Wyoming Creditor Claims in Probate

Wyoming creditor claims run on a three-month clock that starts when the personal representative publishes the notice of probate. Under W.S. 2-7-201 that notice tells creditors to file their claims in the office of the clerk of court within three months of the first publication, or be forever barred. Claims go to the clerk in duplicate, with a supporting affidavit, and the personal representative then allows or rejects each one in writing.

That filing step is what sets Wyoming apart. In many states a creditor sends a claim straight to the executor. In Wyoming the claim is a court filing, and the court file becomes the record of who asked for what and when.

A note on the links. Wyoming publishes its statutes as one PDF per title, with no page for a single section, so every statute link below opens the Title 2 PDF from the Wyoming Legislature (or the Title 42 PDF for Medicaid). We read each section there on September 28, 2026. The edition was created May 8, 2026, after the 2026 budget session. Read this beside the personal representative's duties, and see how the claim period fits the calendar for the rest of the dates. This is general information about Wyoming law, not advice about one estate, so confirm your dates with the clerk of district court holding the file or with a licensed Wyoming attorney.

The Notice of Probate Starts the Clock

Here is how it begins. Under W.S. 2-7-201, once the court admits the will or the estate to probate and issues letters, the personal representative has a notice published once a week for three consecutive weeks. It runs in a daily or weekly newspaper of general circulation in the county where the probate is pending.

The notice does three jobs at once. It announces the admission to probate and the appointment. When there is a will, it warns that any action to set aside the will must be brought within three months of the first publication. And it tells creditors to file their claims, with the necessary vouchers, in the office of the clerk of the court that issued the letters, within three months from the date of the first publication.

The statute prints the form itself. Its creditor paragraph says that claims not filed in duplicate with the clerk on or before three months after the first publication, "unless otherwise allowed or paid", will be forever barred. So the date to track is the first publication, not the last one.

Mailing the Notice to Known Creditors

Publication reaches the public. Mailing reaches the people you already know about. W.S. 2-7-205(a) requires a true copy of the notice to go by ordinary first class mail to four groups:

• The surviving spouse, the heirs at law and the beneficiaries named in the will, no later than one week after the first publication.
• Each creditor whose identity is reasonably ascertainable by the personal representative within the time in the notice to creditors, no later than 30 days before the three months after first publication run out.
• The state Department of Health, if the decedent received medical assistance under W.S. 42-4-101 through 42-4-114.
• The Department of Family Services, if the decedent or a known heir is the obligor on a child support order the department is enforcing.

Under 2-7-205(d), notice to a party's agent or attorney counts as notice to that party. That subsection came from 2017 SF0107, which amended the introduction to 2-7-205(a) to make the mailing subject to it.

The creditor mailing deserves attention, because it is the step that closes the late-claim exception described below. Title 2 does not define "reasonably ascertainable", and whether a particular creditor meets that test is a question for the court. The decedent's mail, bank statements, bills and records are where personal representatives commonly look, and a record of the date each notice was mailed is what shows the deadline was met.

Where and How a Creditor Files a Claim

W.S. 2-7-703(a) is the filing rule. Every claim, whether due, not yet due or contingent, is filed in duplicate with the clerk within the time in the notice to creditors. A claim not filed that way is barred forever. If a creditor files only one copy, the clerk makes the duplicate and may charge a fee of up to $2.00 per page. Under 2-7-703(b), the clerk sends one copy of each claim to the personal representative as it comes in.

A creditor who received a mailed notice gets a little more time. Under the same subsection, that creditor has until three months after the first publication or 30 days after the mailing, whichever date is later.

W.S. 2-7-704 sets what goes with the claim:

• A claim that is due needs an affidavit from the creditor, or someone on the creditor's behalf, that the account is justly due, that every payment has been credited, and that the affiant knows of no offsets.
• A claim that is not yet due, or is contingent, has to state its particulars.
• A claim based on a bond, note or other instrument includes a copy of the instrument. The personal representative can demand to see the original unless it was lost or destroyed.
• A claim secured by a mortgage or lien recorded with the county clerk can describe the lien by its date, volume and page.

The personal representative can also ask for vouchers or other proof to back up any claim.

