Settle a small estate in North Dakota without probate

In North Dakota this is called: Affidavit for collection of personal property of the decedent (small estate affidavit); summary administrative procedure for small estates. If the whole estate, minus liens and encumbrances, is worth $100,000 or less, the person who inherits can collect personal property by giving a sworn affidavit to the bank or other holder 30 days after the death, with no court case.

Up to $100,000 (deaths on or after August 1, 2025), 30 days after the death, no court filing.

Is the estate small enough?How do I do it?Car, bank, houseFree help

Checked against official sources: October 30, 2026.

Not about a small estate? Unclaimed money → Owed Map · Debt collectors → Debt Collector Map · Other problems → robinclaim.com

Free tools

Small estate checker

Add up the estate and compare it with the North Dakota limit for the date of death.

Letter to a bank

Present your signed affidavit to a bank or other holder in North Dakota.

Balance request letter

Ask a bank or holder for the balance on the date of death.

What-to-gather checklist

Papers, steps, forms and fees for North Dakota, by procedure.

Car, bank, house in North Dakota

Car or other vehicle

A successor can transfer a vehicle using NDDOT's version of the small estate affidavit (SFN 2916), signed before a notary at least 30 days after the death, stating the whole estate, minus liens, is $100,000 or less and no personal representative has been appointed.

Bank accounts

At death, money in a joint account belongs to the surviving owner, and a payable-on-death account goes to the named beneficiary; the bank pays on a death certificate.

House or land

An owner can sign a transfer on death deed so North Dakota real estate passes to a named beneficiary at death without probate. The deed must have the elements of a recordable deed, say that the transfer happens at the owner's death, and use the words 'transfer on death deed' or 'TOD' in its title.

Related pages

Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property of the Decedent (N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-01)

A sworn statement you give to whoever holds the person's money or belongings, such as a bank, so they pay or deliver it to you. It is not filed with the court.

Limit

Up to $100,000 (deaths on or after August 1, 2025) Counted after subtracting liens (what is owed on the property).

Date of deathLimit
On or after August 1, 2025
$100,000
On or before July 31, 2025
$50,000

The entire estate, wherever located, minus liens and encumbrances, cannot be worth more than $100,000. The limit rose from $50,000 to $100,000 on August 1, 2025.

What counts

The value of the entire probate estate, wherever located, minus liens and encumbrances. Property that passes outside probate (joint tenancy, payable-on-death, beneficiary designations, trusts) is not counted.

Waiting period

At least 30 days must have passed since the death, and no application or petition to appoint a personal representative can be pending or granted anywhere (in any state or tribal court).

Who can use it

The successor: a person entitled to the property under the will or under state inheritance law if there is no will.

Court or where to file

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

Notary

The affidavit must be signed in front of a notary public or a clerk of court.

Papers to attach
  • Certified copy of the death certificate (holders usually ask for it)
  • The specific property you are collecting and who holds it, listed in the affidavit
Steps
  1. List everything the person owned and its value on the date of death, and subtract liens.
  2. Wait until at least 30 days after the death.
  3. Ask the holder whether it will accept the affidavit.
  4. Fill in ND Probate Code Form 1 and sign it before a notary or clerk of court.
  5. Give the signed affidavit to the bank, company or person holding the property.
Fee

There is no court filing fee because the affidavit is not filed with the court.

Debts and responsibility

A person who receives property this way must answer and account for it to any personal representative appointed later and to anyone with a better right to it. Filing a false affidavit is a Class A misdemeanor.

What the bank or holder must do

A holder who pays or delivers property on the affidavit is released as if it dealt with a personal representative and does not have to check the truth of the affidavit. A transfer agent must re-register securities. If the holder refuses, the property can be recovered in a court proceeding.

Law: N.D.C.C. secs. 30.1-23-01, 30.1-23-02 (as amended by 2025 N.D. Sess. Laws ch. 319, H.B. 1224)

Source: Official page

Small estates: summary administrative procedure and closing by sworn statement (N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-03, 30.1-23-04)

After a personal representative is appointed in probate, if the estate is worth no more than the homestead, exempt property, family allowance, administration costs, funeral costs and last-illness medical bills, the representative can pay it out right away without notice to creditors and close the estate with a sworn statement.

Waiting period

The representative may distribute right away once the inventory shows the estate qualifies. An application for informal probate or appointment can be filed any time after five days from the death (court guidebook).

Who can use it

The court-appointed personal representative.

Court or where to file

The district court in the county where the person lived.

Notary

The closing statement is verified (sworn).

