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Transfer by Affidavit (Wis. Stat. § 867.03), commonly call…Verified against the statute July 29, 2026

Wisconsin Small Estate Affidavit

Wisconsin lets the next of kin collect a deceased person’s property without opening probate when the estate is worth $50,000 or less. Here is exactly how it works, and how to use it.

Check if you qualifyHow to use it

Wisconsin at a glance

Estate value limit
$50,000
Gross value
Wait after death
None
The affidavit can be used immediately
File with a court?
No
Present it directly to the bank or agency
Covers real property?
Yes
Under the same affidavit
Notary required?
Yes
Sign in front of a notary
Who can sign
Four categories under § 867
Per the statute

Is your estate under the $50,000 limit?

Enter a rough total of what they owned in their own name alone. Leave out jointly-held accounts and anything with a named beneficiary. Those don’t count.

Nothing you type here is saved or sent anywhere.

The $50,000 limit, and what actually counts

Gross value of the decedent's property subject to probate administration in Wisconsin. Wis. Stat. § 867.03(1g): "when a decedent leaves property subject to administration in this state that does not exceed $50,000 in gross value." Key points: (1) gross, not net, debts and liens are not subtracted; (2) only probate property counts, so survivorship joint tenancy, survivorship marital property, TOD/POD, and payable-to-beneficiary assets are excluded; (3) only Wisconsin property counts; (4) real property counts toward the same $50,000. Wisconsin has no separate real-property affidavit or separate real-property threshold.

What doesn't count toward the limit

This is where most people wrongly rule themselves out. In Wisconsin, these are left out of the calculation:

  • Jointly-held property with right of survivorship
  • Payable-on-death and transfer-on-death accounts
  • Life insurance with a living named beneficiary
  • Retirement accounts with a living named beneficiary
  • Liens and encumbrances on estate property
  • Real property

Who can sign the affidavit

Four categories under § 867.03(1g): (1) an heir of the decedent (heirship determined by § 852.01); (2) a trustee of a revocable trust created by the decedent; (3) a person named in the decedent's will to act as personal representative; or (4) a person who was the decedent's guardian at the time of death (guardian as defined in § 54.01(10) or § 880.01(3), 2003 stats.). Important restriction. § 867.03(1h): a person named in the will as personal representative may not receive real property (or evidence of an interest in/lien on real property) by this affidavit, unless that person is also an heir, a trustee of the decedent's revocable trust, or the decedent's guardian at death. So for real estate, only categories (1), (2), and (4) may sign. Note the statute does not require the affiant to be the sole or senior heir, and it does not require consent of other heirs (though for real property all heirs must receive 30-day notice under § 867.03(1p)).

Either, testate or intestate. The statute is neutral as to whether the decedent left a will. Section 867.03(2g)(a) directs the affiant to distribute any balance 'to those persons designated in the appropriate governing instrument, as defined in s. 854.01, of the decedent or if there is no governing instrument, according to the rules of intestate succession under ch. 852,' which expressly contemplates both. A will is not required to be admitted to probate before using the affidavit, and no court proves the will. However: (a) a person named in the will as personal representative is a permitted affiant only for personal property, never real property, unless also an heir/trustee/guardian (s. 867.03(1h)); (b) a transfer to a will-named personal representative is subject to the 30-day holder freeze in s. 867.03(1j)(a); (c) separately from ch. 867, Wisconsin law obliges anyone holding the decedent's will to deliver it to the circuit court, flag this to users as an independent duty rather than a precondition of the affidavit. By contrast, s. 867.05 determination of descent is available only for a decedent who 'dies intestate.'

The affidavit must be signed in front of a notary. Most banks and UPS Stores have a notary; many charge under $15.

Can it transfer a house or land in Wisconsin?

