---
title: "Connecticut Executor Checklist: First 30 Days | MCC"
description: "Connecticut executor checklist: first 30 days, up to $40,000 small estate limit, no notary on the official form, 2 will witnesses, official court links."
url: "https://mcc-solutionsnj.com/notary/connecticut-executor-checklist"
---

Executor checklist · Connecticut

# Connecticut executor and estate paperwork checklist

The first 30 days, the small estate route, the will at probate, and the official pages to ask, from this state's own court and statute pages.

**Quick answer.** In the first 30 days, an executor in Connecticut orders certified death certificates, finds the original will, secures the home, car and mail, lists what the person owned and owed, and holds off on paying debts until it's clear who has authority. For the small estate route, Connecticut's official pages give a limit of up to $40,000 and no notary on the official form; it goes through the court.

✓ New Jersey commissioned notary, no. 50244803, insured for errors and omissions. [See the credentials](/about/credentials)

**Short answer.** Connecticut: up to $40,000 small estate limit; no notary on the official form; filed through the court; 2 will witnesses; self-proving affidavit allowed. 12 of 12 state facts below are confirmed on official pages.

**This is an organizer, not legal advice.** An estate attorney or the county probate/surrogate office answers questions about your situation.

## The first 30 days

Work down the list; nothing you tick is saved or sent. The steps are general, the dates come from the official pages.

- **Order certified death certificates**Through the funeral director or the vital records office. Order several: banks, insurers, pension plans and the court may each want one.
- **Make sure Social Security knows**Funeral homes generally report the death. If not, call 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778). A surviving spouse, or some children if there's no spouse, may get a one-time $255 payment.
- **Track down the will**Check the home, a safe deposit box and the lawyer who drafted it. Leave the original exactly as you found it and work from copies.
- **Check the will for a self-proving affidavit**Look for a notarized statement by the witnesses attached to the will; this state allows one (see below).
- **Secure the home, car and mail**Lock up, keep the insurance in force, photograph valuables and forward the mail to yourself.
- **Pause before paying creditors or dividing keepsakes**Who may act, and in what order bills get paid, depends on the route. Ask before you spend or distribute anything.
- **Stop using the person's power of attorney**A power of attorney ends at the principal's death, so an agent under it can't act for the estate.
- **List what the person owned and owed**Note how each asset is held: in the person's name alone, jointly, or with a named beneficiary. Accounts with a beneficiary or joint owner usually pass outside the will.
- **Check the total against $40,000**The official page's small estate figure. Leave out anything the page says isn't counted.
- **Start the estate ledger**Record every dollar in and out with a receipt: funeral costs, bills paid, money collected.
- **Once you have authority: EIN and an estate account**The IRS says you need an EIN before filing the estate's Form 1041, which is due if the estate has more than $600 of gross income in a year.

Sources for the federal steps: [Social Security Administration: When someone dies](https://ssa.gov/personal-record/when-someone-dies) · [IRS: Deceased taxpayers, filing the estate income tax return (Form 1041)](https://www.irs.gov/individuals/deceased-taxpayers-filing-the-estate-income-tax-return-form-1041) · power of attorney: [Power of attorney at a real estate closing](/notary/guides/power-of-attorney-at-a-real-estate-closing).

