New Mexico Probate Information
Quick facts
| Category | Current rules |
|---|---|
| Courts | New Mexico runs two probate forums side by side in every one of its 33 counties, and choosing between them is the first decision a family makes. There is a county probate court in each county, and there is a district court for the judicial district that county sits in. The New Mexico judiciary counts both: its own description of the branch reads that it consists of the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, 34 district courts and 43 magistrate courts in 13 judicial districts, the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court, 33 county probate courts, and 78 municipal courts. The county probate court is a county office within that judicial branch, funded by the county (NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-4), and it can do informal probate only. The district court is a state court and has exclusive original jurisdiction over everything formal or contested (Section 45-1-302(A)) |
| Which court handles what | Section 45-1-302(C) gives the probate court and the district court both original jurisdiction over informal proceedings for probate of a will or appointment of a personal representative, and Section 45-1-302.1 confirms that "the district courts have concurrent jurisdiction with the probate courts in each county within their respective judicial district as to all matters concerning informal probate." Everything else is district court only: formal testacy and formal appointment proceedings, construction of wills, determination of heirs and successors, supervised administration, formal distribution and closing of estates (an informal closing statement under Section 45-3-1003 is filed with the appointing court, which can be the probate court), protected persons and minors, survivorship accounts, disclaimers, apportionment of estate taxes, and governing instruments other than wills (Section 45-1-302(A)). Section 45-1-302(B) also puts the power to determine title to and value of real or personal property, as between the estate and any interested person including strangers claiming adversely, in the district court in formal proceedings |
| Judge and filing office | The county probate judge is an elected county official and the position is a part-time one: "There shall be a probate judge in each county of this state, and each county is a probate court district," and "the position of probate judge is a part-time position" (Section 34-7-1, effective July 1, 2023). A probate judge is elected at each general election at which the governor is elected (Section 34-7-2), so all 33 seats are on the November 3, 2026 ballot. Unless a county has provided otherwise, "the county clerk of each county is designated as the clerk of the probate court in that county" (Section 34-7-22(A)), which is why the practical filing counter in most counties is the county clerk's office; a board of county commissioners may create a separate clerk of the probate court by ordinance (Section 34-7-22(B)). The probate court sits at the county seat unless the commission designates another location, and its hours are set by its clerk and published on the county's website (Sections 34-7-4(A), 34-7-8). The district court's filing office is the Clerk of the District Court |
| Governing code | The New Mexico Uniform Probate Code (NMSA 1978, Chapter 45), together with the Probate Court Rules (Rules 1B-101 to 1B-701 NMRA), the statewide Probate Court Forms (Forms 4B-101 to 4B-1001 NMRA), the Rules of Civil Procedure for the District Courts for a formal case, and each district's own local rules, cited as LR2-603 NMRA and the like. Court structure and fees are in Chapter 34 |
| Filing venue | The county where the person lived. Venue for the first informal or formal testacy or appointment proceeding after a death is in the county where the decedent had a domicile at the time of death, or, if the decedent was not domiciled in New Mexico, in any county where property of the decedent was located at the time of death (Section 45-3-201(A)). Venue for later proceedings stays where the initial proceeding occurred (Section 45-3-201(B)), and where the first proceeding was informal, the district court in that place may transfer the proceeding and the file to a court where venue is proper (Section 45-3-201(C)). Where a proceeding could be maintained in more than one place, the court where it is first commenced has the exclusive right to proceed (Section 45-1-303(A)) |
| Judicial districts | Thirteen, covering the 33 counties (Section 34-6-1). Eleven of the thirteen cover more than one county, which is an administrative fact and not a venue rule: the principal office of each district judge is at a county seat within the district as provided by rule of the district court, and additional offices may be established (Section 34-6-17). You still file in the county where venue lies, never "in the district," though in some multi-county districts the district clerk who accepts the papers sits in another county of the district (see the county pages for where filings are actually taken). New Mexico district courts number their judges by division under Section 34-6-18, and a division is a judge slot, not a subject-matter department, so no New Mexico district court has a probate department |
| Representative and authority | Personal representative is the New Mexico statutory term and Chapter 45 uses it throughout; Section 45-1-201(37) provides that it includes executor, administrator, successor personal representative and special administrator, so executor and administrator are correct informal usages. A person must be appointed by order of the district court or probate court, qualify, and be issued letters, and "administration of an estate is commenced by the issuance of letters" (Section 45-3-103). Qualification means filing any required bond and a statement of acceptance of the duties of the office with the appointing court (Section 45-3-601). The court issues letters testamentary where there is a will (Form 4B-307 NMRA) or letters of administration where there is none (Form 4B-306 NMRA). A pre-appointment fiduciary is a special administrator (Forms 4B-901 to 4B-904 NMRA), and the person who signs a small-estate affidavit is a claiming successor |