Real property is fully covered by the same affidavit under the same $50,000 gross cap. Wisconsin is unusual here. There is no separate companion real-property affidavit and no separate real-property threshold (contrast California's Prob. Code 13200 affidavit re real property of small value vs. the 13100 personal-property affidavit, or Texas's homestead-only limitation). Mechanics: s. 867.03(2m)(a) requires the affiant to submit for recording, in the office of the register of deeds in each Wisconsin County where the real property is located, a certified copy or duplicate original of the s. 867.03(1g) affidavit, with (1) proof of the s. 867.03(1p) 30-day heir notice as described in s. 879.07(1) or (2), and (2) proof of prior mailed DHS notice under s. 867.03(1m) if applicable. Title passes by recording: s. 867.03(2m)(b) states that 'the recording of the affidavit copy or duplicate original constitutes the transfer to the affiant under sub. (1g) of the evidence of the interest in or lien on real property.' The State Bar instructions confirm: 'The recording of the Affidavit transfers the decedent's interest in the real estate (including lien rights) to the Affiant.' Bona fide purchaser protection: s. 867.03(2m)(c): a purchaser or lender who acquires an interest in good faith, for value, and without actual notice that the transfer was improper takes title free of any claims of the decedent's estate and incurs no personal liability, whether or not the transfer was proper; purchasers and lenders have no duty to inquire whether a transfer was proper. WHO MAY NOT: s. 867.03(1h) bars a person named in the will as personal representative from taking real property by affidavit unless also an heir, trustee of the decedent's revocable trust, or guardian at death. Practical: registers of deeds commonly require a legal description and tax parcel number and a completed Wisconsin Electronic Real Estate Transfer Receipt (eRETR); recording fees are set per-county. Companion instruments for NON-probate real property (not the small-estate affidavit): s. 867.04 termination of joint tenancy and life estate; s. 867.045 administrative joint tenancy or life estate termination via register of deeds application; s. 867.046 summary confirmation of interest in property for survivorship marital property, TOD deeds under s. 705.15, and s. 705.10(1)/705.18(2) transfers.

Affidavit of heirship in Wisconsin

High-risk area. Get this right. Wisconsin's 'Affidavit of Heirship' is not the Texas-style instrument (contrast Tex. Est. Code ch. 203), and it is not an independent statutory conveyance. There is no Wisconsin statute creating a freestanding affidavit of heirship. What exists is a State Bar of Wisconsin RPPT Section practice form titled 'Affidavit of Heirship (Addendum to Transfer by Affidavit)'. It is an addendum to the s. 867.03 Transfer by Affidavit whose only function is to identify the decedent's heirs under s. 852.01 so the affiant can (a) establish standing as an heir and (b) identify who must receive the s. 867.03(1p) 30-day notice for real property. The State Bar instructions describe it as help 'in determining a decedent's heir(s),' and the main affidavit merely carries a checkbox 'Affidavit of Heirship attached.' It does not itself transfer title and it is not even independent evidence of title standing alone. Title passes only through the operative s. 867.03 mechanism: delivery of the affidavit to the holder for personal property, or recording of the affidavit with the register of deeds for real property, which s. 867.03(2m)(b) says 'constitutes the transfer.' It carries no statutory number of disinterested witnesses (unlike Texas's two-disinterested-witness requirement); it is sworn before a notary as part of the affidavit package; and it is recorded only as an attachment to the s. 867.03 affidavit, never on its own. Separate and distinct. Judicial heirship: Wis. Stat. s. 867.05 'Determination of descent of property' is a court proceeding, not an affidavit, and is available only 'Six years or more after any person dies intestate', a six-year bar that makes it useless for a recently bereaved family and that is frequently misdescribed online. Under s. 867.05(2) the court may hear the petition without notice and issue a certificate, which 'is prima facie evidence of the facts recited', evidence only, rebuttable. Under s. 867.05(3) the court may hear the petition after notice under s. 879.03 and enter a judgment determining the heirs and naming the persons entitled and the property to which each is entitled. That judgment adjudicates the interests and is the title-quieting route. Section 867.05(4) requires the certificate or judgment to be recorded with the register of deeds in each county where the real property lies. Also distinct: s. 867.046 'Summary confirmation of interest in property' handles survivorship marital property under s. 766.60(5)(a), TOD beneficiaries under ss. 705.15 and 705.18, and s. 705.10(1) accounts; the court certificate under s. 867.046(1m) is likewise only 'prima facie evidence of the facts recited,' with a register-of-deeds application alternative under s. 867.046(2). Bottom line for the product: never market a Wisconsin 'affidavit of heirship' as a standalone title-transfer document.

