Settle a small estate in Rhode Island without probate
In Rhode Island this is called: Voluntary informal administration of small estates (voluntary administrator / voluntary executor). Rhode Island has no small estate affidavit handed straight to a bank. Instead, a family member files a short sworn statement with the city or town probate court and, after the judge reviews it, gets a certificate naming them voluntary administrator (or voluntary executor if there is a will).
Up to $15,000, 30 days after the death, filed with a court.
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 Rhode Island limit for the date of death.
Letter to a bank
Present your signed affidavit to a bank or other holder in Rhode Island.
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 Rhode Island, by procedure.
Car, bank, house in Rhode Island
Car or other vehicle
Unless the will says otherwise, the person's motor vehicles belong by law to the surviving spouse. The DMV registers them in the spouse's name when the spouse brings a certified death certificate and the vehicle registrations, with no fee for the new title.
Bank accounts
Joint and payable-on-death accounts pass to the surviving owner or beneficiary. For an account in the person's name alone, a voluntary administrator or executor appointed by the local probate court can collect it with a copy of the certification of appointment, a written receipt and the passbook or other document, if the small estate rules are met.
Related pages
- Small estate affidavit in Rhode Island
- Car title after a death in Rhode Island
- Bank accounts after a death in Rhode Island
- Small estate checker for Rhode Island
- Letter to a bank in Rhode Island
- Balance request letter for Rhode Island
- What-to-gather checklist for Rhode Island
- All about small estates in Rhode Island
Voluntary Informal Administration of Small Estates (Petition for Voluntary Informal Administrator, form PC 1.10)
A sworn statement filed with the local probate court when there is no will. After the judge reviews it, the clerk issues a certificate that lets you collect the listed assets.
- Limit
Up to $15,000 Counted at full value, without subtracting debts.
The person's personal property, not counting tangible personal property, cannot be worth more than $15,000, and the person cannot have owned real estate.
- What counts
Only the person's personal property that would be listed on a probate inventory (such as bank accounts and stocks in the person's sole name), not counting tangible personal property (belongings such as cars, furniture and jewelry). The estate must consist entirely of personal property: the person cannot have owned any real estate.
- Waiting period
More than 30 days must have passed since the death, and no petition for letters of administration or probate of a will may have been filed in the probate court of the person's city or town.
- Who can use it
The surviving spouse, child, grandchild, parent, brother, sister, niece, nephew, aunt or uncle, or any interested party, who is an adult with legal capacity and a Rhode Island resident. The person who died must have been a Rhode Island resident.
- Court or where to file
Probate court of the city or town where the person lived (each Rhode Island city and town has its own probate court).
- Notary
The statement is verified by oath or affirmation; the state probate form is signed before a notary.
- Papers to attach
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- Schedule of every asset titled solely in the person's name and its estimated value
- Names and addresses of the people who would inherit under Rhode Island inheritance law
- Steps
- Wait more than 30 days after the death.
- List every asset in the person's name and its value; check that there is no real estate and the non-tangible personal property is $15,000 or less.
- Fill in form PC 1.10 and sign it before a notary.
- File it with the probate court of the city or town where the person lived, with the death certificate and the $30 fee.
- After the judge reviews it (no hearing is required, but the judge may hold one), pay $5 for the certification of appointment.
- Use copies of the certification to collect each asset; pay funeral, last-illness and administration expenses and debts, then distribute the rest.
- Fee
$30 to file the statement and $5 for the certification of appointment.
- Debts and responsibility
The voluntary administrator or executor must first pay the funeral and last-illness expenses and administration expenses (without a fee for their own services), then the person's debts in the legal order, and then distribute the rest to the surviving spouse or, if there is no spouse, to the heirs under R.I. Gen. Laws 33-1-10. They are liable as an 'executor in his or her own wrong' to anyone harmed by their handling of the estate, and to any executor or administrator appointed later.
- What the bank or holder must do
When shown a copy of the certification of appointment, a proper written receipt and the passbook, policy, certificate or other document, the holder may pay or deliver the asset listed in the statement. Payment discharges the holder unless it has already received a written demand from an appointed executor or administrator.
Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1
Source: Official page
Administration of Small Estates Where Executor Named in Will (Petition for Voluntary Informal Executor, form PC 1.9)
The same short procedure when there is a will: the executor named in the will (or an alternate, or a close relative) files a sworn statement and the original will with the local probate court and gets a certificate as voluntary executor.
- Limit
Up to $15,000 Counted at full value, without subtracting debts.
The person's personal property, not counting tangible personal property, cannot be worth more than $15,000, and the person cannot have owned real estate.
- What counts
Only the person's personal property that would be listed on a probate inventory (such as bank accounts and stocks in the person's sole name), not counting tangible personal property (belongings such as cars, furniture and jewelry). The estate must consist entirely of personal property: the person cannot have owned any real estate.
- Waiting period
More than 30 days must have passed since the death, and no petition for letters of administration or probate of a will may have been filed in the probate court of the person's city or town.
- Who can use it
The executor named in the will, if an adult with legal capacity; if that person cannot serve, the alternate named; otherwise the surviving spouse, child, grandchild, parent, brother, sister, niece, nephew, aunt or uncle, or any interested party who is an adult Rhode Island resident. A named executor who lives outside Rhode Island must appoint a resident agent.
- Court or where to file
Probate court of the city or town where the person lived (each Rhode Island city and town has its own probate court).
- Notary
The statement is verified by oath or affirmation; the state probate form is signed before a notary.
- Papers to attach
- Original will
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- Schedule of every asset titled solely in the person's name and its estimated value
- Names and addresses of the heirs under inheritance law and of the beneficiaries under the will
- Steps
- Wait more than 30 days after the death.
- List every asset in the person's name and its value; check that there is no real estate and the non-tangible personal property is $15,000 or less.
- Fill in form PC 1.9 and sign it before a notary.
- File it with the original will, the death certificate and the $30 fee in the probate court of the city or town where the person lived.
- After the judge reviews it (no hearing is required, but the judge may hold one), pay $5 for the certification of appointment as voluntary executor.
- Collect the assets, pay funeral, last-illness and administration expenses and debts, then distribute under the will.
- Fee
$30 to file the statement and $5 for the certification of appointment.
- Debts and responsibility
The voluntary administrator or executor must first pay the funeral and last-illness expenses and administration expenses (without a fee for their own services), then the person's debts in the legal order, and then distribute the rest. They are liable as an 'executor in his or her own wrong' to anyone harmed by their handling of the estate, and to any executor or administrator appointed later.
- What the bank or holder must do
When shown a copy of the certification of appointment, a proper written receipt and the passbook, policy, certificate or other document, the holder may pay or deliver the asset listed in the statement. Payment discharges the holder unless it has already received a written demand from an appointed executor or administrator.
Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-2
Source: Official page
What counts toward the limit in Rhode Island
Add up the value of the person's personal property that would go on a probate inventory, such as bank accounts and stocks in their name alone. Do not count tangible personal property (cars, furniture, jewelry and other belongings). The person must not have owned any real estate. Property that passes outside probate is not counted.
Law: R.I. Gen. Laws secs. 33-24-1, 33-24-2
In this state the total is counted at full value, without subtracting debts.
