An Ohio small estate affidavit is a written application that asks the court to relieve a small estate from administration under Section 2113.03 of the Ohio Revised Code. An estate can qualify when the value of its assets is thirty-five thousand dollars or less. A higher limit of one hundred thousand dollars applies when a surviving spouse is entitled to all of the assets.[1]
Last Updated: October 2026. This guide is reviewed and updated regularly to reflect current Ohio law. If you notice an error or outdated information, please contact us.
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Two terms recur throughout this guide. The decedent is the individual who has died, and the applicant is the person who asks the court to relieve the estate from administration and signs the small estate affidavit.
The FormsPal template is titled Application to Relieve Estate from Administration. The application has three pages. The first page contains the application itself. Pages 2 and 3 contain Form 5.1, which itemizes the assets and the known debts.
FormsPal additionally provides other Ohio documents that support estate planning, such as the Ohio last will template, the Ohio living will and Ohio power of attorney forms. You can browse all of the Ohio affidavit forms as well.
Have these details ready before you start:
Ohio lets a court relieve a small estate from administration when the value of the assets is thirty-five thousand dollars or less. The rules sit in Section 2113.03 of the Ohio Revised Code. They cover the value limit, how the assets are valued, notice to interested parties and what happens when the decedent left a will.[1]
The basic limit is thirty-five thousand dollars. The statute puts it this way:
The value of the assets of the estate is thirty-five thousand dollars or less.
The limit is one hundred thousand dollars when one of two spouse conditions is met.[1]
Check first whether a surviving spouse is entitled to all of the assets. That one answer decides whether the limit is thirty-five thousand or one hundred thousand dollars.[1]
Automobiles follow a separate rule. Under Section 2106.18(A) of the Ohio Revised Code, a surviving spouse can take title to the decedent's automobiles, up to a combined value of $65,000, with a separate affidavit, and those automobiles are not counted as estate assets.[2]
Not every estate is made up of cash. If the estate is not composed entirely of money, stocks, bonds or other property whose value is readily ascertainable, its value must be determined by an appraiser. The applicant selects the appraiser, subject to the approval of the court.[1]
Interested parties must also be told. Unless the notices are waived or found unnecessary, the notice goes to all interested parties by publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the county.[1]
When the court is satisfied that the value limit is met, it may enter an order relieving the estate from administration. The order directs delivery of personal property and transfer of real property to the persons entitled to it.[1]
Ohio has no statute that sets a waiting period after death.
If the decedent died testate, meaning with a will, the will must be presented for probate. When the will is admitted to probate, the court may relieve the estate from administration and order distribution of the estate under the will.[1] To learn how a will moves through the court, read our guide on what probate is.
| Max. Estate | $35,000, or $100,000 when a spouse condition above is met |
| Valuing the Assets | An appraiser the applicant selects, subject to court approval, when the assets are not all readily valued |
| Notice | Publication in a county newspaper, unless waived or found unnecessary |
| Min. Time to Wait After Death | No statute waiting period |
| State Laws | Ohio Revised Code, Section 2113.03 |
Complete the application from top to bottom. Page 1 holds the application itself, and pages 2 and 3 hold Form 5.1 with the assets, the debts and the signatures. You can complete the template online or download the PDF and fill it in with our PDF editor. Follow the nine steps below.
The screenshots under each step show the FormsPal Ohio small estate affidavit template filled with sample entries in blue, so you can see where each answer goes. The names, addresses, dates and amounts are examples only.
Section 2113.03 of the Ohio Revised Code sets the small estate limits. A court may relieve an estate from administration when the value of the assets is thirty-five thousand dollars or less. The answers below cover the limit and the spouse exception.[1]
Ohio's small estate exemption lets a court release an estate from administration when the value of the assets of the estate is thirty-five thousand dollars or less. A higher limit of one hundred thousand dollars applies when a surviving spouse is entitled to all of the assets, as described above.[1]
The figure to know is the small estate limit. A court may relieve an estate from administration when the assets are worth thirty-five thousand dollars or less. The limit is one hundred thousand dollars or less when a spouse condition is met.[1]
General information, not legal or tax advice.
