Settle a small estate in Connecticut without probate
In Connecticut this is called: Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration. If the person owned no real estate in Connecticut in their name alone and their solely owned personal property is worth $40,000 or less, a surviving spouse or next of kin files a sworn affidavit with the Probate Court. Without a full estate, the court issues a decree telling each bank, the DMV and other holders whom to pay or transfer the property to.
Up to $40,000, filed with a court.
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 Connecticut limit for the date of death.
Letter to a bank
Present your signed affidavit to a bank or other holder in Connecticut.
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 Connecticut, by procedure.
Car, bank, house in Connecticut
Car or other vehicle
To transfer a vehicle from a person who died, make an appointment at a DMV hub or branch office. Bring the title assigned by the executor, administrator or person authorized by the court, a certified probate document showing that authority (for a small estate, the PC-212B petitioner's probate certificate stating that transfer of ownership is allowed, or a PC-264/PC-264S decree for transfer of personal property without probate), an application for registration and title, a Connecticut insurance card, the latest registration certificate and ID. No sales tax is due on a transfer to an immediate family member (parent, sibling, child or spouse) if the vehicle was registered in the person's name for at least 60 days.
Bank accounts
Joint accounts with right of survivorship and payable-on-death accounts pass outside probate to the survivor or beneficiary. For an account in the person's name alone, the small estates procedure leads to a Probate Court decree authorizing the bank to transfer or pay the money directly to the named people; the bank is discharged when it pays under the decree, and may ask for waivers, an indemnity bond and a receipt.
Related pages
- Small estate affidavit in Connecticut
- Car title after a death in Connecticut
- Bank accounts after a death in Connecticut
- Small estate checker for Connecticut
- Letter to a bank in Connecticut
- Balance request letter for Connecticut
- What-to-gather checklist for Connecticut
- All about small estates in Connecticut
Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration (small estates procedure)
You file an affidavit listing the person's solely owned assets and debts with the Probate Court. After at least 30 days, the court issues a decree that tells each holder to pay creditors, transfer assets to the heirs, or transfer them to you to sell. There is usually no hearing.
- Limit
Up to $40,000
The person's solely owned personal property cannot be worth more than $40,000, and the person cannot have owned any Connecticut real estate in their name alone.
- What counts
The total market value of the person's solely owned tangible and intangible personal property, not counting property that passes outside probate by operation of law (such as joint or beneficiary property). The person must have owned no real estate in Connecticut in their name alone.
- Waiting period
The court sends a copy of the affidavit to the state Department of Administrative Services and cannot issue its decree until 30 days after that. The procedure also applies only if no will is presented for probate and no application for administration is filed within 30 days after the death.
- Who can use it
The surviving spouse; if there is no spouse, any next of kin; if there are none, or they refuse, any person the court finds has a sufficient interest, including a person or business owed a claim, expense or tax (such as a funeral home).
- Court or where to file
Probate Court for the probate district where the person lived at death.
- Notary
Signed under penalty of false statement; no notary is required.
- Papers to attach
- Copy of the death certificate with the Social Security number blacked out
- Form PC-212CI (Confidential Information) with the person's Social Security number
- Form PC-212A (Request for Order of Distribution) with the names and addresses of all heirs and any will beneficiaries, if assets are more than the expenses and claims, or if someone who paid expenses waives repayment
- List of each solely owned asset with account or vehicle identification (VIN) number and fair market value
- List of funeral, administration and last-illness expenses, taxes and other debts, showing who paid any of them
- Steps
- Confirm the person had no Connecticut real estate in their name alone and that their solely owned personal property is $40,000 or less.
- Fill in form PC-212, listing every solely owned asset and every expense and debt, and whether the person or their spouse or children ever received aid or care from the State of Connecticut.
- Attach the redacted death certificate, PC-212CI and, if needed, PC-212A.
- File it with the Probate Court for the district where the person lived and pay the fee.
- Wait at least 30 days while the court notifies the Department of Administrative Services.
- Receive the court's decree and certificates, and give them to each bank, the DMV or other holder to transfer or pay the assets as ordered.
- Fee
The Probate Court fee is set by statute from the value of the estate: $25 for $0 to $500; $50 for $501 to $1,000; $50 plus 1% of the amount over $1,000 for $1,000 to $10,000; and $150 plus 0.35% of the amount over $10,000 for $10,000 to $500,000 (deaths on or after July 1, 2016). The part of the value passing to a surviving spouse counts at half. The minimum fee is $25.
