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Arkansas Probate Guide

County-specific probate filing-office contacts, filing fees, required forms, and step-by-step estate settlement guidance for executors in Arkansas.

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Arkansas Probate Filing Offices by County

Choose your county to get its probate court contacts, filing fees, and required forms. 75 counties have detailed data.

Showing 36 of 75 counties. Search by county name or show the full list.

Full data available – ArkansasFull data available – AshleyFull data available – BaxterFull data available – BentonFull data available – BooneFull data available – BradleyFull data available – CalhounFull data available – CarrollFull data available – ChicotFull data available – ClarkFull data available – ClayFull data available – CleburneFull data available – ClevelandFull data available – ColumbiaFull data available – ConwayFull data available – CraigheadFull data available – CrawfordFull data available – CrittendenFull data available – CrossFull data available – DallasFull data available – DeshaFull data available – DrewFull data available – FaulknerFull data available – FranklinFull data available – FultonFull data available – GarlandFull data available – GrantFull data available – GreeneFull data available – HempsteadFull data available – Hot SpringFull data available – HowardFull data available – IndependenceFull data available – IzardFull data available – JacksonFull data available – JeffersonFull data available – Johnson

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Arkansas Probate Guides

View all guides
Arkansas Probate Guide
ARJun 14, 2026-11 min read

Arkansas Probate Guide

Arkansas probate guide for the Circuit Court Probate Division, Circuit Clerk filing, letters testamentary, small estates, creditor claims, and timelines.

How to Avoid Probate in Arkansas
ARJun 14, 2026-11 min read

How to Avoid Probate in Arkansas

How to avoid probate in Arkansas: beneficiary deeds, POD/TOD accounts, joint title with survivorship, the small estate affidavit, and living trusts.

Arkansas Small Estate Affidavit
ARJun 14, 2026-8 min read

Arkansas Small Estate Affidavit

Arkansas small estate affidavit lets a distributee collect an estate of $100,000 or less, 45 days after death, with no personal representative and no full probate.

Arkansas Probate Timeline
ARJun 14, 2026-11 min read

Arkansas Probate Timeline

Arkansas probate timeline and steps: 5-year filing limit, two-week creditor notice, 6-month claim bar, small estate 45-day wait, and final settlement.

Arkansas Executor Duties
ARJun 14, 2026-12 min read

Arkansas Executor Duties

Arkansas executor duties guide: get letters from the Circuit Court Probate Division, file the inventory in 2 months, notify creditors, and file accounts.

Arkansas Advance Directive
ARJun 14, 2026-11 min read

Arkansas Advance Directive

How an Arkansas advance directive and healthcare proxy work: signing rules with two witnesses or a notary, when a proxy or agent can act, and the surrogate list.

Browse Arkansas guide topics

Jump to court, executor, tax, planning, property, and probate-avoidance guides that match your next task.

Probate Basics

2

Executor Duties

3

Taxes & Deadlines

3

Planning Documents

5

Property Transfer

1

Avoiding Probate

2

Arkansas Probate Self-Help and Online Resources

Arkansas probate source navigation starts with state court, form, agency, legal-help, or referral links that are already tracked in Settled state data. These links are state-level starting points, not county-specific filing instructions.

Which Arkansas probate source should you use?

  • Start with the state court, form, or self-help source for general Arkansas probate context.
  • Use county filing-office, clerk, register, or court pages for local filing locations, local forms, fee schedules, and records portals.
  • Use legal-help, law-library, or referral links as research or referral paths, not as a substitute for counsel.
  • Verify current filing steps with the county office, court, clerk, register, legal-aid source, or counsel before filing.

Arkansas probate resource questions

Are these Arkansas probate resources county-specific?

No. This map shows state-level source links from Settled data. Use it with the Arkansas county page and the county office handling the estate before filing.

Which Arkansas source should I use first?

Start with the official court, form, or agency source for the task, then confirm local requirements with the county filing office, clerk, register, or office that accepts the filing.

Does the Arkansas Probate Resource Map replace attorney review?

No. The map is source navigation. It helps families find current public sources, but it does not decide eligibility, prepare filings, or replace advice from counsel.

Arkansas probate resource map by source type

Statewide process, forms, and code sources1

State court, form, statute, agency, and self-help sources for general probate and estate-settlement questions.