How to use a small estate affidavit in Wisconsin

  1. 1

    Confirm you're under the limit and past the wait

    Add up the property that passes through the estate and check it against the $50,000 ceiling. Gross value of the decedent's property subject to probate administration in Wisconsin. Wis. Stat. § 867.03(1g): "when a decedent leaves property subject to administration in this state that does not exceed $50,000 in gross value." Key points: (1) gross, not net, debts and liens are not subtracted; (2) only probate property counts, so survivorship joint tenancy, survivorship marital property, TOD/POD, and payable-to-beneficiary assets are excluded; (3) only Wisconsin property counts; (4) real property counts toward the same $50,000. Wisconsin has no separate real-property affidavit or separate real-property threshold.

  2. 2

    Gather the documents

    You'll need certified copies of the death certificate: order at least three, since institutions often keep one: plus account numbers, the vehicle title or VIN, and the names and addresses of every heir.

  3. 3

    Complete the affidavit

    Fill in Transfer by Affidavit (Wis. Stat. § 867.03), commonly called the Wisconsin Transfer by Affidavit ($50,000 gross and under), listing the decedent, the heirs and their relationships, the assets and their values, and the known debts.

  4. 4

    Sign it in front of a notary

    Sign in front of a notary public. Banks, credit unions and shipping stores all offer notarization, usually for a small fee.

  5. 5

    Present it to whoever holds the property

    What the holder must accept: s. 867.03(1g) obliges 'the person owing the money, having custody of the property, or acting as registrar or transfer agent of the evidences of interest, obligation to, or right' to transfer to the affiant on being provided (a) proof of prior mailed DHS notice under s. 867.03(1m) if applicable, and (b) an affidavit showing the three required facts. Covered holders therefore include banks and credit unions, brokerages and transfer agents, employers, obligors on promissory notes, custodians of digital property as defined in s. 711.03(10), and the register of deeds for real property. Safe harbor: s. 867.03(2): 'upon the transfer to the heir, trustee, person named in the will to act as personal representative, or person who was guardian of the decedent at the time of the decedent's death furnishing the affidavit with an attached proof of mail delivery if required under sub. (1m)(b), the transferor is released to the same extent as if the transfer had been made to the personal representative of the estate of the decedent.' The holder is not required to verify the underlying facts. Limits on the safe harbor, the two ways a holder loses it: (i) s. 867.03(1j)(c) expressly provides that 'Subsection (2) does not apply to a transfer if the transferor did not comply with this subsection,' i.e., a holder that pays a will-named personal representative before the 30-day hold expires, or that pays out despite a competing affidavit, forfeits the release; and (ii) the s. 867.03(2) release is expressly 'subject to sub. (1h),' so a holder that transfers real property to a mere will-named personal representative is unprotected. Real property purchasers and lenders get their own protection under s. 867.03(2m)(c): good faith, for value, without actual notice of impropriety, no duty to inquire. Wages: s. 867.03(3) provides that s. 867.03 is additional to s. 109.03(3), under which an employer may pay a deceased employee's wages directly to the decedent's dependents, so final-wage collection may have a parallel, simpler route. Vehicles: DMV accepts form MV2300 rather than requiring the s. 867.03 affidavit, though the heir-signature variant of MV2300 certifies compliance with the s. 867.03 $50,000 test.

