Indiana Estate Checklist | Small Estate Map

Which procedure

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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: Small estate affidavit (affidavit for transfer of assets without administration) Certified copy of the death certificate (holders and the BMV ask for it) Copy of the probated will, if the claim is under a will Description of the property and each distributee's share

Other formats

Your checklist

Small estate affidavit (affidavit for transfer of assets without administration)

A person who inherits signs an affidavit and gives it to the bank, company or person holding the property, which must then pay or hand it over. Nothing is filed with a court.

Limit

Up to $100,000 (deaths on or after July 1, 2022) Counted after subtracting liens (what is owed on the property).

Date of death	Limit
On or after July 1, 2022	$100,000
July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2022	$50,000
On or before June 30, 2006	$25,000

For a death after June 30, 2022, the gross probate estate, minus liens, encumbrances and reasonable funeral expenses, cannot be more than $100,000. It was $50,000 for deaths from July 1, 2006, through June 30, 2022, and $25,000 for deaths before July 1, 2006.

What counts

The gross probate estate, wherever located (in Indiana or elsewhere, real and personal), minus liens, encumbrances and reasonable funeral expenses. Property that passes outside probate is not part of it.

Waiting period

At least 45 days must have passed since the death.

Who can use it

A distributee (a person entitled to the property under the will or intestacy law), or someone acting on the distributee's behalf. The affidavit lists every distributee and their share, and the affiant must first notify each distributee of the plan to present it.

Court or where to file

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

Notary

It is an affidavit (sworn statement). County court forms are notarized or signed under penalty of perjury.

Papers to attach

Certified copy of the death certificate (holders and the BMV ask for it)
Copy of the probated will, if the claim is under a will
Description of the property and each distributee's share

Steps

Wait until at least 45 days after the death.
If you need balances to check the limit, give each holder a date-of-death value affidavit; it must answer within three business days.
Notify each distributee that you plan to present the affidavit.
Fill in the affidavit with the required statements and sign it.
Give it to each bank, company or person holding the property, then distribute the shares.

Fee

No court filing fee, because the affidavit is not filed with a court.

Debts and responsibility

Anyone who receives property this way must answer for it to a personal representative appointed later, or to anyone with a better right to it.

What the bank or holder must do

On a proper affidavit, the holder must pay the debt or deliver the property, and a transfer agent must re-register securities. The holder is released as if it had dealt with a personal representative and need not check the affidavit. If it refuses, the property can be recovered in court. A distributee can also give the affidavit to the probate court, which may order without a hearing that the distributees are entitled to the property; the court may award attorney's fees and costs if the holder (other than an insurer) acted in bad faith or did not respond within 30 business days.

Forms

Law: Ind. Code secs. 29-1-8-1, 29-1-8-1.5, 29-1-8-2, 29-1-8-4.5

Source: Official page

Death certificates in Indiana

Certified copies are ordered from the Indiana Department of Health Vital Records (online through VitalChek, by phone at (866) 601-0891, or by mail with State Form 49606) or from the local health department. At the state office the fee is $8.00 for the first death certificate and $4.00 for each additional copy in the same order; the fee is a search fee and is not refunded if no record is found. Proof of identity is required.

Law: IC 16-37-1-11

Where to get it: Indiana Department of Health, Vital Records, or the local health department in the county where the death happened
Official page: Official page

Car or vehicle title after a death in Indiana

Five days after the death, if no personal representative is expected to be appointed, the distributees can transfer a vehicle or watercraft title with the Affidavit for Transfer of Certificate of Title for a Vehicle/Watercraft Without Administration and a copy of the death certificate. The claimant swears that the gross probate estate, less liens and encumbrances, is $100,000 or less (the limit for deaths after June 30, 2022) and that no personal representative has been applied for or appointed. A vehicle titled with a transfer on death beneficiary goes to that beneficiary.

Law: Ind. Code secs. 29-1-8-1(c), 9-17-3-9

Source: State Form 18733

Agency: Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV)
Form: State Form 18733 Affidavit for Transfer of Certificate of Title for a Vehicle/Watercraft Without Administration (R10/11-24)
Waiting period: 5 days after the death
Fee: BMV title fees apply; ask the BMV.
Transfer-on-death title: An owner can title a vehicle 'A.B. transfers on death to C.D.'. The beneficiary owns it at the owner's death; it is not testamentary and needs no delivery or consideration.

Source: Official page

Surviving spouse in Indiana

The surviving spouse of an Indiana resident is entitled to a $25,000 allowance from the estate (if there is no spouse, it is divided among children under 18). It can be claimed against personal property, real estate or both; it is claimed in a probate case.

Related pages

Free help in Indiana

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