Small Estate Affidavit in California: How It Works
Managing a deceased person’s estate can be complicated, even when the estate is small. For these situations, a small estate affidavit in California can simplify the process. This document lets heirs or beneficiaries claim personal property without opening a probate case. No court case. No hearings. It can save a family months of estate administration and a great deal of the cost of full probate. Here is how it works, who qualifies, what you take on by signing it, and which real property routes are still open after the law changed.
What Is a Small Estate Affidavit?
A Small Estate Affidavit, officially the Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property, is a sworn declaration authorized by California Probate Code section 13100. It lets the people entitled to a deceased person’s property collect it directly from whoever holds it, without opening a probate case. It reaches personal property: bank accounts, brokerage accounts, stocks, uncashed checks, and other assets held by a financial institution or another person. It cannot transfer real property. Section 13100 was amended by Assembly Bill 2016, Stats. 2024, Chapter 331, effective January 1, 2025.
The Current Dollar Limits
The affidavit works only if the decedent’s qualifying property stays under the gross value limit in Probate Code section 13100. Probate Code section 890 directs the Judicial Council to adjust that figure on April 1, 2022 and at each three-year interval after that, and the Judicial Council publishes the current amounts on form DE-300, effective April 28, 2025.
| Date of death | Small estate limit |
|---|---|
| On or after April 1, 2025 | $208,850 |
| April 1, 2022 through March 31, 2025 | $184,500 |
| Before April 1, 2022 | $166,250 |
The next adjustment takes effect April 1, 2028. Match the limit to the date of death, not the date you file.
The California small estate affidavit limit is $208,850 in gross value for a decedent who died on or after April 1, 2025. California Probate Code section 13100 requires that at least 40 days have elapsed since the death before the affidavit is presented. The California affidavit for real property of small value, Probate Code section 13200, has a separate limit of $69,625 and cannot be used until six months after the death.
What Counts Toward the Limit
The estate is measured at gross value on the date of death. Debts do not reduce it. Probate Code section 13050 then excludes property that already passes outside probate, including property held in joint tenancy, property in a trust the decedent could revoke during life, multiple-party and payable-on-death accounts to the extent they belong to the surviving party or named beneficiary, registered vehicles, vessels, and manufactured homes, which move through their own registration process, and a limited amount of unpaid salary. Life insurance proceeds and retirement accounts with a named beneficiary designation also stay out of the count because they pass directly to the named beneficiary rather than through the estate. Because of these exclusions, estates that look far too large on paper often qualify. Do the arithmetic before assuming formal probate is required.
Who Can Use the Affidavit
Four conditions, from sections 13100 and 13101:
- The waiting period: at least 40 days have elapsed since the death.
- No probate pending: no personal representative has been appointed, or the appointed one consents in writing.
- Successor status: the signer is entitled to the property, as a beneficiary named in the last will and testament or as an heir under intestate succession where there is no will.
- Everyone signs: where several people are entitled to the same property, all of them sign.
The affidavit is made under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California.
What You Are Signing For
Signing the affidavit transfers legal responsibility to the person who signs it.
- Under Probate Code section 13109, a person who receives property under this chapter is personally liable for the decedent’s unsecured debts. That liability is capped at the fair market value of the property received, measured when the affidavit was presented, less any liens and encumbrances on it.
- Under Probate Code section 13111, if someone else turns out to have a superior right to the property by will or by intestate succession, the recipient must restore it. Where the property is no longer held, restitution is its fair market value plus interest at 7 percent a year. Where the property was fraudulently secured, restitution is three times the fair market value.
- An action under section 13111 is barred three years after the affidavit was presented to the property holder, or three years after the fraud is discovered, whichever is later.
This is the reason to get the entitlement question right before anyone signs, and the reason a family with any uncertainty about heirs, wills, or creditors should get advice first.
How the Small Estate Affidavit Works
1. Collect all your information
The decedent’s full name, date of death, a certified death certificate, proof the decedent owned the asset, and the gross value of the qualifying property. List every person entitled to inherit and the specific property claimed. This informal estate inventory is what the rest of the process rests on.
2. Complete the affidavit
Section 13101 sets out what the affidavit or declaration must state, including that 40 days have elapsed, the current gross fair market value of the property, that no proceeding is pending or the personal representative consents, that the signer is the successor, and that no other person has a superior right to the interest claimed.
3. Sign it
Section 13101 does not require notarization; it requires an affidavit or a declaration under penalty of perjury. Banks and other financial institutions require notarization anyway before releasing funds, so sign before a notary public.
4. Present it to the property holder
Deliver the signed affidavit and the certified death certificate to the bank, brokerage, or transfer agent holding the asset, with valid identification. Each institution has its own claim paperwork and its own processing timeline.
5. Receive the property
Once the affidavit is accepted, the institution releases the property to the person entitled to receive it.
What About a House? Real Property After AB 2016
The section 13100 affidavit cannot transfer real property, and California’s real property routes changed on January 1, 2025.
- Real property of small value, form DE-305. Probate Code section 13200 allows an affidavit for real property with a gross value of $69,625 or less for a date of death on or after April 1, 2025. It carries a waiting period of six months from the death, which is a different and much longer wait than the 40 days that applies to personal property, and it requires an Inventory and Appraisal completed by a probate referee.
- The decedent’s primary residence, form DE-310. Assembly Bill 2016, Stats. 2024, Chapter 331, amended Probate Code sections 13150 and 13151 effective January 1, 2025. The Petition to Determine Succession to Real Property now applies to real property that was the decedent’s primary residence in California, with a gross value not exceeding $750,000 for a date of death on or after April 1, 2025. Section 13150 states that primary residence is not limited to the decedent’s residence at the time of their death. This is one procedure, not two, and it goes before a judge.
- Everything else. For real property that was not the decedent’s primary residence and is worth more than the section 13200 limit, a rental, a second home, or vacant land, neither the affidavit nor the primary residence petition is available, and the estate goes through formal probate administration.
For more on the primary residence petition, see Succession to Primary Residence.
A Surviving Spouse’s Unpaid Earnings
Probate Code sections 13600 and 13601 let a surviving spouse collect a deceased spouse’s unpaid salary and other compensation from the employer without probate, up to $20,875 for a date of death on or after April 1, 2025.
When the Affidavit Is Not Enough
If the qualifying property exceeds the limit, or the estate involves disputes, unclear entitlement, or creditor problems, the estate moves into formal probate administration, with court oversight, a probate referee appraisal, and statutory fees. See Probate Administration and California Probate Fees. The line between a simple affidavit and a case that needs probate is not always obvious. A California probate attorney can identify the problems early, such as an affidavit an institution refuses, or a transfer that creates liability to another heir under section 13111.
Sources
- California Probate Code sections 890, 13050, 13100, 13101, 13109, 13111, 13150, 13151, 13200, and 13600, on the official California Legislative Information site.
- The Judicial Council of California’s published maximum amounts and form DE-300, on the California Courts self-help site.
California Probate Legal is the practice of Brandon Smith, California State Bar number 308604, admitted in 2015. This article is general information about California law, it is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
When the estate fits, the affidavit moves personal property without a court case. When it does not fit, there is often still a route shorter than full probate. For a free consultation, contact California Probate Legal.