Simplified route
$100,000
Successor affidavit; usable 40 days after death.
Eligibility and caveatsWashington estate administration
Washington probate: rules, process, costs, executor fees and deadlines
Small-estate limit: $100,000
In Washington, estates up to $100,000 can use the small-estate route; executor pay is whatever the court finds reasonable (RCW 11.48.210); and a creditor sent actual notice has the later of 30 days after it and four months after first publication. Washington provides a successor-affidavit route for qualifying personal property after a 40-day wait.
Sources reviewed August 7, 2026. Sources rechecked October 3, 2026. This page last revised .
Answer first
Washington simplified probate route
Up to $100,000; usable 40 days after death. Source: RCW 11.62.010.
Successor affidavitNo combined Washington probate total
The Superior Court filing charge is statewide: $290 (RCW 36.18.020(2)(f)). Executor pay is reasonable compensation (RCW 11.48.210), not a rate. Each side in full: Washington probate filing cost and Washington executor fees.
Screen a specific Washington 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
$290
1 published schedule, itemised on the filing-cost page.
Filing-cost detailExecutor compensation
Court-reviewed
No percentage schedule; the court decides what is reasonable. Source: RCW 11.48.210.
Compensation detailCreditor deadline
Multiple triggers
RCW 11.40.020(1) (Washington State Legislature; reviewed August 7, 2026)
Timeline and creditor detailsStatutes read in full for Washington
Read on the enacting state’s own site, with the date each was read.
| Citation | What reading it established | Read on |
|---|---|---|
| RCW 11.62.010, with the definitions in RCW 11.62.005 and the holder rules in RCW 11.62.020 | Washington’s successor affidavit step by step: who signs, the 40-day and 10-day clocks, and the copy owed to DSHS — small estate route note | 2026-10-22 |
| RCW 11.48.210 | Washington pays the representative separately for lawyer’s work, and allows interim draws — representative pay note | 2026-09-17 |
Washington decision map
The four facts that change the Washington route
Each Washington answer below links to the page that sets out its source.
| Question | Recorded Washington answer |
|---|---|
| What route is being screened? | Successor affidavit |
| What property and basis count? | probate property within the rule's stated scope; net of enforceable liens and encumbrances. |
| What is the amount screen? | $100,000 |
| What is the time or deadline record? | 40 days after death; creditor deadlines: separate clocks by triggering event |
| What does the cost record establish? | $290 is the recorded statewide amount. |
| What does compensation use? | Reasonable compensation set by the court, measured on the estate accounting. |
Limits and unresolved costs
- Solely owned real property counts toward the $100,000 limit but is not transferred by the affidavit. A separate proceeding is required for the house.
- The statute excludes a surviving spouse or domestic partner's community-property interest from the count. That figure is asked for separately, because characterising community property is a legal judgement this tool cannot make from an asset list. Until it is entered the route stays undecided rather than being resolved as though the interest were zero.
- The $290 total is the statewide statutory amount. County law library charges and certified copies are additional.
- Debts, funeral expenses, and expenses of last illness must be paid or provided for before the affidavit is used.
- Other successors generally must receive advance written notice.
Continue
What Washington courts publish
Each link goes to the court’s own page and is checked before every release.
- Forms indexWashington Courts forms indexWashington Courts
Limits on court material
- Washington publishes no statewide pattern form for the RCW 11.62.010 successor affidavit. The affidavit content is set by the statute itself, and the superior court clerk in the county of filing states local requirements.
Washington primary sources
Each rule on the Washington pages comes from one of these 5 sources; the citation opens the publisher’s own text. All were last rechecked October 3, 2026.
Simplified-procedure rule
RCW 11.62.010, Revised Code of Washington, Small Estates.
- Small-estate limit: $100,000
- Waiting period: 40 days
- How the estate is valued: net of liens and encumbrances
Court cost rule
RCW 36.18.020(2)(f), Revised Code of Washington, Superior Court Fees.
- Filing fee: $290 (200 base + 40 + 50 mandatory surcharges)
- Components: 200 base, 40 subsection (5)(c) surcharge, 50 subsection (6) surcharge
Executor compensation rule
RCW 11.48.210, Revised Code of Washington, Personal Representative Compensation.
- Personal representative's compensation standard: reasonable compensation (no statutory percentage)
Creditor deadline rule
RCW 11.40.020(1), Revised Code of Washington, Notice to Creditors.
- Creditor deadline after published notice: notice published once each week for three successive weeks
- What starts the actual-notice clock: actual notice served or mailed to a known creditor
Creditor deadline rule
RCW 11.40.051(1), Revised Code of Washington, Claims Against Decedent - Time Limits.
- Creditor deadline after actual notice: later of 30 days after actual notice and four months after first publication
- Creditor deadline after published notice: four months after first publication when not reasonably ascertainable or given no actual notice
- Outer limit on creditor claims: 24 months after death when reasonably ascertainable but no actual notice, or no notice given under the chapter
Sources rechecked October 3, 2026: Washington source list · how sources are checked · report a correction