Small estate checker for Indiana
Enter the date of death and what the person owned. The page adds what the state counts and compares it with the limit for that date. It does not decide anything.
The limits this checker uses
These come from the state's law as we checked it. The checker picks the row that matches the date of death you enter.
Small estate affidavit (affidavit for transfer of assets without administration)
| 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 |
45 days after the death.
Summary procedure for small estates (with recorded real estate affidavit)
| 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 |
What counts toward the limit in Indiana
Add up the gross value of the person's probate estate, wherever located, including real estate. Subtract liens and encumbrances (such as a mortgage or car loan) and reasonable funeral expenses. Leave out property that passes outside probate.
Law: Ind. Code 29-1-8-1(b)(1)
In this state the total is counted after subtracting liens.
| Kind of property | How it is treated | Details |
|---|---|---|
Bank accounts in the person's name alone | Counts | Accounts in the person's name alone, with no surviving owner or POD/TOD beneficiary, are probate property and count. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(b)(1) |
Joint or payable-on-death (POD) bank accounts | Left out | Joint accounts with survivorship and POD/TOD accounts pass outside probate and are not part of the gross probate estate. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(b)(1) |
Cars and other vehicles | Counts | A vehicle is probate property and counts toward the limit. The BMV can transfer the title five days after the death with its own affidavit. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(b)(1), (c) |
Boats and mobile or manufactured homes | Counts | Watercraft and other personal property count. The BMV can transfer a watercraft title with its affidavit. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(c) |
Real estate in Indiana | Counts | Indiana real estate in the person's name counts, minus mortgages and liens. The affidavit itself cannot transfer real estate. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(b)(1) |
Main home (primary residence) | Counts | The home counts at its value minus the mortgage and other liens. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(b)(1) |
Real estate in another state | Counts | The limit covers the gross probate estate 'wherever located', so property in other states counts too (minus liens). Law: IC 29-1-8-1(b)(1) |
Unpaid wages owed to the person | Counts | Money owed to the person, such as unpaid wages, counts. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(a) |
Military pay owed to the person | Not clear | The small estate law does not mention military pay. Law: IC 29-1-8-1 |
Life insurance or retirement money paid to a named person | Left out | Insurance and retirement benefits paid to a named beneficiary pass outside probate and are not counted. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(b)(1) |
Life insurance or retirement money paid to the estate | Counts | An insurance death benefit payable to the estate counts, and the insurer must pay on the affidavit. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(e) |
Property in a living trust | Left out | Property in a living trust is not part of the probate estate. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(b)(1) |
Property owned jointly with right of survivorship | Left out | Property held jointly with right of survivorship passes to the survivor outside probate. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(b)(1) |
Property going to a surviving spouse | Counts | Probate property counts even if it goes to the spouse under the will or intestacy law. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(b)(1) |
Stocks, bonds and brokerage accounts | Counts | Stocks in the person's name alone count; a transfer agent must re-register them on the affidavit. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(d) |
Furniture, jewelry and other belongings | Counts | Belongings count. Property in a safe deposit box is treated as held by the bank. Law: IC 29-1-8-1(a), (f) |
Source: Official page
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$100,000July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2022$50,000On or before June 30, 2006$25,000For 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.
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
Summary procedure for small estates (with recorded real estate affidavit)
In an estate opened in court, the personal representative of an unsupervised estate (or a court-appointed fiduciary) can pay out and distribute a small estate without notice to creditors, record an affidavit for any real estate, and close with a short statement.
- 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$100,000July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2022$50,000On or before June 30, 2006$25,000For a death after June 30, 2022: $100,000 plus administration costs and reasonable funeral expenses ($50,000 for deaths July 1, 2006 - June 30, 2022; $25,000 before July 1, 2006).
- What counts
The gross probate estate minus liens and encumbrances. The limit is the dollar amount for the date of death, plus the costs of administration and reasonable funeral expenses.
- Waiting period
The law sets no waiting period. After the closing statement is filed, the estate closes if nothing is filed within two months.
- Who can use it
The personal representative of an unsupervised estate, or a person the court appointed to act for the decedent or distributees.
- Court or where to file
The probate court where the estate is opened; the real estate affidavit is recorded with the county recorder where the property is.
- Papers to attach
- Real estate affidavit with the legal description, the required statement for the date of death, each person's share and how it was figured
- Copy of the recorded real estate affidavit attached to the closing statement
- Steps
- Open the estate and be appointed personal representative (unsupervised) or fiduciary.
- Pay costs, funeral expenses and debts as required, and distribute the estate to the people entitled to it.
- If there is real estate, record the affidavit with the county recorder.
- File a verified closing statement and send copies to distributees and known creditors.
- If no objection is filed within two months, the estate is closed.
- Fee
Court filing and county recorder fees apply; ask the clerk and recorder.
Law: Ind. Code secs. 29-1-8-3, 29-1-8-4
Source: Official page
Bank accounts after a death in Indiana
Joint accounts with survivorship and POD/TOD accounts go to the surviving owner or beneficiary. For an account in the person's name alone, a distributee can use the small estate affidavit after 45 days. Before that, you can give the bank an affidavit asking for the date-of-death balance and the names of known beneficiaries; it must answer within three business days, and a holder that refuses is liable to the estate (three times actual damages plus attorney's fees in a successful suit).
Law: Ind. Code secs. 29-1-8-1, 29-1-8-1.5
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.
- Indiana Legal Help (court-supported legal information and help finder)
- Indiana Legal Services
- Indiana Judicial Branch Self-Service Legal Center
- 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