Colorado executor and estate paperwork checklist

This is an organizer, not legal advice. An estate attorney or the county probate/surrogate office answers questions about your situation.

The first 30 days

General steps in plain words. Tick them off as you go; the ticks stay on this screen only.

1. Get several certified copies of the death certificateThe funeral home can usually order them, or the vital records office can. Each bank, insurer and pension plan may ask for its own.
2. Make sure Social Security knowsFuneral homes generally report the death. If not, call 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778). A surviving spouse, or some children if there's no spouse, may get a one-time $255 payment.
3. Find the original willLook for the signed original and any codicils (later changes). Keep the original safe and unaltered; make copies for yourself.
4. Check the will for a self-proving affidavitLook for a notarized statement by the witnesses attached to the will; this state allows one (see below).
5. Keep the house and vehicles safeTell the insurer about the death so coverage stays in place, take photos of what's inside, and redirect the mail.
6. Don't pay bills or hand out belongings yetFirst learn which route fits and who is allowed to act; ask the probate office or an attorney about anything urgent.
7. Stop using the person's power of attorneyA power of attorney ends at the principal's death, so an agent under it can't act for the estate.
8. List what the person owned and owedNote how each asset is held: in the person's name alone, jointly, or with a named beneficiary. Accounts with a beneficiary or joint owner usually pass outside the will.
9. Check the total against $82,000The official page's small estate figure (it changes with the date of death). Leave out anything the page says isn't counted.
10. Count 10 days from the deathThat's when the official page says the small estate paperwork can be used.
11. Keep an account of every transactionWrite down each payment and each deposit with the date and a receipt; heirs and the court may ask to see it.
12. Get the estate its own tax number and bank accountThe IRS asks for an EIN before the estate's Form 1041, which applies once the estate has more than $600 of gross income in a year.

Sources for the federal steps: Social Security Administration: When someone dies · IRS: Deceased taxpayers, filing the estate income tax return (Form 1041) · power of attorney: Power of attorney at a real estate closing.

The small estate route

• ConfirmedSmall estate limit

  Fair market value of everything the person owned, less liens and encumbrances, by year of death: $82,000 for 2024, $80,000 for 2023, $74,000 for 2022, $70,000 for 2020 and 2021, $68,000 for 2019, $66,000 for 2017 and 2018. The form we read stops at 2024. It can't transfer real estate.

  "Y.O.D. 2024 is $82,000, Y.O.D. 2023 is $80,000"

  • By date of death: January 1, 2017 to December 31, 2018: $66,000; January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2019: $68,000; January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2021: $70,000; January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022: $74,000; January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023: $80,000; January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2024: $82,000.

  Sources: Colorado Judicial Branch form JDF 999, Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (rev. March 5, 2024); Colorado Judicial Branch: Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (form page), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedReal estate

  Real estate isn't counted, and the affidavit doesn't transfer it; it needs its own route.

  Sources: Colorado Judicial Branch form JDF 999, Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (rev. March 5, 2024); Colorado Judicial Branch: Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (form page), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedWaiting period after the death

  10 days. At least 10 days after the death.

  "At least 10 days have elapsed since the death of (decedent)"

  Sources: Colorado Judicial Branch form JDF 999, Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (rev. March 5, 2024); Colorado Judicial Branch: Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (form page); Colorado Judicial Branch form JDF 966SC, Statement of Personal Representative Closing Small Estate (R6/19), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedNotary or oath

  Signed before a notary. Sworn before a notary public or a deputy clerk.

  "Subscribed and affirmed, or sworn to before me"

  Sources: Colorado Judicial Branch form JDF 999, Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (rev. March 5, 2024); Colorado Judicial Branch: Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (form page); Colorado Judicial Branch form JDF 966SC, Statement of Personal Representative Closing Small Estate (R6/19), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedWhere the paperwork goes

  Handed to the bank or other holder. Presented to whoever is paying or delivering the property, who is then discharged as if dealing with a personal representative.

  "The person or entity paying, delivering, transferring, or issuing personal property pursuant to this affidavit"

  Sources: Colorado Judicial Branch form JDF 999, Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (rev. March 5, 2024); Colorado Judicial Branch: Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (form page); Colorado Judicial Branch form JDF 966SC, Statement of Personal Representative Closing Small Estate (R6/19), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedOfficial form

  JDF 999, Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit. The Judicial Branch's statewide form, revised March 5, 2024.

