Minnesota Estate Checklist | Small Estate Map

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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: Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property (small estate affidavit) Certified death record (certified death certificate) The affidavit with the statements the law requires: estate value under $75,000 after liens, 30 days have passed, no personal representative case pending or granted, and the successor is entitled to the property

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Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property (small estate affidavit)

A sworn statement you give to a bank, company, safe deposit company or motor vehicle registrar, with a certified death record, so they pay or deliver the person's personal property to you. It is not filed with the court.

Limit

Up to $75,000 (deaths on or after August 1, 2016) Counted after subtracting liens (what is owed on the property).

Date of death	Limit
On or after August 1, 2016	$75,000
On or before July 31, 2016	$50,000

The entire probate estate, minus liens and encumbrances, cannot be worth more than $75,000. The limit was raised from $50,000 to $75,000 by a 2016 law (Laws 2016, chapter 135), in effect since August 1, 2016.

What counts

The value of the entire probate estate on the date of death, wherever located (including real estate and the contents of a safe deposit box), minus liens and encumbrances. Property that passes outside probate, such as joint, payable-on-death and transfer-on-death property, is not part of the probate estate.

Waiting period

At least 30 days must have passed since the death. For the contents of a safe deposit box, 30 days must have passed since an inventory of the box was filed.

Who can use it

A person claiming to be the successor (someone entitled to the property under the will or by inheritance law), or someone acting for the successor. A state or county agency with a medical assistance (Medicaid) claim may also use the affidavit. The affidavit must state that no application or petition to appoint a personal representative is pending or has been granted anywhere.

Court or where to file

Not filed with a court. You give it to the bank, company, safe deposit company or deputy registrar holding or titling the property.

Notary

It is an affidavit, so it is signed under oath before a notary or other officer.

Papers to attach

Certified death record (certified death certificate)
The affidavit with the statements the law requires: estate value under $75,000 after liens, 30 days have passed, no personal representative case pending or granted, and the successor is entitled to the property

Steps

Wait until at least 30 days after the death.
Add up the value of the person's entire probate estate, wherever located, minus liens and encumbrances.
Confirm no probate case to appoint a personal representative has been filed anywhere.
Fill in the affidavit and sign it before a notary.
Give the affidavit and a certified death record to each holder.
Pay or deliver the property to anyone with a better right to it, such as the surviving spouse's exempt property or allowances or priority funeral and medical expenses.

Fee

There is no court filing fee because the affidavit is not filed with the court. The deputy registrar charges its usual title fees for a vehicle.

Debts and responsibility

The person who receives property must pay it to anyone with a superior claim: the surviving spouse's or children's exempt property and allowances, and the priority expenses and claims, such as funeral and last-illness costs. The person who receives property is answerable to any personal representative later appointed or to anyone with a better right.

What the bank or holder must do

On a proper affidavit and certified death record, the holder must pay or deliver the property, a transfer agent must re-register securities, and a motor vehicle registrar must issue a new title. The holder is discharged and released as if it had dealt with a personal representative and does not have to check the truth of the affidavit. If the holder refuses, the successor can bring a court proceeding to recover the property or compel delivery.

Forms

Law: Minn. Stat. 524.3-1201, 524.3-1202

Source: Official page

Death certificates in Minnesota

Certified death certificates are available from the Minnesota Department of Health or a county vital records office. The CDC directory lists the fee as $13.00 per copy; check the current fee with the office.

Where to get it: Minnesota Department of Health, Office of Vital Records, or a county vital records office
Official page: Official page

Car or vehicle title after a death in Minnesota

When the owner has died, the vehicle should be transferred to remove the owner's name. A motor vehicle registrar must issue a new title in the successor's name when shown a small estate affidavit and certified death record (after 30 days). A surviving spouse is entitled to one automobile from the estate regardless of value. DVS form PS2071 is used either by a surviving spouse who selects the vehicle, or by an heir who certifies that the estate has not been and will not be probated and that there are no money claims or security interests on the vehicle. The form must be notarized and comes with the title, proof of death and the title and filing fees. A transfer-on-death beneficiary named on the title becomes the owner at death. DVS recommends visiting a deputy registrar office because these transfers need several documents and signatures.

Law: Minn. Stat. 524.3-1201(d), 524.2-403(a)(2), 168A.125; DVS form PS2071

Agency: Minnesota Department of Public Safety, Driver and Vehicle Services (DVS), through deputy registrar offices
Form: PS2071 Assignment of a Vehicle to a Surviving Spouse/Not Subject to Probate (PS2071-11, 08/26)
Waiting period: 30 days after the death
Fee: Deputy registrars charge the standard title transfer fees; see DVS vehicle fees.
Transfer-on-death title: An owner can title a vehicle in transfer-on-death (TOD) form by naming one or more beneficiaries on the title application. The beneficiaries have no interest until the owner (or last joint owner) dies; the owner can change the beneficiary by applying for a new title.

Source: Official page

Surviving spouse in Minnesota

A surviving spouse is entitled from the estate to household furniture, furnishings, appliances and personal effects worth up to $15,000 above any security interests, and one automobile regardless of value; if there is no spouse, the children share the same rights. If there is a surviving spouse, the homestead goes to the spouse if there are no descendants, or to the spouse for life and then to the descendants. People who collect by small estate affidavit must turn property over to anyone with these superior rights. An employer must pay up to $10,000 of wages owed to the surviving spouse on request if no personal representative has been appointed.

Law: Minn. Stat. 524.2-403; Minn. Stat. 524.2-402; Minn. Stat. 181.58

Related pages

Free help in Minnesota

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