California Small Estate Affidavit

Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property (small estate affidavit)

A signed statement you give to a bank, company or person holding the property, so they pay or transfer it to you. It is not filed with the court.

Limit

Up to $208,850 (deaths on or after April 1, 2025) Counted at full value, without subtracting debts.

Date of death	Limit
On or after April 1, 2025	$208,850
April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2025	$184,500
On or before March 31, 2022	$166,250

For a death on or after April 1, 2025, the total cannot be more than $208,850. The limit was $184,500 for deaths from April 1, 2022, to March 31, 2025, and $166,250 before April 1, 2022. The limit is adjusted every three years; the next adjustment is set for April 1, 2028.

What counts

The gross value of all the person's real and personal property in California, not counting the property listed in Probate Code 13050 (see the counting rules) or a home included in a primary residence petition. Debts are not subtracted.

Waiting period

At least 40 days must have passed since the death.

Who can use it

The 'successor': the person or people who inherit the item under the will, or under state inheritance law if there is no will. A guardian or conservator, a trustee of a trust that inherits, a custodian for a minor named in the will, or an agent under a durable power of attorney may act for the person who inherits. When more than one person inherits the item, they sign the affidavit together.

Court or where to file

Not filed with a court. You give it to the holder of the property.

Notary

The law does not require notarization, but many banks and companies ask for it. The holder must see reasonable proof of identity, such as a current driver's license or passport, or a notary's certificate of acknowledgment.

Papers to attach

Certified copy of the death certificate
Form DE-300 (list of current dollar limits), if the death was on or after April 1, 2022
Proof the person owned the property, such as the bank statement, passbook or stock certificate, if available
If the person owned any real property in California: an inventory and appraisal (forms DE-160 and DE-161) made by a probate referee
If a probate case exists: the personal representative's written consent and letters

Steps

Wait until at least 40 days after the death.
Ask the bank or company if it has its own affidavit form; many do.
Fill in the affidavit with the required statements and a description of the property.
Every person who inherits the item signs under penalty of perjury.
Give the affidavit, the death certificate, form DE-300 and proof of ownership to the holder.

Fee

There is no court filing fee because the affidavit is not filed with the court. If the person owned real property in California, the probate referee who appraises it is paid one-tenth of one percent of the value appraised, plus expenses.

Debts and responsibility

If you receive property this way, you are personally responsible for the person's unpaid unsecured debts (such as funeral costs, last-illness costs and wage claims), up to the value of what you received minus liens. You also must give the property, or its value, to anyone with a better legal right to it, and three times the value if you got it by fraud. These claims are generally barred three years after you present the affidavit, or three years after fraud is discovered, whichever is later.

What the bank or holder must do

If the affidavit meets the legal requirements, the holder must pay or transfer the property, and a transfer agent must re-register securities. The holder may rely on the affidavit and is then released from liability. If the holder refuses within a reasonable time, you may sue to get the property, and the court must award reasonable attorney's fees if it finds the refusal was unreasonable. If you cannot present the person's evidence of ownership, the holder may ask for a bond or an indemnity agreement.

Forms

Law: Cal. Prob. Code secs. 13050, 13100-13116, 890

Source: Official page

What counts toward the limit in California

Add up the value of the person's real and personal property in California on the date of death. Do not subtract debts or mortgages. Leave out the property listed below as excluded.

Law: Cal. Prob. Code secs. 13050, 13100

In this state the total is counted at full value, without subtracting debts.

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, with no payable-on-death beneficiary, count. Law: Prob. Code 13100
Joint or payable-on-death (POD) bank accounts	Left out	Joint, payable-on-death and trust bank accounts are left out, to the extent the money belongs to a surviving co-owner or beneficiary. Law: Prob. Code 13050(a)(2)
Cars and other vehicles	Left out	Cars and other vehicles registered with the DMV are left out. They transfer through the DMV. Law: Prob. Code 13050(b)(1)
Boats and mobile or manufactured homes	Left out	Numbered boats, and manufactured homes, mobilehomes, truck campers and floating homes registered under state law, are left out. Law: Prob. Code 13050(b)(2)-(3)
Real estate in California	Counts	Real estate in California owned in the person's name counts, unless it is left out for another reason (joint tenancy, trust, passing to a spouse, or a home included in a primary residence petition). Law: Prob. Code 13100
Main home (primary residence)	Own procedure, up to $750,000	The person's main home counts, unless it is included in a Petition to Determine Succession to Primary Residence (up to $750,000 for deaths from April 1, 2025, through March 31, 2028). Then it is left out of the affidavit total. Law: Prob. Code 13100, 13151
Real estate in another state	Left out	Real estate outside California is not counted. Law: Prob. Code 13100
Unpaid wages owed to the person	Left out up to $20,875	Unpaid salary and other pay owed by an employer, including unused vacation, is left out up to $20,875 (deaths on or after April 1, 2025). Law: Prob. Code 13050(c)(2); form DE-300
Military pay owed to the person	Left out	Money owed to the person for service in the U.S. Armed Forces is left out. Law: Prob. Code 13050(c)(1)
Life insurance or retirement money paid to a named person	Left out	Life insurance, retirement and other death benefits paid directly to a named beneficiary are left out.
Life insurance or retirement money paid to the estate	Counts	Life insurance or retirement benefits that will be paid to the estate count.
Property in a living trust	Left out	Property in a living trust the person could revoke is left out. Law: Prob. Code 13050(a)(1)
Property owned jointly with right of survivorship	Left out	Property held in joint tenancy, or in which the person had only a life interest, is left out. Law: Prob. Code 13050(a)(1)
Property going to a surviving spouse	Left out	Community, quasi-community or separate property that passes to the surviving spouse or registered domestic partner is left out. Law: Prob. Code 13050(a)(1), 13500
Stocks, bonds and brokerage accounts	Counts	Stocks, bonds and brokerage accounts in the person's name alone, with no transfer-on-death beneficiary, count. Law: Prob. Code 13100
Furniture, jewelry and other belongings	Counts	Furniture, jewelry, tools and other belongings count at their fair market value. Law: Prob. Code 13100

Source: Official page

Questions about small estates in California

How long must I wait to use the affidavit in California?

At least 40 days must have passed since the death.

What does the affidavit cost in California?

There is no court filing fee because the affidavit is not filed with the court. If the person owned real property in California, the probate referee who appraises it is paid one-tenth of one percent of the value appraised, plus expenses.

Am I responsible for debts if I use the affidavit in California?

If you receive property this way, you are personally responsible for the person's unpaid unsecured debts (such as funeral costs, last-illness costs and wage claims), up to the value of what you received minus liens.

Related pages

Free help in California

A court self-help center or a legal aid office can check whether the estate qualifies, free of charge or at low cost.