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Georgia court costs

Georgia probate filing cost: $190

Effective January 1, 2025, a Title 53 estate petition costs $190 in total: a $175 base fee (2024 SB 232 §1, amending O.C.G.A. §15-9-60(e)) plus a mandatory $15 civil filing fee that SB 232 §3 directs the clerk to collect "[i]n addition to all other legal costs ... in each civil action filed in the probate court", charged once per decedent proceeding on the listed estate petitions. Service, publication and any other statutory charges are extra.

$190 is the amount the statute states. Sources reviewed August 9, 2026. Latest primary-source re-fetch September 15, 2026.

What the statute charges

Every line below is computed from the statutory schedule quoted at the end of this page. These are court charges only. They are not an estimate of the total cost of settling an estate.

Georgia probate filing

Charge$25,000 estate$100,000 estate$400,000 estate$1,000,000 estate
Estate petition base fee$175$175$175$175
Indigent-defense civil filing surcharge$15$15$15$15
Total from this schedule$190$190$190$190

Not included in this total

  • Service of process
  • Publication
  • Other amounts provided by law

The act expressly treats service, publication, and other legal charges separately.

Source: 2024 SB 232, §§1, 3, 6; O.C.G.A. §§15-9-60(e), 15-21A-6(b), Georgia Governor. Edition/currentness: This Act shall become effective on January 1, 2025, and shall apply to fees paid in a probate181 court on and after such date.. Verified September 15, 2026.

What the $190 is made of

Georgia’s $190 figure is not a single line. It is the sum of the separate charges below, each set by its own part of the Georgia fee provision. Every one is a permanent, statewide charge on opening this kind of case, which is why they combine into one number a filer can check rather than take on trust.

  • $175Title 53 estate petition base fee
  • $15Civil filing fee charged in each civil action in the probate court

Added together, these come to $190 — the figure this page headlines. If any component changed in the source, the sum would no longer match, and the build withholds the total rather than publishing a number whose parts no longer add up.

Charges the $190 figure leaves out

These amounts appear in or beside the same Georgia schedule, so a reader can easily mistake one for part of the fee. Each is held out of the figure above for the specific reason given, which is the difference between an honest total and an inflated one.

A per-copy or per-page charge

Clerk copies charge, subsection (k)(3)
the $1.00 is charged per page for copies, not once per filing.
Record/transcript preparation charge, subsection (k)(26)
the second $1.00 is the per-page charge for preparing the record and transcript to the appellate courts, a per-unit charge.

A fee for a different filing

Marriage license without premarital education, subsection (k)(16)
the $40.00 is the marriage-license fee, a different service, not part of an estate filing.
Guardianship/adult-guardianship/involuntary-treatment petitions, subsections (f), (g), (h)
three additional $175.00 petition fees for a minor guardianship/conservatorship filing (Title 29), an adult guardianship/conservatorship filing (Title 29), and an involuntary-treatment/habilitation filing (Title 31 ch. 20) — each a different proceeding from the Title 53 estate petition.
Motions/responses and miscellaneous petitions at $75.00
nine separate $75.00 items: the "Motion, response, request, citation, or caveat" line in each of subsections (e), (f), (g) and (h), plus the (k) petitions for writ of habeas corpus, to open a safety deposit box, to amend a marriage-license application, to amend a vital record, and any other petition not otherwise set forth — each a different proceeding.
Fiduciary-compliance reports and terminate-guardianship petition at $40.00
four more $40.00 items: the "Fiduciary compliance report with assets" line in subsections (e), (f) and (g), and the (f) "Petition to terminate guardianship of minor" — each a different proceeding from the estate petition.
Petition for temporary letters of guardianship of minor, subsection (f)(2)
the $125.00 is the fee for a petition for temporary letters of guardianship of a minor, a different proceeding.
Miscellaneous clerk services at $10.00, subsection (k)
nine separate $10.00 clerk services in subsection (k): certificate of residence, certified copy of letters, certification of publication for an insurance-company charter, certification under seal of copies, filing a municipality/authority bond, examination of records per estate/name, junk-dealer registration, subpoena, and marriage certificate — each a different service, not the estate filing fee.
Weapons-carry-license application and superior-court appeal at $30.00, subsection (k)
two $30.00 items: application for a weapons carry license (k)(12) and appeal to superior court / petition for review (k)(25) — each a different proceeding or service.
Replacement of weapons carry license, subsection (k)(13)
the $6.00 is the fee to replace a lost/stolen/name-changed weapons carry license, a different service.
Miscellaneous filings at $15.00 and the Children's Trust marriage fee
seven additional $15.00 items: creditor's claim, declination to serve, exemplification, recording of marks and brands, renunciation of right of succession, and will filed for safekeeping (all subsection (k)); plus the SECTION 2 / Code Section 15-9-60.1 additional marriage-license fee for the State Children's Trust Fund — each a different proceeding or service, not the estate filing fee counted under SECTION 3.
Petition for declaration of exemptions, subsection (k)(24)
the $25.00 is the fee for a petition for declaration of exemptions, a different proceeding.
Transcript filing and transmission, subsection (k)(27)
the $35.00 is the fee for filing and transmission of an appellate transcript that does not require recopying, a different service.
Lost-papers petition and fireworks application at $50.00, subsection (k)
two $50.00 items: petition to establish lost papers (k)(28) and fireworks application (k)(29) — each a different proceeding, not the estate filing fee.

