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Arkansas timeline

Arkansas probate timeline and creditor deadlines

The waiting-period requirement has not been verified, so no number is published below.

That clock is one condition among several, and it is not the whole estate timeline. The deadlines that carry the most risk are creditor deadlines, and in Arkansas they are set out below against the event each one runs from.

Sources reviewed August 9, 2026. Latest primary-source re-fetch September 15, 2026.

The one date this page can source

The waiting-period requirement for this route has not been verified, so no number is published. Read the statute below before assuming any waiting period applies.

Creditor deadlines

Arkansas does not run one creditor clock. Separate periods start from separate events, and the date that actually bars a claim is the one the applicable period produces. They are listed here against the event that starts each, because a period attached to the wrong starting event is how a deadline gets missed by weeks.

From publication of notice to creditors
Six (6) months from the first publication of the notice to creditors (Ark. Code Ann. § 28-40-111(a)(1)(A), Act 217/2009).
From actual notice to a known creditor
Not separately restated by a harvestable enacted Act. Arkansas requires the personal representative to serve known creditors within one (1) month of first publication (§ 28-40-111(a)(4)(A), Act 217/2009), but the claim period applicable to an actually-noticed creditor is set in § 28-50-101(a), which was not amended by (and does not appear in) the harvested Acts; treat as governed by § 28-50-101(a) (Lexis-locked).
Outer limit, running from death
Statute of nonclaim: claims not presented to the personal representative or filed with the court within six (6) months after the first publication of notice to creditors are barred (Ark. Code Ann. § 28-50-101(c), Act 217/2009).

How these combine. Arkansas runs separate, trigger-specific creditor deadlines. For a full administration, claims are barred unless filed within six (6) months of the first publication of notice (Ark. Code Ann. § 28-40-111(a)(1)(A), Act 217/2009), and the statute of nonclaim independently bars claims not presented within six (6) months of first publication (§ 28-50-101(c), Act 217/2009). A small-estate affidavit proceeding uses a shorter three (3)-month bar from first publication (§ 28-41-101, Act 526/2015).

to him or her, within three (3) months six (6) months from33 the date of the first publication of the notice, or they shall be forever34 barred and precluded from anyAct 217, §§ 1–2, 2009 Ark. Acts (Reg. Sess.) (amending Ark. Code Ann. § 28-40-111(a)(1)(A) and § 28-50-101(c)) — Arkansas General Assembly / Arkansas Bureau of Legislative Research; APPROVED: 2/20/2009.

Publishing notice starts a period after which most claims are barred. Missing a required notice can extend the estate’s exposure and, in some circumstances, the personal exposure of the person administering it. Confirm the dates that apply to this estate with the Circuit Court (Probate Division) before relying on them, because a specific case can carry deadlines these general provisions do not reach.

Arkansas timeline decision map

What must be established before the Arkansas clock matters

The Arkansas waiting period is only one condition. Use this map to separate the route clock from creditor deadlines, asset scope, court costs, and the documents needed to move from screening to filing.

