Probate in Rhode Island: small estates, no will, skipping court

Updated 2026-10-18

The short answer

Rhode Island's small estate procedure works only if the person who died was a resident and left $15,000 or less in personal property, not counting tangible items, and no real estate. Family files with the probate court after 30 days. Larger estates go through probate. Rhode Island has no transfer-on-death deed and taxes estates above $1,838,056.

When someone dies in Rhode Island, the family's first question is usually practical. Do we have to go to court, and how long will it take?

In Rhode Island, the honest answer is often yes. Its small estate limit is low, it has no transfer-on-death deed for a house, and its rules for dying without a will are old-fashioned. So planning ahead pays off here. It is part of our guides to estate planning by state. If the word is new, start with what probate is.

Can my family use a small estate procedure in Rhode Island?

Only for small, simple estates. Rhode Island calls it "voluntary informal administration of small estates" (R.I. Gen. Laws 33-24-1).

Item	Rhode Island small estate procedure
Who it's for	A Rhode Island resident who died
What the estate can hold	Personal property only. Any real estate in probate disqualifies it.
Value limit	$15,000 or less, not counting tangible personal property
Earliest filing	30 days after death, if no probate petition has been filed
Who files	A spouse, child, grandchild, parent, sibling, niece, nephew, aunt, uncle or other interested party, who is an adult Rhode Island resident
Where and cost	The probate court where the person lived, with a sworn statement, a death certificate and a $30 fee; the certificate of appointment is $5

Usually there is no hearing. The "voluntary administrator" collects the assets, pays costs and debts in the order the law sets, and distributes the rest, without a fee.

If there's a will naming an executor, that person can use a parallel "voluntary executor" procedure and file the original will (R.I. Gen. Laws 33-24-1 and 33-24-2). A named executor who lives out of state can do this, but must appoint a Rhode Island resident as agent.

Who inherits if there's no will?

Rhode Island splits real estate from everything else, and the spouse's share is smaller than many people expect (R.I. Gen. Laws 33-1-1 to 33-1-10). Rhode Island isn't a community property state.

Real estate. A surviving spouse gets a life estate in all of it: the right to live in or use it for life, not to own it outright. On a petition filed within six months after the administrator's first published notice, the court may also award the spouse up to $150,000 of real estate outright, net of mortgages, if it isn't needed for debts.

Personal property (after debts and costs). If there are no descendants, the spouse gets $50,000 plus half of the rest. If there are descendants, the spouse gets half.

Everything else goes in this order:

Your children, or their descendants.
Your parents equally, or the surviving parent.
Your brothers and sisters, and their descendants.
Half to your father's side and half to your mother's side: grandparents, then aunts and uncles and their descendants, and further back.

A spouse inherits the real estate outright only if there are no relatives at all. So a widow with no children might keep only the right to live in the house, with her late husband's brothers and sisters inheriting it after her. Notice too that friends never appear. If you want a friend, a charity or the neighbor with your key to receive anything, it has to be in a will or trust. Our post on dying without a will covers what happens when the list runs short.

Who serves as executor or administrator?

With a will, the court appoints the executor named in it, if competent and bonded. If that person has died, refuses or doesn't qualify within 30 days, it turns to other named executors, then to "some suitable person" (R.I. Gen. Laws 33-8-1 to 33-8-8).

Without a will, administration goes to the surviving spouse, one or more next of kin, or both together, if suitable. If they don't apply within 30 days after death, aren't suitable or step aside, the court can appoint any suitable person (R.I. Gen. Laws 33-8-1 to 33-8-8).

Either way, the person serving is a fiduciary: legally required to act in the estate's interest and follow what the will says.

Can someone out of state serve?

A named executor can live anywhere. But every executor or administrator living outside Rhode Island must first appoint, in writing, an agent who lives in Rhode Island to accept legal papers, and file it with the probate court (R.I. Gen. Laws 33-18-9).

With no will, it's harder. A nonresident isn't appointed administrator just because of a family right, unless the court finds other circumstances make it proper (R.I. Gen. Laws 33-8-7). If your nearest family lives far away, naming an executor in a will matters more.

How long do creditors have?

