Small estate affidavit in Alaska (2026)
In Alaska, heirs can collect up to $50,000 without probate with a sworn affidavit (Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property of Decedent (AS 13.16.680, court form P-110)). You must wait 30 days after the death. Real estate: not covered. Last checked .
Alaska at a glance
- Affidavit cap
- $50,000
- Value counted
- Net value (after liens and encumbrances)
- Waiting period
- 30 days
- If there is a will
- Can still be used
- File with a court
- No
- Real estate
- Not covered
- Court shortcut
- Small estate closing in informal probate (summary administration, AS 13.16.690-.695)
Can you use it?
Enter the date of death and the value. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
Enter the date of death and the value
Alaska cap for this date of death
$50,000
A worked example for Alaska
Say a parent who lived in Alaska died on March 1, 2026, leaving $40,000 in a bank account in their name only and no house. $40,000 is within the $50,000 cap for that date of death, so the family can use the affidavit from March 31, 2026.
The rules in Alaska
- The affidavit. A successor signs a sworn affidavit and gives a copy to anyone holding the decedent's personal property, such as a bank. That holder must then pay or deliver the property. Nothing is filed with the court.
- Cap. Other personal property cannot exceed $50,000, and registered vehicles cannot exceed $100,000 in total, both measured after debts and liens. The estate must hold no real estate.
- What counts. The entire estate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances. It may consist only of vehicles subject to Alaska registration worth up to $100,000 in total, plus other personal property worth up to $50,000. The estate cannot include real estate, unless the real estate passed automatically (tenancy by the entirety or a transfer-on-death deed).
- What doesn't count. Nonprobate property that passes automatically, such as joint bank accounts. Registered vehicles count against their own separate $100,000 cap, not the $50,000 cap. Snowmachines, ATVs, tractors, off-road equipment and boats are not 'registered vehicles' and count as other personal property.
- Waiting period. At least 30 days must have passed since the death.
- Conditions. No application or petition to appoint a personal representative may be pending or granted in any jurisdiction. The affiant must be entitled to the property. The affiant receives the property for the people entitled to it under the will or the intestacy rules, and must account for it to any personal representative appointed later.
- Who can sign. A 'successor', meaning anyone other than a creditor who is entitled to the property under the will or by intestacy: the personal representative named in the will, a will beneficiary, or an heir. The affidavit must be sworn before a notary or court clerk.
- Court filing. No court case and no court filing. Give a copy of the signed, notarized affidavit to each holder. The holder may ask to see the death certificate.
Houses, land and vehicles
- Real estate. The affidavit cannot be used if the decedent owned any real estate, however small its value, unless it passed automatically (tenancy by the entirety or a transfer-on-death deed). Land otherwise needs a probate case.
- Vehicles. Registered vehicles worth up to $100,000 in total can pass under the same affidavit rules. Alaska DMV uses its own 'Affidavit for an Estate' (Form 827), which must be notarized, show the VIN, and be filed in the original once 30 days have passed; the successor must title the vehicle in their own name before selling it.
When the affidavit isn't enough
If an informal probate case is opened and the estate, after liens, is worth no more than the homestead allowance, family allowance, exempt property, probate costs, funeral costs and last-illness medical costs, the personal representative can distribute right away without notice to creditors. The case is then closed with a sworn closing statement (form P-350). There is no fixed dollar cap.
Good to know in Alaska
- The Alaska Legislature's statute site (akleg.gov) returned server errors on 2026-10-23. The statute text was read from the copy printed on the Court System's form P-110 (rev. 4/17) and the court's self-help page. No official source checked states when the current $50,000/$100,000 caps took effect.
- Anyone who collects property by affidavit is accountable for it to any personal representative appointed later and to anyone with a better right (AS 13.16.685).
Official help and forms
Sources
- Alaska Court System - Collecting Personal Property without a Court Case (read October 23, 2026)
- Alaska Court System form P-110 Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property of Decedent (reprints AS 13.16.680) (read October 23, 2026)
- Alaska Court System - Small Estates (summary closing, P-350) (read October 23, 2026)
- Alaska DMV - Deceased Owner (read October 23, 2026)
- Alaska Statutes (Alaska Legislature) (read October 23, 2026)
Legal information, not legal advice. Caps and forms change — confirm with the court or the statute before you sign. How we check: methodology.
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