HomeDo you need probate?
Georgia probate guide
Do you need probate in Georgia?
The short answer
Often, yes, if your loved one owned anything in their name alone with no one named to get it, above all a house. Joint accounts, accounts with a named payee, and a house deeded with survivorship usually pass without probate. No dollar cutoff skips probate for a whole estate. A bank may pay a small account to close family. The closest court step is No Administration Necessary.
By Georgia Probate Specialist team
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The short test
Probate is how the court puts one person in charge. It gives them letters, the paper that lets them act for what your loved one left. For each thing they owned, ask one question. Does it name who gets it, or is it in their name alone?
| What they owned | How it usually passes |
|---|---|
| A bank account owned jointly with someone | To the other owner. A will can't change that. |
| A payable-on-death bank account | To the person named on the account. |
| Life insurance or a retirement account with a named beneficiary | Usually straight to the beneficiary, the person named to get it. Ask the company. |
| A house the deed says is owned with survivorship | To the owner who is still living. |
| A house owned with someone, with no survivorship words | Each owner's share goes through that owner's estate. |
| A house with a recorded transfer-on-death deed | To the person the deed names, after they sign an affidavit. |
| Anything in their name alone, with no one named | Through the estate. That usually takes probate or another court order. |
Why the deed's wording matters
In Georgia, two names on a deed don't, by themselves, give the house to whoever lives longer. The deed has to say so in plain words, such as joint tenants with survivorship. Survivorship means the owner who lives longer gets the whole house.
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Without those words, the owners are tenants in common. Each one owns a share, and when one dies, that share passes through their estate, meaning everything they left.
Transfer-on-death deeds
Since 2024, a Georgia owner can sign and record a deed that names who gets the house at death. The person named doesn't have to sign anything while the owner is alive.
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It isn't fully automatic. After the death, the named person signs an affidavit, a sworn statement. It confirms the death and points to the deed and the land. The death certificate is attached.
For a death on or after July 1, 2026, the affidavit and the state's transfer tax form get recorded. That is done with the clerk of superior court in the county where the house is.
The house passes with any recorded loan still on it. If you find one of these deeds, ask the clerk or a lawyer about the steps for your case.
What usually calls for a court step
These are the common reasons a family ends up in probate court.
- A house in your loved one's name alone, with no survivorship words and no transfer-on-death deed. With no will, it passes to the heirs, the family who inherit, but someone still needs court papers to sell it or pass it on.
- A bank account in their name alone, with no one named on it.
- A will. Having one doesn't skip probate. The will itself has to go to the probate court.
- If the house was put in a trust, ask a lawyer how the trust handles it.
No dollar cutoff for a whole estate
Georgia has no general small-estate form that covers a whole estate under a set dollar amount. There is one narrow exception for bank accounts. With no will, if an account holds $15,000 or less, the bank may pay it to close family who sign a sworn form. The order runs spouse, children, parents, then brothers and sisters. Ask the bank.
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For the rest of the estate, the nearest tool is No Administration Necessary. It works when there is no will and every heir agrees. The debts have to be paid, or the creditors have to agree. The judge's order takes the place of putting someone in charge.
A surviving spouse or children under 18 can also ask for year's support. That is property from the estate to live on for a year. They have 24 months from the death to ask.
Quick answers
Questions people ask
If there is a will, do we skip probate?
No. The will has to go to the probate court, and the court has to accept it before the executor can act.
Does a joint bank account go through probate?
Usually not. The money goes to the other owner on the account, and Georgia law says a will can't change that.
Is there a dollar amount under which probate isn't needed?
Not for a whole estate. A No Administration Necessary order has no dollar cap, and it works with no will and every heir in agreement. The one dollar rule is narrow: with no will, a bank may pay an account of $15,000 or less to close family on a sworn form. Ask the bank.
Does a house with a transfer-on-death deed need probate?
Usually not. The person the deed names signs an affidavit and attaches the death certificate. Then it is recorded in the county where the house is.
Where these facts come from13 sources
This page explains how things work. It is not legal advice. Each fact here comes from one of these sources.
- O.C.G.A. § 7-1-813, joint and payable-on-death bank accounts
- O.C.G.A. § 7-1-239, bank payout of an account of $15,000 or less to family of a depositor with no will
- O.C.G.A. § 44-6-190, joint owners and survivorship
- O.C.G.A. § 44-17-2, transfer-on-death deeds (2025 Code page, with the 2026 changes)
- O.C.G.A. § 44-17-5, what the named person takes under a transfer-on-death deed
- O.C.G.A. § 53-2-7, who holds land in an estate with no will
- O.C.G.A. § 53-5-5, a will must be filed with the probate court
- O.C.G.A. § 53-2-40, No Administration Necessary
- GPCSF 9, Petition for Order Declaring No Administration Necessary
- Social Security POMS GN 02315.047, Georgia: no limit on estate size for No Administration Necessary
- O.C.G.A. § 53-3-1, year's support
- O.C.G.A. § 53-3-5, year's support filed within 24 months
- Georgia Council of Probate Court Judges, Standard Forms