Alaska Family Allowance

The Alaska family allowance is money the personal representative pays from the estate to support the surviving spouse and the minor children while probate is open. The Alaska Court System puts the limit in plain numbers: one payment of up to $18,000, or up to $1,500 a month for up to one year. The personal representative can pay less if less is reasonable, and the court can raise the limits.

The allowance comes off the top. The personal representative pays it, along with the homestead allowance and exempt property, before creditor claims, debts, taxes and the costs of probate. A will cannot cut it off.

Every rule on this page comes from the Alaska Court System's own self-help pages, court rules and forms, read on September 28, 2026. The Legislature's statute site refuses our requests, so we did not read the statute text itself. Probate Rule 7(f) says the allowances are paid "as required by AS 13.12.401-13.12.405," and we give that range where it applies. We do not name the single section for the family allowance, because no Court System page we read prints it. This page gives general information about Alaska law and does not address any particular estate. It is not legal advice.

The Figures: $18,000 Or $1,500 A Month

The Court System's "Glossary of Probate Terms" defines the family allowance as "an amount that the Personal Representative pays during the probate for the support of the surviving spouse of the person who died and the minor children who the person legally had to support and was actually supporting."

Twelve payments at $1,500 total $18,000, so the two options move the same money on different schedules. Picking monthly payments does not raise the total. The choice is about cash flow. A household with rent or a mortgage due every month may want the steady payment, and a household facing one large bill may want the single payment.

The Court System's "Debts and Creditors" page lists the family allowance as "Up to $18,000 (more in some cases)." The words in parentheses point to the court's power to raise the limits, covered below.

Other states set different figures, so a number from another state's page does not carry over to Alaska. We could not confirm whether the Alaska figures are indexed or when they last changed, because only the statute states that.

Who Qualifies

The glossary names two groups:

• the surviving spouse of the person who died
• the minor children whom the person legally had to support and was actually supporting

The definition joins the two tests for children with "and," so on the Court System's wording a minor child must meet both. It names minor children only. The Court System's pages do not say whether an adult child the person was supporting qualifies, and we could not read the statute to check. If your family's claim turns on that point, ask an Alaska probate lawyer.

The other two protections reach a wider group of children, which is a useful contrast:

The spouse's other rights, including the elective share and the homestead allowance, are covered in the other spousal protections guide. The $10,000 set-aside of furniture, vehicles and personal effects has its own page on the exempt property allowance.

The Personal Representative Decides, And The Court Can Raise It

The glossary gives the personal representative the first call: the personal representative "can decide what reasonable support is needed, even if it is less than these amounts." The same entry adds that "the Personal Representative or the spouse and children can also ask the court to increase the limits if necessary."

So the $18,000 figure is a limit on what the personal representative pays alone, not a promise to the family. Three outcomes follow:

1. Less than the limit. The personal representative can decide that a smaller amount is reasonable support.
2. Up to the limit. The personal representative pays it as part of administering the estate. The Court System's pages describe no court order for this step.
3. More than the limit. The personal representative, the spouse or the children ask the court to increase the limits.

The Court System's pages do not describe how the court weighs a request for more. A household that needs more than $18,000 of support during a long probate should bring its actual budget and the estate's figures to that request. The Alaska probate timeline shows how long an estate usually stays open, which is how long the family may need support.

Probate Rule 7 also makes this part of the job. Before letters testamentary issue, the personal representative files an acceptance that acknowledges the duty to "pay homestead, exempt property and family allowances as required by AS 13.12.401-13.12.405." For the rest of that job, see who pays the allowance and the personal representative's other duties.

Where It Ranks Against Creditors

The "Distribution of Estate Assets" page states the rank directly: "The Personal Representative must pay the Homestead Allowance, Family Allowance and Exempt Property before all other claims, including creditor claims, debts, taxes and costs of probate." The glossary adds that the family allowance "passes free from creditor claims against the estate."

When the estate cannot cover all three protections, the same page gives the order:

1. Homestead allowance, up to $27,000
2. Family allowance, up to $18,000 or $1,500 a month
3. Exempt property, up to $10,000

Creditors come after all three. The glossary puts the combined total at "up to $55,000 (or more in some cases)," which is $27,000, plus $18,000, plus $10,000, with room for a court-raised family allowance.

This order is why a personal representative should not pay bills first. The "Debts and Creditors" page says that paying a creditor out of order can leave the personal representative repaying the estate "from your own personal funds." The Court System's advice is to wait until the four-month creditor claim period ends if there is any doubt about whether the estate can pay everyone.

A Will Cannot Cut It Off

The Court System says that "even if the person who died made a will that disinherited the spouse or children, the Personal Representative needs to pay the allowances and exempt property out of the estate." The allowances also sit on top of inheritance. The glossary says they "are in addition to any shares that the family members receive from the estate (unless the Will says something differently)."

