South Carolina Act 26 Probate Changes: What the 2025 Law Means for Estates

If you're searching for current South Carolina probate thresholds and finding conflicting numbers online, there's a reason: the law changed in 2025, and many websites haven't caught up. Act No. 26 — signed by Governor McMaster and effective May 8, 2025 — raised two key dollar figures that determine whether an estate needs full probate and how much surviving family members can shield from creditors. If you're settling a South Carolina estate right now, this affects your options.

What Act 26 Changed

The law made targeted amendments to the South Carolina Probate Code, specifically raising the monetary thresholds that govern simplified procedures. Two changes matter most:

Small estate threshold: $25,000 → $45,000

South Carolina allows heirs to collect a decedent's personal property through a simple affidavit (Form 420ES) rather than full probate when the gross probate estate falls below a dollar threshold. Before Act 26, that was $25,000. Effective May 8, 2025, it's $45,000.

What this means practically: if the total value of the decedent's probate assets — accounts without beneficiary designations, personal property titled in the name alone — is $45,000 or less, heirs may use the small estate affidavit process instead of opening formal probate. The claimant waits 30 days after death, files Form 420ES with the county probate court, gets the judge's countersignature, and presents the certified affidavit to banks, brokerages, or the DMV. The filing fee caps at $72.50 — a fraction of full probate costs.

Exempt property allowance: $25,000 → $45,000

South Carolina law gives surviving spouses and minor children the right to set aside specific property from the estate — furniture, automobiles, appliances, personal effects — that's shielded from most creditor claims. This exempt property allowance (Form 435ES, under §62-2-401) increased from $25,000 to $45,000.

The exempt property has near-absolute priority: it ranks ahead of virtually all creditor claims except administration costs and funeral expenses. If qualifying household goods don't reach $45,000, the claimant can select other estate assets to make up the difference.

Effective Date: May 8, 2025

Both changes took effect May 8, 2025 — the date Act 26 was enacted. This is the date that controls, not the date of the decedent's death.

Estates where the decedent died before May 8, 2025, and where relevant determinations were made before that date, used the old $25,000 thresholds. For estates where the decedent died on or after May 8, 2025 — and for ongoing estates where key determinations are made after that date — the $45,000 thresholds apply.

If the decedent died in 2024 or early 2025, confirm which threshold applied to the specific action you're taking.

Who Benefits from Act 26

The families who gain most are those with estates in the $25,001-$45,000 range. Before May 2025, those estates required full probate: a personal representative appointment, an eight-month creditor waiting period, newspaper publication costs, possible bond premiums, and months of paperwork. Total costs could easily reach $1,000-$3,000 even without an attorney.

Those same families can now file a single affidavit and access funds within weeks.

Surviving spouses benefit on two fronts: the small estate threshold expands access to the simplified affidavit, and the exempt property increase means more household assets are automatically protected before any distributions or creditor claims are resolved.

Heirs to modest estates benefit most directly from the affidavit threshold change.

A Critical Threshold That Did NOT Change

One important number stayed at $25,000: the Medicaid Estate Recovery threshold. The South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services will not file a recovery claim against estates valued at $25,000 or less. That figure was not raised by Act 26.

This creates a gap that families must understand. An estate valued at $35,000 now qualifies for the simplified small estate affidavit — but it's still above the Medicaid recovery threshold. If the decedent received Medicaid-funded long-term care after age 55, SCDHHS can still pursue a claim against that estate. Heirs using the Form 420ES affidavit should verify Medicaid status with the department before distributing anything.

Forms Affected

Several South Carolina probate forms reference the thresholds Act 26 changed:

• Form 420ES (Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property): Now available for estates up to $45,000 in personal property
• Form 435ES (Exempt Property Claim): Allowance now reflects $45,000
• Form 421ES (Verified Statement to Close Estate / Summary Administration): Threshold-based eligibility uses the updated $45,000 figure

Always download forms directly from the probate court where you're filing or from the South Carolina Judicial Department's official website. Many third-party sources still show old thresholds.

What Act 26 Did Not Change

To be clear about scope: Act 26 was a targeted adjustment, not a comprehensive reform. The following remained unchanged:

• Full probate requirements for estates above $45,000
• The 10-year deadline to open probate (§62-3-108)
• The 30-day will filing requirement
• The 90-day inventory deadline (Form 350ES)
• Bond requirements
• The family allowance amount
• The homestead exemption
• Medicaid estate recovery threshold

For a complete guide to South Carolina probate — including how the post-Act 26 thresholds affect your specific options — the South Carolina Probate Process Guide covers the current law with updated figures throughout.

See more South Carolina guides →