Settle a small estate in Ohio without probate

In Ohio this is called: Release from administration; summary release from administration. Ohio has no small estate affidavit that you hand to a bank. Instead, if the estate is small, you file a short application with the county probate court, and the court can order the property delivered to the people entitled to it without a full administration.

Up to $35,000 (deaths on or after November 9, 1994), filed with a court.

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Checked against official sources: October 30, 2026.

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Free tools

Small estate checker

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

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 Ohio, by procedure.

Car, bank, house in Ohio

Car or other vehicle

A surviving spouse can take the person's cars, up to a combined value of $65,000, by giving the clerk of courts title office the title and a sworn Surviving Spouse Affidavit (BMV 3773).

Bank accounts

A payable-on-death account goes to the named beneficiary, and a joint account with right of survivorship goes to the surviving owner, without probate.

House or land

Release from administration (Application to Relieve Estate from Administration)

A short probate court case for an estate worth $35,000 or less. The court orders the bank accounts, other personal property and real estate delivered or transferred to the people entitled to them, without appointing an executor or administrator.

Limit

Up to $35,000 (deaths on or after November 9, 1994)

Date of death	Limit
On or after November 9, 1994	$35,000
October 20, 1987 to November 8, 1994	$25,000
January 1, 1976 to October 19, 1987	$15,000

The estate's assets can be worth up to $35,000 for a death on or after November 9, 1994. The limit is $100,000 if the surviving spouse is entitled to all of the estate (see the next procedure). Form 5.0 also lists older limits: $25,000 for deaths on or after October 20, 1987, and $15,000 for deaths on or after January 1, 1976. If assets are not money, stocks, bonds or other property with a readily known value, an appraiser chosen by the applicant and approved by the court values them.

What counts

The value of the assets of the estate (property that would otherwise go through probate). Debts are listed separately on Form 5.1. Cars the surviving spouse takes under R.C. 2106.18 are not estate assets and are left out.

Waiting period

The law sets no waiting period before you apply. The court decides how long notice must be given to the surviving spouse and heirs, and notice by newspaper publication may be required unless the court waives it. Creditors have six months after the death to present claims.

Who can use it

Any interested party, such as a family member, heir or beneficiary, may apply. The surviving spouse, heirs, legatees and devisees can sign a waiver of notice on the back of Form 5.0. If there is a will, it must first be admitted to probate.

Court or where to file

The probate court of the county where the person lived at death.

Papers to attach

Form 5.0 Application to Relieve Estate from Administration
Form 5.1 Assets and Liabilities of Estate to be Relieved from Administration (with the appraiser's certification if any assets were appraised)
Form 1.0 Surviving Spouse, Children, Next of Kin, Legatees and Devisees
The will, if there is one (it must be admitted to probate)
If there is real estate: an application for a certificate of transfer
Certified copy of the death certificate (courts usually ask for one)
Medicaid estate recovery notice form, if the person or their spouse received Medicaid (due within 30 days of filing)

Steps

List the estate's assets and their values, and the known debts, on Form 5.1. Leave out cars the spouse takes by affidavit.
Have an appraiser value assets that do not have a readily known value, if the court requires it.
If there is a will, file it for probate first.
File Form 5.0 with Forms 5.1 and 1.0 at the county probate court, with any waivers of notice.
Give the notice the court orders, or have the people entitled to notice sign waivers.
At the hearing, if the court is satisfied, it signs an entry releasing the estate and directing who receives each asset.
Give certified copies of the court's entry to banks and others; real estate transfers by certificate of transfer.

Fee

Filing fees are set by each county probate court; ask the probate court. The appraiser, if one is used, is paid under R.C. 2115.06. Publication in a newspaper, if required, costs extra.

Debts and responsibility

Property delivered under a release from administration is subject to creditors' claims presented within six months after the death. A court order releasing the estate protects an innocent buyer of the real estate from unsecured creditors' claims.

What the bank or holder must do

The court's entry directs delivery of personal property and transfer of real property to the people entitled to them. The statute does not list a separate release of liability for banks.