- If you can't pay
If you cannot pay, you can ask the Probate Court to waive the fees with form PC-184 (Request/Order - Waiver of Fees), signed under penalty of false statement.
- Debts and responsibility
Anyone who receives a transfer or payment under the decree is liable for its value for any estate, succession or transfer tax, and to any executor or administrator appointed later.
- What the bank or holder must do
A bank, registrar or other holder that pays or transfers under the court's decree is discharged from liability to anyone, to the extent of what it paid or transferred. As a condition, the holder may ask for appropriate waivers, a bond of indemnity and a receipt.
Law: Conn. Gen. Stat. secs. 45a-273, 45a-275, 45a-107, 45a-111
Source: Official page
Payment of small medical or insurance benefits (up to $1,000)
If the person is owed medical, insurance or health benefits or other intangible property of $1,000 or less, the probate judge can name an administrator without a hearing just to pay it to the spouse, next of kin, funeral director or physician.
- Limit
Up to $1,000
Up to $1,000 of benefits or other intangible property owed to the person.
- What counts
Medical benefits (federal or state), insurance or health benefits or proceeds, or other intangible personal property owed to the person or their estate.
- Waiting period
Applies only if no will is presented for probate and no application for administration is filed within 30 days after the death.
- Who can use it
The surviving spouse, or if none, the next of kin, or the funeral director or physician, as the probate judge finds.
- Court or where to file
Probate Court for the district where the person lived.
- Papers to attach
- Evidence satisfactory to the judge that all debts have been paid or provided for
- Steps
- Contact the Probate Court for the district where the person lived.
- Show that the person's debts have been paid or provided for.
- The judge may name an administrator, without a hearing, to receive and distribute the benefit.
- Fee
Probate Court fees under Conn. Gen. Stat. sec. 45a-107; ask the court.
Law: Conn. Gen. Stat. secs. 45a-274, 45a-275
Source: Official page
What counts toward the limit in Connecticut
Add up the fair market value of the person's solely owned personal property (bank accounts, vehicles, stocks, belongings). Leave out property that passes outside probate by operation of law. The procedure is not available if the person owned any Connecticut real estate in their name alone. The law does not say to subtract debts; debts are listed separately on the affidavit.
Law: Conn. Gen. Stat. sec. 45a-273
| 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. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a) |
Joint or payable-on-death (POD) bank accounts | Left out | Joint and payable-on-death accounts pass outside probate and are not counted. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a), (b)(2) |
Cars and other vehicles | Counts | A vehicle in the person's name alone counts at fair market value (list its VIN on the affidavit). A vehicle with a DMV beneficiary designation passes to the beneficiary. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a); form PC-212; C.G.S. 14-16(b) |
Boats and mobile or manufactured homes | Counts | A boat or other solely owned personal property counts at fair market value. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a) |
Real estate in Connecticut | Has its own procedure | If the person owned any Connecticut real estate in their name alone, the small estates procedure cannot be used; the estate must go through regular probate. Survivorship real estate (joint with right of survivorship) does not block it. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a); form PC-212 |
Main home (primary residence) | Has its own procedure | A home in the person's name alone in Connecticut means the small estates procedure cannot be used. A home owned jointly with survivorship passes to the survivor. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a); form PC-212 |
Real estate in another state | Left out | Only personal property is added up, and only Connecticut real estate blocks the procedure, so real estate in another state is not counted. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a) |
Unpaid wages owed to the person | Counts | Unpaid wages owed to the person are intangible personal property and count. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a) |
Military pay owed to the person | Not clear | Ask the Probate Court how to list military pay owed to the person. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a) |
Life insurance or retirement money paid to a named person | Left out | Life insurance and retirement benefits paid to a named beneficiary pass outside probate and are not counted. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a) |
Life insurance or retirement money paid to the estate | Counts | Insurance or retirement money payable to the person's estate counts. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a) |
Property in a living trust | Left out | Property held in a trust is not solely owned by the person and is not counted. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a) |
Property owned jointly with right of survivorship | Left out | Property owned jointly with a right of survivorship passes to the survivor by operation of law and is not counted. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a); form PC-212 |
Property going to a surviving spouse | Counts | Solely owned personal property counts toward $40,000 even if it goes to the spouse. (For the court fee, the part going to the spouse counts at half.) Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a), 45a-107(b)(1) |
Stocks, bonds and brokerage accounts | Counts | Stocks and bonds in the person's name alone count. Securities registered in transfer-on-death form pass to the beneficiary. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a), 45a-468i |
Furniture, jewelry and other belongings | Counts | Furniture, jewelry and other belongings count at fair market value. Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(a) |
Source: Official page
Car or vehicle title after a death in Connecticut
To transfer a vehicle from a person who died, make an appointment at a DMV hub or branch office. Bring the title assigned by the executor, administrator or person authorized by the court, a certified probate document showing that authority (for a small estate, the PC-212B petitioner's probate certificate stating that transfer of ownership is allowed, or a PC-264/PC-264S decree for transfer of personal property without probate), an application for registration and title, a Connecticut insurance card, the latest registration certificate and ID. No sales tax is due on a transfer to an immediate family member (parent, sibling, child or spouse) if the vehicle was registered in the person's name for at least 60 days.