Where to take the signed affidavit

The bank

What the holder must accept: s. 867.03(1g) obliges 'the person owing the money, having custody of the property, or acting as registrar or transfer agent of the evidences of interest, obligation to, or right' to transfer to the affiant on being provided (a) proof of prior mailed DHS notice under s. 867.03(1m) if applicable, and (b) an affidavit showing the three required facts. Covered holders therefore include banks and credit unions, brokerages and transfer agents, employers, obligors on promissory notes, custodians of digital property as defined in s. 711.03(10), and the register of deeds for real property. Safe harbor: s. 867.03(2): 'upon the transfer to the heir, trustee, person named in the will to act as personal representative, or person who was guardian of the decedent at the time of the decedent's death furnishing the affidavit with an attached proof of mail delivery if required under sub. (1m)(b), the transferor is released to the same extent as if the transfer had been made to the personal representative of the estate of the decedent.' The holder is not required to verify the underlying facts. Limits on the safe harbor, the two ways a holder loses it: (i) s. 867.03(1j)(c) expressly provides that 'Subsection (2) does not apply to a transfer if the transferor did not comply with this subsection,' i.e., a holder that pays a will-named personal representative before the 30-day hold expires, or that pays out despite a competing affidavit, forfeits the release; and (ii) the s. 867.03(2) release is expressly 'subject to sub. (1h),' so a holder that transfers real property to a mere will-named personal representative is unprotected. Real property purchasers and lenders get their own protection under s. 867.03(2m)(c): good faith, for value, without actual notice of impropriety, no duty to inquire. Wages: s. 867.03(3) provides that s. 867.03 is additional to s. 109.03(3), under which an employer may pay a deceased employee's wages directly to the decedent's dependents, so final-wage collection may have a parallel, simpler route. Vehicles: DMV accepts form MV2300 rather than requiring the s. 867.03 affidavit, though the heir-signature variant of MV2300 certifies compliance with the s. 867.03 $50,000 test.

The DMV

Agency: Wisconsin Department of Transportation, Division of Motor Vehicles. Form: MV2300 (revision 7/2024), 'Statement of Transfer of Vehicles To or By a Surviving Family Member, Domestic Partner, or Heir.' Statutes cited on the face of the form: Wis. Stat. ss. 342.14(3), 342.14(3m), 342.17(4)(b), and 867.03. Submitted to DMV together with form MV1 (Title/License Plate Application) and applicable fees; form MV2119 (Replacement Title Application) if the title is lost; form MV2488 (Vehicle Transfer and Odometer Mileage Statement) may also be needed when transferring to a third party. Two different certifications on the same form. This is the trap: (1) 'Signing as Surviving Spouse or Domestic Partner' certifies the signer 'shall be personally liable for the debts and charges of the decedent, to the extent of the value of the vehicle(s), subject to Wis. Stat. s. 859.25'. This route has no $50,000 estate cap; (2) 'Signing as Other Surviving Family Member or Heir of the Decedent' certifies 'that the decedent has no solely-owned property that exceeds $50,000 in value according to the requirements of Wis. Stat. s. 867.03'. This route is capped at $50,000 and rides on the small-estate statute. Qualifying family-member checkboxes include spouse, domestic partner as defined in s. 770.01, parent, stepparent, child, stepchild, grandparent, grandchild, sibling and the spouses of each; 'None of the above (Heir)' triggers a title fee and restricts license-plate transfer. The form is signed but not notarized, unlike the s. 867.03 affidavit itself. A vehicle may alternatively be listed as an asset on the s. 867.03 Transfer by Affidavit.

The employer

Final wages and accrued leave can usually be claimed with the same affidavit. Ask their payroll department what they need, most have a standard process.

Debts and your personal liability

Section 867.03(2g)(a): 'By accepting the decedent's property under this section the heir, trustee, person named in the will to act as personal representative, or person who was guardian of the decedent at the time of the decedent's death assumes a duty to apply the property transferred for the payment of obligations according to priorities established under s. 859.25 and to distribute any balance to those persons designated in the appropriate governing instrument, as defined in s. 854.01, of the decedent or if there is no governing instrument, according to the rules of intestate succession under ch. 852.' Practical consequences to warn users about: (1) the affidavit itself does not require the affiant to list or schedule debts, the required contents under s. 867.03(1g)(a)-(c) are a description and value of the property to be transferred, the total value of the decedent's Wisconsin property subject to administration at date of death, and whether the decedent or the decedent's spouse ever received the specified Medicaid/long-term-care benefits; (2) but by accepting the property the affiant takes on a personal, statutory duty to pay creditors in s. 859.25 priority order before distributing to beneficiaries, an affiant who pays themselves or the heirs first and leaves creditors unpaid is exposed personally, as the State Bar instructions warn; (3) optional creditor cutoff: the affiant 'may publish a notice to creditors in the same manner and with the same effect as a trustee under s. 701.0508', an important and often-missed planning tool for shortening the creditor exposure window; (4) the affidavit route does not prohibit any appropriate person from requesting administration under s. 856.07 or ch. 865; (5) property transferred remains subject to Department of Health Services estate recovery under s. 867.03(2g)(b) (recovery under s. 46.27(7g), 2017 stats., or ss. 49.496, 49.682, or 49.849), and on request the affiant must tell DHS what property was distributed and to whom.

