West Virginia Executor Duties

West Virginia executor duties begin with qualification. You qualify before the Clerk of the County Commission in the county where the person lived. West Virginia has no separate probate court, so the County Commission is the court of record, and a Fiduciary Supervisor oversees your work. Once you qualify, the clerk issues letters testamentary or letters of administration. Those letters are your proof of authority, and banks, the DMV, and title offices ask to see them before they release anything.

Once you qualify, you are a fiduciary for the estate. You protect the property, keep estate money out of your own accounts, follow the will or the intestacy rules, work with the Fiduciary Supervisor, and distribute only when the estate is ready. This guide walks the duties in deadline order. It is general information, not legal advice. Confirm each step with your County Commission clerk, the Fiduciary Supervisor, or a licensed West Virginia attorney.

Use this guide with the West Virginia probate guide, the West Virginia creditor claims guide, the West Virginia debt payment priority guide, the West Virginia executor bond guide, and the West Virginia probate accounting guide. For deadlines at a glance, see the West Virginia probate timeline. For your county office, see the West Virginia County Commission directory.

Qualify Before the Clerk of the County Commission First

Authority comes from your letters, not from the will naming you. A named executor can find the original will, secure the home, and gather account statements before qualifying. But you cannot collect accounts, sign estate documents, or transfer title until the clerk appoints you and issues letters.

With a valid will you receive letters testamentary and serve as executor. Without a will you receive letters of administration and serve as administrator (W. Va. Code 44-1-4). West Virginia gives both roles one name: personal representative. You take a fiduciary oath at qualification (W. Va. Code 44-1-3), and the will or the County Commission may call for a bond. See the West Virginia executor bond guide for when a bond and surety are required and how the amount is set.

West Virginia charges no probate tax and no state estate or inheritance tax. The county collects modest per-instrument recording and probate fees at qualification, and the clerk charges a $20 fee to publish the notice of administration (W. Va. Code 44-1-14a). Confirm the current fees with your County Commission clerk.

What a West Virginia Personal Representative Does

Once you hold your letters, you are a fiduciary. You protect estate property, keep estate money separate from your own, follow the will or the intestacy rules, work with the Fiduciary Supervisor, and distribute only after the estate can support it.

The duties run in this order:

Return an appraisement of the estate to the clerk within 90 days of qualification
Have the clerk publish the notice of administration, then watch the 60-day claim window
Confirm whether your estate must be referred to a fiduciary commissioner
Pay valid debts in the order West Virginia sets
Settle the estate and distribute what remains

Not every estate needs full administration. Some assets pass by beneficiary designation, joint ownership with survivorship, or a payable-on-death term. A small estate may fit the affidavit path instead, with no appointment at all. Check whether full administration is even needed before you run the whole sequence.

Duty 1: Return the Appraisement Within 90 Days

West Virginia calls the estate inventory an appraisement. You return it to the Clerk of the County Commission within 90 days of your qualification (W. Va. Code 44-1-14). It lists the probate real estate and personal property, plus nonprobate assets, at fair market value on the date of death.

Build the appraisement worksheet as you collect assets. For each item, write down the owner name, the account or title number, the date-of-death value, any lien, and the source document. Open a separate estate account and keep estate cash out of your own accounts, because commingling is a loss the Fiduciary Supervisor can charge back to you. If an asset turns up after you file, report it.

Duty 2: Publish the Notice of Administration and Watch the 60-Day Window

After the appraisement, the Clerk of the County Commission publishes a notice of administration as a Class II legal advertisement, once a week for two successive weeks (W. Va. Code 44-1-14a). Publication runs within 30 days after you file the appraisement, or within 120 days of qualification if no appraisement is filed. The clerk collects a $20 publication fee.

The notice starts the creditor clock. A creditor must file a claim within 60 days of the first publication. That short window is what protects you. Pay too early, before the window runs, and a valid claim that lands later can fall on you personally. Save the dates and the proof of publication. See the West Virginia creditor claims guide for how claims come in and how you allow or reject them.

Duty 3: Check Whether a Fiduciary Commissioner Must Review Your Estate

West Virginia lets many estates settle without a fiduciary commissioner. A full administration settles without reference to a fiduciary commissioner when the appraisement shows $200,000 or less, not counting real estate under a specific devise or nonprobate assets, or when the probate estate has a single beneficiary who is competent at law (W. Va. Code 44-1-14a). That default holds unless a party in interest asks for a reference within 60 days of the first publication.

A reference sends the accounting to a fiduciary commissioner for review. That happens when an unpaid creditor files a claim and you do not approve every claim within 20 days, or when a beneficiary or creditor objects to your accounting (W. Va. Code 44-2-1). A fiduciary commissioner may not charge the estate more than $300 plus expenses for the settlement, unless you approve a higher fee or the County Commission finds the fee matches the actual time and work. Keep these two numbers straight: the $200,000 reference threshold here is not the small-estate affidavit limit, which is a separate path with its own dollar figures.

Duty 4: Pay Debts in the Order West Virginia Sets

When claims come in, you pay them in the order West Virginia sets, not in the order the bills arrive. If the estate cannot cover everything, that order decides who gets paid and who does not, and paying a lower rank first can leave you exposed. Do not guess the order. See the West Virginia debt payment priority guide and confirm the ranking before you release estate funds.

Duty 5: Distribute Only After Debts Clear

Distribution comes last, and only after the estate can support it. Before you hand anything to an heir or beneficiary, walk this checklist:

Has the clerk published the notice of administration?
Has the 60-day claim window run?
Is the appraisement filed with the Clerk of the County Commission?
Are valid claims paid in the order West Virginia sets?
Has any surviving-spouse elective share been addressed?
Are the final income tax returns filed or accounted for?
Does your settlement support every receipt, payment, and proposed distribution?
Do you have signed receipts from the people who received property?

