California · Small estate affidavit
The California small estate affidavit, step by step
When someone dies and their California estate is modest, the people inheriting can often collect bank accounts, final paychecks, and belongings without probate — using a short sworn statement the law calls an affidavit for collection of personal property. Prob. Code § 13100 This guide is the whole process in plain language, written for a hard week, with every rule cited so you can check us.
The limit — Probate Code §§ 13100, 890
$208,850
For deaths on or after April 1, 2025, the estate's covered property must total $208,850 or less. The limit depends on the date of death: $184,500 for deaths from April 1, 2022 through March 31, 2025, and $166,250 before that. Official adjusted amounts (courts.ca.gov)
The steps, in order
Wait 40 days
The affidavit can't be used until 40 days have passed since the death, and the affidavit itself must say so, with a certified copy of the death certificate attached. § 13101(a) There is no rush that outranks this clock — use the time to gather the paperwork in step 3.
Check that the estate qualifies
Add up the gross value of the decedent's California property — but the law excludes several big categories from the count, including joint-tenancy property, assets with named beneficiaries, and property passing directly to a surviving spouse, plus anything covered by a primary-residence petition under § 13151. § 13100 If the remaining total is under the limit for the date of death, the affidavit route is open.
Gather the documents
A certified death certificate, a list of what's being collected and where it's held, and proof of your right to inherit (the will, or California's intestacy rules if there isn't one). The court's official chart of current dollar limits is form DE-300 — banks sometimes ask for it by name.
Prepare the affidavit
Here's a surprise: there is no statewide official form for this affidavit. The law prescribes the required statements § 13101, and in practice you use the bank's own version, a county court's sample, or a correctly drafted document — the state's official self-help guide says many institutions will hand you theirs.
Prove identity — notarize in practice
The law doesn't strictly require notarization; it requires the holder to get "reasonable proof" of your identity, and a notary's acknowledgment is one guaranteed way to provide it. § 13104 If you're mailing the affidavit to a bank rather than standing at the counter, notarize it — that's what they expect.
Present it to whoever holds the property
The affidavit goes directly to the bank, employer, or company — not to a court. Once they receive it with the required attachments, the law both authorizes and protects their handing the property over. §§ 13101, 13106
What about a house or land?
The § 13100 affidavit cannot transfer real estate — it covers money owed, personal property, and securities. California has two separate small-estate paths for real property, both through the court:
| Procedure | Limit | Wait | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| Real property of small value | $69,625 (deaths on/after Apr 1, 2025) | 6 months | Court-filed affidavit, form DE-305 § 13200 |
| Primary residence succession | $750,000 | 40 days | Court petition (form DE-310) § 13151 |
The $750,000 primary-residence petition is new — 2024's AB 2016 rewrote that procedure to cover only the decedent's primary home. If real estate is in the picture, this is also the point where an hour with a probate attorney pays for itself.
The official sources
The state's plain-language guide: selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/probate/small-estate. The current dollar limits, straight from the Judicial Council: the § 890 adjusted-amounts chart and form DE-300. Statute text: Probate Code §§ 13100–13116.
Common questions
Does the affidavit have to be notarized?
Not by law — Probate Code § 13104 requires 'reasonable proof of identity,' and notarization is one guaranteed way to give it. In practice, banks expect a notarized affidavit for anything handled by mail, so plan on it.
Which dollar limit applies to us?
The one in force on the date of death, not the date you use the affidavit: $208,850 for deaths on or after April 1, 2025; $184,500 for deaths from April 1, 2022 through March 31, 2025; $166,250 before that. The limits adjust every three years (next: April 1, 2028).
Can we use it for the house?
No — the § 13100 affidavit covers personal property only. Real estate has its own procedures: the DE-305 court affidavit for small-value real property (six-month wait), or the new primary-residence petition up to $750,000 under § 13151.
The bank has its own affidavit form — do we have to use theirs?
Usually the smoothest path is yes. The law prescribes what the affidavit must say, not whose paper it's printed on, and the state's own guide notes many institutions want their version. Bring the death certificate and identification either way.
Coming: the guided pack. We're building a $19 step-by-step pack for this process — your answers filled into the right documents, the filing steps for your county, and a checklist you can hand to the bank or clerk. This site is new; the pack ships when it meets our bar.
What this guide is, honestly: a careful, statute-cited map of the standard process — not legal advice, and not a substitute for a licensed attorney when the situation is contested or unusual.
Dollar amounts and statutes were checked against the official Judicial Council adjusted-amounts chart and the 2025 Probate Code in August 2026. The limits adjust triennially — the linked official chart always outranks this page.
Sources: California Probate Code §§ 13100–13116, 13150–13157, 13200 et seq.; Judicial Council adjusted-amounts chart and forms DE-300, DE-305, DE-310; California Courts Self-Help Guide. Forms & Steps explains official processes and links official sources — we don't imitate government forms.