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Florida probate path

Probate in Florida, step by step

You are the personal representative — Florida’s name for the executor — or you are about to be. This page walks the job in order: what to do in the first days, how to open the case, the deadlines that actually matter, and how the estate gets closed. Plain language first, with the statute behind every figure.

The quick answer. If the estate qualifies, Florida’s simplified route is Summary administration, for estates up to $150,000. The limit doubled from $75,000 to $150,000 on July 1, 2026 — many websites still show the old figure. Summary administration is also available at any value if the decedent has been dead for more than 2 years. The estate must not be indebted, or creditors' claims must be handled within the proceeding. Verified Nov 7, 2026Fla. Stat. §735.201 (as amended eff. Jul 1, 2026)

If it does not qualify, you open a formal administration. That costs about $400 to open a formal administration — Clerk fees are capped statewide, so county totals are near-identical: formal administration about $400–$401; summary administration about $346 (estate of $1,000 or more) or $236 (under $1,000); disposition without administration about $232. Verified Nov 7, 2026Fla. Stat. §28.2401 (statewide fee caps)

Plan on 6–12 months for a formal administration. The creditor timetable, not the court, sets most of that pace — so start the clock early and work to the deadlines below. Verified Nov 7, 2026

  1. The first 48 hours

    Look after the practical things first. Secure the home and valuables, arrange care for anyone — or any pet — who depended on the person who died, and let close family know what has happened. The legal work can wait a day; people cannot.

    Find the will, if there is one, and keep it safe and untouched — do not remove staples or write on it. Gather the basics you will need again and again: the death certificate, bank and insurance paperwork, and a list of what the person owned and owed, as far as you know it today.

    Do not pay debts out of your own pocket, and do not hand out money or belongings yet, however reasonable a request sounds. Until the court appoints you, you have no authority to act for the estate — and early payments made in the wrong order can become your personal problem.

    Simplified routeSummary administration — up to $150,000
    StatuteFla. Stat. §735.201 (as amended eff. Jul 1, 2026)

  2. The first two weeks

    Work out which route this estate is on. If the estate is at or under $150,000, or the person has been dead for more than 2 years, summary administration may let you skip full probate altogether. If there are unpaid debts, they have to be handled inside that proceeding — a small estate with creditors is not automatically a simple one.

    Two smaller shortcuts also exist for narrow situations. A bank-account affidavit can recover small bank balances up to $2,000 (Fla. Stat. §735.303), and an intestate personal-property route covers up to $20,000 (Fla. Stat. §735.304) where there is no will. Neither replaces probate for a house or a larger estate.

    If formal administration is the route — a larger estate, real estate to transfer, or debts to settle — this is also the moment to decide whether you want a probate attorney. Florida estates are very commonly run with one, and the compensation section below explains how the estate’s attorney is paid.

    RouteSummary administration — $150,000
    Also availableAt any value if the decedent has been dead for more than 2 years
    StatuteFla. Stat. §735.201 (as amended eff. Jul 1, 2026)

  3. Opening probate

    Opening a formal administration means filing a Petition for Administration with the circuit court in the county where the person lived. The Florida Probate Rules prescribe what that petition must contain — Rule 5.200 is the rule for the opening petition, and Rule 5.240 covers the Notice of Administration that follows.

    When the court accepts the filing, it issues your letters of administration. Those letters are your proof of authority — banks, insurers and title companies will ask to see them before they deal with you. Keep certified copies handy; you will show them often.

    Clerk fees are capped statewide, so county totals are near-identical: formal administration about $400–$401; summary administration about $346 (estate of $1,000 or more) or $236 (under $1,000); disposition without administration about $232.

    FormRule 5.200 — Petition for Administration — the rule prescribing what the opening petition must contain
    FeeAbout $400 to open a formal administration
    StatuteFla. Stat. §28.2401 (statewide fee caps)

  4. Inventory and creditors

    Once your letters are issued, two clocks start. First, the inventory: a list of the estate’s assets and what they are worth, filed within 60 days of your letters. Work from statements, deeds and appraisals rather than guesses — this list anchors everything that follows, including fees and taxes.

