Settle a small estate in Alaska without probate
In Alaska this is called: Affidavit for collection of personal property of decedent; small estate (summary) informal probate. If the person owned no real estate that needs probate, and their vehicles are worth $100,000 or less and their other personal property $50,000 or less (after liens), a successor can collect the property 30 days after the death with a sworn affidavit, without a court case.
Up to $50,000, 30 days after the death, no court filing.
Checked against official sources: October 30, 2026.
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Free tools
Small estate checker
Add up the estate and compare it with the Alaska limit for the date of death.
Letter to a bank
Present your signed affidavit to a bank or other holder in Alaska.
Balance request letter
Ask a bank or holder for the balance on the date of death.
What-to-gather checklist
Papers, steps, forms and fees for Alaska, by procedure.
Car, bank, house in Alaska
Car or other vehicle
If the person owned the vehicle alone or with 'AND', and the estate qualifies as a small estate (vehicles $100,000 or less and other personal property $50,000 or less, after liens), a successor can transfer the vehicle with DMV Form 827, Affidavit for an Estate with Assets of $150,000 or Less (or a similar notarized statement with the same information), at least 30 days after the death.
Bank accounts
A joint account with a right of survivorship passes automatically to the surviving owner, and an account with a named beneficiary passes to the beneficiary, without probate.
House or land
An owner can sign a transfer on death deed so real property passes to a named beneficiary at death without probate, subject to any liens or mortgages.
Related pages
Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property of Decedent (court form P-110)
A sworn statement you give to a bank, business or person holding the person's property, so they pay or deliver it to you. It is not filed with the court.
- Limit
Up to $50,000 Counted after subtracting liens (what is owed on the property).
Personal property other than vehicles: $50,000 or less after liens. Vehicles subject to Alaska registration (cars, motorcycles, trucks, trailers, and manufactured homes not permanently attached to land): $100,000 or less in total after liens. The person must not have owned any real estate, unless it passed automatically to someone else.
- What counts
The entire estate, wherever located, minus liens and encumbrances, may consist only of: vehicles that must be registered in Alaska worth $100,000 or less in total, and other personal property worth $50,000 or less. The estate cannot include any real estate, unless it passed automatically to someone else (tenancy by the entirety or a transfer on death deed). Nonprobate property, such as a joint bank account, is not counted.
- Waiting period
At least 30 days must have passed since the death.
- Who can use it
A 'successor': anyone other than a creditor who is entitled to the person's property under the will or Alaska inheritance law, for example a beneficiary named in the will or an heir if there is no will. The court self-help page also lists the personal representative named in the will. No probate case or petition to appoint a personal representative can be pending or granted anywhere.
- Court or where to file
Not filed with the court. You give a copy to each person or business holding the property.
- Notary
Sign under oath before a notary or a court clerk. Notary services are free at all Alaska court locations.
- Papers to attach
- Copy of the death certificate (the holder may ask to see it)
- For a vehicle: DMV Form 827 (or a similar notarized statement with the VIN) and Form V1 Vehicle Transaction Application
- Steps
- Wait until at least 30 days after the death.
- Make sure no probate case has been started and the person had no real estate that needs probate.
- Add up the vehicles and the other personal property separately, minus liens; vehicles must total $100,000 or less and other property $50,000 or less.
- Fill in form P-110 and sign it under oath before a notary or court clerk.
- Give a copy to each holder of the property, with a death certificate if asked.
- Give the property to the people entitled to it under the will or inheritance law; you cannot keep property that belongs to others.
- Fee
There is no court filing fee because the affidavit is not filed with the court. DMV charges title fees for a vehicle (see its fee calculator).
- Debts and responsibility
The person who receives property by affidavit is answerable and accountable for it to any personal representative later appointed and to anyone with a superior right. If a personal representative is appointed later, the property must be given to the personal representative.
- What the bank or holder must do
A person or business shown a proper affidavit must pay or deliver the property, and a transfer agent must re-register securities. The holder is discharged and released as if it had dealt with a personal representative and does not have to check the statements. If the holder refuses, the property can be recovered in a court proceeding.