Law: Conn. Gen. Stat. secs. 14-16(b), 45a-273
Source: form H-13B
- Agency
- Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
- Form
- Form H-13B Application for Registration and Title (with the Probate Court's certificate or decree)
- Fee
Regular DMV title and registration fees apply; see the DMV fee pages.
- Transfer-on-death title
A sole individual owner can name a beneficiary on the vehicle's registration certificate, signed with a witness who is not the beneficiary. The beneficiary must apply to the DMV no later than 60 days after the owner's death, with the registration certificate naming them, the death certificate, proof of identity, the title and a completed application with fees.
Source: Official page
Bank accounts after a death in Connecticut
Joint accounts with right of survivorship and payable-on-death accounts pass outside probate to the survivor or beneficiary. For an account in the person's name alone, the small estates procedure leads to a Probate Court decree authorizing the bank to transfer or pay the money directly to the named people; the bank is discharged when it pays under the decree, and may ask for waivers, an indemnity bond and a receipt.
Law: Conn. Gen. Stat. sec. 45a-273(d), (g), (h)
Source: form PC-212
Source: Official page
Transfer-on-death (TOD) and payable-on-death (POD) in Connecticut
- Real estate (TOD deed)
No
Connecticut law does not provide a transfer-on-death deed for real estate. Real estate held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship passes to the survivor; real estate in the person's name alone requires probate.
Law: Conn. Gen. Stat. Title 47
- Vehicle title (TOD)
Yes
Law: Conn. Gen. Stat. sec. 14-16(b)
- Securities (TOD)
Yes
Law: Conn. Gen. Stat. secs. 45a-468 to 45a-468m
Source: Official page
Surviving spouse in Connecticut
The surviving spouse has first right to file the small estate affidavit. For Probate Court fees, the value of property passing to the spouse counts at half. Connecticut has no separate, higher small estate limit for a spouse.
Debts of the person in Connecticut
The affidavit must list the funeral and administration expenses, last-illness claims, state and federal taxes and other debts. The court decides who is paid, in the order of priority in Conn. Gen. Stat. sec. 45a-365 (or secs. 4a-12 and 17b-95 if the person received aid or care from the state). If the debts are more than the assets, the court orders payment in that order without the full insolvent-estate process. Only what is left after expenses, claims and family support goes to the heirs or beneficiaries.
Medicaid estate recovery in Connecticut
When a small estate affidavit is filed, the Probate Court sends a copy to the Department of Administrative Services and waits 30 days before issuing its decree. On the death of anyone who ever received Medicaid, the state has a claim against the estate for amounts it is required to recover under federal law, but only to the extent the share the surviving spouse, parent or dependent children would take is not needed for their support. The state's claim comes before other unsecured claims, except last-illness expenses up to $375, funeral and burial expenses within state limits, and administration expenses.
Law: Conn. Gen. Stat. secs. 17b-95, 45a-273(c), (e)
- Agency
- Connecticut Department of Administrative Services (state recovery) for the Department of Social Services (Medicaid)
- Official page
- Official page
Who inherits with no will in Connecticut
If there is no will: the surviving spouse gets everything if the person left no children or other descendants and no parents. If there are no descendants but a parent survives, the spouse gets the first $100,000 plus three-quarters of the rest. If all descendants are also the spouse's, the spouse gets the first $100,000 plus half of the rest. If any descendant is not the spouse's, the spouse gets half. The rest goes to the children equally (or their descendants), then parents, then brothers and sisters, then next of kin, and finally stepchildren.
Law: Conn. Gen. Stat. secs. 45a-437 to 45a-439
Source: Official page
Death certificates in Connecticut
Follow the Department of Public Health's current instructions for ordering a certified copy of a Connecticut death certificate. For the small estate affidavit, the court asks for a copy with the Social Security number blacked out.