Costs no statute prices

These are the costs executors most often meet after the filing fee. None of them has a statewide statutory amount, so this site does not estimate them.

Publication

Newspaper pricing is commercial rather than a statewide fee.

Bond

Premiums depend on the bond amount, the estate, and the applicant.

Copies and local charges

Certified copies, recording, inventory, accounting, and county surcharges are billed separately.

Professional fees

Attorney, accountant, and appraiser fees are negotiated or court-reviewed.

State-specific limits

  • No dollar threshold exists for no administration necessary; the numeric field is structurally inapplicable.
  • No universal waiting period was found for the Georgia procedure.
  • No creditor actual-notice-specific deadline or ultimate nonclaim/repose period was verified.
  • HB 327’s harvested enrolled text contains no express effective-date clause.
  • The $175 base was shipped as the operative opening fee while the mandatory $15 civil filing fee sat in the component list unused, so Georgia understated its own total by $15 — the same class of defect as Oklahoma's $188. Caught by the composed-figure gate, which requires the shipped total to equal the sum of its asserted components.
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.

How to verify the amount for this case

Name the proceeding before asking for a total. A small-estate affidavit, an application for letters, formal administration, a later inventory or account, and a certified copy can each carry a different charge. Asking only “what does probate cost?” invites an answer for the wrong filing.

  1. Identify the county where the proceeding will be filed.
  2. Identify the exact route or petition you expect to use.
  3. State the value basis the schedule uses; it is not always the gross estate value.
  4. Ask the clerk to separate the opening fee, mandatory surcharges, copies, publication, bond, and later filings.
  5. Record the schedule date or rule cited.
  6. Record whether payment is due at filing.

Keep that clerk quote with the estate record and compare it with the itemised statutory lines above. For the broader budget, use the probate cost-line guide; court filing is only one category.

Georgia filing-cost map

Separate the Georgia filing charge from the estate budget

The Georgia filing record prices a proceeding, not every cost of settling an estate. This map connects the published amount or schedule to its value basis and identifies the local items that still need a clerk or court schedule.

