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Missouri Probate Accounting
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Missouri Probate Accounting

Missouri probate accounting: the inventory, annual and final settlements under RSMo 473.540, vouchers, and how independent administration differs.

By Settled Editorial

Missouri probate accounting is the running financial record you keep and file to show what the estate took in, what you paid out, and what remains to distribute. In a supervised estate you file annual settlements and a final settlement with the Probate Division of the Circuit Court (RSMo 473.540). In an independent estate you file a statement of account for the distributees instead of court-audited settlements. Either way, the numbers have to reconcile and be backed by proof.

This duty grows out of your job as a fiduciary. You manage someone else's property for the heirs, the beneficiaries, and the creditors, so you owe them an honest, documented account. Clean records also protect you: they show you paid debts in the right order and distributed only what the estate could support.

Use this guide with the Missouri executor duties guide for the full task list, the Missouri creditor claims guide for the six-month claim bar, and the Missouri probate timeline for how these filings line up over the life of the estate. This is general information, not legal advice.

Supervised or Independent Administration Sets Your Filings

Before you plan any accounting, confirm which track your estate is on, because the filing rules split here.

Under supervised administration, the Probate Division reviews your bookkeeping on a schedule. You file annual settlements and a final settlement, each with vouchers, and the court passes on them.

Under independent administration (RSMo 473.780 to 473.843), you handle routine acts without ongoing court orders. You still keep the same records, but you close the estate by filing a statement of account and mailing it to the interested persons, and you may petition the court for an order of complete settlement (RSMo 473.837).

The math and the documentation are the same on both tracks. What changes is who reviews the account and how you close.

Start With the Inventory

Every later account measures against the inventory, so it comes first. Within thirty days after your letters are granted, unless the court gives you longer, you file an inventory and appraisement of the estate property, including exempt property, with a statement of the encumbrances, liens, and other charges on each item (RSMo 473.233).

Build a worksheet before the filing is due. For each asset, record the owner name, the account or title number, the date-of-death value, any lien, and the document you pulled the figure from. If property turns up later, you report it in a supplemental inventory. The values you set here decide the court cost and the commission base, so getting them right saves rework.

Annual Settlements in a Supervised Estate

In a supervised estate you account each year. Every personal representative files a statement of accounts with proper vouchers on the anniversary date of the letters, and each year after that, until administration ends, unless the court orders otherwise (RSMo 473.540). The court can extend a filing date for good cause.

The annual settlement tells the court what came in, what went out, and what you still hold since the last report. It keeps the estate visible to the court and to the beneficiaries year by year rather than only at the end.

What Goes in a Settlement

Whether it is an annual or final settlement, Missouri sets the contents by statute (RSMo 473.543). A proper settlement gives a just and true account of:

  • Receipts. All money collected, with the date collected, from whom, and on what account, plus the exact principal and interest collected on each claim owed to the estate.
  • Disbursements. The amount and date of each expenditure or distribution, and to whom and for what it was paid.
  • Interest earned. Any interest the estate earned on funds you held.
  • Property on hand. What the estate still holds at the close of the period.

Each expenditure of more than seventy-five dollars has to be supported by a voucher from the person you paid, or by other proof such as a copy of the check or a bank statement (RSMo 473.543). Save that proof from your first day in office. The court can ask for documentation on smaller items too.

Fiduciary and attorney compensation show up on the disbursement side. Missouri sets both on the same percentage schedule (RSMo 473.153), which the Missouri executor duties guide walks through.

The Final Settlement and Closing the Estate

The estate closes through a final settlement, not a quiet wind-down. You cannot file it the week you are appointed, because claims have to clear first.

When it is due. The final settlement is due on the first court day after six months and ten days run from the first published notice of letters, or as soon after that as administration is finished (RSMo 473.540). That timing tracks the creditor window: claims are barred six months after the first published notice of letters (RSMo 473.360), and all claims are absolutely barred one year after death regardless of notice (RSMo 473.444). See the Missouri creditor claims guide for how those bars work.