    Second, creditors. You publish a notice to creditors, and you serve it directly on creditors you know about. A claim is due by the later of 3 months after the first publication of the notice, or 30 days after a known creditor is served — that is the rule in plain English, and it is why serving known creditors promptly matters: their clock runs from service, not from publication.

    Behind both clocks sits an absolute backstop: No claim may be filed more than 2 years after the death, even if the estate is still open. Do not distribute the estate before the claims window has run — money paid out too early is the classic way executors create personal liability for themselves.

    Deadline — inventory60 days after letters
    Statute — inventoryFla. Stat. §733.604
    Deadline — creditor claimsThe deadline is the later of 3 months after the first publication of the notice to creditors, or 30 days after a known creditor is served with the notice.
    Statute — claimsFla. Stat. §§733.2121, 733.702
    Absolute bar2 years after the death — Fla. Stat. §733.710

  5. Taxes

    Three tax jobs usually land on you, and they are about process, not surprises. First, the person’s final income-tax return, covering the part of the year up to the date of death. Second, if the estate itself earns income while you administer it, the estate may need its own return — for that you will need an employer identification number (EIN) for the estate, which you apply for from the IRS in the estate’s name, never using your own Social Security number for estate accounts.

    Third, a federal estate-tax return is a possibility for large estates. Most estates are nowhere near that territory, but if this one might be, raise it with a tax professional early — it affects how long the estate should stay open and what you should hold back before distributing.

    Keep clean records from day one: every account statement, valuation and receipt. Good records make each of these returns a filing exercise instead of an archaeology project.

    ReturnsFinal income-tax return for the decedent; estate return if the estate earns income
    First stepGet an EIN for the estate

  6. Distribution and closing

    When the claims window has run and the tax position is clear, you pay the valid debts and administration expenses, then distribute what is left exactly as the will directs — or, if there is no will, as Florida’s intestacy rules direct. Get a signed receipt from each beneficiary for what they received.

    Closing is a filing, not just a feeling: you account to the court and the beneficiaries for what came in and what went out, and you ask the court to discharge you as personal representative. That discharge is the point at which the job — and your responsibility for it — formally ends.

    Expect the whole formal administration to take 6–12 months for a formal administration. Estates with property to sell, disputes, or tax returns to clear sit at the longer end; a clean estate with cooperative beneficiaries sits at the shorter end.

    Typical duration6–12 months for a formal administration
    Do not distribute beforeThe creditor claims window has run
    Absolute claims barAbsolute bar on claims (2 years after death)

What the executor — and the attorney — get paid

Florida publishes a compensation schedule the court presumes reasonable: 3% of the first $1,000,000, 2.5% of the next $4,000,000, 2% of the next $5,000,000, and 1.5% above $10,000,000. The estate's attorney has a parallel presumed-reasonable schedule — and the statute requires the attorney to disclose in writing that the schedule is not mandatory.

Attorney schedule (§733.6171): $3,000 at $100,000, then 3% up to $1,000,000, on the same presumed-reasonable basis.

In plain English: the percentages are a starting point the court treats as reasonable, not a guaranteed entitlement, and the attorney’s schedule works the same way. The written disclosure matters — if an attorney proposes charging on the schedule, you should receive, in writing, the statement that the schedule is not mandatory, so you know the fee can be negotiated or set differently. Verified Nov 7, 2026Fla. Stat. §733.617 (personal representative); §733.6171 (attorney)

Forms: two layers, both official

Florida does not publish one unified official forms packet. The statewide Probate Rules prescribe the contents of each filing, and circuits and county clerks publish their own packets and judicial checklists (for example the 12th Circuit's formal-administration checklists). Everything is free and official — it just lives in two layers.

Start with Florida Courts Help — Probate resources for the official picture, then use our official forms index to find the Florida entry — Rule 5.200 (petition for administration — the rule prescribing what the opening petition must contain) and Rule 5.240 (notice of administration) are the two rules you will meet first — alongside your own county clerk’s packet. Verified Nov 7, 2026