The same holds with no will. The Court System's intestacy page lists paying allowances and exempt property among the personal representative's tasks when there is no will, and Alaska intestate succession explains who inherits what is left. A surviving spouse who takes the elective share, which the Court System describes as about one-third of the probate and nonprobate property, "receives the Homestead Allowance, Family Allowance, and Exempt Property in addition to the elective share."

The family can say no. The spouse and children "may disclaim their interest in receiving any allowances and exempt property, and would need to file a document with the court stating this."

When The Allowances Use Up The Estate

The allowances decide whether an estate qualifies for the summary closing the Court System calls a small estate. After the inventory, the personal representative subtracts liens and debts from the estate's value. If what remains is not more than the homestead allowance, family allowance, exempt property, probate costs, funeral costs and last-illness medical costs combined, the estate qualifies.

In that case the personal representative does not need to give notice to creditors or pay creditor claims, can transfer the property right away, and closes the case by filing form P-350, "Sworn Statement of Personal Representative Closing Small Estate." This is still an informal probate case in the Superior Court, not an affidavit. The Alaska probate guide walks through opening that case, and the Superior Court location list shows where to file.

What We Could Not Confirm

The Court System's pages answer the main questions. Several details appear only in the statute, which we could not read:

• the single section number for the family allowance within AS 13.12.401-13.12.405
• whether the one-year period or the payments stop early when the estate cannot pay its allowed claims
• what happens to unpaid monthly payments if the spouse dies before the year ends
• how the allowance is split when a minor child lives apart from the surviving spouse
• whether the allowance applies when the person who died lived outside Alaska
• any deadline for asking for the allowance
• whether the figures are adjusted for inflation

We leave these blank rather than borrow another state's rule. If one of them matters in your estate, an Alaska probate lawyer can read the current statute with you.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much is the family allowance in Alaska?

The Alaska Court System says the personal representative can pay the family allowance in one payment of up to $18,000, or in monthly amounts of up to $1,500 for up to one year. Twelve monthly payments at the top figure also total $18,000. The personal representative can decide that a smaller amount is reasonable, and the personal representative or the spouse and children can ask the court to raise the limits.

Who can receive the Alaska family allowance?

The Court System's glossary names the surviving spouse and the minor children whom the person who died legally had to support and was actually supporting. The allowance pays for their support while the probate is open. The Court System's pages do not say whether an adult child the person was supporting qualifies, and the statute text is not available to us, so that question needs an Alaska probate lawyer.

Is the family allowance paid before creditors in Alaska?

Yes. The Court System tells personal representatives to pay the homestead allowance, the family allowance and exempt property before all other claims, including creditor claims, debts, taxes and the costs of probate. The family allowance passes free from creditor claims against the estate.

Can a will cut off the family allowance in Alaska?

No. The Court System says that even if the person who died made a will that disinherited the spouse or children, the personal representative still pays the allowances and exempt property out of the estate. The spouse and children can give up the allowance by filing a document with the court that says so.

Does the family allowance reduce what the spouse inherits?

Not unless the will says something different. The Court System's glossary says the allowances are in addition to any share the family members receive from the estate. A surviving spouse who takes the elective share also receives the homestead allowance, family allowance and exempt property on top of it.

What if the estate is too small to pay every allowance?

The Court System gives an order. Pay the homestead allowance first, the family allowance second, and then the exempt property. Creditors come after all three. If the estate, less liens and debts, is no more than the allowances plus probate, funeral and last-illness costs, the personal representative can close it as a small estate on form P-350 without a notice to creditors.

Related Guides

• Alaska Surviving Spouse Rights
• Alaska Exempt Property
• Alaska Executor Duties
• Alaska Probate Timeline
• Alaska Probate Guide
• Alaska Probate Courts

Sources:

• Title: Glossary of Probate Terms. Publisher: Alaska Court System. Publication Date: Not listed; accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://courts.alaska.gov/shc/probate/glossary.htm
• Title: Debts and Creditors. Publisher: Alaska Court System. Publication Date: Not listed; accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://courts.alaska.gov/shc/probate/debt.htm
• Title: Distribution of Estate Assets. Publisher: Alaska Court System. Publication Date: Not listed; accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://courts.alaska.gov/shc/probate/distribution.htm
• Title: Death Without a Will - Intestacy. Publisher: Alaska Court System. Publication Date: Not listed; accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://courts.alaska.gov/shc/probate/intestacy.htm
• Title: Small Estates. Publisher: Alaska Court System. Publication Date: Not listed; accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://courts.alaska.gov/shc/probate/small-estates.htm
• Title: Alaska Rules of Probate Procedure, Rule 7, Duties and Responsibilities of the Personal Representative (cites AS 13.12.401-13.12.405). Publisher: Alaska Court System. Publication Date: SCO 1014 effective January 15, 1990, amended by SCO 1270 effective July 15, 1997; accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://courts.alaska.gov/rules/docs/prob.pdf
• Title: Form P-350, Sworn Statement of Personal Representative Closing Small Estate. Publisher: Alaska Court System. Publication Date: Revised 7/22; accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://public.courts.alaska.gov/web/forms/docs/p-350.pdf

It is not legal advice.