Six months from the first published notice of the executor's or administrator's qualification. A late bill is allowed only for accident, mistake, excusable neglect or lack of adequate notice, and only before distribution.

A creditor files a written statement of the debt with the probate court clerk and sends a copy to the personal representative. The personal representative must notify known creditors, and if the person who died was 55 or older, must also notify the state Executive Office of Health and Human Services (R.I. Gen. Laws 33-11-4, 33-11-5 and 33-11-5.1).

Rhode Island has no simplified "informal" or "independent" probate. Outside the small estate procedure, the court is involved. Our post on the probate process walks through the steps, and how long probate takes covers timing.

How much is the executor paid?

There's no percentage schedule. Executors and administrators receive whatever compensation the probate court "shall consider just" (R.I. Gen. Laws 33-14-8). Our post on what an executor gets paid compares approaches.

Can my house skip probate?

Not with a transfer-on-death deed. Rhode Island hasn't adopted one (Title 34 index).

That leaves a living trust as the usual way to keep a home out of probate court. Rhode Island law confirms a trust isn't invalid just because you keep the power to revoke or change it, or serve as your own trustee during life (R.I. Gen. Laws 18-4-27). Your trust should state clearly whether it's revocable. Our posts on what a trustee does and how to avoid probate compare the options.

Will my heirs owe Rhode Island estate tax?

Possibly. Rhode Island has an estate tax. For deaths in 2026, the first $1,838,056 of the net taxable estate is exempt, and the amount is adjusted for inflation each year. Rates run from 0.8% to 16% before the credit is applied (Rhode Island Division of Taxation, ADV 2025-27).

A Form RI-706 is filed even for non-taxable estates, and a gross estate of $1.3 million or more needs the full return (Form RI-706).

Which path fits?

Situation	Likely path
Resident, personal property only, $15,000 or less (not counting tangible items)	Small estate procedure, 30 days after death
Any real estate in the person's own name	Probate
Assets titled in a living trust	Trustee handles them without probate
Executor lives out of state	Must appoint a Rhode Island agent first
Net taxable estate above $1,838,056 (2026)	Rhode Island estate tax may be due

Here is a typical case, a composite. Eileen, 77, lived in Cranston and never married. Her house and savings were in a living trust, with her nephew as successor trustee. Her ,000 checking account was not. After 30 days, her nephew used the small estate procedure for it, and the house passed through the trust.

Some people would rather not leave this to family at all. Trella Trust Company, through a Kinly membership, can be named as executor or trustee, first or as backup to someone you choose. If it steps in and settles the estate, that work is charged by the hour, and you see the rates before anything starts.

Before death, the papers that matter most are your powers of attorney. See our Rhode Island financial power of attorney guide and Rhode Island medical power of attorney guide.

Common questions

What is the small estate limit in Rhode Island?

$15,000 in personal property, not counting tangible personal property. The person who died must have been a Rhode Island resident, and any real estate in probate disqualifies the estate.

Does a surviving spouse inherit everything in Rhode Island?

No, not without a will. The spouse gets a life estate in real estate, with a possible court award of up to $150,000 outright, and half of the personal property, or $50,000 plus half if there are no descendants.

Does Rhode Island allow transfer-on-death deeds?

No. Rhode Island has not adopted a transfer-on-death deed law. A living trust is the common way to pass a home without probate.

What is the Rhode Island estate tax exemption for 2026?

For deaths in 2026, the first $1,838,056 of the net taxable estate is exempt. The figure is adjusted for inflation each year.

Sources

This page is general information, not legal or financial advice. Laws vary by state.

Keep reading

State guidesPower of attorney in Rhode Island: rules, signing, who to namePower of attorney in Rhode Island is durable only if it says so, the short form must be notarized, and banks aren't forced to accept it. How to sign it.State guidesMedical power of attorney in Rhode Island: how to sign oneMedical power of attorney in Rhode Island: the state form, two witnesses or a notary, who can't witness, the living will, and why family has no default.State guidesEstate planning by state: guides for all 50 statesEstate planning by state: what stays the same everywhere, what changes, and power of attorney, medical and probate guides for all 50 states.