When you can’t use it

Wisconsin takes the affidavit route off the table when:

  • Wisconsin probate-administration property exceeds $50,000 in gross value at date of death (§ 867.03(1g)), gross, so mortgages and other debts are not netted out
  • Affiant is not within the four statutory categories (heir, trustee of decedent's revocable trust, person named in will as PR, or decedent's guardian at death)
  • Affiant is only a person named in the will as personal representative and the property sought is real property or a lien on real property (§ 867.03(1h)), must use formal probate or another summary procedure
  • A competing § 867.03(1g) affidavit for the same decedent is received by the property holder during the 30-day hold period, the holder may not transfer unless ordered by a court (§ 867.03(1j)(b))
  • Decedent or decedent's spouse ever received Medical Assistance/Medicaid, Family Care or Partnership benefits, Community Options Program, Wisconsin Chronic Disease Program, or was a patient/inmate of a state or county institution, and the required certified-mail notice to the DHS Estate Recovery Program was not given with proof of delivery attached (§ 867.03(1m)), transfer may not proceed and property remains subject to DHS recovery (§ 867.03(2g)(b))
  • Real property is involved and the affiant has not given the decedent's heirs a copy of the affidavit plus notice of intent to record, by certified mail return receipt requested or personal service, at least 30 days before recording (§ 867.03(1p), § 867.03(2m)(a)1.)
  • Any interested person requests formal administration under § 856.07 or informal administration under ch. 865. § 867.03(2g)(a) expressly preserves this right, so the affidavit route can be displaced
  • Estate is insolvent or contested such that creditor priority under § 859.25 cannot be honored, the affiant takes on personal responsibility and formal probate is the safer route
  • Non-Wisconsin real property (the affidavit reaches only property in this state)

If any of those apply, a probate attorney is the right call. A typical small-estate proceeding runs $1,000–$3,000 plus the court’s fee.

Wisconsin small estate affidavit FAQ

Statute and sources

Last verified July 29, 2026. No amendment to wis. Stat. s. 867.03 in the last three years, and no change to the $50,000 figure. The History note to s. 867.03 reads in full: '1973 c. 43; 1975 c. 380 s. 5; 1979 c. 29; 1989 a. 234; 1993 a. 16, 205, 437; 1995 a. 27 ss. 7197b to 7199c, 9126 (19); 1997 a. 27; 1999 a. 9, 94; 2005 a. 216, 387; 2007 a. 20 s. 9121 (6) (a); 2013 a. 20, 92; 2015 a. 55; 2017 a. 90, 332; 2019 a. 9; 2021 a. 238 s. 45; 2021 a. 239 s. 74.' The most recent touches are 2021 Wis. Act 238 s. 45 and 2021 Wis. Act 239 s. 74, which were conforming/renumbering changes tied to the guardianship and trust code, not substantive threshold changes. The $50,000 amount dates to 2005 Wis. Act 216 (up from $20,000). The real-property machinery: the (1h) exception, the (1j) 30-day PR hold, the (1p) heir notice, and the (2m) recording-as-transfer rule, was added principally by 2013 Wis. Act 92. Verification basis: the certified chapter 867 text read for this entry is the 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 July 1, 2026,' published and certified under s. 35.18 on 7-1-2026. The publication convention is that changes effective after July 1, 2026 are designated by notes; no such note appears anywhere in s. 867.03, so there is no known pending amendment taking effect after 7-1-2026. Wisconsin does not index this threshold, unlike Colorado and Idaho, no agency publishes an annual adjustment. Non-statutory change worth tracking: the Wisconsin Court System retired court form PR-1831 (notice dated 07/2019) and the State Bar of Wisconsin RPPT Section now maintains the Transfer by Affidavit form set; the current form package is dated to the State Bar's maintenance cycle and DMV form MV2300 was last revised 7/2024.