The $200 Rule for Small Bills

Next, a practical shortcut. Under W.S. 2-7-703(d), the personal representative may allow any claim of $200 or less without the creditor filing it. That covers the small utility bill or the last pharmacy charge. The catch is accountability: the personal representative answers for the propriety of each such payment when the court hears the final report and accounting.

Two Ways a Late Claim Survives

The three-month bar is strict, and 2-7-703(c) names only two exceptions. Each one requires a court finding in an adversary proceeding:

• A claimant entitled to equitable relief because of peculiar circumstances.
• A claimant who was never mailed the notice under 2-7-205(a)(ii), if the court finds the claimant's identity was reasonably ascertainable by the personal representative within the time in the published notice.

The second exception is why the mailing matters. Publication alone does not cut off a creditor you could have found. A timely mailing to every known creditor does.

Timing also has a floor on the other side. W.S. 2-7-712(b) says a claim filed with the clerk before the deadline is filed in time, even if the personal representative acts on it later.

Claims That Arise From Lawsuits and Judgments

Several kinds of claims follow their own path through the same filing system:

• A cause of action that survives the death. Under W.S. 2-7-706, a creditor has to file a claim and have it rejected before suing. The statute of limitations on the cause of action stops running from the filing until five days after the rejection notice is mailed.
• A lawsuit pending at the death. Under 2-7-709, the creditor files, within the 2-7-703 deadline, a certified copy of the order substituting the personal representative for the decedent, plus a certified copy of any pleading against the decedent.
• A money judgment entered before the death. Under 2-7-710, no execution issues after the death unless the judgment recovers property or enforces a lien. A money judgment is filed with the clerk like any other claim.
• A verdict reached before the death, with judgment entered after. Under 2-7-711, the time to file does not expire until 10 days after the final judgment, if that date is later than the ordinary deadline.

If the personal representative is also a creditor, W.S. 2-7-708 requires the claim to be filed like any other. The court appoints a temporary administrator to decide it for the estate, unless a co-representative who is not a creditor can.

Allowing or Rejecting Each Claim

Once the filing period closes, the personal representative has work to do. Under W.S. 2-7-712(a), each claim filed with its 2-7-704 affidavit must be allowed or rejected in writing, and that decision filed with the clerk, within 30 days after the time for filing claims expires. An allowed claim is ranked among the acknowledged debts and paid in due course under 2-7-712(c).

A few rules shape that decision:

• Rejection needs certified mail. Under 2-7-712(d), when a claim is rejected in whole or in part, the personal representative must notify the claimant by certified mail immediately.
• Partial allowance has a cost rule. Under 2-7-713, the personal representative states the allowed amount in the report to the clerk. A creditor who refuses it and sues recovers no costs unless the judgment beats the amount allowed.
• Stale debts cannot be allowed. Under 2-7-714, no claim barred by the statute of limitations may be allowed.
• Compromise needs the court. Under 2-7-110, the creditor and the personal representative may settle a filed claim if it serves the estate, subject to court approval.
• Advance approval is available. Under 2-7-715, the personal representative may ask the court at any time to rule on past or proposed allowances and rejections. Distributees get certified-mail notice at least 20 days before the hearing, and the ruling binds each distributee served.

Suing on a Rejected Claim: 30 Days

This is the shortest deadline in the chapter. W.S. 2-7-717 says no creditor may maintain an action on a claim until the personal representative has rejected it in whole or in part and filed the rejection with the clerk. A secured creditor may still enforce a mortgage or lien, including a Medicaid lien under 42-4-207, against the property it covers, if the complaint expressly waives recourse against the rest of the estate, or if no deficiency is claimed in a foreclosure by advertisement and sale under 34-4-101 through 34-4-113.

Then W.S. 2-7-718 sets the limit. When a claim is rejected and notice is given as required, the creditor must sue the personal representative in the proper court within 30 days after the date the notice was mailed. Otherwise the claim is forever barred.

A judgment on a money claim does not jump the line. Under 2-7-719(b), it establishes the claim as if the personal representative had allowed it, to be paid in due course. No execution issues on it, it creates no lien on estate property, and it gives the creditor no priority.

Paying Claims, and Holding Back for Open Ones

While claims or lawsuits on timely claims are still open, W.S. 2-7-716 lets administration continue only as far as it does not prejudice creditors. The estate cannot close, and no claim payment or distribution may be made that would impair the estate's ability to pay the claims as finally decided, in priority order.