## The small estate route

- #### ConfirmedSmall estate limit Personal property in the person's name alone up to $40,000. Solely owned real estate in the state rules the procedure out; survivorship real estate doesn't, and survivorship assets over $40,000 don't count against the limit."the total value of all of the decedent's personal property does not exceed $40,000" Sources: [Connecticut Probate Courts form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration (rev. 07/23)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/Forms/PC-212.pdf); [Connecticut Probate Courts: User guide, administration of decedents' estates (PDF)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/documents/user-guide-administration-of-decedents%27-estates.pdf), checked November 2026
- #### ConfirmedReal estate Real estate in the person's name alone takes the estate out of this procedure. Sources: [Connecticut Probate Courts form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration (rev. 07/23)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/Forms/PC-212.pdf); [Connecticut Probate Courts: User guide, administration of decedents' estates (PDF)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/documents/user-guide-administration-of-decedents%27-estates.pdf), checked November 2026
- #### ConfirmedWaiting period after the death No waiting period: the Probate Courts' form PC-212 asks for the date of death and that no estate petition is pending, and sets no minimum time before filing. Source: [Connecticut Probate Courts form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration (rev. 07/23)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/Forms/PC-212.pdf), checked November 2026
- #### ConfirmedNotary or oath The official form doesn't call for a notary. Signed under penalty of false statement; the form has no notary block."The representations made in this affidavit are made under penalty of false statement." Source: [Connecticut Probate Courts form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration (rev. 07/23)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/Forms/PC-212.pdf), checked November 2026
- #### ConfirmedWhere the paperwork goes Through a court office. Filed with the probate court for the district where the person lived, with a copy of the death certificate; the judge authorizes the transfers."The petition must be filed in the court for the probate district where the decedent resided." Sources: [Connecticut Probate Courts form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration (rev. 07/23)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/Forms/PC-212.pdf); [Connecticut Probate Courts: User guide, administration of decedents' estates (PDF)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/documents/user-guide-administration-of-decedents%27-estates.pdf), checked November 2026
- #### ConfirmedOfficial form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration. Filed with PC-212CI (confidential information) and, if assets remain after expenses and claims, PC-212A (request for order of distribution). Source: [Connecticut Probate Courts form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration (rev. 07/23)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/Forms/PC-212.pdf), checked November 2026
- #### ConfirmedSimplified court procedure Affidavit in lieu of probate of will or administration: The small estate procedure itself: a probate court process, not a document handed to a bank. Sources: [Connecticut Probate Courts form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration (rev. 07/23)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/Forms/PC-212.pdf); [Connecticut Probate Courts: User guide, administration of decedents' estates (PDF)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/documents/user-guide-administration-of-decedents%27-estates.pdf), checked November 2026
- #### ConfirmedSurviving spouse The surviving spouse can be the petitioner; if there is none, a next of kin."The petitioner is the surviving spouse of the decedent." Sources: [Connecticut Probate Courts form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration (rev. 07/23)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/Forms/PC-212.pdf); [Connecticut Probate Courts: User guide, administration of decedents' estates (PDF)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/documents/user-guide-administration-of-decedents%27-estates.pdf), checked November 2026
- #### ConfirmedWorth knowing The probate courts' guide says a Connecticut estate tax return is required for a small estate too. Sources: [Connecticut Probate Courts form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration (rev. 07/23)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/Forms/PC-212.pdf); [Connecticut Probate Courts: User guide, administration of decedents' estates (PDF)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/documents/user-guide-administration-of-decedents%27-estates.pdf), checked November 2026

## The will at probate

When the will goes to the court, these signing rules are what it is checked against.

- #### ConfirmedWitnesses the will needed Signed in front of two witnesses, who sign in the testator's presence (Nolo, citing Conn. Gen. Stat. 45a-251)."in front of two witnesses" Source: [Nolo (secondary source): How to Make a Will in Connecticut (Nolo, updated September 2025)](https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/connecticut-make-will-32002.html), checked November 2026
- #### ConfirmedSelf-proving affidavit Allowed. Per Nolo (citing 45a-285), the testator and witnesses sign an affidavit before a notary. Source: [Nolo (secondary source): How to Make a Will in Connecticut (Nolo, updated September 2025)](https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/connecticut-make-will-32002.html), checked November 2026
- #### ConfirmedIf the will is handwritten Not recognized, per Nolo's Connecticut page (updated September 2025)."Connecticut doesn't permit holographic wills" Source: [Nolo (secondary source): How to Make a Will in Connecticut (Nolo, updated September 2025)](https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/connecticut-make-will-32002.html), checked November 2026
- #### ConfirmedA witness who inherits A witness who, or whose spouse, gets a gift under the will could lose it (Nolo, citing 45a-258). Source: [Nolo (secondary source): How to Make a Will in Connecticut (Nolo, updated September 2025)](https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/connecticut-make-will-32002.html), checked November 2026

## Want us to handle it?

We order certified records, pick up and deliver documents, get the small estate affidavit signed and notarized, and file papers near where the estate is, in any state. We are not lawyers.

**Price:** Quote-based, from $199 per job plus government and court fees at cost. Starting rates. Your exact price is quoted after we confirm a local notary/runner, before you pay.