Forms

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2113.03, 2113.01, 2117.06, 2117.061

Source: Official page

Release from administration when the surviving spouse receives everything ($100,000)

The same probate court release procedure, with a higher limit of $100,000 when the surviving spouse is entitled to all of the estate, either under the will or because there is no will and Ohio law gives the spouse everything.

Limit

Up to $100,000 (deaths on or after March 18, 1999)

Date of death	Limit
On or after March 18, 1999	$100,000
September 14, 1993 to March 17, 1999	$85,000
April 16, 1993 to September 13, 1993	$50,000

Up to $100,000 for a death on or after March 18, 1999, if the will leaves everything to the surviving spouse, or if there is no will and the spouse is entitled to the whole estate under Ohio's inheritance law (with the $40,000 allowance for support).

What counts

The value of the assets of the estate. Cars the surviving spouse takes under R.C. 2106.18 are not estate assets and are left out.

Waiting period

The law sets no waiting period before you apply. The court decides what notice is needed.

Who can use it

Any interested party, usually the surviving spouse.

Court or where to file

The probate court of the county where the person lived at death.

Papers to attach

Form 5.0, Form 5.1 and Form 1.0
The will, if there is one, admitted to probate
Application for a certificate of transfer, if there is real estate
Medicaid estate recovery notice form, if the person or their spouse received Medicaid

Steps

Confirm the will leaves everything to the spouse, or that there is no will and the spouse inherits everything under R.C. 2105.06.
Fill in Forms 5.0, 5.1 and 1.0 and file them with the county probate court.
Give any notice the court orders, or file waivers.
The court signs an entry releasing the estate and directing delivery to the spouse.

Fee

Set by each county probate court; ask the court.

Debts and responsibility

Property delivered is subject to creditors' claims presented within six months after the death.

Forms

Form 5.0 Application to Relieve Estate from Administration

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2113.03(A)(2), 2105.06, 2106.13

Source: Official page

Summary release from administration

A faster probate court order for a very small estate, given to the person who paid (or must pay) the funeral and burial bill, or to the surviving spouse. The court orders the property and its title delivered to the applicant.

Limit

Up to $5,000 (deaths on or after October 12, 2006)

Date of death	Limit
On or after October 12, 2006	$5,000

For someone other than the spouse who paid or is obligated in writing to pay the funeral and burial expenses: the estate cannot be worth more than $5,000 or the amount of those expenses, whichever is less. For a surviving spouse (with no minor children, or only minor children of both spouses): the estate cannot be worth more than the $40,000 allowance for support plus up to $5,000 for funeral and burial expenses, and the funeral must be prepaid or paid (or owed in writing) by the spouse.

What counts

The value of the assets of the estate, compared with the funeral and burial expenses.

Waiting period

The law sets no waiting period.

Who can use it

A person, other than the surviving spouse, who paid or is obligated in writing to pay the funeral and burial expenses; or the surviving spouse, as described above.

Court or where to file

The county probate court.

Notary

The application must be signed and acknowledged before a notary public or a deputy clerk of the probate court.

Papers to attach

Form 5.10 Application for Summary Release from Administration, describing every known asset (for a car: year, make, model, body type, VIN, title number and value; for bank accounts: bank name, full account number and date-of-death balance; for stocks and bonds: details and values)
Receipt, contract or written declaration showing payment or obligation to pay the funeral and burial expenses (or the prepayment receipt)
Form 1.0 listing the spouse, next of kin, legatees and devisees
Application for a certificate of transfer, if there is real estate
The filing fee

Steps

Gather the funeral bill or prepayment receipt.
List every known asset with its date-of-death value on Form 5.10.
Sign the application before a notary or deputy probate clerk.
File it with the probate court with the attachments and fee.
If the court grants it, give a certified copy of the order and the application to the bank, company or title office.

Fee

A fee is required under R.C. 2101.16(A)(59); local fees vary by county. Ask the probate court.

What the bank or holder must do

A certified copy of the order with a certified copy of the application is sufficient authority for a bank, corporation or other holder, or a clerk of courts title office, to transfer the asset to the applicant.