  • Wis. Stat. § 867.03 (Transfer by affidavit)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.03(1c) (definition of "guardian")
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.03(1g) ($50,000 gross threshold; who may sign; required affidavit contents)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.03(1h) (exception: person named in will as PR may not take real property)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.03(1j) (30-day hold on transfers to a person named in will as PR; competing-affidavit freeze)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.03(1m) (notice to Dept. of Health Services where decedent or spouse received MA/long-term care)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.03(1p) (30-day notice to heirs before recording an affidavit describing real property)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.03(2) (release of liability of transferor)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.03(2g) (obligation of affiant; s. 859.25 priorities; DHS estate recovery)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.03(2m) (recording of affidavit; recording constitutes the transfer; good-faith purchaser protection)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.03(3) (additional to s. 109.03(3) wage payments)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.01 (Summary settlement of small estates. $50,000)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.02 (Summary assignment of small estates subject to creditor claims. $50,000)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.046 (Summary confirmation of interest in property)
  • Wis. Stat. § 867.05 (Determination of descent of property. 6 years or more after intestate death)
  • Wis. Stat. § 859.25 (priority of payment of claims)
  • Wis. Stat. § 852.01 (intestate succession / who is an heir)
  • Wis. Stat. §§ 342.14(3), 342.14(3m), 342.17(4)(b) (vehicle title transfer on death)

What we're less sure about

  • The exact effective DATE of the $50,000 increase under 2005 Wis. Act 216 was not read verbatim; thresholdYear is recorded as 2006 based on the Act's publication year and the History note. The AMOUNT itself ($50,000, current) is verified verbatim against the certified statute and is not in doubt.
  • Wis. Stat. s. 342.17(4)(b) and ss. 342.14(3)/(3m) were NOT read verbatim, the legislature URLs for ch. 342 returned 404 during this session. The vehicle statutory citations come from the face of DMV form MV2300 (7/2024), which is an official state agency document. A secondary read of the statute page indicated additional vehicle-count and vehicle-age limits (roughly, a cap of five vehicles under 20 years old, with no count limit for vehicles 20+ years old or when proceeding under s. 867.03(1g) within the $50,000 estate cap); those count/age limits are UNVERIFIED against primary text and should be re-checked before being surfaced to users.
  • Wis. Stat. s. 856.05 (duty to deliver a decedent's will to the circuit court, commonly cited as within 30 days of death) was NOT read verbatim in this session. It is referenced in the willAllowed and courtFilingNotes fields as an independent obligation; verify the text and deadline before publishing it as a user-facing instruction.
  • Register of deeds recording fees, the eRETR (Wisconsin Electronic Real Estate Transfer Receipt) requirement, and any county-specific documentary requirements vary by county and were not enumerated; the State Bar instructions themselves warn that 'the Register of Deeds may require additional documentation.'
  • Web search was unavailable for this session (search budget exhausted), so the targeted queries 'Wisconsin small estate affidavit limit 2026' and 'Wisconsin small estate threshold increase' could not be run. The amendment question was instead answered from a stronger source, the statute's own History note plus the 7-1-2026 certification stamp on the official chapter PDF, which together establish that no amendment through 2025 Wis. Act 247 changed s. 867.03 and that no post-7-1-2026 change is noted. Residual risk of a very recent 2026 act not yet incorporated into the 7-1-2026 certified publication is low but nonzero.
  • Institutional practice risk: banks and credit unions sometimes impose their own internal caps, demand a certified death certificate, or insist on letters of administration despite the s. 867.03(2) safe harbor. This is a practical friction point, not a legal requirement, and should be set as an expectation for users.
  • Whether a s. 867.03 affidavit may be used where the decedent was domiciled outside Wisconsin but owned Wisconsin property was not separately researched; the statute's language ('property subject to administration in this state') suggests it can, but this was not confirmed against case law or commentary.

Kinclaim is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. We provide self-help software and statutory forms.