Publication
Newspaper pricing is commercial rather than a statewide fee.
New Mexico court costs
New Mexico probate filing cost: $30–$117
New Mexico splits the opening fee by court. Informal probate and appointment filed in the county Probate Court cost $30 (NMSA 1978 § 34-7-14, "a filing fee of thirty dollars ($30.00) for each probate case"). A formal or contested estate proceeding — which District Court has exclusive original jurisdiction over — costs the $117 district-court civil docket fee (NMSA 1978 § 34-6-40). If a case properly filed in Probate Court is later transferred to District Court, no additional District Court filing fee is charged (§ 34-7-10(B)).
$30–$117 is the range of statutory totals at a $100,000 estate, because the proceedings below are priced differently. 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.
Informal probate and appointment in county Probate Court (NMSA 1978 § 34-7-14)
| Charge | $25,000 estate | $100,000 estate | $400,000 estate | $1,000,000 estate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Probate Court filing fee | $30 | $30 | $30 | $30 |
| Total from this schedule | $30 | $30 | $30 | $30 |
Not included in this total
- Certified copies
- Publication of notice
- District Court docket fee if the matter is formal or contested
This $30 statewide statutory fee applies to an informal probate case in the county Probate Court, not to a formal District Court proceeding.
Source: NMSA 1978 § 34-7-14, New Mexico Compilation Commission / NMOneSource. Edition/currentness: 1978 Comp., § 34-7-14, repealed and reenacted by Laws 2023, ch. 44, § 11.. Verified September 15, 2026.
Formal or contested estate proceeding in District Court (NMSA 1978 § 34-6-40)
| Charge | $25,000 estate | $100,000 estate | $400,000 estate | $1,000,000 estate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| District Court civil docket fee | $117 | $117 | $117 | $117 |
| Total from this schedule | $117 | $117 | $117 | $117 |
Not included in this total
- The $15 alternative-dispute-resolution surcharge charged only in judicial districts with an ADR program (§ 34-6-45)
- Rule-set electronic-services fees (§ 34-6-48)
- Certified copies and publication costs
This $117 is the base statewide district-court civil docket fee under § 34-6-40; districts with an ADR program add a $15 surcharge that is not part of this section.
Source: NMSA 1978 § 34-6-40, New Mexico Compilation Commission / NMOneSource. Edition/currentness: The 2009 amendment, effective July 1, 2009. Verified September 15, 2026.
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.
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
- NMOneSource’s HTML item is a shell and the official PDF text has highly spaced extraction; assertions must match the harvested spacing exactly.
- The official PDF exposes no edition-level currentness marker; per-section amendment histories are pinned instead (34-7-14 reenacted 2023; 34-6-40 last amended 2009).
- District Court's $117 fee is the base civil docket fee; judicial districts running an ADR program add a $15 surcharge (§ 34-6-45) and rule-set electronic-services fees (§ 34-6-48) may also attach, so the delivered total in some districts exceeds $117.
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.
- Identify the county where the proceeding will be filed.
- Identify the exact route or petition you expect to use.
- State the value basis the schedule uses; it is not always the gross estate value.
- Ask the clerk to separate the opening fee, mandatory surcharges, copies, publication, bond, and later filings.
- Record the schedule date or rule cited.
- Record whether payment is due at filing.
New Mexico does not provide one operative statewide total for this page. The exact answer must come from the receiving Probate Court (informal) / District Court (formal) and its current local schedule; this site will not turn a base charge into a made-up statewide estimate.
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.
New Mexico filing-cost map
Separate the New Mexico filing charge from the estate budget
The New Mexico 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.
| Question | Recorded New Mexico answer | Carry into the case |
|---|---|---|
| What route is being screened? | Collection of personal property by 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? | $50,000 | Use the counted property, not a bank-balance shortcut. |
| What is the time or deadline record? | 30 days after death; New Mexico has separate four-month publication, later-of-publication-or-60-day actual-notice, and one-year-from-death outer limits. A single days field would misstate the trigger framework. | Keep the event that starts each clock with the date; do not combine separate periods into one number. |
| What does the cost record establish? | 2 published schedules; the proceeding and value basis control the total. | Ask the Probate Court (informal) / District Court (formal) about local surcharges, copies, publication, bond, and later filings. |
| What does compensation use? | A personal representative is entitled to reasonable compensation, not a percentage schedule. If a will provides compensation and no contract with the decedent controls, the representative may renounce the will provision before qualifying and take reasonable compensation, or renounce all or 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. |
Filing record
What the New Mexico cost record can answer
Informal probate and appointment in county Probate Court (NMSA 1978 § 34-7-14)
Basis: estate-value. Status: operative. This $30 statewide statutory fee applies to an informal probate case in the county Probate Court, not to a formal District Court proceeding.
- Probate Court filing fee $30
Formal or contested estate proceeding in District Court (NMSA 1978 § 34-6-40)
Basis: estate-value. Status: operative. This $117 is the base statewide district-court civil docket fee under § 34-6-40; districts with an ADR program add a $15 surcharge that is not part of this section.
- District Court civil docket fee $117
Case-file context
Keep the New Mexico 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 New Mexico 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
New Mexico divides probate between county Probate Courts and state District Courts. Informal probate and appointment may begin in either, at a $30 statewide Probate Court fee (§ 34-7-14); formal estate proceedings are exclusively in District Court, at the $117 civil docket fee (§ 34-6-40). The $50,000 successor affidavit itself does not perfect real-estate title.
