Collecting a Small Estate Without Probate
IC 29-1-8-1 — an affidavit 45 days after death, where the estate is not more than $100,000
Forty-five days after a death, someone holding the person's money or property pays or delivers it to a distributee who presents an affidavit, where the gross probate estate, less liens, encumbrances and reasonable funeral expenses, is not more than $100,000 for a death after June 30, 2022.
Who handles this in Indiana: Indiana Self-Service Legal Center; and legal aid programs and the state offices, listed in the Indiana directory.
The affidavit states the following.
- That the estate is within the limit, and 45 days have passed.
- That no personal representative's appointment is pending or granted anywhere.
- The name and address of each distributee and each one's share, that each was told of the affidavit, and that the affiant is entitled to collect for them.
A vehicle or watercraft title may be transferred on an affidavit once five days have passed since the death, where no personal representative is expected. Securities, insurance owed to the estate and a safe deposit box's contents pass under the same affidavit.
Sources for this section (1)
- IC 29-1-8-1 — Small estates; payment upon presentation of affidavit; vehicle or watercraft; securities; insurance death benefit; safe deposit box; digital asset
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Indiana attorney.