Forms

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2113.031, 2106.13

Source: Official page

Payment of a deceased employee's wages without probate

An employer may pay the person's wages or earnings directly to the surviving spouse, or if none, to an adult child, or then to a parent, without letters of administration.

Waiting period: The employer may pay at any time after the death.
Who can use it: In this order: the surviving spouse; one or more children 18 or older; the father or mother.
Court or where to file: Asked of the employer.
Steps: Contact the employer's payroll office.
Give the employer the proof it asks for.
Fee: Not filed with a court.
Debts and responsibility: If an executor or administrator is later appointed, the person who received the wages must pay that amount to the executor or administrator.
What the bank or holder must do: Payment is a full discharge and release of the employer. The employer may pay; the law does not require it.

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2113.04

Source: Official page

What counts toward the limit in Ohio

Add up the value of the estate's assets: property in the person's name that would otherwise go through probate. Property that passes to someone else by contract or title (payable-on-death and joint survivorship accounts, transfer-on-death property, named beneficiaries) is not an estate asset. Cars the surviving spouse takes by affidavit (up to $65,000 total) are left out. Debts are listed separately on Form 5.1.

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2113.03, 2113.031, 2106.18, 2106.19, 2131.10, 2131.12, 2131.13

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, are estate assets. Law: R.C. 2113.03; R.C. 2113.031(C)(2)(d)(ii)
Joint or payable-on-death (POD) bank accounts	Left out	A payable-on-death account is paid to the named beneficiary by contract with the bank, and an account held with right of survivorship goes to the survivor; they are not estate assets. Law: R.C. 2131.10, 2131.12
Cars and other vehicles	Own procedure, up to $65,000	Cars the surviving spouse selects, up to $65,000 total, pass by affidavit at the title office and are not estate assets. Cars with a transfer-on-death beneficiary or a surviving joint owner also pass outside the estate. Other vehicles count. Law: R.C. 2106.18(A), 4505.10, 2131.13
Boats and mobile or manufactured homes	Has its own procedure	The surviving spouse may take one watercraft, one watercraft trailer and one outboard motor by affidavit; these are not estate assets. Other boats and manufactured homes count. Law: R.C. 2106.19(A)
Real estate in Ohio	Counts	Ohio real estate in the person's name counts and is transferred by certificate of transfer, unless it passes by a transfer on death designation affidavit or survivorship deed. Law: R.C. 2113.03(B), 2113.031(C)(3)(b), 5302.22
Main home (primary residence)	Counts	The person's home counts like other real estate in their name, unless it passes by transfer on death designation affidavit or survivorship deed. Law: R.C. 2113.03, 5302.22
Real estate in another state	Not clear	The release statute does not address real estate in another state; it is handled under that state's law. Ask the probate court. Law: R.C. 2113.03
Unpaid wages owed to the person	Not clear	An employer may pay wages directly to the spouse or family, but the statute does not say whether unpaid wages count toward the release limit. Ask the probate court. Law: R.C. 2113.04
Military pay owed to the person	Not clear	Ohio's release statutes do not mention military pay owed to the person. Law: R.C. 2113.03
Life insurance or retirement money paid to a named person	Not clear	The release statute does not list life insurance or retirement benefits paid to a named beneficiary. Ask the probate court. Law: R.C. 2113.03
Life insurance or retirement money paid to the estate	Counts	Benefits payable to the estate are estate assets. Law: R.C. 2113.03
Property in a living trust	Not clear	The release statute does not mention property held in a living trust. Ask the probate court. Law: R.C. 2113.03
Property owned jointly with right of survivorship	Left out	Property held in joint ownership with right of survivorship (including survivorship deeds for real estate) passes to the surviving owner. Law: R.C. 2131.12, 5302.17, 4505.10(C)
Property going to a surviving spouse	Counts	Property the surviving spouse inherits is still an estate asset and counts, including the $40,000 allowance for support. Cars the spouse takes by affidavit (up to $65,000 combined) and one boat, boat trailer and outboard motor taken by affidavit are not estate assets. The $100,000 limit applies when the spouse receives everything. Law: R.C. 2113.03(A)(2), 2106.13(A), 2106.18(A), 2106.19(A)
Stocks, bonds and brokerage accounts	Counts	Stocks and bonds in the person's name, with no transfer-on-death beneficiary, are estate assets. Law: R.C. 2113.031(C)(2)(d)(iii)
Furniture, jewelry and other belongings	Counts	Household goods and other belongings are estate assets; items without a readily known value may need an appraiser. Law: R.C. 2113.03(C)

