Simplified route
$25,000
Voluntary administration / collection of personal property by affidavit; usable 30 days after death.
Eligibility and caveatsMassachusetts estate administration
Massachusetts probate: rules, process, costs, executor fees and deadlines
Small-estate limit: $25,000
In Massachusetts, estates up to $25,000 can use the small-estate route; executor pay is whatever the court finds reasonable (G.L. c. 190B, § 3-719); and a creditor must sue within one year after the death. Massachusetts calls the small personal-property route voluntary administration and files it in the Probate and Family Court.
Sources reviewed August 9, 2026. Sources rechecked October 3, 2026. This page last revised .
Answer first
Massachusetts simplified probate route
Up to $25,000; usable 30 days after death. Source: G.L. c. 190B, § 3-1201.
Voluntary administration / collection of personal property by affidavitNo combined Massachusetts probate total
The Probate and Family Court filing charge (G.L. c. 262, § 40) differs by proceeding or by a value the statute defines. Executor pay is reasonable compensation (G.L. c. 190B, § 3-719), not a rate. Each side in full: Massachusetts probate filing cost and Massachusetts executor fees.
Screen a specific Massachusetts estate with the calculators on the small-estate page and the executor-fee page, or compare states in the full estate navigator.
What the reviewed rules establish
Court cost
Tiered
2 published schedules, itemised on the filing-cost page.
Filing-cost detailExecutor compensation
Court-reviewed
No percentage schedule; the court decides what is reasonable. Source: G.L. c. 190B, § 3-719.
Compensation detailCreditor deadline
Multiple triggers
G.L. c. 190B, § 3-803 (Massachusetts Legislature; reviewed August 9, 2026)
Timeline and creditor detailsStatutes read in full for Massachusetts
Read on the enacting state’s own site, with the date each was read.
| Citation | What reading it established | Read on |
|---|---|---|
| G.L. c. 262, § 40 | Massachusetts charges the same $375 to open an estate, then prices the accounts by size and by year — court and filing cost note | 2026-09-17 |
| G.L. c. 190B, § 3-803 | Massachusetts gives creditors a year, and measures it from the death itself — creditor deadline note | 2026-09-17 |
| M.G.L. c. 190B, § 3-1201 | Massachusetts sets a low ceiling but does not count the car against it — small estate route note | 2026-09-17 |
| M.G.L. c. 190B, §§ 3-719, 3-1201 | Massachusetts publishes no fee schedule, and its cheapest route has no fee at all — representative pay note | 2026-09-17 |
Massachusetts decision map
The four facts that change the Massachusetts route
Each Massachusetts answer below links to the page that sets out its source.
| Question | Recorded Massachusetts answer |
|---|---|
| What route is being screened? | Voluntary administration / collection of personal property by affidavit |
| What property and basis count? | personal probate property only; gross value for this route. |
| What is the amount screen? | $25,000 |
| What is the time or deadline record? | 30 days after death; creditor deadlines: separate clocks by triggering event |
| What does the cost record establish? | 2 published schedules; the proceeding and value basis control the total. |
| What does compensation use? | Reasonable compensation set by the court, measured on the estate accounting. |
Limits and unresolved costs
- Massachusetts's statute pages show no amendment history, so check with the Probate and Family Court for any 2026 change before you file.
- The wording of the $25,000 limit excludes or separately treats a motor vehicle, and the calculator does not ask about vehicles; if the estate includes one, read § 3-1201 or ask the court how it is counted.
Continue
What Massachusetts courts publish
Each link goes to the court’s own page and is checked before every release.
- Forms indexProbate and Family Court forms for wills, estates, and trustsMassachusetts Court System
- Fee scheduleProbate and Family Court filing feesMassachusetts Court System
- Court resourceProbate and Family Court locationsMassachusetts Court System
Limits on court material
- Massachusetts publishes statewide probate forms, a court fee page, and a statewide court-location directory.
Massachusetts primary sources
Each rule on the Massachusetts pages comes from one of these 4 sources; the citation opens the publisher’s own text. All were last rechecked October 3, 2026.
Simplified-procedure rule
G.L. c. 190B, § 3-1201, Massachusetts General Laws, Voluntary Administration.
Court cost rule
G.L. c. 262, § 40, Massachusetts General Laws, Probate and Family Court Fees.
Executor compensation rule
G.L. c. 190B, § 3-719, Massachusetts General Laws, Personal Representative Compensation.
Creditor deadline rule
G.L. c. 190B, § 3-803, Massachusetts General Laws, Limitations on Presentation of Claims.
Sources rechecked October 3, 2026: Massachusetts source list · how sources are checked · report a correction