North Carolina court costs
North Carolina charges $10 for facilities, $4 for court technology, and $106 for the General Court of Justice, plus $0.40 per $100 of gross estate, with the General Court of Justice assessment capped at $6,000.
$520 is the lowest statutory total when the amount this charge is assessed on is $100,000, which is not the same as the estate's value. Sources reviewed August 7, 2026. Latest primary-source re-fetch October 3, 2026.
Every line below is computed from the statutory schedule quoted at the end of this page. These are court charges only. They are not an estimate of the total cost of settling an estate.
The column headings are not estate values. This charge is assessed on personal property received plus the proceeds of real property that is sold, and real property that is not sold is excluded entirely. An estate of $100,000 that keeps the house is assessed on the personal property alone, which is a smaller figure and a smaller charge. Use the navigator to price a specific case.
| Charge | $25,000 assessable amount | $100,000 assessable amount | $400,000 assessable amount | $1,000,000 assessable amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Courtroom and judicial facilities | $10 | $10 | $10 | $10 |
| Court technology and connectivity | $4 | $4 | $4 | $4 |
| General Court of Justice, base | $106 | $106 | $106 | $106 |
| General Court of Justice, value charge ($0.40 per $100) | $100 | $400 | $1,600 | $4,000 |
| Total from this schedule | $220 | $520 | $1,720 | $4,120 |
Gross estate means personalty received plus proceeds of realty sold. The value of realty that is not sold is excluded. A remainder greater than half a unit is charged as a whole unit, which is how the statute’s “major fraction thereof” is applied here.
G.S. 7A-307(a)(2) caps the $0.40 per $100 charge at $6,000. Subsection (2a) restates that same charge, with the same $6,000 limit and no $106 in the sentence, so the cap is read as applying to the value charge alone and the $106 base sits outside it; confirm the total with the clerk of superior court. Value received after the inventory is charged as its own filing, and the statute sets a $15 minimum for each filing, so later receipts can cost more than the $0.40 per $100 rate alone suggests. Each account or report is priced separately: three accounts of $1,000 are three $15 charges, not one charge on $3,000, so enter them individually. The $6,000 cap applies across the inventory and all later filings together. Enter each amount once: an asset already listed above, its sale proceeds, and the later-receipts figure are three different inputs and adding the same money twice will overstate the charge.
Source: N.C. Gen. Stat. § 7A-307, North Carolina General Assembly. Edition/currentness: Section history through 2023-88, s. 7. Verified October 3, 2026.
The North Carolina caveats are listed once, on the North Carolina overview.
Other costs: probate cost lines.
Reviewed source note: (2) For support of the General Court of Justice, the sum of one hundred six dollars ($106.00), plus an additional forty cents (40¢) per one hundred dollars ($100.00), or major fraction thereof, of the gross estate, not to exceed six thousand dollars ($6,000).
North Carolina record: 5/5 verified, 21 matched checks, latest source re-fetch October 3, 2026. Source record · method · report a correction