QuestionRecorded Arkansas answerCarry into the case
What route is being screened?Affidavit for collection of small estate (Ark. Code Ann. § 28-41-101)Confirm that the will, prior appointment, family facts, and asset titles fit this route.
What property and basis count?probate property within the rule's stated scope; gross value with statutory exemptions not classified by this worksheet.Keep real property, liens, beneficiary transfers, and survivorship transfers classified separately.
What is the amount screen?No numeric ceiling verifiedUse the counted property, not a bank-balance shortcut.
What is the time or deadline record?No waiting-period number verified; Arkansas runs separate, trigger-specific creditor deadlines. For a full administration, claims are barred unless filed within six (6) months of the first publication of notice (Ark. Code Ann. § 28-40-111(a)(1)(A), Act 217/2009), and the statute of nonclaim independently bars claims not presented within six (6) months of first publication (§ 28-50-101(c), Act 217/2009). A small-estate affidavit proceeding uses a shorter three (3)-month bar from first publication (§ 28-41-101, Act 526/2015).Keep the event that starts each clock with the date; do not combine separate periods into one number.
What does the cost record establish?$25 is the recorded statewide amount.Ask the Circuit Court (Probate Division) about local surcharges, copies, publication, bond, and later filings.
What does compensation use?No compensation amount is recorded here: Ark. Code Ann. § 28-48-108 fixes personal-representative compensation as a statutory percentage schedule on personal property. No Arkansas Act in the text-extractable era (2001–2025) amended or restated § 28-48-108 (zero hits in the full-text Act search at www.arkleg.state.ar.us), and the codified section is served only through the LexisNexis contract. The percentage schedule is therefore recorded as UNKNOWN rather than reproduced from memory.Keep the will, task log, receipts, and accounting base together; extraordinary work is separate.

Clock ledger

Do not compress the Arkansas deadlines into one date

The Arkansas record names separate triggers. The description beside each trigger is the source-bound statement to carry into the estate calendar; the interaction rule explains which period controls when more than one applies.

Clock starts withRecorded periodSource
Publication of noticeSix (6) months from the first publication of the notice to creditors (Ark. Code Ann. § 28-40-111(a)(1)(A), Act 217/2009).Act 217, §§ 1–2, 2009 Ark. Acts (Reg. Sess.) (amending Ark. Code Ann. § 28-40-111(a)(1)(A) and § 28-50-101(c))
Actual notice to a known creditorNot separately restated by a harvestable enacted Act. Arkansas requires the personal representative to serve known creditors within one (1) month of first publication (§ 28-40-111(a)(4)(A), Act 217/2009), but the claim period applicable to an actually-noticed creditor is set in § 28-50-101(a), which was not amended by (and does not appear in) the harvested Acts; treat as governed by § 28-50-101(a) (Lexis-locked).Act 217, §§ 1–2, 2009 Ark. Acts (Reg. Sess.) (amending Ark. Code Ann. § 28-40-111(a)(1)(A) and § 28-50-101(c))
Outer limit from deathStatute of nonclaim: claims not presented to the personal representative or filed with the court within six (6) months after the first publication of notice to creditors are barred (Ark. Code Ann. § 28-50-101(c), Act 217/2009).Act 217, §§ 1–2, 2009 Ark. Acts (Reg. Sess.) (amending Ark. Code Ann. § 28-40-111(a)(1)(A) and § 28-50-101(c))

How the periods combine: Arkansas runs separate, trigger-specific creditor deadlines. For a full administration, claims are barred unless filed within six (6) months of the first publication of notice (Ark. Code Ann. § 28-40-111(a)(1)(A), Act 217/2009), and the statute of nonclaim independently bars claims not presented within six (6) months of first publication (§ 28-50-101(c), Act 217/2009). A small-estate affidavit proceeding uses a shorter three (3)-month bar from first publication (§ 28-41-101, Act 526/2015).

Case-file context

Keep the Arkansas answer with its neighboring conditions

A route answer is easier to use when the facts that can change it stay in the same record. These are the reviewed Arkansas descriptions adjacent to this page\'s main question; they are not a substitute for the source quotations or the receiving court\'s instructions.

Route context

Arkansas offers a small-estate affidavit under Ark. Code Ann. § 28-41-101, filed in the Circuit Court, Probate Division of the county of the decedent's residence. The affidavit filing fee is $25.00 ($5.00 per certified copy). Creditors of a full administration are barred six months after first publication of notice; a small-estate proceeding uses a three-month bar. The statutory value ceiling, the 45-day waiting period, the general § 21-6-403 administration filing fee, and the § 28-48-108 compensation schedule remain honest UNKNOWNs because they live only in the LexisNexis-contracted Arkansas Code and were never restated by a text-extractable enacted Act.

