Publication
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Wisconsin court costs
Wisconsin probate filing cost: $200
Through October 31, 2026, opening an estate proceeding costs 0.2% of the value of property subject to administration less encumbrances, liens, or charges, with an effective $20 minimum at $10,000 or less and no stated cap. Effective November 1, 2026, Act 179 changes the low band to $36 at $18,500 or less; that future schedule is not treated as operative on August 9.
$200 is the statutory total at a $100,000 estate. 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.
Petition commencing a deceased-person estate proceeding (operative through 2026-10-31)
| Charge | $25,000 estate | $100,000 estate | $400,000 estate | $1,000,000 estate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Register in probate value fee | $50 | $200 | $800 | $2,000 |
| Total from this schedule | $50 | $200 | $800 | $2,000 |
Value of the property subject to administration, less encumbrances, liens, or charges; property not subject to administration may not be included. A remainder greater than half a unit is charged as a whole unit, which is how the statute’s “major fraction thereof” is applied here.
Not included in this total
- Property not subject to administration
- Copies, certificates, publication, service, and bond costs
The statutory amendment shown on the page takes effect November 1, 2026. Re-review then; the $36/$18,500 future band is not yet operative.
Source: Wis. Stat. § 814.66(1)(a)2, Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. Edition/currentness: 2023-24 Wisconsin Statutes updated through 2025 Wis. Act 247 and through all Supreme Court Orders and Controlled Substances Board Orders filed before and in effect on September 4, 2026. Published and certified under s. 35.18. Changes effective after September 4, 2026, are designated by NOTES. (Published 9-4-26). 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
- The future November 1, 2026 filing-fee schedule needs a timed re-review.
- Section 867.03’s conditional 30-day hold is not a universal death-based waiting period and must not be shown as one.
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.
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.
Wisconsin filing-cost map
Separate the Wisconsin filing charge from the estate budget
The Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin answer | Carry into the case |
|---|---|---|
| What route is being screened? | Transfer 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; gross value for this route. | 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? | No waiting-period number verified; The court sets a deadline 3–4 months from its order, while special rules apply to creditors lacking notice and an outer administration limit appears elsewhere; one number would collapse different triggers. | 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 Circuit Court about local surcharges, copies, publication, bond, and later filings. |
| What does compensation use? | Subject to court approval, the default is 2% of inventory value for accountable property less mortgages or liens plus net principal gains. A written agreement may set another rate; the court may add reasonable sums for unusual difficulty or extraordinary services and may reduce or deny compensation for dereliction. 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 Wisconsin cost record can answer
Petition commencing a deceased-person estate proceeding (operative through 2026-10-31)
Basis: estate-value. Status: operative. The statutory amendment shown on the page takes effect November 1, 2026. Re-review then; the $36/$18,500 future band is not yet operative.
- Register in probate value fee per-100 value charge
Case-file context
Keep the Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin 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
Wisconsin has separate transfer-by-affidavit, summary-settlement, and summary-assignment procedures. This record models the $50,000 gross-value affidavit and separately discloses the court summary-settlement test.
Section 867.03 permits transfer by affidavit when property subject to administration in Wisconsin does not exceed $50,000 in gross value. This is distinct from § 867.01 court summary settlement, which has a $50,000 net-of-secured-debt family route and a separate route keyed to priority costs, allowances, and claims; the two procedures and value bases must not be conflated.
Compensation context
Subject to court approval, the default is 2% of inventory value for accountable property less mortgages or liens plus net principal gains. A written agreement may set another rate; the court may add reasonable sums for unusual difficulty or extraordinary services and may reduce or deny compensation for dereliction.
Subject to court approval, the default is 2% of inventory value for accountable property less mortgages or liens plus net principal gains. A written agreement may set another rate; the court may add reasonable sums for unusual difficulty or extraordinary services and may reduce or deny compensation for dereliction. The relevant base is the estate accounting.
Deadline context
The court sets a deadline 3–4 months from its order, while special rules apply to creditors lacking notice and an outer administration limit appears elsewhere; one number would collapse different triggers.
- The future November 1, 2026 filing-fee schedule needs a timed re-review.
- Section 867.03’s conditional 30-day hold is not a universal death-based waiting period and must not be shown as one.
Court-material note: Wisconsin publishes statewide probate forms, including PR-1831 for the affidavit track. Probate jurisdiction is in Circuit Court; use the statewide circuit-court directory for county contact details.
Arithmetic illustration
See the Wisconsin amount screen without mistaking it for a result
The recorded Wisconsin ceiling is $50,000, and it is tested against probate property within the rule's stated scope, on a basis this site records as gross value for this route. Counted that way, $37,500 sits below the Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin counts and how it values it are decided before the comparison is made.
| Illustrative counted amount | Comparison to the Wisconsin 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
- PR-1831, Transfer by AffidavitWisconsin Court System
- Circuit court probate formsWisconsin Court System
- Probate self-helpWisconsin Court System
Wisconsin publishes statewide probate forms, including PR-1831 for the affidavit track.
Probate jurisdiction is in Circuit Court; use the statewide circuit-court directory for county contact details.
Source trail
Records used by this Wisconsin map
- Wis. Stat. § 867.03Wisconsin Statutes, Transfer by Affidavit; reviewed August 9, 2026
- Wis. Stat. § 867.01Wisconsin Statutes, Summary Settlement of Small Estates; reviewed August 9, 2026
- Wis. Stat. § 814.66(1)(a)2Wisconsin Statutes, Fees of Register in Probate; reviewed August 9, 2026
- Wis. Stat. § 857.05Wisconsin Statutes, Personal Representative Expenses and Services; reviewed August 9, 2026
- Wis. Stat. §§ 859.01-.02Wisconsin Statutes, Time for Filing Claims; reviewed August 9, 2026
- Wis. Stat. § 859.48Wisconsin Statutes, Claims of Creditors Without Notice; reviewed August 9, 2026
Filing-cost source
Each legal input links to the government source reviewed for this page. Source text can change; confirm the current rule before acting.
Wis. Stat. § 814.66(1)(a)2
Reviewed source note: 814.66 Fees of register in probate. 814.66(1) (1) The register in probate shall collect the following fees: 814.66(1)(a) (a) 814.66(1)(a)2. 2. For filing a petition whereby any proceeding in estates of deceased persons is commenced, if the value of the property subject to administration, less encumbrances, liens, or charges, is $18,500 or less, a fee of $36 and, if more than $18,500, a fee of 0.2 percent of the value of the property subject to administration, less encumbrances, liens, or charges. The register in probate may not base a fee under this subdivision upon the value of property that is not subject to administration.
What this means: The page leads with text effective November 1, 2026 and separately prints the currently operative pre-November text. As of the dossier date, the $20 minimum / 0.2% schedule is operative.