Arizona Probate Forms: Where to Find Them and What Each One Does

The Arizona Judicial Branch doesn't publish one centralized set of probate forms for the entire state. Each county's Superior Court maintains its own packet, and the Maricopa County Law Library Resource Center — by far the most comprehensive resource in Arizona — has built out a self-service library that other counties largely defer to. But "largely" is doing a lot of work in that sentence. What gets accepted in Maricopa can be rejected in Pima or Coconino for missing a local cover sheet.

Here's what you actually need, where to find it, and what each form does.

The Core Forms for Arizona Informal Probate

Most Arizona estates without disputes use the informal probate track — an administrative process handled by a Probate Registrar rather than a judge. No hearings, no contested proceedings. The filing packet for informal probate includes:

Probate Information Form A summary sheet that identifies the decedent, the proposed Personal Representative, and the basic nature of the estate. Think of it as the cover page that tells the court what it's looking at. This form is required in every county.

Application for Informal Appointment of Personal Representative (PBIP1f) The main document that formally requests the court appoint you (or whoever you're designating) as Personal Representative. It must state whether the decedent died testate (with a will) or intestate (without), and identify all known heirs and devisees. Sourced from the Maricopa County Law Library Resource Center at superiorcourt.maricopa.gov/llrc/probate-court-forms/.

The Original Last Will and Testament This is not a form you download — it's the original, ink-signed document. Informal probate requires the original. Presenting a photocopy of a will automatically routes the estate into formal probate, which requires a court hearing to prove the copy's validity. If the original is missing, stop and consult an attorney before filing anything.

Certified Death Certificate Again, not a downloadable form — you order these from the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) or your county vital records office at $20 per certified copy. Budget for 8–10 copies. Banks, title companies, the MVD, and the court all require original certified copies, and they do not accept photocopies.

Declaration of Completion of Non-Licensed Fiduciary Training This one surprises people. Under Rule 38 of the Arizona Rules of Probate Procedure, any layperson Personal Representative must complete a Supreme Court-approved training program before the court will issue Letters of Appointment. The training is available on the Arizona Judicial Branch website at azcourts.gov/probate/training — narrated modules in English and Spanish, approximately 90 minutes total. After completion, you print, sign, and attach this Declaration to your application. Miss it, and the Clerk of Court will reject your packet.

Waiver of Bond (if applicable) A surety bond protects beneficiaries from fiduciary misconduct. Arizona law requires one unless the will explicitly waives it, or all legal heirs sign a written waiver. If the will includes a bond waiver clause, include the relevant page. If not, getting all heirs to sign a waiver before filing saves the estate a bond premium of 0.5%–1.0% of the estate's total value annually.

Small Estate Affidavit Forms (When You Can Skip Court Entirely)

Thanks to House Bill 2116, effective June 30, 2025, a large share of Arizona estates now qualify to bypass probate entirely. If the estate's assets fall under the new limits, you don't need any of the forms above.

Affidavit for Collection of All Personal Property (PBSE11f) Used when the total net equity of all personal property — bank accounts, vehicles, tangible belongings, safe deposit boxes — does not exceed $200,000. The 30-day statutory waiting period applies. This affidavit is not filed with the court; you present it directly to the bank, brokerage, or institution holding the assets. Available at superiorcourt.maricopa.gov/llrc/prob_pbse1/.

Affidavit for Transfer of Title to Real Property (PBSE12f) Used when the full cash value of the real estate (from the county tax assessment rolls, not a market appraisal) minus outstanding mortgage principal does not exceed $300,000. The 6-month statutory waiting period applies. Unlike the personal property affidavit, this one is filed with the Superior Court in the county where the property is located, along with the appropriate filing fee. After court approval, you must record a certified copy with the County Recorder to formally transfer title. Available at the same Maricopa Law Library link above.

Forms for Estate Administration Milestones

Once Letters of Appointment are issued, several more forms come into play.