Papers to attach
  • Inventory and appraisal
  • Closing statement sent to all distributees and known unpaid creditors
Steps
  1. Apply to the district court for informal probate of the will or informal appointment of a personal representative.
  2. Prepare the inventory and appraisal.
  3. If the estate qualifies, pay and distribute it to the people entitled to it.
  4. File a verified closing statement with the court and send copies to distributees and known creditors.
Fee

$160 filing fee for an informal probate or appointment application (N.D.C.C. 27-05.2-03(1)(a); court guidebook).

Law: N.D.C.C. secs. 30.1-23-03, 30.1-23-04

Source: Official page

What counts toward the limit in North Dakota

Add up the date-of-death value of everything in the probate estate, wherever located, and subtract liens and encumbrances. Leave out property that passes outside probate. The court's instructions say the affidavit can be used only if there is no real estate in the probate estate.

Law: N.D.C.C. sec. 30.1-23-01; ND Courts Form 1 instructions

In this state the total is counted after subtracting liens.

Kind of propertyHow it is treatedDetails
Bank accounts in the person's name alone
Counts

Bank accounts in the person's name alone, with no payable-on-death beneficiary, count.

Law: N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-01

Joint or payable-on-death (POD) bank accounts
Left out

Joint accounts and payable-on-death accounts pass to the surviving owner or beneficiary and are left out.

Law: N.D.C.C. 30.1-31-09

Cars and other vehicles
Counts

Vehicles in the person's name count. NDDOT accepts its own version of the affidavit (SFN 2916).

Law: N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-01; NDDOT SFN 2916

Boats and mobile or manufactured homes
Counts

Boats, mobile homes and other personal property in the person's name count.

Law: N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-01

Real estate in North Dakota
Counts

Real estate counts toward the value. The court's instructions say that if there is any real estate in the probate estate, the affidavit cannot be used and a personal representative must be appointed.

Law: N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-01; ND Courts Form 1 instructions

Main home (primary residence)
Counts

The home counts as real estate. If it is in the probate estate, the court's instructions say a personal representative must be appointed.

Law: N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-01; ND Courts Form 1 instructions

Real estate in another state
Counts

The limit covers the entire estate 'wherever located', so property in other states counts.

Law: N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-01(1)(a)

Unpaid wages owed to the person
Counts

Money owed to the person, such as unpaid wages, is part of the estate and counts.

Law: N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-01

Military pay owed to the person
Not clear

The law does not separately address military pay owed to the person.

Law: N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-01

Life insurance or retirement money paid to a named person
Left out

Insurance paid to a named beneficiary is non-probate property and is left out.

Life insurance or retirement money paid to the estate
Counts

Insurance or retirement money payable to the estate is probate property and counts.

Property in a living trust
Left out

Trust property is non-probate property and is left out.

Property owned jointly with right of survivorship
Left out

Property held in joint tenancy, and life estates, are non-probate property and are left out. Joint-tenancy real estate passes by recording a death certificate with the county recorder.

Property going to a surviving spouse
Counts

Property in the probate estate counts even if it goes to the surviving spouse. Property that passes to the spouse outside probate (joint tenancy, payable-on-death, beneficiary designation) is not counted.

Law: N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-01

Stocks, bonds and brokerage accounts
Counts

Stocks and bonds in the person's name alone count. Securities registered with a transfer-on-death beneficiary pass outside probate.

Law: N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-01, 30.1-31-29

Furniture, jewelry and other belongings
Counts

Furniture, tools, farm equipment and personal belongings count at fair market value.

Source: Official page

Car or vehicle title after a death in North Dakota

A successor can transfer a vehicle using NDDOT's version of the small estate affidavit (SFN 2916), signed before a notary at least 30 days after the death, stating the whole estate, minus liens, is $100,000 or less and no personal representative has been appointed. If a personal representative was appointed, the representative signs the title.

Law: N.D.C.C. sec. 30.1-23-01; NDDOT SFN 2916

Agency
North Dakota Department of Transportation (NDDOT), Motor Vehicle Division
Form
SFN 2916 Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property of the Decedent (4-2026)
Waiting period
30 days after the death
Fee

NDDOT charges its title fee.

Source: Official page

Bank accounts after a death in North Dakota

At death, money in a joint account belongs to the surviving owner, and a payable-on-death account goes to the named beneficiary; the bank pays on a death certificate. For an account in the person's name alone, the successor can use the small estate affidavit after 30 days if the whole estate, minus liens, is $100,000 or less.