Source: Official page

Car or vehicle title after a death in Ohio

A surviving spouse can take the person's cars, up to a combined value of $65,000, by giving the clerk of courts title office the title and a sworn Surviving Spouse Affidavit (BMV 3773). This does not apply to a car left to someone else by will, or one that passes to a joint survivorship owner or a transfer-on-death beneficiary. 'Automobile' includes a motorcycle and a family truck. A transfer-on-death beneficiary or surviving joint owner gets the title by presenting the title and the death certificate. Other heirs need a probate court order (such as a release from administration entry or a summary release) or a transfer by the executor or administrator.

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2106.18, 4505.09, 4505.10, 2131.13

Agency: County clerk of courts title office (Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles title system)
Form: BMV 3773 Surviving Spouse Affidavit (R.C. 2106.18 and 4505.10)
Value limit: Up to $65,000
Fee: The clerk charges $18 for each certificate of title, or $23 in counties that adopted the higher fee.
Transfer-on-death title: A sole owner, or joint survivorship owners, can name one or more transfer-on-death beneficiaries on the certificate of title for a motor vehicle, all-purpose vehicle, off-highway motorcycle, watercraft or outboard motor. After the death, the beneficiary applies for a title with the old title and the death certificate.

Source: Official page

Bank accounts after a death in Ohio

A payable-on-death account goes to the named beneficiary, and a joint account with right of survivorship goes to the surviving owner, without probate. For an account in the person's name alone, the bank needs a probate court order, such as an entry releasing the estate from administration or a summary release order with a certified copy of the application. Ohio has no statute letting a bank pay a small account to family on an affidavit alone.

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2131.10, 2131.12, 2113.03, 2113.031(E)

Source: Official page

Transfer-on-death (TOD) and payable-on-death (POD) in Ohio

Real estate (TOD deed)

Yes · Transfer on death designation affidavit

An owner (with their spouse, if any) can sign a transfer on death designation affidavit naming beneficiaries for real estate. It must be recorded with the county recorder where the property is before the owner dies. At death, title vests in the beneficiaries. To record the transfer, a beneficiary files a sworn affidavit of confirmation with a certified copy of the death certificate, presented to the county auditor and filed with the county recorder.

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 5302.22-5302.24, 5302.222

Vehicle title (TOD)

Yes

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2131.13

Bank account (POD)

Yes

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2131.10

Securities (TOD)

Yes

Law: Ohio Rev. Code Chapter 1709 (Transfer-on-death security registration), R.C. 1709.02

Source: Official page

Surviving spouse in Ohio

A surviving spouse can take the person's cars, up to $65,000 combined, and one boat, boat trailer and outboard motor, by affidavit at the clerk of courts title office; these are not estate assets. The spouse (and minor children) are entitled to a $40,000 allowance for support from the estate, reduced by the value of the lowest-valued car if the spouse took more than one. The release from administration limit is $100,000 when the spouse receives everything, and the spouse can apply for summary release when the estate is no more than the $40,000 allowance plus up to $5,000 for funeral costs. An employer may pay the person's wages to the spouse.

Law: R.C. 2106.18, 2106.19; R.C. 2106.13; R.C. 2113.03, 2113.031; R.C. 2113.04

Debts of the person in Ohio

Creditors must present claims within six months after the death, whether or not the estate is released from administration; late claims are barred. The Medicaid estate recovery program has its own, later deadline. Property delivered under a release from administration is subject to those claims.