County filing-office sources1

County court, clerk, register, or filing-office pages for local probate divisions, filing paths, local forms, fee references, and courthouse-specific resources.

Referral-navigation sources1

Referral paths for finding certified lawyer-referral services when a family wants help locating counsel.

Show all Arkansas self-help resources (3 links)

Statewide process, forms, and code sources

State court, form, statute, agency, and self-help sources for general probate and estate-settlement questions.

County filing-office sources

County court, clerk, register, or filing-office pages for local probate divisions, filing paths, local forms, fee references, and courthouse-specific resources.

Referral-navigation sources

Referral paths for finding certified lawyer-referral services when a family wants help locating counsel.

Settled pairs these Arkansas source links with county pages, forms, first-step guides, transfer guides, and source notes so families can move from statewide context to the local office that handles the estate.

Types of Probate in Arkansas

Arkansas offers several probate procedures depending on estate value and circumstances.

Most Common

The full court process

Legal name: Formal Probate

Court-supervised administration for estates that do not qualify for a shortcut.

Timeline
6-12+ months
Attorney
Recommended
Simplified

A shorter path for qualifying estates

Legal name: Simplified Probate

A shorter court process that may be available for qualifying estates.

Timeline
Varies
Attorney
Recommended
Small Estates

A shortcut for smaller estates

Legal name: Small Estate Procedure

A limited shortcut for qualifying small estates.

Timeline
Varies
Attorney
Optional
Not sure which applies? Take the assessment →

Arkansas Estate Law Overview

Arkansas Estate Tax Info

Arkansas has no state estate tax and no state inheritance tax. It does have a state individual income tax, but no value-based probate tax.

No
State Estate Tax
No
Inheritance Tax
Yes
State Income Tax
Federal estate tax info

Federal estate tax only applies to estates exceeding $15,000,000 (2026).

Who Inherits Without a Will?

Intestate succession determines who receives a deceased Arkansas resident's property when there is no valid will. Arkansas distributes the 'heritable estate' under the table of descents in Ark. Code 28-9-214, after first satisfying the surviving spouse's dower or curtesy, homestead rights, and statutory allowances.

View spouse inheritance rules
The decedent is survived by one or more descendants (children or their descendants)Dower or curtesy only (not a table-of-descents share)

Under Ark. Code 28-9-214(1), if the intestate is survived by descendants, the heritable estate passes to the children and their descendants. The surviving spouse does not take a table-of-descents share but is entitled to dower or curtesy: a life estate in one-third of the real property (Ark. Code 28-11-301) and one-third of the personal estate (Ark. Code 28-11-305).

No surviving descendants, and the spouse was continuously married to the decedent for three (3) years or more immediately before death100% of the heritable estate

Under Ark. Code 28-9-214(2), if there is no descendant and the spouse was continuously married to the decedent for at least three years next preceding death, the surviving spouse takes the entire heritable estate.

No surviving descendants, and the spouse was continuously married to the decedent for LESS than three (3) years immediately before death50% of the heritable estate

Under Ark. Code 28-9-214(2) and (4), if there is no descendant and the marriage lasted less than three years, the surviving spouse takes only fifty percent (50%) of the heritable estate; the balance passes to the decedent's parents, then siblings, and so on.

View order of inheritance (no spouse)
  1. 1Children and their descendantsThe entire heritable estate, subject to the spouse's dower/curtesy
  2. 2Surviving spouse (no descendants)100% if married 3+ years before death; 50% if married less than 3 years
  3. 3Parents (surviving parents or sole surviving parent)If no descendant or spouse, the estate passes equally to surviving parents; takes the non-spouse 50% if the spouse was married less than 3 years
  4. 4Brothers and sisters and their descendantsIf no descendant or parent, the portion that would have passed to the parents passes to siblings and the descendants of predeceased siblings, per capita or per stirpes
  5. 5Grandparents, uncles, and aunts (and their descendants)If no descendant in the closer classes, the heritable estate passes to surviving grandparents, uncles, and aunts, with no paternal/maternal distinction; descendants of a predeceased uncle or aunt take by representation
  6. 6Great-grandparents, great-uncles, and great-aunts (and more remote kin)If no closer heir, the estate passes to great-grandparents and great-uncles/great-aunts, continuing to more remote ascending classes

Arkansas Homestead Protection

Arkansas homestead protection is a constitutional creditor exemption (Ark. Const. art. 9) combined with statutory homestead rights for a surviving spouse and minor children (Ark. Code 28-39-201 et seq.). The constitutional exemption is acreage-based with a low $2,500 value floor: a rural homestead may be up to 160 acres (not less than 80 acres) not exceeding $2,500 in value, and an urban homestead up to 1 acre (not less than 1/4 acre) not exceeding $2,500 in value. After death, the surviving spouse takes the homestead's rents and profits for life, with minor children sharing until age 21.