Law: N.D.C.C. secs. 30.1-31-09, 30.1-31-15, 30.1-31-16, 30.1-23-01

Source: Official page

Transfer-on-death (TOD) and payable-on-death (POD) in North Dakota

Real estate (TOD deed)

Yes · Transfer on death deed (Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act)

An owner can sign a transfer on death deed so North Dakota real estate passes to a named beneficiary at death without probate. The deed must have the elements of a recordable deed, say that the transfer happens at the owner's death, and use the words 'transfer on death deed' or 'TOD' in its title. It must be recorded before the owner dies. The owner can revoke it.

Law: N.D.C.C. ch. 30.1-32.1

Bank account (POD)

Yes

Law: N.D.C.C. secs. 30.1-31-04, 30.1-31-16

Securities (TOD)

Yes

Law: N.D.C.C. secs. 30.1-31-21 to 30.1-31-30

Source: Official page

Surviving spouse in North Dakota

In a probate case, the surviving spouse is entitled to the homestead, up to $15,000 in household furniture, vehicles, furnishings, appliances and personal effects (exempt property), and a reasonable family allowance; if there is no spouse, minor and dependent children share these. These come before most creditors. North Dakota has no separate spouse-only small estate procedure.

Debts of the person in North Dakota

Anyone who receives property by affidavit must answer and account for it to a later personal representative and to anyone with a better right. Creditors' claims can be filed up to three years after the death if no notice to creditors was published (court guidebook).

Medicaid estate recovery in North Dakota

HHS has a preferred claim against the estate of a Medicaid member who was 55 or older when they got services, or who was permanently institutionalized at any age. The claim is not enforced while a spouse is alive, or while there is a child under 21 or a blind or permanently disabled child; it can then be made against the spouse's estate when the spouse dies. A personal representative must send HHS a copy of the probate application and a list of heirs, devisees and surviving joint tenants. Funeral costs up to $3,500 and some other expenses are paid first.

Law: N.D.C.C. sec. 50-24.1-07

Agency
North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services, Legal Division, Estate Recovery Unit
Phone
(800) 472-2622
Official page
Official page

Who inherits with no will in North Dakota

If there is no will, the surviving spouse gets everything when there are no children or parents, or when all the person's children are also the spouse's children and the spouse has no other children. If there are no children but a parent survives, the spouse gets the first $300,000 plus three-fourths of the rest. If all the children are the spouse's but the spouse has other children, the spouse gets the first $225,000 plus half. If any of the person's children are not the spouse's, the spouse gets the first $150,000 plus half. The rest, or everything if there is no spouse, goes to children (or their descendants), then parents, then brothers and sisters and their descendants, then grandparents' families.

Law: N.D.C.C. secs. 30.1-04-02, 30.1-04-03

Source: Official page

Death certificates in North Dakota

A complete certified copy (with cause of death and Social Security number) can go to a relative (spouse, parent or guardian, child, grandparent, grandchild or sibling), an authorized representative or by court order. The first certified copy is $15 and each additional copy ordered at the same time is $10. Order online, by mail or by appointment: (701) 328-2360.

Where to get it
North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services, Vital Records
Official page
Official page

Where to file in North Dakota

The small estate affidavit is not filed anywhere: you give it to the bank, NDDOT or other holder. If a personal representative is needed (estate over $100,000 or real estate in the probate estate), the application is filed with the district court in the county where the person lived. A transfer on death deed or joint-tenancy real estate is handled with the county recorder.

Good to know in North Dakota

  • North Dakota doubled its small estate affidavit limit from $50,000 to $100,000 effective August 1, 2025.
  • The affidavit limit covers the entire estate 'wherever located', including property in other states.
  • North Dakota can recover Medicaid costs from the estate of the recipient's surviving spouse after the spouse dies.

Changes in 2024–2026

H.B. 1224, approved March 19, 2025, effective August 1, 2025: small estate affidavit limit raised from $50,000 to $100,000. Court Form 1 and NDDOT form SFN 2916 updated to $100,000.

Law: 2025 N.D. Sess. Laws ch. 319

National rules that apply in every state

Federal estate tax

  • For a person who died in 2026, a federal estate tax return (Form 706) is required only if the gross estate, plus certain lifetime taxable gifts, is more than $15,000,000.
  • Most estates owe no federal estate tax and do not need to file a federal estate tax return.

