Florida Small Estate Affidavit Form

• Maximum Amount: $75,000, the value of the estate subject to administration, less property exempt from creditors, for summary administration.^[1]
• Signing Requirements: The petition for summary administration must be signed and verified (sworn).^[2]
• Where to File: With the Circuit Court, probate division, in the county of the decedent’s domicile.^[3]
• When to File: No statutory waiting period; summary administration may be filed once the estate qualifies.^[4]
• Survivor Requirements: Florida has no fixed 120-hour survival period.^[5]

If the decedent did not have a will, the beneficiary hierarchy is as follows:

• Spouse: The surviving spouse receives the entire estate if the decedent left no descendants, or if all of the decedent’s descendants are also the spouse’s and the spouse has no other descendants.^[6] Otherwise, the spouse receives one-half, and the decedent’s descendants share the other half.^[7]
• No Spouse, Children: If there is no surviving spouse, the descendants take the estate equally, with a deceased child’s share passing to that child’s descendants.^[8][9]

Step 1 – Confirm the Estate Qualifies

The estate subject to administration (less property exempt from creditors) must be $75,000 or less, or the decedent must have been dead more than two years, and the will (if any) must not require formal administration.^[10]

Step 2 – Prepare the Verified Petition for Summary Administration

Prepare a verified petition containing the information required by Florida’s summary-administration statute and probate rules, including the assets, beneficiaries, and creditors.^[11]

Step 3 – Sign and Verify the Petition

The surviving spouse (if any) and the beneficiaries sign and verify the petition; any beneficiary who does not join must be served with formal notice.^[12]

Step 4 – Address Creditors

Make a diligent search for known or reasonably ascertainable creditors and provide for payment of their claims before the order is entered.^[13]

Step 5 – File With the Circuit Court and Obtain the Order

File the petition (with the will, if any) in the Circuit Court probate division in the county of the decedent’s domicile; the court enters an Order of Summary Administration authorizing distribution of the assets.^[14][15]