Free West Virginia Small Estate Affidavit

Prepare the West Virginia small estate affidavit for estates up to $50,000, plus presentation letters for each holder. W. Va. Code §§ 44-1A-1 to 44-1A-5.

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Your Information

The West Virginia affidavit identifies the claiming successor and the basis of entitlement.

Skipping probate?Settle the whole estate in one place.

State Where the Property Is Collected*

The decedent's state. Only states where this tool prepares the affidavit are listed; other states' pages explain their procedure.

Your Full Legal Name*

The successor signing the affidavit.

Your Entitlement to the Property*

Street Address*

City*

State

ZIP Code*

Telephone

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Frequently Asked Questions About West Virginia Small Estate Affidavits

West Virginia publishes Affidavit for Small Estate (print form); the affidavit this tool prepares is drafted to the same statutory requirements, per W. Va. Code § 44-1A-2(b).

$50,000, per W. Va. Code §§ 44-1A-1 to 44-1A-5. This tool checks the entered estate value against the limit and does not prepare an affidavit for an estate over it.

60 days after the death (W. Va. Code §§ 44-1A-1 to 44-1A-5) — or 30 days if you are the executor nominated in the decedent's will. The affidavit states that the waiting period has elapsed, so it cannot be signed earlier.

Any successor of a decedent who died domiciled in West Virginia without owning any probate real property or interest in probate real property. A successor nominated as personal representative or executor under the will may file after 30 days from death; a successor not so nominated (or where the decedent died intestate) may file after 60 days, provided no nominated-PR successor has filed and no PR appointment is pending or granted anywhere. W. Va. Code § 44-1A-2(a), (b)(6).

Executed and tendered for recording to the clerk of the county commission (or the clerk's fiduciary supervisor) of the county with probate jurisdiction; the clerk may require a certified death certificate. On finding the affidavit complete, the clerk records and indexes it (with any tendered will, which is deemed duly admitted to probate), mails copies to the nominated personal representative and will beneficiaries or to the heirs-at-law, and issues the Certificate and Authorization of Small Estate empowering the authorized successor to collect and administer the small assets. No bond, security, or oath of office is required (§ 44-1A-2(c)-(f)). Interested persons may object within 30 days of the clerk's mailing (referral to a fiduciary commissioner, who may revoke the authorization and require full probate); the authorization runs six months, extendable once by six months for good cause; it is rescinded if the assets turn out to exceed the small-estate limits (§ 44-1A-2(g)-(i)).

The West Virginia affidavit is signed before a notary (W. Va. Code § 44-1A-2(b), (e) (statutory form notary jurat)).

Any person paying or delivering a small asset under the article is discharged and released to the same extent as if dealing with the personal representative, and need not see to the application of the asset or inquire into the truth of any statement in the affidavit or certificate (§ 44-1A-4(a)). Refusal to honor the certificate is remediable by an action in magistrate or circuit court with damages (§ 44-1A-4(b)). Good-faith payments are not voided if the small assets later prove to exceed $50,000 (§ 44-1A-3(f)); the authorized successor is liable as a fiduciary to entitled successors and any later-appointed personal representative for three years from issuance of the certificate (§ 44-1A-3(g)); creditor claims against the decedent are not released (§ 44-1A-4(d)).

As amended by HB 2867 (2025 Reg. Sess., eff. July 9, 2025), the procedure is available only if the decedent died without owning any probate real property or any interest in probate real property — a real-property-holding estate is ineligible outright (§ 44-1A-2(a)-(b)). The § 44-1A-4(c) provisions on real estate reported on a recorded affidavit (applying §§ 44-8-5, 41-5-19, 41-5-20) remain printed in the code from the pre-2025 version, when up to $100,000 of real property could pass under the act. W. Va. Code §§ 44-1A-2(a), 44-1A-4(c).

Small Estate Collection in West Virginia

West Virginia has no statewide affidavit form; W. Va. Code § 44-1A-2(b) sets what the affidavit must state, and the successor prepares the affidavit to those requirements. It collects the decedent's property without opening probate.

Eligibility runs on the numbers: the estate qualifies when its value does not exceed $50,000, per W. Va. Code §§ 44-1A-1 to 44-1A-5. The affidavit can be signed 60 days after the death.

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Frequently Asked Questions About West Virginia Small Estate Affidavits

West Virginia publishes Affidavit for Small Estate (print form); the affidavit this tool prepares is drafted to the same statutory requirements, per W. Va. Code § 44-1A-2(b).

$50,000, per W. Va. Code §§ 44-1A-1 to 44-1A-5. This tool checks the entered estate value against the limit and does not prepare an affidavit for an estate over it.

The West Virginia affidavit is signed before a notary (W. Va. Code § 44-1A-2(b), (e) (statutory form notary jurat)).

Small Estate Collection in West Virginia

Eligibility runs on the numbers: the estate qualifies when its value does not exceed $50,000, per W. Va. Code §§ 44-1A-1 to 44-1A-5. The affidavit can be signed 60 days after the death.

Free West Virginia Small Estate Affidavit

Your Information

Frequently Asked Questions About West Virginia Small Estate Affidavits