Kentucky probate code · checked October 2026
For money and belongings, Kentucky's affidavit limit is $30,000 — applied to the estate after the assets that pass automatically are taken out. The dispensing petition distributes the probate estate under a court order; Kentucky has no affidavit that moves anything, house or otherwise. Kentucky sets no waiting period for its affidavit.
The affidavit limit today: $30,000, judged by the law in force on the date of death.
The paper: AOC-830 Petition to Dispense with Administration.
How it moves: filed with the court — a court paper, not an envelope.
The wait: no statutory waiting period.
For a surviving spouse: The procedure is built on the surviving spouse's $30,000 exemption under KRS 391.030; if there is no surviving spouse the exemption is for surviving children, and KRS 395.455(3) also covers a person who paid preferred claims where the spouse waived or there is no spouse.
| Track | Limit | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Small-estate affidavit | $30,000 | Filed with the court. Form: AOC-830 Petition to Dispense with Administration. |
| Petition to Dispense with Administration | $30,000 (spouse: $30,000) | The Petition to Dispense with Administration (Form AOC-830) is a court filing built on the $30,000 spouse/children exemption (KRS 391.030): it works when that exemption, plus any preferred claims already paid, covers all the probatable assets. Families with no spouse, no children and no preferred-claim payer generally cannot use it. |
A vehicle is personal property transferred under the District Court order dispensing with administration; no separate affidavit vehicle track was confirmed.
Dispensing is available only where the spouse/children exemption, alone or with preferred claims (KRS 396.095, e.g. funeral) already paid, equals or exceeds the probatable assets.
Rules checked October 2026 · Sources: KRS 395.455; KRS 391.030; KRS 396.095. This page reads the published law; it is not legal advice, and the court is the final word.