Hawaii Small Estates: the small estate affidavit
The short answer
Hawaii calls its simplified route the small estate affidavit, and it is set out in HRS § 560:3-1201. Cars don't count toward the limit and can be transferred at any value. Hawaii sets no waiting period for it. Real estate has its own separate route in this state, with its own limit and its own wait. The card above states both. The current limit and the date we last read the statute are on the card below.
Hawaii’s small estate affidavit
Hawaii sets this out in HRS § 560:3-1201. Cars don't count toward the limit and can be transferred at any value. The figure itself, and the date we last read that statute, are on the card below.[1]
Hawaii
- Procedure:
- small estate affidavit
- Limit:
- $100,000
- Wait:
- none stated
- Real estate:
- separate procedure
Cars don't count toward the limit and can be transferred at any value.
For estates up to $100,000, the court clerk can handle the whole estate, including real estate.
HRS § 560:3-1201 — official page read September 18, 2026
Real estate has its own separate route in this state, with its own limit and its own wait. The card above states both. For estates up to $100,000, the court clerk can handle the whole estate, including real estate.[1]
The small estate affidavit is one piece of settling an estate in Hawaii. Answer a few questions and Go Forward builds the rest of the list for your situation — the notifications, the accounts, the paperwork — in the order it needs doing.
Build my plan →Steps this page connects to: Check whether probate is required · Order certified death certificates · List what the estate holds
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Creditor claims under HRS §§ 560:3-801, 560:3-803
Above the limit it is a regular Hawaii probate case. Publishing a notice to creditors is optional here, but doing it starts a shorter clock, which is usually the reason to bother. The window for claims is 4 months after the notice is first published. If no notice is published, claims are cut off 18 months after the death..[2]
Hawaii
- Published notice:
- optional
- Claim window:
- 4 months after the notice is first published. If no notice is published, claims are cut off 18 months after the death.
HRS §§ 560:3-801, 560:3-803 — official page read September 18, 2026
Sources
- HRS § 560:3-1201 (small estate affidavit) — Hawaii — official statute or court self-help page. Read September 18, 2026.
- HRS §§ 560:3-801, 560:3-803 (notice to creditors) — Hawaii — official statute or court self-help page. Read September 18, 2026.
Each state above links to the statute or court page we read, with the date we read it.
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