Florida summary administration

Summary administration ends with a court order that tells banks, transfer agents, and other asset holders who receives each asset. No personal representative is appointed. It can be faster and less expensive than formal administration, but only some estates qualify, and the people who receive assets can remain responsible for the decedent’s debts for a period afterward.

Who qualifies

Under section 735.201, Florida Statutes, summary administration is available for a Florida resident or a nonresident when both of these are true:

The will does not require formal administration. If there is a will, it must not direct administration under chapter 733.
The estate is within the limit, or the death was more than two years ago. The value of the entire estate subject to administration in Florida, less property exempt from creditors’ claims, must not exceed $150,000, or the decedent must have died more than two years before.

The $150,000 figure took effect on July 1, 2026 (chapter 2026-57, Laws of Florida). Before that date, the limit was $75,000. The Florida Supreme Court amended the summary administration rule to match, effective immediately, on July 16, 2026. Neither the law nor the court’s order says how the new limit applies to earlier deaths or to cases already open. The date of death, the date the petition is filed, and whether a formal administration is already pending can all matter, so have the applicable limit confirmed for your filing.

What counts toward the limit

The test looks only at property that would pass through a Florida probate proceeding. Assets that pass another way usually do not count, such as accounts with a living payable-on-death beneficiary, jointly owned property with survivorship rights, life insurance payable to a named person, and properly funded trust assets. Property exempt from creditors is then subtracted. That can include a qualifying homestead, which is why the limit is not simply the total value of everything the person owned.

The process, step by step

Most summary administrations follow this sequence. Some steps take longer when a beneficiary cannot be located, a creditor’s claim is disputed, or an asset’s ownership is unclear.

Deposit the original will. Whoever has the original will must deposit it with the clerk of court in the county where the estate will be administered within 10 days after learning of the death. Depositing the will does not open an estate or appoint anyone.
Identify the assets and how each is titled. List every asset, its date-of-death value, and whether it passes through probate or by beneficiary designation, survivorship, or trust. This list decides both eligibility and what the order must cover.
Confirm eligibility. Compare the probate assets, less exempt property, with the statutory limit, or confirm that more than two years have passed since the death. Check that the will does not direct formal administration.
Search for creditors. The petitioner must make a diligent search and reasonable inquiry for known or reasonably ascertainable creditors, serve them with a copy of the petition, and provide for their payment to the extent assets are available.
Prepare and sign the petition. The petition must be signed and verified by the surviving spouse, if any, and the beneficiaries. A beneficiary who does not join must receive formal notice of the petition, unless they will receive their full share under the proposed distribution.
File with the court. The petition is filed in the county where the decedent was domiciled. For a nonresident, it is filed in a county where Florida property is located. If there is a will, it must be proved and admitted to probate as part of the filing.
Obtain the order of summary administration. If the requirements are met, the court enters an order allowing immediate distribution. Banks, brokers, and other holders may transfer assets as the order directs.
Transfer the assets and consider creditor notice. Present certified copies of the order to each asset holder. For real estate, record a certified copy in the county where the property is located. Anyone who obtained the order may also publish a notice to creditors: once proof of publication is filed, claims of unknown creditors not filed within three months after first publication are barred.

What summary administration does not do

It does not end creditor responsibility immediately. Nonexempt property remains liable for claims until they are barred. Each person who receives nonexempt property can be personally liable for a proportional share of valid claims, up to the value they received. These claims generally end two years after the death unless enforcement proceedings were started.
It does not appoint anyone to act for the estate. If someone needs authority to investigate accounts, pursue a lawsuit or settlement, sell property over time, or deal with disputes, formal administration may be the better fit.
It does not override an heir’s rights. A person entitled to part of the estate who was left out of the order can enforce their rights against those who obtained it.

An example

A widowed Orange County resident dies leaving a will that names her two adult children equally. She owned her homestead, a checking account in her name alone worth $38,000, and a brokerage account that names both children as payable-on-death beneficiaries. The brokerage account passes directly to the children and does not count. If the home qualifies as protected homestead, it is exempt from most creditors and is subtracted too, leaving the checking account well under the limit. Both children sign the petition, the known medical creditor is served, and the court is asked to determine the home’s homestead status as well as to order the bank to pay the account to the children equally. That record matters later: a title company will usually want it before insuring a sale of the home.

Common misunderstandings

“The estate is small, so creditors don’t matter.” The petition must address known creditors, and beneficiaries can be liable to an unpaid creditor.
“Everything she owned counts toward the limit.” Only Florida probate assets count, less exempt property.
“After two years, nothing needs to be filed.” The two-year rule makes summary administration available regardless of value. Assets titled in the decedent’s name still need a court order to transfer.
“We started formal administration, so it’s too late.” A petition for summary administration may be filed at any stage, if the estate would qualify at the time of filing.

What to gather

A certified death certificate and the original will and any codicils
Recent statements for each account, showing ownership and any beneficiary
Deeds for Florida real estate and the most recent property-tax bill
Names and addresses of the surviving spouse, children, and all beneficiaries
Known debts, recent medical bills, and receipts for funeral expenses already paid

Very small estates

When the decedent left only exempt personal property and other personal property worth no more than the preferred funeral expenses and last-60-days medical expenses, the court may authorize transfers without any administration (section 735.301). A separate procedure for small intestate estates, where the decedent died without a will, applies to nonexempt personal property up to $20,000 plus those expenses, but only if the decedent died more than one year ago and no administration is pending in Florida. An heir files a sworn affidavit joined by the surviving spouse and the other heirs (unless they receive a full share), after searching for creditors and serving them and, for a decedent over 55, the Agency for Health Care Administration (section 735.304, as amended effective July 1, 2026). Separately, a bank may pay a family member up to $2,000 held in the decedent’s sole-name accounts without any court proceeding, by sworn affidavit, but not until six months after the death (section 735.303). None of these procedures transfers real estate.

Related guidance

Sources: Florida Statutes § 735.201, § 735.203, § 735.2055, § 735.206, § 735.2063, § 735.301, § 735.303, § 735.304, § 732.901, and § 733.101 (2026); chapter 2026-57, Laws of Florida; Florida Probate Rule 5.530 as amended July 16, 2026 (SC2026-0690). Checked on October 23, 2026.