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Colorado timeline

Colorado probate timeline: the 10-day wait and creditor deadlines

The simplified route starts 10 days after death.

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 Colorado 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 collection of personal property by affidavit (c.r.s. 15-12-1201) route requires 10 days to elapse from the date of death. This is a precondition: the affidavit or petition cannot be presented before it runs, regardless of how straightforward the estate is.

less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed twice the amount set forth in section 15-11-403, as adjusted by section 15-10-112; (b) At least ten days have elapsed since the death of the decedent; (c) No application or petition for the appointment of a personal representative is pending or has been granted in any jurisdiction;C.R.S. 15-12-1201 — Colorado General Assembly (Office of Legislative Legal Services); Colorado Revised Statutes 2024.

Creditor deadlines

Colorado 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
Time set in the published notice, which may be no earlier than four months from date of first publication (C.R.S. 15-12-801; 15-12-803(1)(a)(I))
From actual notice to a known creditor
Time set in the written notice to a known creditor (C.R.S. 15-12-803(1)(a)(II))
Outer limit, running from death
One year after the decedent's death, as to all creditors (C.R.S. 15-12-803(1)(a)(III))

How these combine. Colorado runs multiple independent, separately-triggered deadlines that cannot be reduced to one honest day count. C.R.S. 15-12-801 requires published notice (at least once during each of three successive weeks) fixing a bar date not earlier than four months from first publication or one year from death, whichever occurs first. C.R.S. 15-12-803(1)(a) bars pre-death claims: (I) creditors barred by publication within the time set in the published notice; (II) creditors barred by written notice within the time set in the written notice; (III) as to all creditors within one year after the decedent's death (outer nonclaim limit). Post-death claims are barred four months after they arise / after PR performance is due (15-12-803(2)).

a date not earlier than four months from date of first publication or the date one year from date of death, whichever occurs firstC.R.S. 15-12-801 — Colorado General Assembly (Office of Legislative Legal Services); Colorado Revised Statutes 2024.

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 District Court (Denver Probate Court in the City and County of Denver) before relying on them, because a specific case can carry deadlines these general provisions do not reach.

Colorado timeline decision map

What must be established before the Colorado clock matters

The Colorado 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 Colorado answerCarry into the case
What route is being screened?Collection of personal property by affidavit (C.R.S. 15-12-1201)Confirm that the will, prior appointment, family facts, and asset titles fit this route.
What property and basis count?personal probate property only; net of enforceable liens and encumbrances.Keep real property, liens, beneficiary transfers, and survivorship transfers classified separately.
What is the amount screen?$88,000 for deaths from January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2026Use the counted property, not a bank-balance shortcut.
What is the time or deadline record?10 days after death; Colorado runs multiple independent, separately-triggered deadlines that cannot be reduced to one honest day count. C.R.S. 15-12-801 requires published notice (at least once during each of three successive weeks) fixing a bar date not earlier than four months from first publication or one year from death, whichever occurs first. C.R.S. 15-12-803(1)(a) bars pre-death claims: (I) creditors barred by publication within the time set in the published notice; (II) creditors barred by written notice within the time set in the written notice; (III) as to all creditors within one year after the decedent's death (outer nonclaim limit). Post-death claims are barred four months after they arise / after PR performance is due (15-12-803(2)).Keep the event that starts each clock with the date; do not combine separate periods into one number.
What does the cost record establish?$229 is the recorded statewide amount.Ask the District Court (Denver Probate Court in the City and County of Denver) about local surcharges, copies, publication, bond, and later filings.
What does compensation use?Colorado has no statutory percentage schedule. C.R.S. 15-10-602(1) entitles a fiduciary and his or her lawyer to reasonable compensation for services rendered on behalf of an estate, and 15-10-602(4) preserves the court's inherent authority and responsibility to determine the reasonableness of compensation and costs. The former schedule sections 15-12-719 and 15-12-721 are both repealed. A court must order refund of excessive compensation. The relevant base is the estate accounting.Keep the will, task log, receipts, and accounting base together; extraordinary work is separate.

