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Idaho estate administration

Idaho probate: rules, process, costs, executor fees and deadlines

Small-estate limit: $100,000

This guide explains probate in Idaho: Idaho is a Uniform Probate Code state. Small personal-property estates of $100,000 or less (measured net of liens and encumbrances) can be collected by affidavit under Idaho Code § 15-3-1201 thirty days after death, with no court filing. Formal and informal probate proceedings are heard in the Magistrate Division of the District Court. Idaho Code § 31-3201A sets the magistrate-division civil fee at $120, but charges it "in addition to" separately imposed statutory charges (§ 1-2003, § 31-3201 and § 73-213), so the opening cost is not a single settled figure and is presented as variable below. Personal representatives receive reasonable compensation under § 15-3-719.

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

Answer first

Idaho simplified probate route

A claiming successor may collect the decedent's personal property by presenting an affidavit stating that the fair market value of the entire estate subject to probate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000); that thirty (30) days have elapsed since death; and that no application or petition for appointment of a personal representative or for summary administration is pending or has been granted (Idaho Code § 15-3-1201(a)).

Collection of personal property by affidavit (Idaho Code § 15-3-1201)
1. Where and when
Private by design: entries stay in this browser.
2. What they left

Ownership determines whether an asset usually enters probate. Choose “Not sure” when title or beneficiary status has not been confirmed.

Asset 1

Asset 2

Your working estimate

Idaho estate snapshot

Route check

More information is needed

Counted probate estate: not yet counted

A valid date of death is required before any waiting period can be tested.

Gross probate propertyNot yet counted
Court chargeSet locallyIdaho Code § 31-3201A(1) sets the district-court civil filing fee at $175 generally, "except for those cases to be assigned to the magistrate division of the district court for which the fee shall be one hundred twenty dollars ($120)". Probate is heard in the magistrate division, so the base magistrate fee is $120. But § 31-3201A charges that fee "in addition to" the charges imposed by § 1-2003 (+$26 for a decedent's-estate civil case), § 31-3201 (+$10 administrative surcharge) and § 73-213 (+$10), making the true opening cost at least $166. Because those three additional charges are imposed by separate statutes not yet registered here as verified sources, the opening fee is published as variable rather than as an unsupported fixed number. The § 15-3-1201 affidavit route is presented directly to the debtor/holder and requires no court filing or fee.
Scheduled executor compensationMore information needed2 asset entries have no value entered.Idaho Code § 15-3-719 entitles a personal representative to "reasonable compensation for his services." There is no statutory percentage schedule. A will may fix compensation, but the personal representative may renounce that provision before qualifying and take reasonable compensation instead, and may also renounce any part of the fee.

This route check is general information, not legal advice. It does not test every eligibility condition, creditor issue, will provision, local fee, or asset-title fact.

What the reviewed rules establish

Simplified route

$100,000

A claiming successor may collect the decedent's personal property by presenting an affidavit stating that the fair market value of the entire estate subject to probate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000); that thirty (30) days have elapsed since death; and that no application or petition for appointment of a personal representative or for summary administration is pending or has been granted (Idaho Code § 15-3-1201(a)).

Eligibility and caveats

Court cost

Varies locally

Idaho Code § 31-3201A(1) sets the district-court civil filing fee at $175 generally, "except for those cases to be assigned to the magistrate division of the district court for which the fee shall be one hundred twenty dollars ($120)". Probate is heard in the magistrate division, so the base magistrate fee is $120. But § 31-3201A charges that fee "in addition to" the charges imposed by § 1-2003 (+$26 for a decedent's-estate civil case), § 31-3201 (+$10 administrative surcharge) and § 73-213 (+$10), making the true opening cost at least $166. Because those three additional charges are imposed by separate statutes not yet registered here as verified sources, the opening fee is published as variable rather than as an unsupported fixed number. The § 15-3-1201 affidavit route is presented directly to the debtor/holder and requires no court filing or fee.

Filing-cost detail

Executor compensation

Court-reviewed

Idaho Code § 15-3-719 entitles a personal representative to "reasonable compensation for his services." There is no statutory percentage schedule. A will may fix compensation, but the personal representative may renounce that provision before qualifying and take reasonable compensation instead, and may also renounce any part of the fee.

