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Connecticut Probate Guide

Probate District-specific probate filing-office contacts, filing fees, required forms, and step-by-step guidance for families settling an estate in Connecticut.

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Types of Probate in Connecticut

Connecticut probate does NOT run through county courts. The state abolished county government in 1960, and probate is heard by the 54 Probate Districts created by Conn. Gen. Stat. § 45a-2, each serving one or more of Connecticut's 169 towns. Jurisdiction follows the decedent's town of residence, so the right court is the district that covers that town, not a county seat. Where the estate is small enough, it is settled by AFFIDAVIT instead of probate: form PC-212 under § 45a-273 covers a decedent whose solely owned tangible and intangible personal property is worth $40,000 or less and who owned no solely owned Connecticut real property at death, and it is open whether or not there is a will. The court sends a copy to the Department of Administrative Services and cannot issue its decree until 30 days later. Everything else is full administration on form PC-200: the court admits the will or grants administration, appoints an executor or administrator, issues fiduciary certificates, and supervises the inventory, creditor claims, tax return and final account. Any solely owned Connecticut real property forces this track however small the estate. A probate bond is the default on both tracks (§ 45a-289(a) for an executor, § 45a-303(d) for an administrator) unless it is excused. Fees are unusual: there is NO flat fee to open a decedent's estate, because the $250 flat fee in § 45a-106a applies by its own terms to matters OTHER than a decedent's estate. Instead a single sliding-scale fee under § 45a-107 covers all proceedings in the settlement, is uniform in every district under § 45a-105, and is invoiced only after the estate tax return establishes the values. It runs from a $150 minimum for a full estate up to a $40,000 cap for deaths on or after July 1, 2016, and unpaid fees draw 0.5% monthly interest and support a lien on Connecticut real property under § 45a-107b. Connecticut also has no transfer-on-death deed for real property: the § 14-16(b) vehicle beneficiary designation and the §§ 45a-468 et seq. securities registration are the state's only transfer-on-death devices.

See the full comparison of Connecticut probate typesWhich procedures exist, who qualifies, and how the timelines compare.
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Connecticut Probate Filing Offices by Probate District

Choose your probate district to get its probate court contacts, filing fees, and required forms. 54 probate districts have detailed data.

Full data available: HartfordFull data available: West HartfordFull data available: Tobacco ValleyFull data available: Greater WindsorFull data available: East HartfordFull data available: Glastonbury - HebronFull data available: NewingtonFull data available: BerlinFull data available: Simsbury RegionalFull data available: Farmington RegionalFull data available: North Central ConnecticutFull data available: Ellington
Show all 54 probate districts
Full data available: Greater ManchesterFull data available: Region # 14Full data available: MiddletownFull data available: MeridenFull data available: WallingfordFull data available: Cheshire - SouthingtonFull data available: Bristol-PlymouthFull data available: WaterburyFull data available: NaugatuckFull data available: Region # 22Full data available: Torrington AreaFull data available: Litchfield HillsFull data available: Tolland - MansfieldFull data available: NortheastFull data available: Plainfield - KillinglyFull data available: Windham - ColchesterFull data available: NorwichFull data available: Southeastern CT RegionalFull data available: New LondonFull data available: Niantic RegionalFull data available: SaybrookFull data available: Madison - GuilfordFull data available: Branford - North BranfordFull data available: East Haven - North HavenFull data available: Hamden - BethanyFull data available: New HavenFull data available: West HavenFull data available: Milford - OrangeFull data available: DerbyFull data available: SheltonFull data available: DanburyFull data available: HousatonicFull data available: Northern Fairfield CountyFull data available: TrumbullFull data available: StratfordFull data available: BridgeportFull data available: FairfieldFull data available: WestportFull data available: Norwalk - WiltonFull data available: Darien - New CanaanFull data available: StamfordFull data available: Greenwich

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Probate Basics

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Executor Duties

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Taxes & Deadlines

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Planning Documents

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Property Transfer

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Avoiding Probate

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Who Inherits Without a Will?