A name in the will is not a green light to distribute on day one. Debts, taxes, and a spouse's election can come first. West Virginia gives a surviving spouse an elective share of the estate, and it does not provide a probate family allowance, homestead allowance, or exempt-property allowance, so do not set aside an allowance that West Virginia law does not grant. See the West Virginia surviving spouse rights guide before you set anything aside for a spouse. When the estate is ready, you distribute under the probated will or, with no will, under the West Virginia intestate succession rules.

Real Estate Vests in the Heirs

West Virginia real estate is its own case. Solely owned real property passes to the heirs or devisees at the moment of death. You usually do not administer it the way you do a bank account. Probate confirms the chain of title, but it does not convey the land.

The main exception is a sale needed to pay estate debts. If the estate is short on cash and the value sits in the house, that sale can call for a separate court step, and deed language, liens, and title-company requirements come into play. Deeds record with the Clerk of the County Commission land records office. A West Virginia transfer on death deed is one way an owner can pass real property outside probate before death.

Settle the Estate: Short Form or Final Settlement

West Virginia gives small, clean estates a shorter path at the end. Under a short form settlement, the Fiduciary Supervisor records and mails the settlement for a $10 fee, and distributees and beneficiaries get 10 days to object (W. Va. Code 44-3A-4a). You can use it when more than 60 days have passed since the required notice, any estate-tax lien is released and filed, no known and unpaid claims remain, and each distributee and beneficiary has signed the waiver. Larger or contested estates file a full settlement that a fiduciary commissioner audits. See the West Virginia probate accounting guide for what goes in each filing.

How a West Virginia Executor Gets Paid

West Virginia does set a commission schedule, unlike some neighboring states. On the personal estate that is subject to administration, a personal representative may take 5% on the first $100,000, 4% on the amount above $100,000 up to $400,000, 3% on the amount above $400,000 up to $800,000, and 2% above $800,000 (W. Va. Code 44-4-12a). You may also take 1% on real estate that is not sold and 1% on property that is not subject to administration. A testator can change these commissions by express language in the will. The Fiduciary Supervisor, or a fiduciary commissioner on a referred estate, reviews your commission with the settlement, so plan on a number the office will approve. To estimate your commission before you decide whether to take or waive it, use the West Virginia executor compensation calculator.

Common Questions

Which office handles probate in West Virginia?

The County Commission is the court of record, and you qualify before the Clerk of the County Commission in the county where the person lived. A Fiduciary Supervisor oversees ordinary administration, and a fiduciary commissioner reviews referred or contested estates. West Virginia has no separate probate court. Find your county office in the West Virginia County Commission directory.

What is my first deadline after I qualify?

Return the appraisement of the estate to the clerk within 90 days of qualification (W. Va. Code 44-1-14). Soon after, the clerk publishes the notice of administration, and creditors then have 60 days from first publication to file claims (W. Va. Code 44-1-14a).

How long do creditors have to file claims?

Sixty days from the first publication of the notice of administration (W. Va. Code 44-1-14a). The clerk publishes that notice as a Class II legal advertisement, once a week for two successive weeks. See the West Virginia creditor claims guide.

How much does a West Virginia executor get paid?

West Virginia sets a commission schedule: 5% on the first $100,000 of personal estate, then 4%, 3%, and 2% on higher bands, plus 1% on real estate that is not sold and 1% on nonprobate property (W. Va. Code 44-4-12a). The will can change it, and the Fiduciary Supervisor reviews it.

Can I distribute as soon as I qualify?

No. Wait until the notice of administration has run, the 60-day claim window has passed, valid debts are paid in the order West Virginia sets, any spouse's elective share is addressed, and taxes are handled. Distributing early can leave you personally liable for a valid claim that lands later.

This guide is general information about West Virginia estates. It is not legal advice. Confirm anything that affects your situation with the Clerk of the County Commission, the Fiduciary Supervisor, or a licensed West Virginia attorney.

Sources:

Title: W. Va. Code 44-1-14, Appraisement of real estate and probate personal property of decedents; disposition; hiring of experts. Publisher: West Virginia Legislature. Publication Date: Not listed. URL: https://code.wvlegislature.gov/44-1-14/
Title: W. Va. Code 44-1-14a, Notice of administration of estate; time limits for filing of objections; liability of personal representative. Publisher: West Virginia Legislature. Publication Date: Not listed. URL: https://code.wvlegislature.gov/44-1-14A/
Title: W. Va. Code 44-1-3, Oath of executor or administrator with will annexed. Publisher: West Virginia Legislature. Publication Date: Not listed. URL: https://code.wvlegislature.gov/44-1-3/
Title: W. Va. Code 44-1-4, Appointment of intestate administrator. Publisher: West Virginia Legislature. Publication Date: Not listed. URL: https://code.wvlegislature.gov/44-1-4/
Title: W. Va. Code 44-2-1, Reference of decedents' estates; proceedings thereon. Publisher: West Virginia Legislature. Publication Date: Not listed. URL: https://code.wvlegislature.gov/44-2-1/
Title: W. Va. Code 44-3A-4a, Short form settlement. Publisher: West Virginia Legislature. Publication Date: Not listed. URL: https://code.wvlegislature.gov/44-3A-4A/
Title: W. Va. Code 44-4-12a, Compensation and expenses of personal representatives. Publisher: West Virginia Legislature. Publication Date: Not listed. URL: https://code.wvlegislature.gov/44-4-12A/

It is not legal advice.