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West Virginia estate administration

West Virginia probate: rules, process, costs, executor fees and deadlines

Small-estate limit: $50,000

This guide explains probate in West Virginia: West Virginia’s county commission system uses the county clerk, fiduciary supervisor, and fiduciary commissioners to administer estates, with circuit-court involvement for review.

Sources reviewed August 9, 2026. Latest primary-source re-fetch October 3, 2026.

Answer first

West Virginia simplified probate route

Up to $50,000; usable 30 days after death. Source: W. Va. Code § 44-1A-2.

Administration of a small estate upon affidavit and without appointment

Screen a specific West Virginia estate with the calculators on the small-estate page and the executor-fee page, or compare states in the full estate navigator.

What the reviewed rules establish

Simplified route

$50,000

Administration of a small estate upon affidavit and without appointment; usable 30 days after death.

Eligibility and caveats

Court cost

Varies locally

Set locally; ask the receiving court.

The county clerk statute charges $10 for an otherwise unlisted recorded writing, plus $1 for each page beyond five and potentially oath/copy charges; the total therefore depends on document length and requested services. Where it is set: W. Va. Code § 59-1-10 and the county commission clerk.

Executor compensation

Statutory schedule

A statutory percentage schedule applies. Source: W. Va. Code § 44-4-12a.

Compensation detail

West Virginia decision map

The four facts that change the West Virginia route

Each West Virginia answer below links to the page that sets out its source.

QuestionRecorded West Virginia answer
What route is being screened?Administration of a small estate upon affidavit and without appointment
What property and basis count?personal probate property only; gross value for this route.
What is the amount screen?$50,000
What is the time or deadline record?30 days after death; creditor deadlines: separate clocks by triggering event
What does the cost record establish?No single statewide amount is published here; confirm the receiving court's current schedule.
What does compensation use?Statutory percentage schedule, measured on the estate accounting.

Limits and unresolved costs

  • The county-clerk opening total varies with pages and services.
  • Creditor deadline is now published: 60 days from first publication of the clerk's notice (W. Va. Code § 44-1-14a(a)(7)), with the bar effected by § 44-2-26. Publication timing itself depends on when the appraisement is filed (§ 44-1-14a(a)).

Continue

What West Virginia courts publish

Every link is probed before each release.

  • Official formStatutory model small-estate affidavit, W. Va. Code § 44-1A-2(e)West Virginia Legislature

    West Virginia sets out its official statewide small-estate affidavit as a statutory model form: § 44-1A-2(e) provides a document 'substantially in the following form' that may be used as the affidavit under subsection (b). It is completed and recorded with the county clerk / fiduciary supervisor.

Limits on court material

  • Probate is administered through county commissions, clerks, fiduciary supervisors, and fiduciary commissioners rather than a statewide judiciary probate-form portal; no judiciary/AOC resource returning HTTP 200 was identified.
  • West Virginia's official statewide small-estate form is the statutory model affidavit at W. Va. Code § 44-1A-2(e), which supplies a document 'substantially in the following form' for the affidavit administration under subsection (b); the completed affidavit is recorded with the county clerk or fiduciary supervisor.

West Virginia primary sources

Every quotation, edition label and machine check is on the West Virginia source record.

West Virginia record: 5/5 verified, 17 matched checks, latest source re-fetch October 3, 2026. Source record · method · report a correction