  Sources: Colorado Judicial Branch: Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (form page); Colorado Judicial Branch form JDF 999, Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (rev. March 5, 2024), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedSimplified court procedure

  Small estate closed by sworn statement (JDF 966SC, C.R.S. 15-12-1204): When the whole estate, less liens and encumbrances, is no more than exempt property, the family allowance, administration costs, reasonable funeral expenses and the last illness's medical and hospital bills, the personal representative closes the estate with the Judicial Branch's sworn statement JDF 966SC (rev. 6/19).

  Source: Colorado Judicial Branch form JDF 966SC, Statement of Personal Representative Closing Small Estate (R6/19), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedWorth knowing

  For deaths in 2025 or 2026, the form we read gives no figure; check the current JDF 999 for the year of death before relying on a number.

  Sources: Colorado Judicial Branch form JDF 999, Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (rev. March 5, 2024); Colorado Judicial Branch: Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit (form page), checked November 2026

The will at probate

Signing rules for wills, as they bear on getting the will accepted.

• ConfirmedWitnesses the will needed

  Two witnesses who sign within a reasonable time after seeing the signing or acknowledgment, or instead the testator acknowledges the will before a notary (Nolo, citing C.R.S. 15-11-502).

  "two witnesses must sign your will after witnessing you sign or acknowledge your will"

  Source: Nolo (secondary source): How to Make a Will in Colorado (Nolo, updated September 2025), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedSelf-proving affidavit

  Allowed. Per Nolo (citing C.R.S. 15-11-504), the testator and witnesses sign an affidavit before a notary.

  Source: Nolo (secondary source): How to Make a Will in Colorado (Nolo, updated September 2025), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedIf the will is handwritten

  Recognized without witnesses if the signature and material provisions are in the testator's handwriting (Nolo, citing 15-11-502).

  "the signature and material provisions must be in your own handwriting"

  Source: Nolo (secondary source): How to Make a Will in Colorado (Nolo, updated September 2025), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedA witness who inherits

  Allowed: a will, or any part of it, isn't invalid because an interested witness signed it (C.R.S. 15-11-505, Justia's 2022 code text). Disinterested witnesses are still the safer choice.

  "The signing of a will by an interested witness does not invalidate the will or any provision of it."

  Source: Justia (statute text) (secondary source): C.R.S. 15-11-505, Who may witness (Justia statute text, 2022 Colorado Code), checked November 2026

Documents to gather

• The original will and any codicils
• Deeds and mortgage statements
• Vehicle titles and registrations
• Recent bank, brokerage and retirement statements
• Life insurance policies and annuities
• The last few years of tax returns
• Recent bills, loan and credit card statements
• Pension, Social Security and benefit letters
• Safe deposit box location and keys
• Certified death certificates
• The official small estate form: JDF 999, Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit

Who to notify

Credit card companies, Pension or employer, Social Security (if the funeral home hasn't), Banks and credit unions, Brokerage and retirement accounts, Life insurance companies, Utilities and phone, Landlord or mortgage servicer. A brief letter and a copy of the death certificate usually start each one; note the date and the person you reached.

Documents needed abroad

• ConfirmedA death certificate needed abroad

  Apostilles for this state's documents come from the Colorado Secretary of State, Authentications Program. $5 per apostille by mail or drop-off. Vital records: Only original certified copies from Colorado vital records offices: birth and death certificates from Colorado Vital Records; marriage licenses from the county clerk and recorder where they were issued.

  Source: Colorado Secretary of State, Authentications Program, checked November 2026

Where to ask

An estate attorney or the county probate/surrogate office answers questions about your situation. Official pages for Colorado:

• Instructions for Probate with a Will, JDF 906 (Colorado Judicial Branch)

General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. We are not lawyers, and MCC Solutions is not a law firm. An estate attorney or the county probate/surrogate office answers questions about your situation. Facts checked November 2026.

Common questions

Related: Executor guide by state · Small estate affidavit details · Will signing requirements · Apostille steps · Estate paperwork help