Indiana 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. Order certified death certificatesThrough the funeral director or the vital records office. Order several: banks, insurers, pension plans and the court may each want one.
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. Track down the willCheck the home, a safe deposit box and the lawyer who drafted it. Leave the original exactly as you found it and work from copies.
4. See whether a self-proving affidavit is attachedIt's a sworn page signed by the witnesses, usually at the end of the will; the rule for this state is below.
5. Protect the propertyChange locks if keys are out, keep insurance paid, and have the mail forwarded so bills and statements reach you.
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. Compare the estate with $100,000That's the small estate figure on this state's official page for the current period; it depends on the date of death. Count only what the page says counts.
10. Count 45 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. When appointed, get an EIN and open an estate accountPay estate bills from that account only. Form 1041 is due if the estate has more than $600 of gross income in a year (IRS).

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

  The gross probate estate, less liens, encumbrances and reasonable funeral expenses: $100,000 for deaths after June 30, 2022; $50,000 for deaths from July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2022; $25,000 before. The affidavit isn't available for real estate; title can pass by recording a passage of title (or devolution) affidavit with the county recorder (Nolo's summary).

  "one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), for the estate of an individual who dies after June 30, 2022."

  • By date of death: through June 30, 2006: $25,000; July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2022: $50,000; from July 1, 2022: $100,000.
  • Vehicles count toward this limit.

  Source: Nolo (secondary source): Probate Shortcuts in Indiana (Nolo), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedReal estate

  Real estate has its own affidavit or petition. Named on the official pages: Summary procedure (IC 29-1-8-3).

  Source: Nolo (secondary source): Probate Shortcuts in Indiana (Nolo), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedWaiting period after the death

  45 days. Forty-five days after the death; five days for the Bureau of Motor Vehicles to transfer a vehicle or watercraft title.

  "Forty-five (45) days after the death of a decedent"

  Sources: Indiana Code 29-1-8-1 (copy posted by Cass County, in.gov); Indiana State Form 54794, Small Estate Affidavit (Indiana Public Retirement System, R10 / 6-26); Affidavit for Transfer of Assets Without Administration, Clark County Clerk of Courts, Indiana (09/2023, PDF); Nolo (secondary source): Probate Shortcuts in Indiana (Nolo); Justia (statute text) (secondary source): IC 29-1-8-3, Summary procedure (2025 Indiana Code, Justia), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedNotary or oath

  It depends on the route. The statute doesn't use the word notarized. The Clark Circuit Court's affidavit form (09/2023) ends with an affirmation under penalties of perjury and has no notary block, while some holders' own forms, like the state retirement system's, must be notarized.

  "I affirm under penalties of perjury that the foregoing representations are true."

  Sources: Indiana Code 29-1-8-1 (copy posted by Cass County, in.gov); Affidavit for Transfer of Assets Without Administration, Clark County Clerk of Courts, Indiana (09/2023, PDF), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedWhere the paperwork goes

  Handed to the bank or other holder. Presented to the person holding the property; the statute doesn't call for a court filing.

  "upon being presented an affidavit that complies with subsection (b)"

  Source: Indiana Code 29-1-8-1 (copy posted by Cass County, in.gov), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedOfficial form

  Small Estate Affidavit (State Form 54985). Named in Nolo's summary as Indiana's small estate affidavit; holders can also have their own, like the state retirement system's State Form 54794.

  Sources: Indiana State Form 54794, Small Estate Affidavit (Indiana Public Retirement System, R10 / 6-26); Nolo (secondary source): Probate Shortcuts in Indiana (Nolo), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedSimplified court procedure

  Summary procedure (IC 29-1-8-3): When the gross probate estate, less liens and encumbrances, is no more than $100,000 (deaths after June 30, 2022) plus administration costs and reasonable funeral expenses, the personal representative of an unsupervised estate may distribute it without notice to creditors and then file a closing statement (2025 Indiana Code on Justia).

  Source: Justia (statute text) (secondary source): IC 29-1-8-3, Summary procedure (2025 Indiana Code, Justia), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedWorth knowing

  Holders can have their own forms: the state retirement system's version (State Form 54794) must be notarized before it will process it. The statute itself doesn't use the word notarized.

  Sources: Indiana Code 29-1-8-1 (copy posted by Cass County, in.gov); Indiana State Form 54794, Small Estate Affidavit (Indiana Public Retirement System, R10 / 6-26), checked November 2026

The will at probate

When the will goes to the court, these signing rules are what it is checked against.

• ConfirmedWitnesses the will needed

  Two attesting witnesses, physically present with the testator, per the Indiana Supreme Court's 2020 order on witnessing wills (citing IC 29-1-5 and 29-1-21).

  Sources: Legislative Update: Probate and property matters, May 14, 2021 (Indiana Office of Court Services); Wills (trial court publication, Indiana Office of Court Services); Order 20S-MS-237, Emergency Procedures for the Witnessing of Wills (Indiana Supreme Court, 2020); Nolo (secondary source): How to Make a Will in Indiana (Nolo); FindLaw Codes (secondary source): IC 29-1-5-1 (FindLaw Codes, current as of January 1, 2026), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedSelf-proving affidavit

  A self-proving clause may be built into or attached to a will (2021 law). The summary we read doesn't say who takes it.

  "a self-proving clause may be incorporated into or affixed to a will"

  Sources: Legislative Update: Probate and property matters, May 14, 2021 (Indiana Office of Court Services); Wills (trial court publication, Indiana Office of Court Services); Order 20S-MS-237, Emergency Procedures for the Witnessing of Wills (Indiana Supreme Court, 2020); Nolo (secondary source): How to Make a Will in Indiana (Nolo); FindLaw Codes (secondary source): IC 29-1-5-1 (FindLaw Codes, current as of January 1, 2026), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedIf the will is handwritten

  Not recognized, per Nolo's Indiana page.

  "Indiana does not permit holographic (handwritten) wills."

  Source: Nolo (secondary source): How to Make a Will in Indiana (Nolo), checked November 2026

• ConfirmedA witness who inherits

  A witness who inherits risks forfeiting the gift (Nolo, citing Ind. Code 29-1-5-2).

  "risk forfeiting gifts that the will leaves to them"

  Source: Nolo (secondary source): How to Make a Will in Indiana (Nolo), checked November 2026

Documents to gather

• 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 original will and any codicils
• Deeds and mortgage statements
• The official small estate form: Small Estate Affidavit (State Form 54985)

Who to notify

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, Credit card companies. Write once to each, enclose a death certificate copy, and record the reply.

Documents needed abroad

• ConfirmedA death certificate needed abroad

  Apostilles for this state's documents come from the Indiana Secretary of State, Business Services Division. $2 per authentication; some documents, including birth and death certificates, are exempt. Vital records: The original or a certified copy of an Indiana vital record. A marriage license must first be certified by the current circuit court clerk.

  Source: Indiana Secretary of State, Business Services Division, checked November 2026

Where to ask

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

• Affidavit for Transfer of Assets Without Administration, Clark County Clerk of Courts, Indiana (09/2023, PDF)
• Probate Shortcuts in Indiana (Nolo)
• Legislative Update: Probate and property matters, May 14, 2021 (Indiana Office of Court Services)
• Wills (trial court publication, Indiana Office of Court Services)

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 · Will signing requirements · Apostille steps · Estate paperwork help