Law: AS 13.16.680, 13.16.685; AS 13.06.050(48)
Source: Official page
Small estate informal probate (summary administrative procedure)
An informal probate case in which a personal representative is appointed. If the inventory shows the estate, minus liens and debts, is no more than the homestead allowance, family allowance, exempt property, probate costs, funeral costs and last-illness medical costs, the personal representative can transfer the property right away without notice to creditors and close the case with a sworn statement.
- Waiting period
The personal representative prepares the inventory within three months of appointment and may distribute as soon as the estate qualifies.
- Who can use it
A personal representative appointed by the court in an informal probate (not a supervised personal representative).
- Court or where to file
The Alaska superior court where the informal probate is opened.
- Notary
The closing statement is verified under oath before a notary or clerk.
- Papers to attach
- Inventory of the estate
- Accounting, or waivers of accounting from the people affected
- P-350 Sworn Statement of Personal Representative Closing Small Estate
- Steps
- Open an informal probate case and be appointed personal representative.
- Prepare the inventory within three months.
- If the estate qualifies, transfer the property to those entitled to it, without notice to creditors.
- Send the closing statement and an accounting (or get waivers) to distributees and known unpaid claimants.
- File form P-350 with the court; the appointment ends one year later if no proceedings are pending.
- Fee
The informal probate filing fee is set by the Alaska Court System; ask the court.
Law: AS 13.16.690, 13.16.695
Source: Official page
What counts toward the limit in Alaska
Look at the person's entire estate, wherever located, minus liens and encumbrances. It may contain only vehicles (total $100,000 or less) and other personal property (total $50,000 or less). Add these up separately. Any real estate that did not pass automatically to someone else means the affidavit cannot be used. Nonprobate property that passes automatically to someone else is not counted.
Law: AS 13.16.680(a)(1)
In this state the total is counted after subtracting liens.
| Kind of property | How it is treated | Details |
|---|---|---|
Bank accounts in the person's name alone | Counts | Bank accounts in the person's name alone count toward the $50,000 personal property limit. Law: AS 13.16.680(a)(1)(B) |
Joint or payable-on-death (POD) bank accounts | Left out | A joint account with right of survivorship, or an account with a named beneficiary, passes automatically and is not counted. |
Cars and other vehicles | Left out up to $100,000 | Vehicles that must be registered in Alaska (cars, motorcycles, trucks, trailers, and manufactured homes not permanently attached to land) have their own limit of $100,000 total after liens, separate from the $50,000 limit. If the vehicles total more than $100,000, the affidavit cannot be used. Vehicles with a transfer on death title or an 'OR' co-owner pass outside probate. Law: AS 13.16.680(a)(1)(A) |
Boats and mobile or manufactured homes | Counts | Manufactured homes not attached to land count with vehicles (under $100,000). Boats, snowmachines, ATVs and other untitled vehicles are not 'vehicles' here and count toward the $50,000 personal property limit. Law: AS 13.16.680(a)(1) |
Real estate in Alaska | Counts | If the person owned any real estate, of any value, that did not pass automatically to someone else, the affidavit cannot be used. Law: AS 13.16.680(a)(1) |
Main home (primary residence) | Counts | A home in the person's name that did not pass automatically (by tenancy by the entirety or a transfer on death deed) means the affidavit cannot be used. Law: AS 13.16.680(a)(1) |
Real estate in another state | Counts | The rule covers the entire estate 'wherever located', so real estate in another state that needs probate also means the affidavit cannot be used. Law: AS 13.16.680(a)(1) |
Unpaid wages owed to the person | Counts | Money owed to the person, such as unpaid wages and uncashed checks, is personal property and counts toward the $50,000. Law: AS 13.16.680(a) |
Military pay owed to the person | Not clear | The small estate statute does not mention military pay owed to the person. Law: AS 13.16.680 |
Life insurance or retirement money paid to a named person | Left out | Life insurance and retirement benefits with a named beneficiary are nonprobate property and are not counted. |
Life insurance or retirement money paid to the estate | Counts | Benefits payable to the person's estate are probate personal property and count. Law: AS 13.16.680(a)(1)(B) |
Property in a living trust | Not clear | The court's small estate pages do not mention property held in a living trust. Law: AS 13.16.680 |