Compensation detail

Creditor deadline

Multiple triggers

Idaho runs multiple independently-triggered claim deadlines that cannot honestly collapse into one number: a four-month bar running from first publication of the notice to creditors (§ 15-3-801(a)); a separate actual-notice period for a creditor given written notice by mail, running to the later of four months after publication or sixty (60) days after the mailing/delivery of the notice (§ 15-3-801(b)); and an outer nonclaim bar of three years after death (§ 15-3-803(a)(1)). Publishing a single figure would mislead.

Idaho Code § 15-3-801 (Idaho State Legislature; reviewed August 9, 2026)

Timeline and creditor details

Statutes read in full for Idaho

These are the Idaho provisions read end to end on the enacting state’s own site, rather than summarised from a secondary source. The middle column is what reading each one actually established for Idaho — not a restatement of the topic — and the last column records the date the wording was read, so a later amendment can be spotted by comparing dates.

CitationWhat reading it establishedRead on
Idaho Code § 15-3-803Idaho carves state taxes out of the claims bar entirely — creditor deadline note2026-09-17
Idaho Code § 15-3-1201Idaho measures fair market value, and names the state as a successor for Medicaid recovery — small estate route note2026-09-17
Idaho Code §§ 15-3-719, 15-3-721Idaho’s fee review provision has not been amended since 1971 — representative pay note2026-09-17

Idaho decision map

The four facts that change the Idaho route

Use this map before opening a form or entering a number. It keeps the Idaho amount test, time gate, court cost, and creditor record separate so one easy figure does not stand in for the whole administration.

QuestionRecorded Idaho answerCarry into the case
What route is being screened?Collection of personal property by affidavit (Idaho Code § 15-3-1201)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?$100,000Use the counted property, not a bank-balance shortcut.
What is the time or deadline record?30 days after death; Idaho runs multiple independently-triggered claim deadlines that cannot honestly collapse into one number: a four-month bar running from first publication of the notice to creditors (§ 15-3-801(a)); a separate actual-notice period for a creditor given written notice by mail, running to the later of four months after publication or sixty (60) days after the mailing/delivery of the notice (§ 15-3-801(b)); and an outer nonclaim bar of three years after death (§ 15-3-803(a)(1)). Publishing a single figure would mislead.Keep the event that starts each clock with the date; do not combine separate periods into one number.
What does the cost record establish?No single statewide amount is published here; confirm the receiving court's current schedule.Ask the Magistrate Division of the District Court about local surcharges, copies, publication, bond, and later filings.
What does compensation use?Idaho Code § 15-3-719 entitles a personal representative to "reasonable compensation for his services." There is no statutory percentage schedule. A will may fix compensation, but the personal representative may renounce that provision before qualifying and take reasonable compensation instead, and may also renounce any part of the fee. The relevant base is the estate accounting.Keep the will, task log, receipts, and accounting base together; extraordinary work is separate.

Arithmetic illustration

See the Idaho amount screen without mistaking it for a result

The recorded Idaho ceiling is $100,000, 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, $75,000 sits below the Idaho figure and $125,000 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 Idaho counts and how it values it are decided before the comparison is made.

Illustrative counted amountComparison to the Idaho ceilingWhat it does not decide
$75,000Below $100,000Title, liens, waiting period, appointment, or creditor duties
$125,000Above $100,000Whether another statutory route or court process applies

Next evidence to collect

Start with the row that is still unknown, then take that question to the named court or source.

  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

Idaho probate is administered in the Magistrate Division of the District Court. Idaho publishes statewide self-help resources through the Idaho Court Self-Help Center; forms and the operative filing fee for a magistrate-division civil case are set statewide by Idaho Code § 31-3201A. The § 15-3-1201 affidavit is a private demand instrument, not a court filing, so no statewide affidavit form is required to be filed with the court.

Source trail

Records used by this Idaho map

Limits and unresolved costs

  • Attorney fees, bond premiums, publication, certified copies, tax work, and asset-sale costs are not included unless expressly shown.
  • Asset title, beneficiary designations, creditor claims, and will terms can change the route.
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

What Idaho courts publish

The statutes on this page state the rule. These are the documents the court itself publishes. Every link is probed before release, and any link that stops resolving fails the build rather than staying on the page.

Limits on court material

  • Idaho probate is administered in the Magistrate Division of the District Court. Idaho publishes statewide self-help resources through the Idaho Court Self-Help Center; forms and the operative filing fee for a magistrate-division civil case are set statewide by Idaho Code § 31-3201A. The § 15-3-1201 affidavit is a private demand instrument, not a court filing, so no statewide affidavit form is required to be filed with the court.

Primary sources

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