For claims that are not yet due or depend on a future event, W.S. 2-7-705 gives options. A claim that becomes due or certain before distribution is paid like other claims of its class. Otherwise, the creditor may accept the present value of the claim, or the estate may arrange future payment through a trust, a mortgage, a bond or security from a distributee, or another arrangement.

If the estate cannot pay everything, W.S. 2-7-701 sorts debts into ten classes, starting with court costs and other costs of administration, and 2-7-702 pays each class in order, pro rata within a class. The page on which claims are paid first walks through all ten.

Medicaid Estate Recovery

Medicaid is the claim families most often do not see coming. Under W.S. 42-4-206(a), the Department of Health files a claim for the total medical assistance paid, against the estate of a single recipient or the estate of the surviving spouse of a married couple. The claim covers assistance given when the person was 55 or older, or while the person was an inpatient in a nursing facility, an intermediate care facility for people with intellectual disability, or another medical care facility.

The rest of the section sets the terms:

• Priority and time. Under 42-4-206(b), the claim counts as an expense of the last illness, and no statute of limitations that would limit the department's recovery applies to it.
• Amount. Under 42-4-206(c), the claim includes no interest. Against a surviving spouse who never received assistance, the claim for the first spouse's care is limited to assets that were marital or jointly owned property at any time during the marriage.
• Children. Under 42-4-206(d), no claim is filed if the decedent is survived by a child under 21, or a child who is blind or permanently and totally disabled under 42 U.S.C. 1382c.
• Hardship. Under 42-4-206(f), the department must waive the claim when applying it would work an undue hardship under federal criteria.
• Reach. Under 42-4-206(g)(ii), "estate" includes property passed through joint tenancy, tenancy in common, survivorship, a life estate, a living trust or another arrangement, to the extent of the decedent's interest. 2019 HB0005 amended that definition.

Two other statutes connect to it. The notice of probate goes to the Department of Health under 2-7-205(a)(iii) whenever the decedent received medical assistance. And a transfer on death deed does not dodge the claim: under W.S. 2-18-103(g) the department may assert a lien on the deeded property, and under 2-18-103(n) the beneficiary proves the transfer by recording an affidavit with a Department of Health certificate of clearance stating that all medical assistance claims have been satisfied or do not exist.

When No One Opens Probate

Creditors do not have to wait on the family forever. Under W.S. 2-4-211, if no one else has obtained letters, any creditor may apply for letters of administration within two years after the death, but not afterwards.

W.S. 2-4-212 is the other side of that rule. If letters are not issued within the two years, all claims of creditors are forever barred, and buyers of the decedent's property from the heirs take title free of those claims. A valid mortgage, deed of trust or security interest under the Wyoming Uniform Commercial Code still binds the property, but the secured creditor gets no deficiency judgment.

Government creditors have one more route on a small estate. Under W.S. 2-1-204, the United States, the State of Wyoming or a political subdivision may collect the decedent's assets by affidavit no earlier than 90 days after the death, when the entire estate, less liens and encumbrances, is $400,000 or less and no personal representative has been appointed or applied for.

When to Call a Wyoming Attorney

Most estates handle claims with a calendar and a folder. A few facts change that:

• A claim you plan to reject that is large enough to be worth a lawsuit.
• A creditor who files after the deadline and asks the court for equitable relief.
• An estate that looks insolvent, where the order of payment decides who gets nothing.
• A Medicaid claim when you believe the hardship waiver or the child exception applies.
• A pending lawsuit against the decedent, or a claim of your own as personal representative.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do creditors have to file a claim against a Wyoming estate?

Three months from the date of the first publication of the notice of probate, under W.S. 2-7-201 and 2-7-703(a). A creditor the personal representative mailed a copy of the notice to under 2-7-205(a)(ii) has until the later of those three months or 30 days after the mailing. A claim not filed in time is barred forever, subject to the two exceptions in 2-7-703(c).

Where do you file a creditor claim in a Wyoming probate?

With the clerk of the district court that issued the letters. W.S. 2-7-703(a) says claims shall be filed in duplicate with the clerk, and 2-7-703(b) has the clerk send one copy to the personal representative. If a creditor files only one copy, the clerk makes the duplicate and may charge up to $2.00 per page. A claim that is due needs the creditor's affidavit under 2-7-704(a).