Arkansas provides a small-estate affidavit under Ark. Code Ann. § 28-41-101. The affidavit filing fee ($25.00, plus $5.00 per certified copy) and the three-month small-estate creditor bar are substantiated from enacted Acts (289/2011 and 526/2015). The dollar value ceiling and the statutory 45-day waiting period live in subsection (a), which was not reachable via any enacted Act and is otherwise only in the LexisNexis-contracted code; both are recorded as honest UNKNOWNs rather than guessed.

Cost context

The small-estate affidavit filing charge is a flat $25.00; certified copies are $5.00 each per copy requested and are not part of the base filing (Ark. Code Ann. § 28-41-101(b)(1)(B), as set by Act 289/2011). The general decedent-estate opening filing fee for a full administration is the circuit-clerk fee under Ark. Code Ann. § 21-6-403, which was only cross-referenced - never restated - by any harvestable enacted Act and is therefore recorded as UNKNOWN below.

$25 is the recorded statewide amount.

Compensation context

Ark. Code Ann. § 28-48-108 fixes personal-representative compensation as a statutory percentage schedule on personal property. No Arkansas Act in the text-extractable era (2001–2025) amended or restated § 28-48-108 (zero hits in the full-text Act search at www.arkleg.state.ar.us), and the codified section is served only through the LexisNexis contract. The percentage schedule is therefore recorded as UNKNOWN rather than reproduced from memory.

No compensation amount is recorded here: Ark. Code Ann. § 28-48-108 fixes personal-representative compensation as a statutory percentage schedule on personal property. No Arkansas Act in the text-extractable era (2001–2025) amended or restated § 28-48-108 (zero hits in the full-text Act search at www.arkleg.state.ar.us), and the codified section is served only through the LexisNexis contract. The percentage schedule is therefore recorded as UNKNOWN rather than reproduced from memory.

Court-material note: Arkansas probate is heard in the Circuit Court, Probate Division (confirmed from the statutory small-estate notice caption in Act 526/2015). There is no single statewide small-estate form or statewide filing-fee dollar schedule reproduced here; the affidavit is filed with the county circuit clerk, whose administration filing fee is set by Ark. Code Ann. § 21-6-403.

No numeric shortcut is available for Arkansas

This registry does not establish a numeric Arkansas ceiling from an accepted primary source. The safe next step is to follow the reason and source lane on this page, then ask the Circuit Court (Probate Division) for the current rule rather than importing a neighboring state\'s amount.

Next evidence to collect

Calendar the verified gate, preserve the unresolved questions, and confirm the county filing path before distributing property.

  1. Record the date of death, the county, and the exact proceeding or affidavit being considered.
  2. Classify each asset by title, beneficiary, trust, real-property status, and the value basis shown above.
  3. Open the official court material below and keep its form or schedule with the estate record.
  4. Do not distribute property until the route, creditor position, and required approvals are resolved.

Official material

Arkansas probate is heard in the Circuit Court, Probate Division (confirmed from the statutory small-estate notice caption in Act 526/2015). There is no single statewide small-estate form or statewide filing-fee dollar schedule reproduced here; the affidavit is filed with the county circuit clerk, whose administration filing fee is set by Ark. Code Ann. § 21-6-403.

Source trail

Records used by this Arkansas map

The general sequence

The order in which an estate is actually worked — secure property, confirm title and beneficiary designations, identify the court route, notify and account, then close — is the same everywhere and carries no citation, so it is set out once rather than repeated on each state’s page. Read it inthe executor’s first week, and seehow long probate takes for how the phases stretch in practice.

What is jurisdiction-specific is above: the Arkansas periods, the event each one runs from, and the source each was read in.

Use this as a starting point.

This is general information, not legal, tax, or financial advice, and it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Probate law varies by state and county and changes over time. Verify the current rule with the court or a licensed attorney in the relevant state.

Continue in Arkansas