Property owned jointly with right of survivorship | Left out | Property held with someone else with a right of survivorship, or by spouses as tenants by the entirety, passes automatically and is not counted. |
Property going to a surviving spouse | Left out | Tangible personal property usually passes automatically to a surviving spouse because spouses are assumed to hold it as tenants by the entirety, and real estate held that way also passes automatically. Other probate property inherited by the spouse still counts. |
Stocks, bonds and brokerage accounts | Counts | Stocks in the person's name count toward the $50,000; a transfer agent must re-register them on the affidavit. Law: AS 13.16.680(a)-(b) |
Furniture, jewelry and other belongings | Counts | Cash, the Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend, furnishings, jewelry, artwork, tools and equipment count toward the $50,000 after liens. |
Source: Official page
Car or vehicle title after a death in Alaska
If the person owned the vehicle alone or with 'AND', and the estate qualifies as a small estate (vehicles $100,000 or less and other personal property $50,000 or less, after liens), a successor can transfer the vehicle with DMV Form 827, Affidavit for an Estate with Assets of $150,000 or Less (or a similar notarized statement with the same information), at least 30 days after the death. The original notarized affidavit with the VIN is submitted with a Vehicle Transaction Application, and the successor must title the vehicle in their own name before selling it. If the title says 'OR', the surviving owner can release the title without documents about the person who died. Otherwise the vehicle goes through probate and the court-appointed personal representative signs.
Law: AS 13.16.680; AS 13.33.401 and AS 28.10.275 (SB 104, ch. 12 SLA 2026, effective July 1, 2026)
Source: Form V1
- Agency
- Alaska Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
- Waiting period
- 30 days after the death
- Value limit
- Up to $100,000
- Fee
DMV title fees can be calculated with the Alaska Registration Fee Calculator.
- Transfer-on-death title
Since July 1, 2026, a sole owner, or all joint owners, can apply to the DMV for a transfer on death title for a vehicle or boat naming one or two beneficiaries, and pay a fee. The owner can change or revoke it during life; a will cannot change it. After the owner dies, the beneficiary gives the DMV proof of death (such as a death certificate), an application on the DMV form and the title fee. The beneficiary takes the vehicle subject to liens and, if the probate estate is not enough, to claims against the estate.
Source: Official page
Bank accounts after a death in Alaska
A joint account with a right of survivorship passes automatically to the surviving owner, and an account with a named beneficiary passes to the beneficiary, without probate. An account in the person's name alone is probate property; a successor can collect it with the Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property if the estate qualifies, and the bank must pay on a proper affidavit and is then released.
Law: AS 13.16.680, 13.16.685
Source: Official page
Transfer-on-death (TOD) and payable-on-death (POD) in Alaska
- Real estate (TOD deed)
Yes · Transfer on death deed
An owner can sign a transfer on death deed so real property passes to a named beneficiary at death without probate, subject to any liens or mortgages. It must be recorded before the owner's death at the recorder's office in the recording district where the property is. It can be revoked at any time.
Law: AS 13.48.010-13.48.060 (esp. 13.48.050)
- Vehicle title (TOD)
Yes
Law: AS 13.33.401 (SB 104, ch. 12 SLA 2026, effective July 1, 2026)
- Bank account (POD)
Yes
- Securities (TOD)
Yes
Law: AS 13.33.301-13.33.310
Source: Official page
Surviving spouse in Alaska
Tangible personal property, such as furnishings and belongings, usually passes automatically to a surviving spouse because spouses are assumed to hold it as tenants by the entirety, so nothing needs to be done to transfer it; real estate held by spouses as tenants by the entirety also passes automatically. In a probate, the spouse is entitled to the homestead allowance, family allowance and exempt property, which can make an estate qualify for the small estate procedure. With no will, the spouse inherits everything if all the person's descendants are also the spouse's.
Law: AS 13.16.690; AS 13.12.102
Source: Alaska Court System self-help
Debts of the person in Alaska
A person who collects property by affidavit must give it to the people entitled to it and is accountable to any personal representative later appointed and to anyone with a superior right. In a small estate informal probate, the personal representative does not give notice to creditors or pay creditor claims if the estate is used up by the allowances and priority costs.
