Connecticut Small Estate Affidavit

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.

Forms

Law: Conn. Gen. Stat. secs. 45a-273, 45a-275, 45a-107, 45a-111

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

Questions about small estates in Connecticut

How long must I wait to use the affidavit 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.

What does the affidavit cost in Connecticut?

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).

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

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.

Related pages

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.