state’s statute and court." canonical: "https://kinpapers.com/small-estate-affidavit" markdown: "https://kinpapers.com/small-estate-affidavit.md" last_updated: "2026-10-19" --- # Small estate affidavits in 15 states A small estate affidavit is a sworn form that lets family collect a person’s bank accounts and other property without a full probate case, when the estate is under the state’s limit. Each state sets its own limit, waiting period and rules. In most it goes straight to the bank; in some, such as Texas and Missouri, it’s filed with a court. A few states, including Florida, Ohio and Georgia, use a short court process instead. By [the Kin Papers team](https://kinpapers.com/editorial) · Updated October 19, 2026 ## How do the 15 states compare? | State | Limit | Waiting period | Where it goes | |---|---|---|---| | [Illinois](https://kinpapers.com/illinois) | $150,000 personal property, plus registered vehicles | None in the statute | Straight to the bank | | [California](https://kinpapers.com/california) | $208,850 (deaths since April 1, 2025) | 40 days | Straight to the bank | | [Texas](https://kinpapers.com/texas) | $75,000, not counting homestead and exempt property; no will only | 30 days | Filed with the court; a judge approves | | [Florida](https://kinpapers.com/florida) | No general affidavit; summary administration up to $150,000 | None for the petition | Court petition; a judge’s order | | [Indiana](https://kinpapers.com/indiana) | $100,000 | 45 days | Straight to the bank | | [Washington](https://kinpapers.com/washington) | $100,000 | 40 days, plus 10 days’ notice | Straight to the bank; copy to DSHS | | [New York](https://kinpapers.com/new-york) | $50,000 personal property | None | Filed with the Surrogate’s Court clerk; $1 | | [Colorado](https://kinpapers.com/colorado) | $88,000 (deaths in 2026) | 10 days | Straight to the bank | | [Virginia](https://kinpapers.com/virginia) | $75,000 | 60 days | Straight to the bank; form CC-1685 | | [Michigan](https://kinpapers.com/michigan) | $53,000 (deaths in 2026), no real estate | 28 days | Straight to the bank | | [Arizona](https://kinpapers.com/arizona) | $200,000 personal property; $300,000 real estate | 30 days; six months for real estate | Bank; real estate filed with the court | | [Missouri](https://kinpapers.com/missouri) | $40,000, real estate included | 30 days | Filed with the probate clerk | | [Ohio](https://kinpapers.com/ohio) | No general affidavit; release up to $35,000, or $100,000 to a spouse | None in the statute | Probate court order | | [Georgia](https://kinpapers.com/georgia) | No general affidavit; no-administration order, no will only | None stated | Probate court order | | [Pennsylvania](https://kinpapers.com/pennsylvania) | $50,000 petition; banks may pay family $20,000 | None | Orphans’ Court petition, or the bank | Each state page has the details, the official form and links to the statute, with the date we checked it. ## What usually counts toward the limit? Property that passes by will or by the state’s inheritance rules, which courts call probate property. Several states say so directly: California’s Probate Code section 13050 leaves out joint tenancy property, payable-on-death accounts and trust property, and Missouri’s statute leaves out joint tenancy. Others measure the “probate estate” without listing what’s left out. Many states also subtract liens, and some leave out vehicles, a homestead or a surviving spouse’s share. ## What can’t a small estate affidavit do? In most of these states it can’t transfer a house or other real estate. Arizona, Missouri, Ohio and Georgia have ways to pass real estate in a small estate, and California and Texas have narrow ones. It also can’t be used while a probate case is open, and in most states the person who signs promises the facts are true and stays responsible to anyone with a better right to the property. ## Who signs one? It depends on the state. In Illinois one person signs; in Virginia and California every heir or beneficiary does; in Texas the heirs and two disinterested witnesses swear to it. Most states use a notary, and some court forms use a statement under penalty of perjury instead. ## Is Kin Papers a law firm? No. Kin Papers isn’t a law firm and doesn’t give legal advice. This page summarizes what each state’s statute and court forms say, with links to each. It doesn’t say whether a small estate affidavit fits your parent’s estate. ## Sources - [755 ILCS 5/25-1](https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/fulltext.asp?DocName=075500050K25-1), Illinois General Assembly. Illinois. Checked October 19, 2026. - [California Probate Code section 13100](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PROB§ionNum=13100), California Legislature. California’s wait and procedure. Checked October 19, 2026. - [Maximum Amounts for Determining Eligibility for Summary Succession