Law: AS 13.16.685; AS 13.16.690
Medicaid estate recovery in Alaska
Alaska may file a claim against the estate of a person who received Medicaid for nursing facility or other institutional care, and for home and community-based waiver services, received at age 55 or older, and may file a lien on real property of a permanently institutionalized person (with exceptions when a spouse, a child under 21, a blind or disabled child, or certain siblings live in the home). Except for recovery on sale of a home, a claim may be made only after the surviving spouse has died and when there is no child under 21 and no blind or totally and permanently disabled child. These claims are preferred debts in the estate.
Law: AS 47.07.055
- Agency
- Alaska Department of Health, Medicaid estate recovery
- Official page
- Official page
Who inherits with no will in Alaska
If there is no will, the surviving spouse gets everything if the person left no descendants or parents, or if all the person's descendants are also the spouse's and the spouse has no other descendants. Otherwise the spouse gets $200,000 plus three-fourths of the rest (no descendants but a parent survives), $150,000 plus one-half (the spouse has other descendants), or $100,000 plus one-half (the person has descendants who are not the spouse's). The rest goes to descendants, then parents, then brothers and sisters and their descendants, then grandparents' families. Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act stock has its own rule.
Law: AS 13.12.102, 13.12.103
Source: Official page
Death certificates in Alaska
Certified death certificates are available from the Health Analytics and Vital Records Section, P.O. Box 110675, Juneau, AK 99811-0675. The CDC directory lists the fee as $30.00 per copy; check the current fee with the office.
- Where to get it
- Alaska Department of Health, Health Analytics and Vital Records Section
- Official page
- Official page
Where to file in Alaska
The Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property is not filed with the court; you give a copy to each holder, and for a vehicle you submit DMV Form 827 with Form V1 to the DMV. A small estate informal probate is opened in the Alaska superior court and closed with form P-350. A transfer on death deed must have been recorded at the recorder's office before the death.
Good to know in Alaska
- Alaska's small estate affidavit has two separate caps: vehicles up to $100,000 in total and other personal property up to $50,000, both after liens, and the person must have owned no real estate needing probate.
- Since July 1, 2026, Alaska vehicle and boat owners can get a transfer on death title naming beneficiaries.
- Notary services are free at all Alaska court locations, which can be used to sign the affidavit.
Changes in 2024–2026
SB 104 (34th Legislature; became law without the governor's signature as chapter 12, SLA 2026), effective July 1, 2026: allows transfer on death titles for vehicles and boats. No change to the small estate affidavit limits.
National rules that apply in every state
Federal estate tax
- For a person who died in 2026, a federal estate tax return (Form 706) is required only if the gross estate, plus certain lifetime taxable gifts, is more than $15,000,000.
- Most estates owe no federal estate tax and do not need to file a federal estate tax return.
Law: 26 U.S.C. 2010(c)(3) (as amended by Pub. L. 119-21)
The final income tax return
- Report all income up to the date of death and claim all eligible credits and deductions.
- Someone must file the final federal income tax return of a person who died, the same way it would have been filed if they were alive.
- To claim a refund due to the person who died, attach Form 1310 (Statement of Person Claiming Refund Due a Deceased Taxpayer).
Law: Form 1310 instructions (Rev. December 2025)
Social Security
- Social Security retirement benefits are paid through the month before the month the person died.
- If the person had enough Social Security work credits (was fully or currently insured), a one-time death payment of $255 (or three times the person's basic benefit, if that is smaller) can be paid to a surviving spouse who lived with the person.
Law: 42 U.S.C. 402(a), 402(i)
Savings bonds
- If the person's savings bonds and other Treasury securities held directly with the Treasury are worth more than $100,000 at the date of death, the Treasury requires a court-administered estate.
Law: 31 CFR 353.71; FS Form 5336 (Rev. April 2026)
Debts
- Debts are generally paid from the money and property the person left (the estate).
- If the estate cannot pay a debt and no one else shared responsibility for it, the debt may go unpaid.
- You may have to pay if you co-signed the loan, were a joint account holder on a credit card (not just an authorized user), or state law makes a spouse responsible for certain debts, such as in community property states or states with laws on necessary costs like health care.
Law: 12 CFR 1006.6(a)(4)
A house with a mortgage
- For a home with fewer than five units, a lender may not call the whole loan due just because the home passes to a relative after the borrower's death, to a spouse or children who become owners, or to a surviving joint owner.