Law: 26 U.S.C. 2010(c)(3) (as amended by Pub. L. 119-21)

The final income tax return

  • Report all income up to the date of death and claim all eligible credits and deductions.
  • Someone must file the final federal income tax return of a person who died, the same way it would have been filed if they were alive.
  • To claim a refund due to the person who died, attach Form 1310 (Statement of Person Claiming Refund Due a Deceased Taxpayer).

Law: Form 1310 instructions (Rev. December 2025)

More →

Social Security

  • Social Security retirement benefits are paid through the month before the month the person died.
  • If the person had enough Social Security work credits (was fully or currently insured), a one-time death payment of $255 (or three times the person's basic benefit, if that is smaller) can be paid to a surviving spouse who lived with the person.

Law: 42 U.S.C. 402(a), 402(i)

Savings bonds

  • If the person's savings bonds and other Treasury securities held directly with the Treasury are worth more than $100,000 at the date of death, the Treasury requires a court-administered estate.

Law: 31 CFR 353.71; FS Form 5336 (Rev. April 2026)

More →

Debts

  • Debts are generally paid from the money and property the person left (the estate).
  • If the estate cannot pay a debt and no one else shared responsibility for it, the debt may go unpaid.
  • You may have to pay if you co-signed the loan, were a joint account holder on a credit card (not just an authorized user), or state law makes a spouse responsible for certain debts, such as in community property states or states with laws on necessary costs like health care.

Law: 12 CFR 1006.6(a)(4)

More →

A house with a mortgage

  • For a home with fewer than five units, a lender may not call the whole loan due just because the home passes to a relative after the borrower's death, to a spouse or children who become owners, or to a surviving joint owner.
  • Https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/how-do-i-get-mortgage-information-about-a-home-i-inherited-en-217/
  • Https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/i-recently-inherited-a-house-the-mortgage-lender-said-its-required-to-determine-my-ability-to-repay-before-it-will-let-me-take-over-the-mortgage-loan-is-this-true-en-1939/

Law: 12 U.S.C. 1701j-3(d)(3), (5), (6); 12 CFR 1024.30(d), 1024.31

FDIC insurance on bank accounts

  • After a deposit owner dies, FDIC insurance on the account stays the same for six months, unless the account is restructured.

Law: 12 CFR 330.3(j)

Medicaid estate recovery

  • States must try to recover some Medicaid costs from the estate of a person who got benefits at age 55 or older: nursing facility services, home and community-based services, and related hospital and prescription drug services.
  • The 'estate' includes at least the property in the person's probate estate under state law.
  • Https://www.govinfo.gov/link/uscode/42/1396p?type=usc&year=mostrecent&link-type=html

Law: 42 U.S.C. 1396p(b)

More →

Death certificates

  • Certified copies of a death certificate come from the vital records office of the state where the death happened, not from the federal government.

Free help in North Dakota

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

More help on our sister sites

Questions about small estates in North Dakota

What is a small estate affidavit called in North Dakota?

In North Dakota this is called: Affidavit for collection of personal property of the decedent (small estate affidavit); summary administrative procedure for small estates. If the whole estate, minus liens and encumbrances, is worth $100,000 or less, the person who inherits can collect personal property by giving a sworn affidavit to the bank or other holder 30 days after the death, with no court case.

What is the small estate limit in North Dakota?

Up to $100,000 (deaths on or after August 1, 2025), 30 days after the death, no court filing.

How long do I wait in North Dakota?

At least 30 days must have passed since the death, and no application or petition to appoint a personal representative can be pending or granted anywhere (in any state or tribal court).

Do I have to go to court in North Dakota?

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

How do I transfer a car after a death in North Dakota?

A successor can transfer a vehicle using NDDOT's version of the small estate affidavit (SFN 2916), signed before a notary at least 30 days after the death, stating the whole estate, minus liens, is $100,000 or less and no personal representative has been appointed.

What happens to a bank account after a death in North Dakota?

At death, money in a joint account belongs to the surviving owner, and a payable-on-death account goes to the named beneficiary; the bank pays on a death certificate. For an account in the person's name alone, the successor can use the small estate affidavit after 30 days if the whole estate, minus liens, is $100,000 or less.

Who inherits in North Dakota if there is no will?

If there is no will, the surviving spouse gets everything when there are no children or parents, or when all the person's children are also the spouse's children and the spouse has no other children. If there are no children but a parent survives, the spouse gets the first $300,000 plus three-fourths of the rest.

Do I owe the person's debts in North Dakota?

Anyone who receives property by affidavit must answer and account for it to a later personal representative and to anyone with a better right. Creditors' claims can be filed up to three years after the death if no notice to creditors was published (court guidebook).

Sources