Notice to Creditors (for Newspaper Publication) Not a downloadable form per se — you work with a newspaper of general circulation in the county to publish this notice for three consecutive weeks as required by A.R.S. § 14-3801. Most newspapers have their own process for submitting legal notices. The four-month creditor claim period begins on the date of first publication.

Proof of Notice After mailing the Notice of Appointment to all known heirs and devisees (which must happen within 30 days of appointment), you file this form with the court confirming you've done so.

Inventory and Appraisement A comprehensive list of all estate assets valued at fair market value on the date of death. This must be completed within 90 days of appointment. Arizona law does not require it to be filed publicly — you provide it to interested parties who request it, and it remains relatively private. However, it must be meticulous because it anchors all subsequent accounting. No specific prescribed form exists for this document statewide; the Maricopa court packet includes a template at superiorcourt.maricopa.gov/media/xjtduywp/pbip4z.pdf.

Closing Statement Filed at the end of administration to formally terminate the PR's appointment. It affirms that the creditor period has passed, taxes and valid debts are settled, and assets have been fully distributed. The PR's appointment officially terminates one year after this statement is filed.

County-Specific Variations That Will Trip You Up

Maricopa County forms are widely used across Arizona, but every county has local rules. Here's what to check before filing anywhere outside Maricopa.

Pima County: The base probate filing fee is $176 plus a $40–$100 Court Automation and Technology Fee surcharge. Verify current fees with the Pima County Clerk of Court before your visit.

Pinal County: Uses a unified $251 fee covering informal probate, formal probate, and intestacy adjudications. Has its own local cover sheet requirements.

Mohave County: $371 initial filing fee. Notably, out-of-state executors filing a Proof of Authority here pay $406 (the $371 application fee plus a $35 certification charge). Physical court location is in Kingman.

Coconino County: $351 unified fee. Has specific electronic filing requirements for certain documents — verify before assuming you can walk in with paper.

Outside Maricopa: A practical note that catches out-of-state executors by surprise. Courts outside Maricopa County require wet (original ink) signatures on filings. You cannot email a scanned PDF of a signed form. Plan for mailing time on every round-trip document exchange.

The bottom line: before submitting anything, call or check the website of the specific county's Clerk of Superior Court. The Maricopa forms are a reliable starting point, but the filing requirements, fee schedules, and local cover sheets are county-controlled and change without notice.

Vehicle and Motor Vehicle Division Forms

Vehicle transfers operate entirely through ADOT's Motor Vehicle Division, separate from the Superior Court system.

Form 96-0561 (Beneficiary Designation for Vehicle Title) Filed during the owner's lifetime to designate a Transfer-on-Death beneficiary for a vehicle. Upon death, the beneficiary presents the original death certificate and this form to the MVD to assume title instantly — no probate, no affidavit.

Form 32-6901 (Non-Probate Affidavit for Vehicle Transfer) Used after death when no beneficiary was designated and the estate qualifies under the $200,000 personal property small estate limit. Filed alongside a Title and Registration Application (Form 96-0236) at the MVD. The fee is $4.

Both forms are available through ADOT at azdot.gov/mvd-doc-lib/.

What Happens When You File the Wrong Form

The most common filing mistakes in Arizona probate aren't about getting the wrong form — they're about the sequence.

Presenting a Small Estate Affidavit for real property before the 6-month waiting period has elapsed results in immediate rejection. Courts and title companies check the date of death against the filing date, and a day-179 filing gets returned.

Filing an informal probate application without the original will gets rejected and rerouted to formal probate. If you're not sure where the original is, do not file until you've exhausted every search — safety deposit boxes, the decedent's attorney, the county recorder (wills can be deposited there for safekeeping in some counties).

Using the Maricopa County forms in another county without adding the local cover sheet gets rejected at the filing window, usually after you've driven to the courthouse.

Getting the sequence and the timing right from the start is the difference between an estate that closes in 9 months and one that drags for 18. The Arizona Probate Process Guide maps every form, every filing sequence, and every county-specific requirement in a single checklist — so you're not making three trips to the courthouse to fix preventable errors.

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