Does a Wyoming personal representative have to mail notice to creditors?

Yes, to known ones. W.S. 2-7-205(a)(ii) requires a copy of the notice to go by first class mail to each creditor whose identity is reasonably ascertainable, no later than 30 days before the three months after first publication run out. A creditor who should have been mailed and was not can ask the court to hear a late claim under 2-7-703(c)(ii).

What happens after a Wyoming personal representative rejects a claim?

The personal representative files the rejection with the clerk and immediately notifies the creditor by certified mail, under W.S. 2-7-712(d). The creditor then has 30 days after the date the notice was mailed to sue the personal representative, or the claim is forever barred under 2-7-718. Under 2-7-717 no creditor can sue on a claim until it has been rejected in whole or in part.

Can a personal representative pay a small bill without a filed claim in Wyoming?

Yes, up to $200. W.S. 2-7-703(d) lets the personal representative allow any claim of $200 or less without the creditor filing it. The personal representative stays answerable for that payment when the court hears the final report and accounting.

Can Wyoming Medicaid make a claim against an estate?

Yes. Under W.S. 42-4-206(a) the Department of Health files a claim for medical assistance given at age 55 or older, or while the person lived in a nursing facility or other medical care facility. The claim counts as an expense of the last illness, no statute of limitations applies to it, and it carries no interest. No claim is filed if the decedent leaves a child under 21 or a child who is blind or permanently and totally disabled, and the department must waive the claim in cases of undue hardship.

What if no one opens probate in Wyoming?

A creditor can open it. W.S. 2-4-211 lets any creditor apply for letters of administration within two years after the death, if no one else has. Under 2-4-212, if letters are not issued within that time, all claims of creditors are forever barred. A recorded mortgage or other valid security interest survives, but the secured creditor cannot get a deficiency judgment.

Related Guides

• Wyoming Executor Duties
• Wyoming Debt Payment Priority
• Wyoming Probate Timeline
• Wyoming Probate Guide
• Wyoming District Courts by County

Sources:

• Title: W.S. 2-7-201, Admission of will or estate to probate and appointment of personal representative; contents; form. Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: Not listed (title PDF created 2026-05-08), accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
• Title: W.S. 2-7-205, Parties entitled to receive. Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: Not listed (title PDF created 2026-05-08), accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
• Title: W.S. 2-7-703, Filing required; failure to do so constitutes bar; exceptions. Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: Not listed (title PDF created 2026-05-08), accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
• Title: W.S. 2-7-704, Affidavit and other required supporting documentation. Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: Not listed (title PDF created 2026-05-08), accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
• Title: W.S. 2-7-705, Future, contingent and unliquidated claims. Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: Not listed (title PDF created 2026-05-08), accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
• Title: W.S. 2-7-712, Allowance and rejection of claims. Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: Not listed (title PDF created 2026-05-08), accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
• Title: W.S. 2-7-714, Claims barred by statute of limitations precluded. Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: Not listed (title PDF created 2026-05-08), accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
• Title: W.S. 2-7-717, Action precluded until claim rejected; exception. Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: Not listed (title PDF created 2026-05-08), accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
• Title: W.S. 2-7-718, Action on rejected claim; limitations. Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: Not listed (title PDF created 2026-05-08), accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
• Title: W.S. 2-4-211, Creditors; right to apply for letters, and W.S. 2-4-212, Creditors; when claims barred; effect on liens. Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: Not listed (title PDF created 2026-05-08), accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
• Title: W.S. 2-18-103, Transfer on death deed. Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 2. Publication Date: Not listed (title PDF created 2026-05-08), accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
• Title: W.S. 42-4-206, Claims against estates. Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 42. Publication Date: Not listed (title PDF created 2026-05-08), accessed 2026-09-28. URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title42.pdf
• Title: HB0005, Medicaid benefit recovery-estates (2019 Wyoming Session Laws chapter 15). Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature. Publication Date: 2019-02-14 (signed and effective). URL: https://wyoleg.gov/2019/Enroll/HB0005.pdf
• Title: SF0107, Probate code amendments (2017 Wyoming Session Laws chapter 125). Publisher: Wyoming State Legislature. Publication Date: 2017-03-03 (signed; effective 2017-07-01). URL: https://wyoleg.gov/2017/Enroll/SF0107.pdf

It is not legal advice.