| 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 count. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) |
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 not listed on the probate inventory. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) |
Cars and other vehicles | Left out | A car is tangible personal property, so it is not counted. Unless the will says otherwise, the person's cars pass by law to the surviving spouse. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws secs. 33-24-1(a), 31-3.1-37 |
Boats and mobile or manufactured homes | Left out | Boats and other tangible personal property are not counted. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) |
Real estate in Rhode Island | Has its own procedure | If the person owned any real estate, the small estate procedure cannot be used; the estate must go through regular probate. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) ('consisting entirely of personal property') |
Main home (primary residence) | Has its own procedure | If the person owned their home, the small estate procedure cannot be used; the estate must go through regular probate. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) |
Real estate in another state | Not clear | The court form says the person 'owned no real estate at the time of their death'. Ask the probate court how real estate in another state affects the small estate procedure. Law: Form PC 1.10 item 5 |
Unpaid wages owed to the person | Counts | Unpaid wages owed to the person are a debt owed to the estate and count. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a), (c) |
Military pay owed to the person | Not clear | Money owed by the U.S. military may be paid to a beneficiary named with the military, outside probate. Ask the probate court how to count it. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) |
Life insurance or retirement money paid to a named person | Left out | Life insurance and retirement benefits paid to a named beneficiary are not part of the probate inventory. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) |
Life insurance or retirement money paid to the estate | Counts | Insurance or benefits payable to the estate count. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) |
Property in a living trust | Left out | Property in a trust is not part of the probate inventory. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) |
Property owned jointly with right of survivorship | Left out | Property held jointly with survivorship passes to the surviving owner. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) |
Property going to a surviving spouse | Counts | Non-tangible personal property that goes to the spouse under the will or inheritance law still counts. Property the spouse gets as a joint owner or beneficiary does not. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) |
Stocks, bonds and brokerage accounts | Counts | Stocks and bonds in the person's name alone count. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) |
Furniture, jewelry and other belongings | Left out | Furniture, jewelry, clothing and other tangible personal property are not counted toward the $15,000. Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1(a) |
Source: Official page
Car or vehicle title after a death in Rhode Island
Unless the will says otherwise, the person's motor vehicles belong by law to the surviving spouse. The DMV registers them in the spouse's name when the spouse brings a certified death certificate and the vehicle registrations, with no fee for the new title. Others who receive a vehicle by inheritance apply for a new title with the last title, proof of the transfer (such as a probate court certificate of a voluntary administrator or executor) and a title application.
Law: R.I. Gen. Laws secs. 31-3.1-37, 31-3.1-14
- Agency
- Rhode Island Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
- Fee
No title fee for a surviving spouse; in the year of transfer the spouse pays no registration fee if the person had paid it (otherwise a pro rata amount). Other title fees are set by the DMV.
Source: Official page
Bank accounts after a death in Rhode Island
Joint and payable-on-death accounts pass to the surviving owner or beneficiary. For an account in the person's name alone, a voluntary administrator or executor appointed by the local probate court can collect it with a copy of the certification of appointment, a written receipt and the passbook or other document, if the small estate rules are met.
Law: R.I. Gen. Laws secs. 33-24-1(c), 33-24-2(d)
Source: Official page
Transfer-on-death (TOD) and payable-on-death (POD) in Rhode Island
- Real estate (TOD deed)
No
Rhode Island's General Laws have no transfer-on-death deed. Bills to adopt the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act were introduced in 2024 (S 2027) and 2025 (S 0141) but are not in the General Laws.
Law: R.I. Gen. Laws Title 33; R.I. Gen. Laws Title 2025 S 0141
Source: Official page
Surviving spouse in Rhode Island
Unless the will says otherwise, the person's cars pass to the surviving spouse, who can register them with no title fee. With no will, the spouse receives personal property as set by R.I. Gen. Laws 33-1-10 and a life estate in the real estate (33-1-5); in a probate case the court may also award the spouse up to $150,000 of real estate (33-1-6).
Law: R.I. Gen. Laws 31-3.1-37
Debts of the person in Rhode Island
A voluntary administrator or executor must pay the funeral and last-illness expenses, administration expenses and the person's debts in the legal order before distributing anything, and is personally liable to anyone harmed by improper handling.
Law: R.I. Gen. Laws 33-12-11; R.I. Gen. Laws 33-24-1(e)-(f)
Medicaid estate recovery in Rhode Island
Medicaid paid for a person aged 55 or older becomes a lien on the probate estate (property included or includable in it, whether or not a probate case is opened), unless the person left a spouse, a child under 21, or a blind or disabled child. The lien attaches to real estate only after a statement of claim is recorded in the land evidence records. When a petition to probate a will or for administration is filed for a person who was 55 or older, a copy of the petition and the death certificate must be sent to EOHHS; if this is not done, no distribution may be made, and anyone who receives a distribution is liable to EOHHS up to its amount. EOHHS must waive recovery in whole or part for undue hardship.
