Simplified route
$40,000
The net estate must not exceed $40,000. A bond may be required, and estates above $15,000 generally require notice to creditors.
Eligibility and caveatsMissouri estate administration
Missouri probate: rules, process, costs, executor fees and deadlines
Small-estate limit: $40,000
This guide explains probate in Missouri: Missouri permits a small-estate affidavit after 30 days for estates not exceeding $40,000 after liens, debts, and encumbrances.
Sources reviewed August 7, 2026. Latest primary-source re-fetch September 15, 2026.
Answer first
Missouri simplified probate route
The net estate must not exceed $40,000. A bond may be required, and estates above $15,000 generally require notice to creditors.
Small estate affidavitWhat the reviewed rules establish
Court cost
Tiered
When letters are applied for, section 488.012 lists a graduated fee from $75 below $10,000 to $365 above $500,000. The statute states these amounts apply before adjustment by the supreme court, which sets the operative figures by rule.
Filing-cost detailExecutor compensation
Statutory schedule
Missouri publishes a minimum percentage schedule and allows additional reasonable compensation.
Compensation detailCreditor deadline
Multiple triggers
Missouri bars creditor claims six months after first published notice of letters, extended to the later of that date or two months from actual notice when a creditor is individually notified, and in all events one year after death. The periods run from different events, so they are published separately.
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.360.1 (Missouri Revisor of Statutes; reviewed August 7, 2026)
Timeline and creditor detailsStatutes read in full for Missouri
These are the Missouri 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 Missouri — 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.
| Citation | What reading it established | Read on |
|---|---|---|
| RSMo § 473.360 (limitations on filing of claims), eff. May 23, 1996 | Missouri runs two clocks at once and takes whichever ends later, then bars the claim outright — creditor deadline note | 2026-09-17 |
Missouri decision map
The four facts that change the Missouri route
Use this map before opening a form or entering a number. It keeps the Missouri amount test, time gate, court cost, and creditor record separate so one easy figure does not stand in for the whole administration.
| Question | Recorded Missouri answer | Carry into the case |
|---|---|---|
| What route is being screened? | Small estate affidavit | 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; net of enforceable liens and encumbrances. | Keep real property, liens, beneficiary transfers, and survivorship transfers classified separately. |
| What is the amount screen? | $40,000 | Establish unsecured debt before treating the screen as decided. |
| What is the time or deadline record? | 30 days after death; Missouri bars creditor claims six months after first published notice of letters, extended to the later of that date or two months from actual notice when a creditor is individually notified, and in all events one year after death. The periods run from different events, so they are published separately. | Keep the event that starts each clock with the date; do not combine separate periods into one number. |
| What does the cost record establish? | 1 published schedule; the proceeding and value basis control the total. | Ask the Probate Division of Circuit Court about local surcharges, copies, publication, bond, and later filings. |
| What does compensation use? | Missouri publishes a minimum percentage schedule and allows additional reasonable compensation. 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 Missouri amount screen without mistaking it for a result
The recorded Missouri ceiling is $40,000, and it is tested against probate property within the rule's stated scope, on a basis this site records as net of enforceable liens and encumbrances. Counted that way, $30,000 sits below the Missouri figure and $50,000 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 Missouri counts and how it values it are decided before the comparison is made.
| Illustrative counted amount | Comparison to the Missouri ceiling | What it does not decide |
|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | Below $40,000 | Title, liens, waiting period, appointment, or creditor duties |
| $50,000 | Above $40,000 | Whether 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.
- Record the date of death, the county, and the exact proceeding or affidavit being considered.
- Classify each asset by title, beneficiary, trust, real-property status, and the value basis shown above.
- Open the official court material below and keep its form or schedule with the estate record.
- Do not distribute property until the route, creditor position, and required approvals are resolved.
Official material
Missouri publishes no court artifact in this registry. Missouri publishes no statewide small-estate affidavit form. The probate division of the circuit court in the county of residence supplies the affidavit and states its local requirements.
Missouri publishes no statewide small-estate affidavit form. The probate division of the circuit court in the county of residence supplies the affidavit and states its local requirements.
The Missouri Courts self-help probate page did not respond when this record was reviewed, so no link is published rather than publishing one that may not resolve.
Source trail
Records used by this Missouri map
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.097Revised Statutes of Missouri, Small Estate Affidavit; reviewed August 7, 2026
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 488.012(16)Revised Statutes of Missouri, Probate Fees; reviewed August 7, 2026
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.153.1Revised Statutes of Missouri, Personal Representative Compensation; reviewed August 7, 2026
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.360.1Revised Statutes of Missouri, Limitations on Filing of Claims; reviewed August 7, 2026
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.444.1Revised Statutes of Missouri, Absolute One-Year Claim Bar; reviewed August 7, 2026
Limits and unresolved costs
- The filing amounts in section 488.012 apply before adjustment by the supreme court, which sets the operative court costs by rule. The published figure is a statutory baseline, not a confirmed current charge.
- The statute measures the estate "less liens, debt, and encumbrances". Liens come from the asset entries and unsecured debt is asked for separately, because it cannot be read off an asset list. Until that figure is entered the route stays undecided rather than being resolved as though the debt were zero.
- A bond is required unless the court dispenses with it, and estates above $15,000 generally require published notice to creditors. Both add cost.
- The court may award compensation above the statutory minimum.
- 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 Missouri 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.
No Missouri court document is linked here. The notes below state why, rather than leaving the absence unexplained.
Limits on court material
- Missouri publishes no statewide small-estate affidavit form. The probate division of the circuit court in the county of residence supplies the affidavit and states its local requirements.
- The Missouri Courts self-help probate page did not respond when this record was reviewed, so no link is published rather than publishing one that may not resolve.
Primary sources
Each legal input links to the government source reviewed for this page. Source text can change; confirm the current rule before acting.
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.097 (RSMo 473.097)
Reviewed source note: (1) The value of the entire estate, less liens, debt, and encumbrances, does not exceed forty thousand dollars; (2) Thirty days have elapsed since the death of the decedent
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 488.012(16) (RSMo 488.012(16))
Reviewed source note: (16) When letters are applied for in probate proceedings, pursuant to section 483.580 , when the value of the estate is: (a) Less than $10,000 $ 75.00 (b) From $10,000 to $25,000 115.00 (c) From $25,000 to $50,000 155.00 (d) From $50,000 to $100,000 245.00 (e) From $100,000 to $500,000 305.00 (f) More than $500,000 365.00
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.153.1 (RSMo 473.153.1)
Reviewed source note: On the first $ 5,000, 5 percent; On the next 20,000, 4 percent; On the next 75,000, 3 percent; On the next 300,000, 2 3/4 percent; On the next 600,000, 2 1/2 percent; On all over 1,000,000, 2 percent.
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.360.1 (RSMo 473.360.1)
Reviewed source note: which are not filed in the probate division of the circuit court within six months after the date of the first published notice of letters testamentary or of administration or, if notice was actually mailed to, or served upon, such creditor, within two months after the date such notice was mailed, or served, whichever later occurs
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.444.1 (RSMo 473.444.1)
Reviewed source note: shall become unenforceable and shall be forever barred against the estate, the personal representative, the heirs, devisees and legatees of the decedent one year following the date of the decedent's death, whether or not administration of the decedent's estate is had or commenced within such one-year period