Notice before you close (supervised). When the estate is ready to close, you give at least twenty-nine days' notice by publication before you file the final settlement and petition for distribution (RSMo 473.587). That notice gives interested persons a chance to review the account before the court acts.

Closing an independent estate. An independent personal representative closes by filing a statement of account and mailing copies to the interested persons, along with the inventories and any settlements on file (RSMo 473.840). The notice tells each person that if no objection is filed within twenty days after the statement of account is filed, you will distribute on the schedule you proposed. You may also petition for an order of complete settlement and discharge (RSMo 473.837).

Do not make final distributions before the account covering that distribution has cleared. Paying an heir too early can leave you personally liable for a later valid claim. When the estate is ready, you distribute under the probated will, or with no will under the Missouri intestate succession rules, and you report the distribution in your settlement or statement of account.

When Beneficiaries Can Object

Missouri builds beneficiary review into the settlement process rather than leaving it to a private demand. Because your inventory and settlements are filed with the Probate Division, an interested person has a public record to check.

An heir, beneficiary, or creditor who thinks a settlement is wrong can raise it with the court. In a supervised estate, the published notice of final settlement opens the door to object before distribution (RSMo 473.587). In an independent estate, an interested person who receives your statement of account has twenty days to file an objection before you distribute (RSMo 473.840). Keeping beneficiaries updated with short, plain notes as you go reduces the chance anyone files an objection at the end.

Protecting Yourself as Personal Representative

Open a separate estate account on day one. Run every estate dollar through it and never mix estate money with your own. This one habit is what keeps a settlement clean.

Save a voucher for every payment. Anything over seventy-five dollars needs a voucher or equivalent proof under RSMo 473.543, and smaller items can be questioned too. Keep proof for every dollar in and every dollar out.

Date each entry. Note when you collected a receipt, when you paid a bill, and when you distributed. Timelines settle most accounting questions.

Track the deadlines. The inventory is due within thirty days of letters (RSMo 473.233), and settlements fall on the anniversary of the letters and at closing (RSMo 473.540). The Missouri probate timeline lays these out in order.

Ask the court about procedure, not strategy. The Probate Division can tell you what a filing must contain and how to submit it, but it cannot advise you on what to do in your situation. For that, a licensed Missouri attorney is the right resource.

Common Questions

What is a settlement in Missouri probate?

A settlement is the account you file showing the estate's receipts, disbursements, interest earned, and property on hand, backed by vouchers (RSMo 473.543). In a supervised estate you file annual settlements on the anniversary of your letters and a final settlement to close (RSMo 473.540).

When is the final settlement due in Missouri?

On the first court day after six months and ten days run from the first published notice of letters, or as soon after that as administration is finished (RSMo 473.540). An estate generally cannot close before the six-month creditor claim period ends (RSMo 473.360).

Do I need a receipt for every payment?

Each expenditure of more than seventy-five dollars must be supported by a voucher from the person you paid, or by other proof such as a copy of the check or a bank statement (RSMo 473.543). The court can also ask for documentation on smaller payments.

How is accounting different in independent administration?

Instead of court-audited annual settlements, you close by filing a statement of account and mailing copies to the interested persons (RSMo 473.840). If no one objects within twenty days, you distribute on your proposed schedule, and you may petition for an order of complete settlement (RSMo 473.837).

Can beneficiaries object to my accounting?

Yes. In a supervised estate, published notice of final settlement lets interested persons object before distribution (RSMo 473.587). In an independent estate, a person who receives your statement of account has twenty days to file an objection (RSMo 473.840).

This guide is general information about Missouri estate settlements and accounting. It is not legal advice. Confirm anything that affects your situation with the Probate Division of the Circuit Court or a licensed Missouri attorney.

Sources:

It is not legal advice.

Information current as of July 17, 2026

Settled Estate is not a law firm, and this content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Probate laws and procedures in Missouri can change. Consult with a qualified attorney for advice specific to your situation. Full disclaimer.

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