Intestate succession decides who inherits a Connecticut decedent's probate property when there is no valid will, and it also fills any gap a will leaves unaddressed.

Connecticut Homestead Protection

Connecticut has ONE homestead concept and it is not a probate allowance. The HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION in Conn. Gen. Stat. § 52-352b(21) protects $250,000 of equity in an owner-occupied primary residence from execution by unsecured creditors of a living debtor. Connecticut has no declared-versus-automatic distinction, no recording requirement and no declaration form: the exemption applies by operation of statute. In estate settlement, what the family gets instead is the right under § 45a-321(b) to remain in the decedent's dwelling until it is sold, distributed or otherwise disposed of.

Exempt Property

Connecticut protects a surviving spouse and family through a DISCRETIONARY support allowance and a right to stay in the home, not through fixed-dollar allowances. There is no Connecticut probate homestead allowance and no fixed-dollar probate exempt-property allowance. The Probate Court may allow whatever amount it judges necessary for the support of the surviving spouse or family during settlement, may let them keep using the family car, and lets the family remain in the dwelling house until it is sold, distributed or otherwise disposed of.

Connecticut Probate Questions

How much does probate cost in Connecticut?
Connecticut probate filing fees vary by probate district and type of administration. Typical costs include the court filing fee plus certified copy fees, publication notice fees where notice is required, and potential bond premiums. Use our free Connecticut fee calculator for probate district-specific estimates.
How long does probate take in Connecticut?
Most Connecticut estates run about 8 to 14 months. Two clocks set the floor. First, the Connecticut estate tax return is due six months after the death (§ 12-392) and is filed for EVERY estate regardless of size, with the non-taxable CT-706 NT going to the Probate Court. Second, the routine creditor window runs 150 DAYS from the appointment of the first fiduciary (§ 45a-356(a)); the statute is written in days, not months, and the two-year bar in § 45a-375 is an ultimate cut-off, not the routine period. Around those, the will must be delivered and probate applied for within 30 days of death (§§ 45a-282, 45a-283), the Probate Court orders newspaper notice to creditors within 14 days of letters, the inventory (PC-2407) is due 60 days after the fiduciary qualifies (§ 45a-341, extendable to four months for cause), a fiduciary who uses the optional direct-notice procedure gets a 90-day bar from that notice, a surviving spouse elects the statutory share within 150 days of the will being admitted, and a disclaimer runs nine months from death. The Probate Court's § 45a-107 fee arrives late, because it is invoiced after the tax return fixes the values. A contested or complex estate more often runs 12 to 24 months, while the § 45a-273 affidavit route usually finishes in 1 to 3 months.
Do I need an attorney for probate in Connecticut?
Connecticut does not require a fiduciary to hire an attorney. Rule 5.1(c) of the Probate Court Rules of Procedure says so directly: nothing in the rule prevents a fiduciary, except a corporate fiduciary, from representing himself or herself, as fiduciary, without an attorney. (The statute people reach for, § 51-88(d)(2), is not the authority for this.) Counsel is worth retaining when the will is contested or a will's execution is doubtful, when the original will is lost, when a surviving spouse weighs the § 45a-436 statutory share (a life estate in one-third, elected within 150 days), when the estate is insolvent and the seven-class ladder in § 45a-365 has to be worked, when the state has a Medicaid claim under § 17b-95, when Connecticut real property has to be sold under § 45a-164, or when the estate tax return and the § 45a-107b fee lien get complicated. Connecticut sets no statutory attorney-fee schedule and no fiduciary fee schedule: both are reasonable compensation reviewed by the Probate Court under rule 39, and rule 39.1(a) lets you get a fee arrangement approved before the work starts. Consult a licensed Connecticut attorney about your own situation.
Are these Connecticut probate resources probate district-specific?
No. This map shows state-level source links from Settled data. Use it with the Connecticut probate district page and the probate district office handling the estate before filing.
Which Connecticut source should I use first?
Start with the official court, form, or agency source for the task, then confirm local requirements with the probate district filing office, clerk, register, or office that accepts the filing.
Does the Connecticut 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.