QuestionRecorded Georgia answerCarry into the case
What route is being screened?Petition for Order Declaring No Administration NecessaryConfirm 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 for this route.Keep real property, liens, beneficiary transfers, and survivorship transfers classified separately.
What is the amount screen?No numeric ceiling verifiedEstablish unsecured debt before treating the screen as decided.
What is the time or deadline record?No waiting-period number verified; No deadline is recorded here: Georgia has multiple non-equivalent events, so no single days value is honest. The representative must initiate publication within 60 days after qualification and publish weekly for four weeks. A creditor notifying more than three months after the last publication loses equal participation against earlier distributions and cannot hold the representative liable, but late claims may still be paid when sufficient assets remain and higher-priority claims are paid. The representative also receives a six-month administration/payment protection. No distinct actual-notice deadline or ultimate repose period was verified.Keep the event that starts each clock with the date; do not combine separate periods into one number.
What does the cost record establish?$190 is the recorded statewide amount.Ask the Probate Court about local surcharges, copies, publication, bond, and later filings.
What does compensation use?Absent controlling will/agreement terms, the statutory defaults are 2.5% of sums received and 2.5% of sums paid out, plus 10% of qualifying interest. Delivery of property in kind may receive reasonable compensation capped at 3% of appraised/fair value, and other statutory categories may apply. HB 327 (2025) updated subsection (a) agreement language without restating the subsection (b) percentages. The relevant base is money received and paid out during administration.Keep the will, task log, receipts, and accounting base together; extraordinary work is separate.

Filing record

What the Georgia cost record can answer

Georgia probate filing

Basis: estate-value. Status: operative. The act expressly treats service, publication, and other legal charges separately.

  • Estate petition base fee $175
  • Indigent-defense civil filing surcharge $15

Case-file context

Keep the Georgia 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 Georgia 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

Georgia uses a Probate Court order declaring no administration necessary, not a value-capped small-estate affidavit.

Georgia has no conventional dollar-threshold small-estate affidavit. An heir petitions the Probate Court for no administration necessary when the decedent died intestate, no administration exists, heirs agree on division, and the estate owes no debts or creditors consent/receive service and do not object. Real and personal property can be included; eligibility is structural, not monetary.

Compensation context

Absent controlling will/agreement terms, the statutory defaults are 2.5% of sums received and 2.5% of sums paid out, plus 10% of qualifying interest. Delivery of property in kind may receive reasonable compensation capped at 3% of appraised/fair value, and other statutory categories may apply. HB 327 (2025) updated subsection (a) agreement language without restating the subsection (b) percentages.

Absent controlling will/agreement terms, the statutory defaults are 2.5% of sums received and 2.5% of sums paid out, plus 10% of qualifying interest. Delivery of property in kind may receive reasonable compensation capped at 3% of appraised/fair value, and other statutory categories may apply. HB 327 (2025) updated subsection (a) agreement language without restating the subsection (b) percentages. The relevant base is money received and paid out during administration.

Deadline context

No deadline is recorded here: Georgia has multiple non-equivalent events, so no single days value is honest. The representative must initiate publication within 60 days after qualification and publish weekly for four weeks. A creditor notifying more than three months after the last publication loses equal participation against earlier distributions and cannot hold the representative liable, but late claims may still be paid when sufficient assets remain and higher-priority claims are paid. The representative also receives a six-month administration/payment protection. No distinct actual-notice deadline or ultimate repose period was verified.

  • No dollar threshold exists for no administration necessary; the numeric field is structurally inapplicable.
  • No universal waiting period was found for the Georgia procedure.
  • No creditor actual-notice-specific deadline or ultimate nonclaim/repose period was verified.
  • HB 327’s harvested enrolled text contains no express effective-date clause.
  • The $175 base was shipped as the operative opening fee while the mandatory $15 civil filing fee sat in the component list unused, so Georgia understated its own total by $15 — the same class of defect as Oklahoma's $188. Caught by the composed-figure gate, which requires the shipped total to equal the sum of its asserted components.

Court-material note: Georgia publishes a statewide standard no-administration petition and an official Probate Court directory.

No numeric shortcut is available for Georgia

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

Next evidence to collect

Name the proceeding and ask for mandatory surcharges, copies, publication, and later filings separately.

  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

Georgia publishes a statewide standard no-administration petition and an official Probate Court directory.

Source trail

Records used by this Georgia map

Filing-cost source

Each legal input links to the government source reviewed for this page. Source text can change; confirm the current rule before acting.

Continue in Georgia