To file a claim against an estate, you submit a written statement of the debt to the probate court handling the estate and deliver a copy to the personal representative, both before the state’s nonclaim deadline expires. The form is short. The deadline is unforgiving. Everything else in the process flows from getting those two things right.
Confirm the Deadline Before You Do Anything Else
Every state sets a nonclaim period that starts running when the personal representative publishes notice to creditors in a local newspaper. Most states set that window at two to four months from the date of first publication. Miss it by a day and the debt is permanently barred, no matter how valid it was.
There is usually a second, longer outer deadline measured from the date of death, often one to three years, that can save a claim if the personal representative never properly published notice. Do not plan around it. Treat the published notice date as your real deadline and work backward from there.
One wrinkle can help you if you had an ongoing billing relationship with the deceased. The U.S. Supreme Court held in Tulsa Professional Collection Services, Inc. v. Bridges that creditors whose identities are known or reasonably ascertainable must receive actual notice by mail, not just a newspaper publication.1Legal Information Institute. Tulsa Professional Collection Services, Inc. v. Bridges A medical provider or a lender the deceased was actively paying should have received a letter. If no letter came, your filing window may be longer, but you would need to raise that in court, so file as soon as you learn of the death and argue about timing later if you have to.
Gather Your Documents First
Under the Uniform Probate Code, which most states have adopted in some form, a claim must state the basis of the debt, the claimant’s name and address, and the amount owed.2Uniform Law Commission. Probate Code Pull the following together before you start filling anything out:
- Proof of the debt: the signed contract, promissory note, loan agreement, itemized invoice, or the last billing statement showing the balance at the time of death.
- The exact amount claimed, in dollars and cents. If interest or late fees accrued before the death, include them and be ready to show the calculation.
- The date the obligation arose: when the contract was signed, the service performed, or the loan made.
- The probate case number, which the court assigns when the estate is opened. Check the notice you received, the newspaper publication, or the court’s online case index.
Two situations require extra detail on the form. If the debt is not yet due — for example, a multi-year service contract with payments still to come — state when payment is due. If the debt is contingent or the amount is uncertain, such as a pending lawsuit against the deceased, describe the uncertainty. The UPC requires both disclosures but also treats minor errors in the description as non-fatal.
Secured debts get their own treatment. If your loan is backed by real property, a vehicle, or other collateral, describe the security interest on the form. The lien generally survives the death and attaches to the collateral whether or not you file a claim. But if the collateral might not cover the full balance, you have to file a claim for the possible deficiency within the nonclaim period. Skip it and you are limited to whatever the collateral is worth.
Where to Get the Form
Get the form from the probate court in the county where the estate is being administered. Most courts post it on their website under a name like “Statement of Claim,” “Creditor’s Claim,” or “Proof of Claim.” If the court does not post one, the clerk’s office has paper copies. Use the form issued by that specific court. A generic template downloaded from another county or state can be rejected on procedural grounds, which then eats into your filing window while you fix it.
How to Fill Out the Form
The form usually runs one or two pages. Expect fields for the following:
- Court and case header: the court’s name, the case number, and the deceased’s full legal name.
- Claimant information: your name or business name, mailing address, phone, and your relationship to the debt (original creditor, assignee, collection agent).
- Description of the claim: a short, specific statement of what was owed and why, with your attached evidence referenced by name. “Money owed for services” invites disallowance. “Unpaid balance of $4,200 for home repair completed on June 3, 2025, per attached invoice #1087” does not.
- Amount: the exact figure. Some forms break out principal, interest, and other charges separately.
- Secured or unsecured: if secured, identify the collateral.
- Contingent or not-yet-due status: check the box or add a brief explanation where the form allows.
Sign at the bottom, usually under a declaration that the information is true and correct under penalty of perjury. If the form has a notary block, get it notarized before filing. Notary fees for a single signature typically run from a few dollars up to around $15.
How to Submit the Form
Filing is two steps. You file the original with the court and deliver a copy to the personal representative. Do both promptly.
Filing With the Probate Court
Deliver or mail the signed original, plus copies of your supporting documents, to the clerk of the probate court where the estate is pending. The clerk stamps it filed and adds it to the case record. Most courts charge a modest filing fee. In Michigan, for example, the fee for a statement and proof of claim is $20. Fees vary, and some courts waive them for certain claimants. Confirm the amount with the clerk or the court’s fee schedule before you send a check or money order.
Serving the Personal Representative
Once the court has stamped the claim, send a copy to the personal representative or their attorney. Under the UPC, a claim is treated as presented on whichever comes first: the personal representative receiving your written statement, or your filing with the court. Doing both quickly protects you either way. Certified mail with return receipt gives you a paper trail. Regular first-class mail is accepted in many states, but keep a postal receipt or an affidavit of mailing. Hand delivery works too if you get a signed acknowledgment or file an affidavit of service.
What Happens After You File
The personal representative reviews the claim against the estate’s records and decides to allow or disallow it. Under the UPC model adopted in many states, silence works in your favor: if the personal representative takes no action for 60 days after the claims filing period expires, the claim is treated as allowed automatically.3Montana State Legislature. Montana Code 72-3-805 – Allowance and Disallowance of Claims
An allowed claim does not mean an immediate check. The personal representative may need to sell property or wait for accounts to be collected before paying anyone. Payment usually comes as a single estate check once the representative is ready to settle obligations.
If the estate does not have enough to pay every creditor in full, a legal priority system decides who gets paid first. Administration costs come first, then funeral and last-illness expenses, then taxes, then certain preferred debts (child support, for example, in many states), and finally general unsecured debts like credit cards and personal loans.4Montana State Legislature. Montana Code 72-3-807 – Classification of Claims as to Priority of Payment Nothing in a lower class gets paid until every claim in the higher classes is paid in full. Within the same class, creditors share proportionally. If $30,000 remains for general creditors collectively owed $60,000, each gets roughly 50 cents on the dollar, and that pro-rata amount is final. You cannot chase the heirs for the shortfall after the estate closes.
If Your Claim Is Denied
If the personal representative mails you a notice of disallowance, the clock starts immediately. Under the UPC model, you have 60 days from the date of that notice to either file a petition for allowance in probate court or start a separate lawsuit against the personal representative.3Montana State Legislature. Montana Code 72-3-805 – Allowance and Disallowance of Claims Do nothing in that window and the claim is permanently barred.
The disallowance notice has to warn you of that deadline for the bar to take effect. A notice missing that warning may not start the countdown, but do not gamble on the technicality. Treat any written rejection as the starting gun.
At a hearing, bring your original contract or invoice, any correspondence with the deceased about the debt, and records of any payments made. The personal representative will explain the rejection, often citing insufficient documentation, a disputed amount, or a statute of limitations that expired before the death. The judge can allow the claim, allow it in a reduced amount, or uphold the denial.
Common Reasons Claims Get Rejected
Most disallowances trace back to a few recurring problems:
- Filed too late. The nonclaim period is jurisdictional. The court cannot forgive even a one-day miss.
- Insufficient proof. A bare assertion with no contract, invoice, or account statement attached is easy to deny. Attach everything.
- Wrong amount. Inflating a claim with charges outside the original agreement, or miscalculating interest, gives the personal representative a reason to reject the entire filing instead of just reducing it.
- Wrong court or wrong case number. The claim never enters the correct file. Verify both before submitting.
- Missing signature or notarization. If your court requires notarization and you skip it, the clerk may refuse the filing outright.
The personal representative is a fiduciary of the estate, not your opponent, but their duty is to protect estate assets. A claim with a clean paper trail and a specific dollar figure is far more likely to be allowed than one that leaves the representative guessing.