Georgia Estate Checklist | Small Estate Map

Which procedure

Your name (optional)

Papers most holders ask for Certified copies of the death certificate Your photo ID The will, if there is one Recent statements for each account, car and property

Papers for this procedure: Petition for Order Declaring No Administration Necessary (O.C.G.A. 53-2-40 et seq.; Georgia Probate Court Standard Form 9) Signed original agreement of all heirs dividing the estate, with a legal description of any real estate List of all heirs with ages and addresses, and facts showing there are no other heirs Description of the personal property (with account and serial numbers) and of the real estate in Georgia Statement that the estate owes no debts, or names and addresses of creditors, or creditors' written consent Certified death certificate (the court usually asks for it)

Other formats

Your checklist

Payment of a deceased depositor's funds without administration (O.C.G.A. 7-1-239)

If a person died without a will and had $15,000 or less in a bank, the bank may pay it directly to close family on a signed affidavit, without any court case.

Limit

Up to $15,000 Counted at full value, without subtracting debts.

The deposit at that financial institution (or a check payable to the person, under a companion law) cannot be more than $15,000.

What counts

The amount on deposit at that financial institution (or the amount of a check payable to the person).

Waiting period

No waiting period for family. If no family member applies within 45 days after the death, the bank may instead use up to $15,000 to pay the funeral and last-illness bills.

Who can use it

In this order: the surviving spouse; if none, the children equally; if none, the father and mother equally; if none, the brothers and sisters equally. Only when the person left no will.

Court or where to file

Given to the bank or other financial institution.

Notary

It is a sworn statutory affidavit.

Papers to attach

Certified death certificate (banks usually ask for it)
The statutory affidavit stating your relationship, that there is no known will, and that there are no other known claimants

Steps

Confirm the person left no known will and the deposit is $15,000 or less.
Fill in the affidavit stating your relationship to the person, that there is no known will and no other known claimant.
Sign it before a notary and give it to the bank.

Fee

No court fee; not filed with a court.

What the bank or holder must do

The bank is authorized, not required, to pay on the affidavit. A payment made under this law fully releases the bank from any claim by an heir, creditor or anyone else, and no administration or no-administration order is needed.

Forms

Instructions & Affidavit for Obtaining Deceased Depositor's Funds (Georgia Division of Aging Services, July 2019)

Law: O.C.G.A. sec. 7-1-239 (as amended by 2019 Ga. Laws, HB 490); O.C.G.A. sec. 7-1-239.1 (checks)

Source: Official page

Death certificates in Georgia

Certified death certificates are available to people with a direct and tangible interest, including primary family members or legal representatives of the family. Request by mail with Form 3912 or online. The first certified copy is $25 and each additional copy is $5. Since April 22, 2026, a beneficiary named in a transfer-on-death deed also qualifies.

Law: O.C.G.A. 31-10-26

Where to get it: Georgia Department of Public Health, State Office of Vital Records, or the county vital records office
Official page: Official page

Car or vehicle title after a death in Georgia

At the County Tag Office, the inheritor brings the MV-1 Title/Tag Application, the original title in the person's name with liens released, a certified death certificate, and an inheritance document: letters testamentary, a certified year's support order, or Form T-20 Affidavit of Inheritance. Form T-20 states that there was no will (or a copy of a will that will not be probated is attached), no administration will be had, the estate owes no debts, and the spouse and heirs agreed who gets the vehicle; it is notarized. With only one heir, a copy of the no-administration-necessary order can be used instead of T-20. The inheritor titles the vehicle in their own name before selling it.

Law: Form T-20

Source: Form T-4

Agency: Georgia Department of Revenue, Motor Vehicle Division (through the County Tag Office)
Form: T-20 Affidavit of Inheritance of a Motor Vehicle
Fee: $18 title fee. Title ad valorem tax exemptions may apply for transfers to immediate family.

Source: Official page

Surviving spouse in Georgia

A surviving spouse and minor children can petition the probate court within 24 months after the death for year's support: property, including the home, set apart to keep their standard of living for 12 months, considering their other resources. A bank can pay up to $15,000 of an intestate person's deposits to the surviving spouse first.

Related pages

Free help in Georgia

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