Small estate checker for North Dakota
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.
Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property of the Decedent (N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-01)
| Date of death | Limit |
|---|---|
On or after August 1, 2025 | $100,000 |
On or before July 31, 2025 | $50,000 |
30 days after the death.
Also in North Dakota (not tested here)
These procedures have their own rules, so the checker does not test them. See the state page.
- Small estates: summary administrative procedure and closing by sworn statement (N.D.C.C. 30.1-23-03, 30.1-23-04)
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 property | How it is treated | Details |
|---|---|---|
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
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 death Limit On or after August 1, 2025$100,000On or before July 31, 2025$50,000The 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
- List everything the person owned and its value on the date of death, and subtract liens.
- Wait until at least 30 days after the death.
- Ask the holder whether it will accept the affidavit.
- Fill in ND Probate Code Form 1 and sign it before a notary or clerk of court.
- 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
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
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.
Related pages
- Small estate affidavit in North Dakota
- Car title after a death in North Dakota
- Bank accounts after a death in North Dakota
- House without probate in North Dakota
- Letter to a bank in North Dakota
- Balance request letter for North Dakota
- What-to-gather checklist for North Dakota
- All about small estates in North Dakota
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.
- Legal Services of North Dakota
- State Bar Association of North Dakota: Lawyer Referral
- ND Courts Legal Self Help Center: Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property of the Decedent
- ND Courts: Informal Probate
- ND Courts: Informal Administration of an Estate guidebook
- 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