Law: form PC-212
- Where to get it
- Connecticut Department of Public Health, State Vital Records Office, or the town clerk / registrar of vital statistics
- Official page
- Official page
Where to file in Connecticut
File form PC-212 with the Probate Court for the probate district where the person lived at death. The court's decree and certificates are then taken to each bank, the DMV or other holder.
Good to know in Connecticut
- The small estates procedure is not available if the person owned any Connecticut real estate in their own name, no matter how little it was worth.
- Even if there is a will, the small estates procedure can be used in some cases: the court distributes under the will only if the heirs waive their right to contest it, and otherwise dismisses the affidavit if heirs and beneficiaries do not agree.
- Transfers and payments under a small estate decree are exempt from the Connecticut succession tax.
Changes in 2024–2026
P.A. 24-81, effective July 1, 2024, amended the payment order for small estates of people who received state aid or care. No change to the $40,000 limit was found. Bills to adopt the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act did not pass.
Law: C.G.S. 45a-273(e)(1), adding a reference to sec. 4a-12; H.B. 6896 in 2025 and H.B. 5266 in 2026
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 Connecticut
A court self-help center or a legal aid office can check whether the estate qualifies, free of charge or at low cost.
- Statewide Legal Services of Connecticut · 1-800-453-3320
- CTLawHelp.org (Connecticut legal aid information)
- Connecticut Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service
- Connecticut Probate Courts: Trusts and estates
- Connecticut Probate Courts: Trusts and estates forms
- Connecticut Probate Courts: Fees and expenses
- CT DMV: Transfer of ownership from a deceased person
- 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 Connecticut
What is a small estate affidavit called in Connecticut?
In Connecticut this is called: Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration. If the person owned no real estate in Connecticut in their name alone and their solely owned personal property is worth $40,000 or less, a surviving spouse or next of kin files a sworn affidavit with the Probate Court. Without a full estate, the court issues a decree telling each bank, the DMV and other holders whom to pay or transfer the property to.
What is the small estate limit in Connecticut?
Up to $40,000, filed with a court.
How long do I wait in Connecticut?
The court sends a copy of the affidavit to the state Department of Administrative Services and cannot issue its decree until 30 days after that. The procedure also applies only if no will is presented for probate and no application for administration is filed within 30 days after the death.
Do I have to go to court in Connecticut?
Probate Court for the probate district where the person lived at death.
How do I transfer a car after a death in Connecticut?
To transfer a vehicle from a person who died, make an appointment at a DMV hub or branch office. Bring the title assigned by the executor, administrator or person authorized by the court, a certified probate document showing that authority (for a small estate, the PC-212B petitioner's probate certificate stating that transfer of ownership is allowed, or a PC-264/PC-264S decree for transfer of personal property without probate), an application for registration and title, a Connecticut insurance card, the latest registration certificate and ID. No sales tax is due on a transfer to an immediate family member (parent, sibling, child or spouse) if the vehicle was registered in the person's name for at least 60 days.
What happens to a bank account after a death in Connecticut?
Joint accounts with right of survivorship and payable-on-death accounts pass outside probate to the survivor or beneficiary. For an account in the person's name alone, the small estates procedure leads to a Probate Court decree authorizing the bank to transfer or pay the money directly to the named people; the bank is discharged when it pays under the decree, and may ask for waivers, an indemnity bond and a receipt.
Who inherits in Connecticut if there is no will?
If there is no will: the surviving spouse gets everything if the person left no children or other descendants and no parents. If there are no descendants but a parent survives, the spouse gets the first $100,000 plus three-quarters of the rest.
Do I owe the person's debts in Connecticut?
The affidavit must list the funeral and administration expenses, last-illness claims, state and federal taxes and other debts. The court decides who is paid, in the order of priority in Conn. Gen. Stat. sec.
- Conn. Gen. Stat. chapter 802b (Decedents' Estates), secs. 45a-273 to 45a-276, 45a-437 to 45a-439, 45a-468
- Conn. Gen. Stat. chapter 801b (Probate Court fees), secs. 45a-107, 45a-111
- Conn. Gen. Stat. chapter 319s, sec. 17b-95
- Probate Court form PC-212 (Rev. 07/23)
- CT DMV: Transfer of ownership from a deceased person
- CT DMV beneficiary designation (registration certificate back)
- H.B. 6896 (2025) bill status
- CDC NCHS Where to Write for Vital Records: Connecticut
- H.B. 5266 (2026) bill status