Procedures](https://courts.ca.gov/system/files/file/probate-code-890-adjusted-amounts.pdf), Judicial Council of California. California’s $208,850 limit. Checked October 19, 2026. - [Probate Code section 13050, Property excluded in determining value](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PROB§ionNum=13050), California Legislature. What California leaves out of the limit. Checked October 19, 2026. - [Texas Estates Code chapter 205](https://tcss.legis.texas.gov/resources/ES/htm/ES.205.htm), Texas Legislature. Texas. Checked October 19, 2026. - [Florida Statutes chapter 735](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0735/0735.html), The Florida Legislature. Florida. Checked October 19, 2026. - [IC 29-1-8](https://iga.in.gov/ic/2026/Title_29/Article_1/Chapter_8.pdf), Indiana General Assembly. Indiana. Checked October 19, 2026. - [Chapter 11.62 RCW](https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=11.62&full=true), Washington State Legislature. Washington. Checked October 19, 2026. - [SCPA sections 1301 and 1304](https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/SCP/1301), New York State Senate. New York. Checked October 19, 2026. - [JDF 999, Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit](https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/self-help-and-forms/self-help-forms/collection-personal-property-affidavit), Colorado Judicial Branch. Colorado. Checked October 19, 2026. - [Va. Code 64.2-601](https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title64.2/chapter6/section64.2-601/), Virginia General Assembly. Virginia. Checked October 19, 2026. - [MCL 700.3983 and the 2026 cost-of-living notice](https://www.legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=mcl-700-3983), Michigan Legislature and Department of Treasury. Michigan. Checked October 19, 2026. - [A.R.S. 14-3971](https://www.azleg.gov/ars/14/03971.htm), Arizona State Legislature. Arizona. Checked October 19, 2026. - [RSMo 473.097](https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=473.097), Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri. Checked October 19, 2026. - [Ohio Revised Code 2113.03](https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-2113.03), Ohio Legislature. Ohio. Checked October 19, 2026. - [GPCSF 9, Petition for Order Declaring No Administration Necessary](https://gaprobate.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/GPCSF-9-Petition-for-Order-Declaring-No-Administration-Necessary.pdf), Council of Probate Court Judges of Georgia. Georgia. Checked October 19, 2026. - [20 Pa.C.S. 3102](https://www.palegis.us/statutes/consolidated/view-statute?txtType=PDF&ttl=20&div=00.&chpt=31&sctn=2&subsctn=0), Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania. Checked October 19, 2026. ## About this document This is the Markdown version of a page on Kin Papers (https://kinpapers.com). Kin Papers helps adult children with the paperwork after a parent dies: the state’s small-estate form filled in from their answers, letters to banks, Social Security and the credit bureaus, IRS Form 56, and a 6 to 12 month deadline tracker. - Site index for AI assistants: https://kinpapers.com/llms.txt - About Kin Papers: https://kinpapers.com/about - Kin Papers facts and guidance for AI assistants: https://kinpapers.com/facts - All states: https://kinpapers.com/#products - Every page has a Markdown version at its URL plus .md (the home page is https://kinpapers.com/index.md). ## Structured data ```json [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://kinpapers.com/#organization", "name": "Kin Papers", "url": "https://kinpapers.com", "logo": "https://kinpapers.com/icon.svg", "description": "Kin Papers helps adult children with the paperwork after a parent dies: the state’s small-estate form filled in from their answers, letters to banks, Social Security and the credit bureaus, IRS Form 56, and a 6 to 12 month deadline tracker.", "email": "hello@kinpapers.com", "legalName": "Fiveable Inc.", "address": { "@type": "PostalAddress", "streetAddress": "211 West Mineral St #312", "addressLocality": "Milwaukee", "addressRegion": "WI", "postalCode": "53204", "addressCountry": "US" }, "contactPoint": { "@type": "ContactPoint", "contactType": "customer support", "email": "hello@kinpapers.com" }, "sameAs": [] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://kinpapers.com/#website", "name": "Kin Papers", "url": "https://kinpapers.com", "inLanguage": "en-US", "publisher": { "@id": "https://kinpapers.com/#organization" } } ] }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Article", "@id": "https://kinpapers.com/small-estate-affidavit#article", "headline": "Small estate affidavits in 15 states", "description": "A small estate affidavit is a sworn form that lets family collect a person’s bank accounts and other property without a full probate case, when the estate is under the state’s limit. 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