Simplified route
$88,000
Collection of personal property by affidavit (C.R.S. 15-12-1201); usable 10 days after death.
Eligibility and caveatsColorado estate administration
Colorado probate: rules, process, costs, executor fees and deadlines
Small-estate limit: $88,000
That figure applies to deaths in 2026. Colorado sets this ceiling by the decedent’s date of death, so an earlier death is measured against a different amount.
This guide explains probate in Colorado: Colorado allows an out-of-court affidavit to collect a decedent's personal property when the estate is within an inflation-indexed cap. Formal probate opens in the District Court, except that Denver County has a dedicated Denver Probate Court.
Sources reviewed August 9, 2026. Latest primary-source re-fetch October 3, 2026.
Answer first
Colorado simplified probate route
Up to $88,000; usable 10 days after death. Source: JDF 998; operative amount under C.R.S. 15-12-1201 / 15-10-112.
Collection of personal property by affidavit (C.R.S. 15-12-1201)Screen a specific Colorado estate with the calculators on the small-estate page, or compare states in the full estate navigator.
What the reviewed rules establish
Court cost
$229
1 published schedule, itemised on the filing-cost page.
Filing-cost detailExecutor compensation
Court-reviewed
No percentage schedule; the court decides what is reasonable. Source: C.R.S. 15-10-602.
Colorado has no statutory percentage schedule. C.R.S. 15-10-602(1) entitles a fiduciary and his or her lawyer to reasonable compensation for services rendered on behalf of an estate, and 15-10-602(4) preserves the court's inherent authority and responsibility to determine the reasonableness of compensation and costs. The former schedule sections 15-12-719 and 15-12-721 are both repealed. A court must order refund of excessive compensation.
A fiduciary and his or her lawyer are entitled to reasonable compensation for services rendered on behalf of an estate. C.R.S. 15-10-602
Creditor deadline
Multiple triggers
C.R.S. 15-12-801 (Colorado General Assembly (Office of Legislative Legal Services); reviewed August 9, 2026)
Timeline and creditor detailsColorado decision map
The four facts that change the Colorado route
Each Colorado answer below links to the page that sets out its source.
| Question | Recorded Colorado answer |
|---|---|
| What route is being screened? | Collection of personal property by affidavit (C.R.S. 15-12-1201) |
| What property and basis count? | personal probate property only; net of enforceable liens and encumbrances. |
| What is the amount screen? | $88,000 for deaths from January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2026 |
| What is the time or deadline record? | 10 days after death; creditor deadlines: separate clocks by triggering event |
| What does the cost record establish? | $229 is the recorded statewide amount. |
| What does compensation use? | Reasonable compensation set by the court, measured on the estate accounting. |
Limits and unresolved costs
- Colorado's small-estate cap is set by the decedent's YEAR OF DEATH, not a single timeless figure. The Colorado Judicial Branch table JDF 998 publishes the operative amount per year: $88,000 for 2026 deaths, $86,000 for 2025 deaths, and $82,000 for 2024 deaths (earlier years are lower - 2023 $80,000; 2022 $74,000; 2020-2021 $70,000). A death in an earlier year must use that year's figure: a 2025 estate of $87,000, for example, does NOT qualify even though it is under the 2026 cap. Always check JDF 998 for the year of death.
- Filing-fee figures come from the judiciary fee list (agency-published), which shows no revision date; the underlying statute is C.R.S. 13-32-102 in Title 13 (outside the harvested Title 15 PDF).
Continue
What Colorado courts publish
Every link is probed before each release.
- Official formCollection of Personal Property by Affidavit (JDF 998/999)Colorado Judicial Branch
- Fee scheduleColorado Judicial Branch List of FeesColorado Judicial Branch
- Self-help centreOpen an EstateColorado Judicial Branch
- Court resourceTrial Courts by CountyColorado Judicial Branch
Limits on court material
- JDF 999 is the statewide collection-by-affidavit form; JDF 998 is the instruction guide that publishes the year-of-death cap.
- Probate opens in District Court in every county except the City and County of Denver, which uses the separate Denver Probate Court.
Colorado primary sources
- C.R.S. 15-12-1201 — C.R.S. 15-12-1201 - Collection of personal property by affidavit
- C.R.S. 15-11-403 — C.R.S. 15-11-403 - Exempt property (indexing base)
- C.R.S. 15-10-112 — C.R.S. 15-10-112 - Cost of living adjustment of certain dollar amounts
- JDF 998; operative amount under C.R.S. 15-12-1201 / 15-10-112 — JDF 998 - Guide to Collecting a Decedent's Personal Property (year-of-death cap)
- Colorado Judicial Branch fee schedule; C.R.S. 13-32-102(1)(b),(7) — Colorado Judicial Branch - List of Fees (Probate Case Fees)
- C.R.S. 15-10-602 — C.R.S. 15-10-602 - Recovery of reasonable compensation and costs
- C.R.S. 15-12-801 — C.R.S. 15-12-801 - Notice to creditors
- C.R.S. 15-12-803 — C.R.S. 15-12-803 - Limitations on presentation of claims
Every quotation, edition label and machine check is on the Colorado source record.
Colorado record: 8/8 verified, 32 matched checks, latest source re-fetch October 3, 2026. Source record · method · report a correction