Small estate affidavit in California: limit, waiting period, form and where to file

California lets heirs collect a small estate with the Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property instead of probate when the estate is under $208,850, at least 40 days have passed, and no probate has been opened. It never goes to court: you hand it to whoever holds the asset.

Check whether your estate qualifies in California

What makes California different

California's affidavit never goes to a judge. You hand it, with a certified death certificate, to whoever holds the asset — the bank, the DMV (which has its own form, REG 5, for vehicles), the employer — and they must release the property within a reasonable time.

The 40-day wait is counted from the date of death, and the dollar limit is tested on the date the affidavit is presented, not the date of death. Assets that pass outside probate (joint accounts, POD accounts, trusts, life insurance) don't count toward the $208,850.

Several county law libraries (Sacramento, Riverside) publish free step-by-step packets with a sample affidavit that banks recognise; using one is faster than drafting from the statute.

California counties: office, fee, local form

The state sets the rule; the county sets the counter. These are the California counties people ask about most:

Step by step in California

1. Order certified death certificates. Five or more from the county vital records office; every holder keeps one.
2. Inventory the estate. Everything in the person's sole name with no beneficiary. Compare the total to California's limit ($208,850).
3. Wait 40 days. California requires 40 days from the date of death.
4. Complete and sign the California form. Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property (Probate Code §13101). Signed under penalty of perjury by each successor; most banks and the DMV insist on notarization; attach a certified death certificate and, for real property, an Inventory and Appraisal.
5. Present it to each holder. Bank, DMV, employer — with a certified death certificate each time.
6. Pay debts, then distribute. Funeral and last medical bills first, then known creditors, then heirs as the statute directs. Keep receipts.

If the bank refuses

California banks reject affidavits for the same four reasons as everywhere else: the branch doesn't know Cal. Prob. Code §§13100–13116, the bank wants its own form as well, the waiting period was miscounted, or the notarization is missing. Each has a fix that doesn't need a lawyer; the $49 packet includes the affidavit versions Bank of America, Chase, U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo use.

When California requires probate instead

Over the limit, real estate the affidavit can't move, a dispute between heirs, or a creditor who won't accept the affidavit — any of these means a probate track: summary or formal administration. The checker above switches to a probate timeline when that's the case and can connect you with a probate attorney licensed in California; the attorney pays the referral fee, you don't.

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