Clock ledger

Do not compress the Colorado deadlines into one date

The Colorado 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 noticeTime set in the published notice, which may be no earlier than four months from date of first publication (C.R.S. 15-12-801; 15-12-803(1)(a)(I))C.R.S. 15-12-801
Actual notice to a known creditorTime set in the written notice to a known creditor (C.R.S. 15-12-803(1)(a)(II))C.R.S. 15-12-801
Outer limit from deathOne year after the decedent's death, as to all creditors (C.R.S. 15-12-803(1)(a)(III))C.R.S. 15-12-801

How the periods combine: Colorado runs multiple independent, separately-triggered deadlines that cannot be reduced to one honest day count. C.R.S. 15-12-801 requires published notice (at least once during each of three successive weeks) fixing a bar date not earlier than four months from first publication or one year from death, whichever occurs first. C.R.S. 15-12-803(1)(a) bars pre-death claims: (I) creditors barred by publication within the time set in the published notice; (II) creditors barred by written notice within the time set in the written notice; (III) as to all creditors within one year after the decedent's death (outer nonclaim limit). Post-death claims are barred four months after they arise / after PR performance is due (15-12-803(2)).

Case-file context

Keep the Colorado 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 Colorado 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

Colorado allows an out-of-court affidavit to collect a decedent's personal property when the estate is within an inflation-indexed cap. Formal probate opens in the District Court, except that Denver County has a dedicated Denver Probate Court.

A successor may collect a decedent's personal property by presenting an affidavit (no court filing) once at least ten days have elapsed since death, no personal representative is appointed or pending, and the fair market value of property subject to disposition by will or intestacy, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed twice the C.R.S. 15-11-403 amount as CPI-adjusted under C.R.S. 15-10-112. The Colorado Judicial Branch (JDF 998) publishes the operative cap by year of death: $88,000 for 2026 deaths. This is an inflation-indexed, year-specific amount, not a permanent threshold, and the affidavit does not transfer real estate.

Cost context

The Colorado Judicial Branch statewide Probate Case Fees schedule lists $229 for the 1st Filing for a Decedent's Estate (not small estates), citing C.R.S. 13-32-102(1)(b),(7), and separately lists $113 for a Small Estate filing (13-32-102(1)(a),(7)). The collection-by-affidavit procedure (JDF 999/998) is handled out of court and ordinarily is not filed.

$229 is the recorded statewide amount.

Compensation context

Colorado has no statutory percentage schedule. C.R.S. 15-10-602(1) entitles a fiduciary and his or her lawyer to reasonable compensation for services rendered on behalf of an estate, and 15-10-602(4) preserves the court's inherent authority and responsibility to determine the reasonableness of compensation and costs. The former schedule sections 15-12-719 and 15-12-721 are both repealed. A court must order refund of excessive compensation.

Colorado has no statutory percentage schedule. C.R.S. 15-10-602(1) entitles a fiduciary and his or her lawyer to reasonable compensation for services rendered on behalf of an estate, and 15-10-602(4) preserves the court's inherent authority and responsibility to determine the reasonableness of compensation and costs. The former schedule sections 15-12-719 and 15-12-721 are both repealed. A court must order refund of excessive compensation. The relevant base is the estate accounting.

Court-material note: JDF 999 is the statewide collection-by-affidavit form; JDF 998 is the instruction guide that publishes the year-of-death cap. Probate opens in District Court in every county except the City and County of Denver, which uses the separate Denver Probate Court.

Arithmetic illustration

See the Colorado amount screen without mistaking it for a result

The recorded Colorado ceiling is $88,000 for deaths from January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2026, and it is tested against personal probate property only, on a basis this site records as net of enforceable liens and encumbrances. Counted that way, $66,000 sits below the Colorado figure and $110,000 sits above it. Both are comparisons to a published number rather than legal outcomes: two estates holding the same total can land on opposite sides of this line, because what Colorado counts and how it values it are decided before the comparison is made.

Illustrative counted amountComparison to the Colorado ceilingWhat it does not decide
$66,000Below $88,000 for deaths from January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2026Title, liens, waiting period, appointment, or creditor duties
$110,000Above $88,000 for deaths from January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2026Whether another statutory route or court process applies

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

JDF 999 is the statewide collection-by-affidavit form; JDF 998 is the instruction guide that publishes the year-of-death cap.

Probate opens in District Court in every county except the City and County of Denver, which uses the separate Denver Probate Court.

Source trail

Records used by this Colorado 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 Colorado 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 Colorado