What to gather for a small estate in Nebraska

Pick a procedure and check off what you already have. Download or print the list to take with you.

Papers most holders ask for
Papers for this procedure: Affidavit for Transfer of Personal Property without Probate (collection of personal property by affidavit)
Other formats

Your checklist

Affidavit for Transfer of Personal Property without Probate (collection of personal property by affidavit)

A sworn statement you give to a bank, company or person holding the person's personal property, so they pay or deliver it to you. It is not filed with a court.

Limit

Up to $100,000 Counted after subtracting liens (what is owed on the property).

All of the person's personal property, minus liens, cannot be worth more than $100,000. The limit was raised from $50,000 to $100,000 by a 2022 law (LB 1124).

What counts

The value of all the personal property in the person's estate, wherever located, minus liens and encumbrances. Real estate is not counted toward this limit. Property that passes outside probate (joint, payable-on-death, beneficiary, transfer-on-death and trust property) is not part of the estate.

Waiting period

Thirty days must have passed since the death, as shown by a certified death certificate (or an abstract of death if the certificate is delayed) attached to the affidavit.

Who can use it

A person claiming to be the successor (entitled to the property under the will or Nebraska inheritance law), or someone acting for that person. The affidavit states the successor's relationship to the person or the basis of the claim. The court self-help page says it is not for creditors, and everyone else who inherited an interest in the property must also sign. No personal representative may have been appointed or applied for in any state.

Court or where to file

Not filed with a court. You give an original signed affidavit to each holder of the property.

Notary

Sign in front of a notary (or a judge or clerk of the court). Each holder needs its own original, notarized affidavit.

Papers to attach
  • Certified or authenticated copy of the death certificate, or an abstract of death if the certificate is delayed
Steps
  1. Wait until 30 days after the death.
  2. Check that no personal representative has been appointed or applied for.
  3. Fill in form CC 15:40 (or the holder's own form) with the required statements.
  4. Sign it before a notary; make a separate signed and notarized original for each holder.
  5. Give each holder an original affidavit with a certified death certificate attached. Keep a copy in a safe place.
Fee

No court fee; the affidavit is not filed with a court.

Debts and responsibility

Your liability to the person's creditors cannot be more than the value of the property you receive. A creditor cannot recover from you for the person's debt after three years from the death or one year after the property was distributed, whichever is later. You must also answer for the property to a personal representative appointed later or to anyone with a better right. A false statement may be punished as perjury.

What the bank or holder must do

After 30 days the holder must pay or deliver the property on a proper affidavit, and a transfer agent must re-register securities. A holder who does so is released as if it dealt with a personal representative and does not have to check whether the statements are true. A bank that accepts a check payable to the person and endorsed by the successor is discharged. If a holder refuses, the people entitled to the property can bring a court proceeding to make it pay or deliver.

Law: Neb. Rev. Stat. secs. 30-24,125, 30-24,126

Source: Official page

Death certificates in Nebraska

The DHHS page says you may get a death certificate only for your spouse, parent or child. By mail, send a $16 check or money order made out to Vital Records with a copy of your government-issued photo ID and the details of the death; you can also apply online.

Where to get it
Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, Vital Records (Lincoln)
Official page
Official page

Car or vehicle title after a death in Nebraska

If the title is in the person's name alone and all the person's personal property, minus liens, is worth $100,000 or less, the successor can transfer a vehicle or motorboat without probate with the DMV's Affidavit for Transfer of Decedent's Vehicle/Motorboat. At least 30 days must have passed, no personal representative may be appointed or applied for (or the estate must have been closed for more than ten years), the affidavit must be notarized, and the Nebraska title (if available) and a death certificate or abstract of death must be attached. Submit it to the county treasurer where the successor lives; the new title is issued in the successor's name. If the title shows joint ownership with right of survivorship ('OR' or 'WROS'), the survivor takes the vehicle with a death certificate.

Law: Neb. Rev. Stat. secs. 30-24,125(d), 60-164.01

Agency
Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles, through the county treasurer
Form
Affidavit for Transfer of Decedent's Vehicle/Motorboat (Rev. 09/2024)
Waiting period
30 days after the death
Fee

The county treasurer charges a $10.00 title fee; registration and other fees are separate.

Transfer-on-death title

A Nebraska title can name one or more transfer-on-death (TOD) beneficiaries, including a trust. At the owner's death the beneficiary applies for a title with a death certificate or abstract of death and an Application for Certificate of Title, or signs the title over to a buyer.

Source: Official page

Surviving spouse in Nebraska

In a probate case, a surviving spouse of a person who lived in Nebraska is entitled to a homestead allowance of $20,000 and exempt property worth up to $12,500 (household furniture, cars, appliances and personal effects) for deaths before January 1, 2027; for deaths on or after January 1, 2027 the amounts are $25,000 and $17,500. The spouse and dependent children can also get a reasonable family allowance during administration. The personal representative may set the family allowance as a lump sum of up to $20,000 ($25,000 for deaths on or after January 1, 2027). A successor who takes real estate through these allowances can use the real property affidavit.

Law: Neb. Rev. Stat. secs. 30-2322 to 30-2325, as amended by Laws 2026, LB 838

Related pages

Free help in Nebraska

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