Law: R.C. 2117.061; R.C. 2113.03(H), 2117.06

Medicaid estate recovery in Ohio

If the person (or the person's late spouse) was subject to Medicaid estate recovery, the person who files for release from administration or summary release must send a Medicaid estate recovery notice form to the program within 30 days of filing, and mark the box on the probate form. The program must present its claim within 90 days after receiving the form or one year after the death, whichever is later. In Ohio, 'estate' for recovery includes probate property, property that would be probated if not for a release from administration, and other property the person had an interest in at death, including property passing by joint tenancy, survivorship, life estate or living trust. Recovery waits while a surviving spouse is alive or there is a child under 21 or a blind or disabled child, and it is waived for undue hardship.

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2117.061, 5162.21

Agency: Ohio Department of Medicaid, Medicaid Estate Recovery Program
Official page: Official page

Who inherits with no will in Ohio

If there is no will and there is a surviving spouse, the spouse gets everything if all the person's children are also the spouse's children, or if there are no children. If some children are not the spouse's, the spouse gets the first $20,000 or $60,000 (depending on whose children they are) plus one-half or one-third of the rest, and the children share the remainder. With no spouse, children (or their descendants) inherit; then parents; then brothers and sisters; then grandparents and their descendants; then other next of kin and stepchildren.

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2105.06

Source: Official page

Death certificates in Ohio

Certified death certificates are available from the Ohio Department of Health, Vital Statistics, P.O. Box 15098, Columbus, OH 43215-0098, or from local health departments. The CDC directory lists the state fee as $21.50 per copy; check the current fee with the office.

Where to get it: Ohio Department of Health, Office of Vital Statistics, or a local health department
Official page: Official page

Where to file in Ohio

Applications for release from administration and summary release from administration are filed with the probate court of the county where the person lived at death, using the Supreme Court of Ohio standard probate forms. A surviving spouse's car affidavit is taken to a county clerk of courts title office. A transfer on death designation affidavit for real estate is recorded with the county recorder during the owner's life.

Good to know in Ohio

Ohio's release from administration is a probate court procedure, not an affidavit handed to a bank: the estate limit is $35,000, or $100,000 when the surviving spouse receives everything.
A surviving spouse can take cars worth up to $65,000 combined by affidavit at the title office, outside the estate (R.C. 2106.18; BMV 3773).
Creditors' claims against an Ohio estate are barred if not presented within six months after the death, even when the estate is released from administration.

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)

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)

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)

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)

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 Ohio

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 Ohio

What is a small estate affidavit called in Ohio?

What is the small estate limit in Ohio?

Up to $35,000 (deaths on or after November 9, 1994), filed with a court.

How long do I wait in Ohio?

Do I have to go to court in Ohio?

The probate court of the county where the person lived at death.

How do I transfer a car after a death in Ohio?

A surviving spouse can take the person's cars, up to a combined value of $65,000, by giving the clerk of courts title office the title and a sworn Surviving Spouse Affidavit (BMV 3773).

What happens to a bank account after a death in Ohio?

Who inherits in Ohio if there is no will?

Do I owe the person's debts in Ohio?

Sources

Settle a small estate in Ohio without probate

Free tools

Small estate checker

Balance request letter

What-to-gather checklist

Car, bank, house in Ohio

Car or other vehicle

Bank accounts

House or land

Related pages

Release from administration (Application to Relieve Estate from Administration)

Release from administration when the surviving spouse receives everything ($100,000)

Summary release from administration

Payment of a deceased employee's wages without probate

What counts toward the limit in Ohio

Car or vehicle title after a death in Ohio

Bank accounts after a death in Ohio

Transfer-on-death (TOD) and payable-on-death (POD) in Ohio

Surviving spouse in Ohio

Debts of the person in Ohio

Medicaid estate recovery in Ohio

Who inherits with no will in Ohio

Death certificates in Ohio

Where to file in Ohio

Good to know in Ohio

National rules that apply in every state

Federal estate tax

The final income tax return

Social Security

Savings bonds

Debts

A house with a mortgage

FDIC insurance on bank accounts

Medicaid estate recovery

Death certificates

Free help in Ohio

More help on our sister sites

Questions about small estates in Ohio