- Https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/how-do-i-get-mortgage-information-about-a-home-i-inherited-en-217/
- Https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/i-recently-inherited-a-house-the-mortgage-lender-said-its-required-to-determine-my-ability-to-repay-before-it-will-let-me-take-over-the-mortgage-loan-is-this-true-en-1939/
Law: 12 U.S.C. 1701j-3(d)(3), (5), (6); 12 CFR 1024.30(d), 1024.31
FDIC insurance on bank accounts
- After a deposit owner dies, FDIC insurance on the account stays the same for six months, unless the account is restructured.
Law: 12 CFR 330.3(j)
Medicaid estate recovery
- States must try to recover some Medicaid costs from the estate of a person who got benefits at age 55 or older: nursing facility services, home and community-based services, and related hospital and prescription drug services.
- The 'estate' includes at least the property in the person's probate estate under state law.
- Https://www.govinfo.gov/link/uscode/42/1396p?type=usc&year=mostrecent&link-type=html
Law: 42 U.S.C. 1396p(b)
Death certificates
- Certified copies of a death certificate come from the vital records office of the state where the death happened, not from the federal government.
Free help in Alaska
A court self-help center or a legal aid office can check whether the estate qualifies, free of charge or at low cost.
- Alaska Court System Self-Help Center
- Alaska Legal Services Corporation
- Alaska Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service
- Alaska Court System: Collecting Personal Property without a Court Case
- Alaska Court System: Small Estate Informal Probate
- Alaska Court System: Transferring Asset Ownership
- Alaska DMV: Deceased owner
- LawHelp.org
- Legal Services Corporation (LSC) - Find legal aid
- Eldercare Locator · 1-800-677-1116
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (debt collection and mortgage complaints) · (855) 411-2372
More help on our sister sites
Questions about small estates in Alaska
What is a small estate affidavit called in Alaska?
In Alaska this is called: Affidavit for collection of personal property of decedent; small estate (summary) informal probate. If the person owned no real estate that needs probate, and their vehicles are worth $100,000 or less and their other personal property $50,000 or less (after liens), a successor can collect the property 30 days after the death with a sworn affidavit, without a court case.
What is the small estate limit in Alaska?
Up to $50,000, 30 days after the death, no court filing.
How long do I wait in Alaska?
At least 30 days must have passed since the death.
Do I have to go to court in Alaska?
Not filed with the court. You give a copy to each person or business holding the property.
How do I transfer a car after a death in Alaska?
If the person owned the vehicle alone or with 'AND', and the estate qualifies as a small estate (vehicles $100,000 or less and other personal property $50,000 or less, after liens), a successor can transfer the vehicle with DMV Form 827, Affidavit for an Estate with Assets of $150,000 or Less (or a similar notarized statement with the same information), at least 30 days after the death.
What happens to a bank account after a death in Alaska?
A joint account with a right of survivorship passes automatically to the surviving owner, and an account with a named beneficiary passes to the beneficiary, without probate. An account in the person's name alone is probate property; a successor can collect it with the Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property if the estate qualifies, and the bank must pay on a proper affidavit and is then released.
Who inherits in Alaska if there is no will?
If there is no will, the surviving spouse gets everything if the person left no descendants or parents, or if all the person's descendants are also the spouse's and the spouse has no other descendants.
Do I owe the person's debts in Alaska?
A person who collects property by affidavit must give it to the people entitled to it and is accountable to any personal representative later appointed and to anyone with a superior right. In a small estate informal probate, the personal representative does not give notice to creditors or pay creditor claims if the estate is used up by the allowances and priority costs.
- AS 13.16.680-13.16.695 (Alaska Legislature)
- Alaska Court System form P-110 (4/17)
- Alaska Court System: Collecting Personal Property without a Court Case
- Alaska Court System: Small Estate Informal Probate
- Alaska Court System: Transferring Asset Ownership
- Alaska Court System: Transfer on Death Deed
- SB 104 (2026) enrolled text
- Alaska DMV: Deceased owner
- Alaska DMV Form 827 (Rev. 1/2018)
- AS 13.48.010-13.48.060
- AS 47.07.055
- AS 13.12.102-13.12.103
- CDC NCHS Where to Write for Vital Records: Alaska