Law: R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 40-8-15
- Agency
- Rhode Island Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS)
- Official page
- Official page
Who inherits with no will in Rhode Island
If there is no will, real estate goes to the children or their descendants, then parents, then brothers and sisters and their descendants, then grandparents and other relatives; a surviving spouse gets a life estate in the real estate. Of personal property left after debts, the spouse gets one-half if there are children, or $50,000 plus one-half of the rest if there are none; the rest goes to the other heirs in the same order as real estate.
Law: R.I. Gen. Laws secs. 33-1-1, 33-1-2, 33-1-5, 33-1-10
Source: Official page
Death certificates in Rhode Island
Order a certified copy from the Rhode Island Department of Health, Center for Vital Records, or from the clerk of the city or town where the death happened. Ask the office for the current fee.
- Where to get it
- Rhode Island Department of Health, Center for Vital Records (Cranston), or the clerk of the city or town where the death happened
Where to file in Rhode Island
Every city and town in Rhode Island has its own probate court. The voluntary administrator or voluntary executor statement is filed with the probate court of the city or town where the person lived, using the state probate forms PC 1.10 (no will) or PC 1.9 (will).
Good to know in Rhode Island
- Rhode Island's small estate procedure leaves out tangible personal property (cars, furniture, jewelry) when counting the $15,000.
- Unless the will says otherwise, a person's motor vehicles pass by law to the surviving spouse.
- The small estate procedure is only for a person who lived in Rhode Island, and the voluntary administrator must be a Rhode Island resident.
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
- 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
- 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)
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)
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 Rhode Island
A court self-help center or a legal aid office can check whether the estate qualifies, free of charge or at low cost.
- Rhode Island Legal Services
- Rhode Island Secretary of State: State probate court forms
- Providence Probate Court (example of a city probate court page)
- 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
More help on our sister sites
Questions about small estates in Rhode Island
What is a small estate affidavit called in Rhode Island?
In Rhode Island this is called: Voluntary informal administration of small estates (voluntary administrator / voluntary executor). Rhode Island has no small estate affidavit handed straight to a bank. Instead, a family member files a short sworn statement with the city or town probate court and, after the judge reviews it, gets a certificate naming them voluntary administrator (or voluntary executor if there is a will).
What is the small estate limit in Rhode Island?
Up to $15,000, 30 days after the death, filed with a court.
How long do I wait in Rhode Island?
More than 30 days must have passed since the death, and no petition for letters of administration or probate of a will may have been filed in the probate court of the person's city or town.
Do I have to go to court in Rhode Island?
Probate court of the city or town where the person lived (each Rhode Island city and town has its own probate court).
How do I transfer a car after a death in Rhode Island?
Unless the will says otherwise, the person's motor vehicles belong by law to the surviving spouse. The DMV registers them in the spouse's name when the spouse brings a certified death certificate and the vehicle registrations, with no fee for the new title.
What happens to a bank account after a death in Rhode Island?
Joint and payable-on-death accounts pass to the surviving owner or beneficiary. For an account in the person's name alone, a voluntary administrator or executor appointed by the local probate court can collect it with a copy of the certification of appointment, a written receipt and the passbook or other document, if the small estate rules are met.
Who inherits in Rhode Island if there is no will?
If there is no will, real estate goes to the children or their descendants, then parents, then brothers and sisters and their descendants, then grandparents and other relatives; a surviving spouse gets a life estate in the real estate.
Do I owe the person's debts in Rhode Island?
A voluntary administrator or executor must pay the funeral and last-illness expenses, administration expenses and the person's debts in the legal order before distributing anything, and is personally liable to anyone harmed by improper handling.
- R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-1 (Rhode Island General Assembly)
- R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 33-24-2
- Probate form PC 1.10 (Rev. 03/21)
- Probate form PC 1.9 (Rev. 03/24)
- Rhode Island Secretary of State: Probate forms
- R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 31-3.1-37
- R.I. Gen. Laws sec. 40-8-15
- R.I. Gen. Laws secs. 33-1-1 to 33-1-10
- 2025 S 0141 (Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act bill)