After 30 days, a successor may use an affidavit if the entire estate, wherever located and less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $50,000 and no personal-representative application is pending or granted. The affidavit collects tangible personal property and cannot perfect title to real estate. Section 45-3-1203 separately permits summary distribution when the net estate does not exceed enumerated allowances and administration, last-illness, and funeral expenses.
Compensation context
A personal representative is entitled to reasonable compensation, not a percentage schedule. If a will provides compensation and no contract with the decedent controls, the representative may renounce the will provision before qualifying and take reasonable compensation, or renounce all or part of the fee.
A personal representative is entitled to reasonable compensation, not a percentage schedule. If a will provides compensation and no contract with the decedent controls, the representative may renounce the will provision before qualifying and take reasonable compensation, or renounce all or part of the fee. The relevant base is the estate accounting.
Deadline context
New Mexico has separate four-month publication, later-of-publication-or-60-day actual-notice, and one-year-from-death outer limits. A single days field would misstate the trigger framework.
- NMOneSource’s HTML item is a shell and the official PDF text has highly spaced extraction; assertions must match the harvested spacing exactly.
- The official PDF exposes no edition-level currentness marker; per-section amendment histories are pinned instead (34-7-14 reenacted 2023; 34-6-40 last amended 2009).
- District Court's $117 fee is the base civil docket fee; judicial districts running an ADR program add a $15 surcharge (§ 34-6-45) and rule-set electronic-services fees (§ 34-6-48) may also attach, so the delivered total in some districts exceeds $117.
Court-material note: New Mexico has a dual track: county Probate Courts and District Courts share original jurisdiction over informal probate/appointment, while District Court has exclusive original jurisdiction over formal estate proceedings. The opening fee is set statewide by statute for each court: $30 in the county Probate Court (NMSA 1978 § 34-7-14) and a $117 civil docket fee in District Court (NMSA 1978 § 34-6-40). Use the state directory to reach the correct court.
Arithmetic illustration
See the New Mexico amount screen without mistaking it for a result
The recorded New Mexico ceiling is $50,000, 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, $37,500 sits below the New Mexico figure and $62,500 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 New Mexico counts and how it values it are decided before the comparison is made.
| Illustrative counted amount | Comparison to the New Mexico ceiling | What it does not decide |
|---|---|---|
| $37,500 | Below $50,000 | Title, liens, waiting period, appointment, or creditor duties |
| $62,500 | Above $50,000 | Whether another statutory route or court process applies |
Next evidence to collect
Name the proceeding and ask for mandatory surcharges, copies, publication, and later filings separately.
- 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
- New Mexico courts by countyNew Mexico Courts
- Form 4B-302, application for informal probate and appointmentNew Mexico Courts
- Form 4B-101, opening and closing a Probate Court caseNew Mexico Courts
New Mexico has a dual track: county Probate Courts and District Courts share original jurisdiction over informal probate/appointment, while District Court has exclusive original jurisdiction over formal estate proceedings.
The opening fee is set statewide by statute for each court: $30 in the county Probate Court (NMSA 1978 § 34-7-14) and a $117 civil docket fee in District Court (NMSA 1978 § 34-6-40). Use the state directory to reach the correct court.
Source trail
Records used by this New Mexico map
- NMSA 1978 § 45-3-1201NMSA 1978 § 45-3-1201, collection by affidavit; reviewed August 9, 2026
- NMSA 1978 § 45-3-719NMSA 1978 § 45-3-719, personal-representative compensation; reviewed August 9, 2026
- NMSA 1978 §§ 45-3-801, -803NMSA 1978 §§ 45-3-801 and 45-3-803, creditor claims; reviewed August 9, 2026
- NMSA 1978 § 34-7-14NMSA 1978 § 34-7-14 — Fees of probate court; reviewed August 9, 2026
- NMSA 1978 § 34-6-40NMSA 1978 § 34-6-40 — Finance; fees (district court docket fee); reviewed August 9, 2026
- NMSA 1978 § 45-1-302NMSA 1978 § 45-1-302, district and probate jurisdiction; reviewed August 9, 2026
Filing-cost sources
Each legal input links to the government source reviewed for this page. Source text can change; confirm the current rule before acting.
NMSA 1978 § 34-7-14
Reviewed source note: 34-7-14. Fees of probate court. Clerks of the probate courts shall receive a filing fee of thirty dollars ($30.00) for each probate case.
What this means: The $30 probate-court filing fee is a single statewide statutory amount, not a locally-set charge. The section was repealed and reenacted by Laws 2023, ch. 44, § 11 (effective July 1, 2023); the reenactment preserved the $30 figure the 1993 amendment set.
NMSA 1978 § 34-6-40
Reviewed source note: district court clerks shall collect in civil matters docketing any cause, whether original or reopened or by appeal or transfer from any inferior court, a fee of one hundred seventeen dollars ($117)
What this means: A formal or contested probate is a civil matter docketed in District Court, so the $117 civil docket fee applies; the statute states the fee by case type rather than naming 'probate'. The $117 figure was set by Laws 2009, ch. 245, § 1. Subsection B's $107 figure is for domestic-abuse proceedings under § 40-12-6, not probate.