Illinois small estate affidavit: $150,000 limit for deaths since August 15, 2025, and the vehicle change on January 1, 2027

An Illinois small estate affidavit under 755 ILCS 5/25-1 can be used when the person died on or after August 15, 2025 and the personal property passing by will or without a will, not counting motor vehicles registered with the Secretary of State, is worth $150,000 or less. For deaths before that date the old test applies: a gross value of $100,000, with vehicles counted in. The affidavit is handed to the bank or other holder; the statute sets no waiting period and no court filing. A second change, Public Act 104-0624, takes effect on January 1, 2027 and stops treating motor homes, commercial vehicles and some other vehicles as excluded.

Figures above were read from 755 ILCS 5/25-1 and Public Acts 104-0346 and 104-0624 on the Illinois General Assembly's site, and from the Cook County Clerk's forms CCP 0247 and CCP 0248, on 2026-10-12. See sources.

This page is general information, not legal advice. Whether the affidavit fits depends on the facts of the estate and on the date of death; a probate attorney, the circuit clerk or a legal aid program can help with a specific case.

Which limit applies: the date of death decides

Public Act 104-0346 (Senate Bill 83) raised the figure and changed how vehicles are counted. The Governor approved it on August 15, 2025, and it took effect the same day. It added subsection (j) to section 25-1: "The changes made by this amendatory Act of the 104th General Assembly apply to a decedent whose date of death is on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 104th General Assembly."

The Cook County Clerk of the Circuit Court keeps two versions of the affidavit for that reason. CCP 0247 is marked for deaths "on or after September 4, 1991 but before August 15, 2025" and keeps the old wording: "The gross value of the decedent’s entire personal estate, including the value of all property passing to any party either by intestacy or under a will, does not exceed $100,000." CCP 0248 is marked "(To be used only when decedent died on or after August 15, 2025)".

What counts toward $150,000

• Personal property passing by will or by intestacy. Paragraph 6(a) of the statutory affidavit reads: "Excluding motor vehicles registered with the Secretary of State, the decedent's entire personal estate passing to any party either by intestacy or under a will does not exceed $150,000." The affiant lists each asset, such as cash and stock, with its fair market value. Subsection (a-5) describes this property as tangible and intangible personal property.
• Registered vehicles are listed apart. Paragraph 6(b) asks for each motor vehicle registered with the Secretary of State "by make, body type, year, and vehicle identification number." These vehicles are not part of the $150,000 figure.
• A vehicle-only transfer ignores the estate's value. When the affidavit is used solely for a title transaction with the Secretary of State, section 25-1 says "it may be used to transfer those motor vehicles in accordance with subsection (b) of Section 3-114 of Illinois Vehicle Code without consideration of the value of the decedent's personal estate."
• The Secretary of State supplies the vehicle form, with a 120-day window. Vehicle Code section 3-114(b) says the transferee sends the Secretary of State the last title, the Probate Act documents and an application "within 120 days", and: "The Small Estate Affidavit form shall be furnished by the Secretary of State."

Real estate

Subsection (a-5) says the affidavit "may be used to transfer personal property in a decedent's estate if:" no letters of office are outstanding or contemplated and the dollar test is met. Real property is not among the things the section transfers. We did not find a sentence in section 25-1 that bars the affidavit just because the person owned real estate; the conditions in the statute are the ones listed above.

County and legal aid materials describe the condition more narrowly. The McHenry County Circuit Clerk's brochure (revised August 15, 2025) lists "The decedent did not own any real estate;" among its conditions. Illinois Legal Aid Online, a nonprofit, says the decedent did not own real estate "or they owned real estate that went to someone else when they died", for example through a Transfer on Death Instrument or joint tenancy with right of survivorship.

The court route that does reach real estate is summary administration under section 9-8, which requires a petition and applies when the gross value of the decedent's real and personal estate subject to administration in Illinois, as itemized in the petition, does not exceed $100,000 and all heirs and legatees consent in writing, among other conditions. That $100,000 figure was not changed by P.A. 104-0346.

Is there a 30-day wait?

Section 25-1 does not state a waiting period; no number of days appears in its conditions. The 30 days that shows up in some guides relates to wills, not to the affidavit:

• Section 6-1(a) says that "Immediately upon the death of the testator any person who has the testator's will in his possession shall file it with the clerk of the court of the proper county". Section 6-1(b) makes it a felony to wilfully secrete a will for 30 days after learning of the death.
• The McHenry County brochure states the condition as: "If there is a will, it must be filed with the Clerk of the Circuit Court within 30 days of the death;"
• When there is a will, paragraph 10(b) of the affidavit says the will "has been filed with the clerk of an appropriate court" and "A certified copy of the will on file is attached."

The form: statute text, county versions, no statewide approved form

Section 25-1(a) requires a holder of the decedent's property to pay or deliver it when it "is furnished with a small estate affidavit in substantially the form hereinafter set forth". The full text of that form is in subsection (b). There is no single state-issued court form: the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Access to Justice's list of approved statewide standardized forms, which says "All Illinois Courts must accept these forms.", has no small estate affidavit (we read the full circuit, appellate and supreme court lists on 2026-10-12). Circuit clerks publish their own versions, and the ones we read all use the $150,000 wording:

What the affidavit asks for

The statutory form in section 25-1(b) is signed under penalties of perjury before a notary and covers:

1. The affiant's post office and residence addresses and, for an out-of-state affiant, an agent for service of process in Illinois.
2. The decedent's name, date of death and last residence, with a copy of the death certificate attached.
3. A statement that no letters of office are outstanding and no petition is contemplated or pending.
4. The list of assets with fair market values (paragraph 6(a)) and the list of registered vehicles (paragraph 6(b)).
5. Either a statement that funeral expenses and other debts are paid, or a list of unpaid debts in seven classes, starting with funeral and burial expenses.
6. The surviving spouse, minor children and adult dependent children, and the award amount: $20,000 plus $10,000 for each minor or adult dependent child who lived with the surviving spouse.
7. The heirs (no will) or the legatees under a will on file, and a statement that the affiant is unaware of any dispute about heirship or the will.
8. A paragraph to be printed in bold type of at least 14 points in which the affiant agrees to indemnify creditors, heirs, legatees and anyone who relies on the affidavit.
9. How the remaining property is to be distributed after the debts in paragraph 7 are paid.