0
Rural: up to 160 acres (min 80 acres) not exceeding $2,500 in value; Urban: up to 1 acre (min 1/4 acre) not exceeding $2,500 in value
Creditor Protection
Size limits & qualifications

Inside city limits: Up to 1 acre, minimum 1/4 acre, not exceeding $2,500 in value

Outside city limits: Up to 160 acres, minimum 80 acres, not exceeding $2,500 in value

Property types: Owner-occupied principal residence (rural or urban), Land within the constitutional acreage limits

Restrictions on leaving homestead in will

With spouse, no minor children:

The surviving spouse has homestead rights (rents and profits for life under Ark. Code 28-39-201) if the parties were continuously married for more than one year; analyze dower/curtesy and the election against the will separately.

With minor children:

Minor children share homestead rights with the surviving spouse, each child's interest ceasing at age 21 (Ark. Code 28-39-201(b)). On the surviving spouse's death, the homestead vests in the minor children (Ark. Code 28-39-201(c)).

Exempt Property

Arkansas provides statutory allowances to a surviving spouse and minor children out of a decedent's estate (a personal property allowance, a homestead/homestead rights set-aside, and a short-term support allowance), separate from the debtor exemptions a living person may claim against creditors under the Arkansas Constitution and Title 16.

View exempt items
Personal Property Allowance (surviving spouse and minor children)
The surviving spouse and minor children (or either in the absence of the other) may have personal property assigned to them out of the decedent's property up to $4,000 in value as against distributees, or $2,000 in value as against creditors, under Ark. Code 28-39-101(a). This is a fixed statutory amount, not indexed.
$4,000 as against distributees; $2,000 as against creditors
Household Furniture and Furnishings
Furniture, furnishings, appliances, implements, and equipment reasonably necessary for family use and occupancy of the dwelling are assigned to and vested in the surviving spouse if living with the decedent at the time of death, under Ark. Code 28-39-101(b).
Reasonably necessary furniture, furnishings, appliances, implements, and equipment for family use of the dwelling
Support (Sustenance) Allowance
During the two-month period after the decedent's death, the surviving spouse and minor children are entitled to receive from the estate a reasonable amount not exceeding $1,000 in the aggregate for their sustenance in accordance with the family's usual living standards, under Ark. Code 28-39-101(c).
Up to $1,000 in the aggregate, for two months
Homestead Rights (surviving spouse and children)
A surviving spouse and minor children have homestead rights under Ark. Code 28-39-201 and the Arkansas Constitution. These are occupancy and life-estate rights in the homestead, not a fixed dollar set-aside. See homestead-law.json.
Life estate / occupancy rights in the homestead; see homestead-law.json
Debtor Homestead Exemption (constitutional)
Arkansas's constitutional debtor homestead exemption (Ark. Const. art. 9 secs. 4-5) is acreage-based with a low $2,500 value floor. Verify current application; this protects a living debtor's homestead from certain creditor process.
Rural: up to 160 acres (not less than 80 acres) not exceeding $2,500 in value; urban: up to 1 acre (not less than 1/4 acre) not exceeding $2,500 in value
Personal Property Debtor Exemption (constitutional)
Ark. Const. art. 9 secs. 1-2 exempt a limited value of personal property from creditor execution. Federal bankruptcy exemptions may also be available to Arkansas debtors. Verify current amounts and the federal-exemption option.
Up to $500 (married/head of family) or $200 (single) in personal property, beyond wearing apparel
Retirement Plans
Certain retirement benefits and accounts are exempt under Arkansas and federal law when statutory requirements are met. Confirm the controlling exemption for the specific account.
Generally exempt under stated conditions

Family Allowance

Up to $1,000 in the aggregate, for the two-month period after death - A reasonable amount, not exceeding $1,000 in total, for the sustenance of the surviving spouse and minor children during the two months after the decedent's death, in accordance with the family's usual living standards.