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Missouri source record

Every source behind the Missouri guide

5 primary records, quoted verbatim and checked against 23 named presence or absence conditions that must pass against the live government text. Open the record, read the words the publishing body actually used, and confirm the current rule for yourself.

Last full re-fetch September 15, 2026

What each source establishes

The Missouri guide rests on the source-backed rules this site can verify for the state: which simplified procedure exists and what it limits, what the court charges, how the person administering the estate may be paid, and the statutory creditor-deadline clocks the official text states.Every published rule below is quoted in the publisher’s own words rather than summarised.

Simplified-procedure rule

Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.097 (RSMo 473.097)

Missouri Revisor of Statutes · Effective 28 Aug 2002 · Verified August 7, 2026

(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

What was published from this source

  • smallEstate.threshold = 40000
  • smallEstate.waitingDays = 30
  • smallEstate.valueBasis = net-of-liens
  • eligibilitySummary mentions the $15,000 creditor-notice line

Conditions checked against the live text

Each condition below must be found in the page as the publisher currently serves it. If any one of them stops matching, the build fails and the figure is withheld rather than published from memory.

  • 30-day wait
  • $40,000 net ceiling
  • value measured less liens, debt, and encumbrances
  • bond requirement
  • fee cross-reference to 483.580
  • creditor-notice publication cost

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Court cost rule

Mo. Rev. Stat. § 488.012(16) (RSMo 488.012(16))

Missouri Revisor of Statutes · Effective 28 Aug 2014 · Verified August 7, 2026

(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

What was published from this source

  • filingFee bands = 75 / 115 / 155 / 245 / 305 / 365 by estate value
  • caveat: these amounts apply prior to adjustment by the supreme court

Conditions checked against the live text

Each condition below must be found in the page as the publisher currently serves it. If any one of them stops matching, the build fails and the figure is withheld rather than published from memory.

  • letters-applied-for schedule with all six bands
  • schedule applies prior to supreme court adjustment
  • supreme court sets the operative amounts

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Executor compensation rule

Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.153.1 (RSMo 473.153.1)

Missouri Revisor of Statutes · Effective 28 Aug 1989 · Verified August 7, 2026

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.

What was published from this source

  • executorCompensation.tiers = 5%/4%/3%/2.75%/2.5%/2% across $5k/$25k/$100k/$400k/$1M bands

Conditions checked against the live text

Each condition below must be found in the page as the publisher currently serves it. If any one of them stops matching, the build fails and the figure is withheld rather than published from memory.

  • section identity is 473.153 compensation
  • 5 percent on first $5,000
  • 4 percent on next $20,000
  • 3 percent on next $75,000
  • 2 3/4 percent on next $300,000
  • 2 1/2 percent on next $600,000
  • 2 percent above $1,000,000
  • schedule is a statutory minimum
  • basis is personal property plus realty sale proceeds

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Creditor deadline rule

Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.360.1 (RSMo 473.360.1)

Missouri Revisor of Statutes · Effective 23 May 1996 · Verified August 7, 2026

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

What was published from this source

  • creditorClaims.publication = six months after first published notice of letters
  • creditorClaims.actualNotice = two months after actual notice, whichever later

Conditions checked against the live text

Each condition below must be found in the page as the publisher currently serves it. If any one of them stops matching, the build fails and the figure is withheld rather than published from memory.

  • six months from first published notice of letters
  • two months from actual notice, whichever later occurs
  • claims forever barred against the estate

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Creditor deadline rule

Mo. Rev. Stat. § 473.444.1 (RSMo 473.444.1)

Missouri Revisor of Statutes · Effective 13 Jul 1989 · Verified August 7, 2026

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

What was published from this source

  • creditorClaims.outerLimit = one year after death, regardless of notice or administration

Conditions checked against the live text

Each condition below must be found in the page as the publisher currently serves it. If any one of them stops matching, the build fails and the figure is withheld rather than published from memory.

  • one-year absolute bar from death
  • runs regardless of administration or notice

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Statutes 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.

CitationWhat reading it establishedRead on
RSMo § 473.360 (limitations on filing of claims), eff. May 23, 1996Missouri runs two clocks at once and takes whichever ends later, then bars the claim outright — creditor deadline note2026-09-17

Missouri source decision map

How the Missouri records fit together

The source record is most useful when each citation has a job. This map links the Missouri procedure, cost, compensation, and deadline records to the decision each one can and cannot answer.

QuestionRecorded Missouri answerCarry into the case
What route is being screened?Small estate affidavitConfirm 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?$40,000Establish 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.

Decision boundary

What the Missouri source set does not silently decide

The Missouri records establish the rules listed above, but they do not turn a source citation into advice about title, family priority, tax filing, contested proceedings, or the exact clerk practice in every county. Those questions stay with the official court or a qualified adviser. The useful next step is to match the question to the citation rather than treating the longest quote as the answer to every estate problem.

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 amountComparison to the Missouri ceilingWhat it does not decide
$30,000Below $40,000Title, liens, waiting period, appointment, or creditor duties
$50,000Above $40,000Whether another statutory route or court process applies

Next evidence to collect

Open the quoted record for the row you rely on and check the publisher's current text before filing.

  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

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

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.

Checking these Missouri records against the publishers

Every citation above links to the body that publishes it, and every quoted sentence is reproduced exactly, so a text search on the publisher’s own page should land on it. Where the publisher’s current wording differs from what is recorded here, the publisher governs and this page is wrong; naming the citation and the language you see maps the difference onto a specific condition rather than a general complaint. The full procedure, including how a source qualifies in the first place and what disqualifies one, is set out once on the methodology page instead of being restated on each of the254 state records.

These records cover the cost and route questions this site answers for Missouri. They do not cover intestate succession shares, spousal and family allowances, creditor priority, tax filing obligations, real-property transfer mechanics, or contested proceedings. Where an answer would require one of those, the site says so rather than estimating.

Return to the Missouri estate guide ·All 254 records ·Dataset overview and citation ·How sources are selected