[Ask for estate paperwork help](/notary/estate-paperwork-help-out-of-state#request)

## Documents to gather

- Pension, Social Security and benefit letters
- Safe deposit box location and keys
- Certified death certificates
- The original will and any codicils
- Deeds and mortgage statements
- Vehicle titles and registrations
- Recent bank, brokerage and retirement statements
- Life insurance policies and annuities
- The last few years of tax returns
- Recent bills, loan and credit card statements
- The official small estate form: PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration

## Who to notify

Pension or employer, Social Security (if the funeral home hasn't), Banks and credit unions, Brokerage and retirement accounts, Life insurance companies, Utilities and phone, Landlord or mortgage servicer, Credit card companies. Write once to each, enclose a death certificate copy, and record the reply.

## Documents needed abroad

- #### ConfirmedA death certificate needed abroad Apostilles for this state's documents come from the Connecticut Secretary of the State, Authentication and Apostille Unit. $40 per document (child adoption documents $15), from the office's order form updated June 2021. Vital records: Certified copies from a town clerk or the Department of Public Health, Vital Records Unit. Source: [Connecticut Secretary of the State, Authentication and Apostille Unit](https://portal.ct.gov/SOTS/Legislative-Services/Authentication-of-Documents-and-the-Apostille), checked November 2026

## Where to ask

An estate attorney or the county probate/surrogate office answers questions about your situation. Official pages for Connecticut:

- [Connecticut Probate Courts form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration (rev. 07/23)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/Forms/PC-212.pdf)
- [Connecticut Probate Courts: User guide, administration of decedents' estates (PDF)](https://www.ctprobate.gov/documents/user-guide-administration-of-decedents%27-estates.pdf)
- [Affidavit in Proof of Will and/or Codicil, form PC-210 (rev. 1/19), Connecticut Probate Courts](https://www.ctprobate.gov/Forms/PC-210.pdf)

Connecticut kit

## Connecticut Executor and Estate Kit

This checklist as printable Word and PDF files: a start-here guide, the first 30 days, the small estate route with its official links, a documents and accounts tracker, plain notification letters (bank, utilities, Social Security), and an Excel estate ledger for assets, debts, payments and distributions.

[Get the kit, $25](/toolkits/ct-executor-kit)

General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. We are not lawyers, and MCC Solutions is not a law firm. An estate attorney or the county probate/surrogate office answers questions about your situation. Facts checked November 2026.

## Common questions

**Is there a small estate route in Connecticut?**

On the official pages we read: Personal property in the person's name alone up to $40,000. Solely owned real estate in the state rules the procedure out; survivorship real estate doesn't, and survivorship assets over $40,000 don't count against the limit. Through a court office. Filed with the probate court for the district where the person lived, with a copy of the death certificate; the judge authorizes the transfers.

**How soon after the death can the Connecticut small estate paperwork be used?**

No waiting period: the Probate Courts' form PC-212 asks for the date of death and that no estate petition is pending, and sets no minimum time before filing.

**Does the small estate paperwork in Connecticut need a notary?**

The official form doesn't call for a notary. Signed under penalty of false statement; the form has no notary block.

**Is there an official Connecticut form?**

PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration. Filed with PC-212CI (confidential information) and, if assets remain after expenses and claims, PC-212A (request for order of distribution). Link: https://www.ctprobate.gov/Forms/PC-212.pdf

**How many witnesses did a will in Connecticut need?**

Signed in front of two witnesses, who sign in the testator's presence (Nolo, citing Conn. Gen. Stat. 45a-251).

**What about a self-proving affidavit in Connecticut?**

Allowed. Per Nolo (citing 45a-285), the testator and witnesses sign an affidavit before a notary.

**Who answers questions about an estate in Connecticut?**

An estate attorney or the county probate/surrogate office answers questions about your situation. The official pages behind this checklist: Connecticut Probate Courts form PC-212, Affidavit in Lieu of Probate of Will/Administration (rev. 07/23).

Related: [Executor guide by state](/notary/executor-guide-by-state) · [Small estate affidavit details](/notary/small-estate-affidavit-connecticut) · [Will signing requirements](/notary/will-signing-requirements-connecticut) · [Apostille steps](/notary/apostille-connecticut) · [Estate paperwork help](/notary/estate-paperwork-help-out-of-state)

## Family far from the estate?

[See estate paperwork help](/notary/estate-paperwork-help-out-of-state)[Call (908) 444-6373](tel:+19084446373)