Subsection (e) adds: "The affiant, acting on behalf of the decedent's estate, is obligated to pay all valid claims against the decedent's estate before any distribution is made to any heir or legatee." Subsection (d) protects a bank or other holder that relies in good faith on a copy of an affidavit substantially in compliance with subsection (b).

January 1, 2027: Public Act 104-0624

Senate Bill 2704 became Public Act 104-0624 when the Governor approved it on July 24, 2026, with an effective date of January 1, 2027. It adds one sentence to subsection (a-5): the following “shall not be considered an excluded motor vehicle in determining the value of a decedent's personal estate: (i) motor vehicles used as living quarters; (ii) motor homes, mini motor homes, and van campers; (iii) a non-self-propelled vehicle, as defined under Section 1-217 of the Illinois Vehicle Code; (iv) a commercial vehicle; (v) an implement of husbandry; or (vi) a bus or commuter van.”

The $150,000 figure, the affidavit text and the vehicle-only title transfer paragraph are unchanged by the act. The current text, in force until then, excludes "motor vehicles registered with the Secretary of State" without listing exceptions.

Pages that still show $100,000

• Cook County form CCP 0247 shows $100,000, and that is correct for its stated use: deaths before August 15, 2025.
• An earlier McHenry County Circuit Clerk brochure is still online at its 2024 address and says "The total amount of personal property in the estate must be worth $100,000 or less;". The clerk's probate page now links a brochure revised August 15, 2025 that says $150,000.
• House Bill 3207 would raise the figure for the small estate affidavit and summary administration to $500,000. Its synopsis on the General Assembly's site still describes the starting point as $100,000. Its last recorded committee action was a re-referral to the House Rules Committee on March 27, 2026. It is a bill, not law.
• Several widely read guides we checked on 2026-10-12 still give $100,000 without a date of death, or say a 30-day wait applies. Neither matches the current text of section 25-1.

What we could not confirm

• The Secretary of State's own small estate affidavit form and title transfer instructions. The Secretary of State's site (ilsos.gov) did not respond to our requests on 2026-10-12, so we could not read its robots.txt or its pages. Section 3-114(b) says the Secretary of State furnishes the form.
• Whether P.A. 104-0624 applies by date of death. The act adds no date-of-death rule of its own, and subsection (j), which uses the words "this amendatory Act of the 104th General Assembly", was written for P.A. 104-0346. We found no official guidance on affidavits signed after January 1, 2027 for deaths before that date.
• A statewide form from the Illinois courts. None appears on the approved statewide forms list, and the Illinois Courts sitemap had no small estate page when we searched it on 2026-10-12.
• What an individual bank, broker or transfer agent asks for in addition to the affidavit. Section 25-1 does not list extra documents; holders' own practices were not checked.

Sources

• 755 ILCS 5/25-1, Payment or delivery of small estate of decedent upon affidavit (text before and after amendment by P.A. 104-624) - Illinois General Assembly, read 2026-10-12
• Public Act 104-0346 (SB 83), with struck and added text - Illinois General Assembly, read 2026-10-12
• SB 83 bill status (Governor approved and effective 8/15/2025) - Illinois General Assembly, read 2026-10-12
• Public Act 104-0624 (SB 2704) - Illinois General Assembly, read 2026-10-12
• SB 2704 bill status (Governor approved 7/24/2026, effective 1/1/2027) - Illinois General Assembly, read 2026-10-12
• HB 3207 bill status - Illinois General Assembly, read 2026-10-12
• 625 ILCS 5/3-114, transfer by operation of law - Illinois General Assembly, read 2026-10-12
• 755 ILCS 5/6-1, duty to file will - Illinois General Assembly, read 2026-10-12
• 755 ILCS 5/9-8, distribution on summary administration - Illinois General Assembly, read 2026-10-12
• Small Estate Affidavit, CCP 0248 (PDF) - Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, read 2026-10-12
• Small Estate Affidavit, CCP 0247 (PDF) - Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, read 2026-10-12
• Probate page - McHenry County Circuit Clerk, read 2026-10-12
• Small Estate Affidavit, PR-AFF2 Revised 08-15-2025 (PDF) - McHenry County Circuit Clerk, read 2026-10-12
• Using a Small Estate Affidavit brochure, revised 08-15-2025 (PDF) - McHenry County Circuit Clerk, read 2026-10-12
• Using a Small Estate Affidavit brochure, earlier version (PDF) - McHenry County Circuit Clerk, read 2026-10-12
• Small Estate Affidavit, 11/13/2025 (PDF) - 24th Judicial Circuit of Illinois, read 2026-10-12
• Small Estate Affidavit (PDF) - St. Clair County Circuit Clerk, read 2026-10-12
• Approved Statewide Standardized Forms - Illinois Courts, read 2026-10-12
• Small estate affidavit Easy Form description - Illinois Legal Aid Online, read 2026-10-12

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