| Probate paths | Informal probate of a will and informal appointment of a personal representative, which may be filed in either forum (Sections 45-1-302(C), 45-1-302.1); formal testacy and formal appointment proceedings, district court only (Section 45-1-302(A)); supervised administration, district court only and exceptional (Section 45-3-501); the summary administrative procedure for an estate that does not exceed the allowances and expenses (Section 45-3-1203); collection of personal property by affidavit (Section 45-3-1201); the surviving spouse's homestead affidavit (Section 45-3-1205); and transfers that never enter the estate, including joint tenancy, a recorded transfer on death deed, payable on death bank accounts and brokerage accounts with a death beneficiary |
| Waiting period | Nothing can be issued for the first 120 hours. The court "shall issue a written statement of informal probate if at least one hundred twenty hours have elapsed since the decedent's death" (Section 45-3-302), and the same 120 hours applies to an informal appointment (Section 45-3-307(A)). Where the decedent was a nonresident, the court must delay the order of appointment until thirty days have elapsed since death, unless the personal representative appointed at the decedent's domicile is the applicant or the will directs that the estate be subject to New Mexico law (Section 45-3-307(A)) |
| Outer time limit | Three years. No informal probate or appointment proceeding, and no formal testacy or appointment proceeding, may be commenced more than three years after the decedent's death (Section 45-3-108(A)), subject to five exceptions. Two matter to families: a contest of an informally probated will may be brought within the later of twelve months from the informal probate or three years from the death (Section 45-3-108(A)(3)); and where nothing happened in the three-year window, a late proceeding is still available, but the personal representative has no right to possess estate assets beyond what is necessary to confirm title in the successors, and claims other than expenses of administration may not be presented (Section 45-3-108(A)(4)). The limits do not apply to proceedings to construe probated wills or determine heirs of an intestate (Section 45-3-108(B)) |
| Notice | Informal means no notice before the fact. Notice of an application for informal probate goes only to a person who demanded it under Section 45-3-204 and to any un-terminated personal representative, and "no other notice of informal probate is required" (Section 45-3-306(A)). Within 30 days after an informal probate is granted, the applicant gives written information of the probate to the heirs and devisees (Section 45-3-306(B)). Separately, not later than thirty days after appointment every personal representative except a special administrator gives notice of the appointment to the heirs and devisees, stating whether bond has been filed and describing the court where the papers are on file, and then files a statement with the appointing court giving the names and addresses of those notified (Section 45-3-705, Forms 4B-401 and 4B-402 NMRA) |
| Inventory | Prepared within three months, and normally not filed. Within three months after appointment the personal representative prepares an inventory of property owned by the decedent at the time of death, with each item's estimated value as of the date of death and any encumbrance (Section 45-3-706(A)). The personal representative must send a copy to interested persons who request it, and "may also file the original of the inventory with the appropriate court" (Section 45-3-706(B)). Filing is permissive, not required. The statewide form is Form 4B-601 NMRA |
| Notice to creditors | Permissive, and published for three successive weeks. A personal representative upon appointment may publish a notice to creditors once a week for three successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the proceeding is pending, notifying creditors to present claims within four months after the date of first publication or be forever barred (Section 45-3-801(A)). Written notice by mail or other delivery to an individual creditor gives that creditor the later of the four months from publication or sixty days from the mailing (Section 45-3-801(B)), and the personal representative is not liable to anyone for giving or failing to give notice (Section 45-3-801(C)). The statute says may, not shall: publication is a tool for cutting claims off early. The statewide form is Form 4B-501 NMRA |
| Creditor claim bar | One year after the death, whatever else happens. Claims that arose before the death are barred unless presented within the earlier of one year after the decedent's death or the periods that run from a Section 45-3-801 notice (Section 45-3-803(A)). The one-year outer bar runs whether or not any notice was ever published. Claims arising at or after the death run on their own clock: a claim on a contract with the personal representative within four months after performance is due, and any other claim within the later of four months after it arises or that time (Section 45-3-803(C)) |
| Closing | No earlier than six months. A personal representative may close an estate by filing with the court, no earlier than six months after the date of original appointment of a general personal representative, a verified statement that the claim period has expired, that the estate has been fully administered and distributed, and that a copy and a full written account have gone to the distributees and to unpaid, unbarred creditors (Section 45-3-1003(A), as amended by Laws 2016, chapter 69, Section 720). If no proceedings involving the personal representative are pending in the district court one year after the closing statement is filed, the appointment terminates (Section 45-3-1003(B)). The statewide form is Form 4B-701 NMRA. Any source that says three months is pre-2016 and wrong. A formal order of complete settlement is district court only (Section 45-3-1001) |
| Court accounting | Outside supervised administration there is no routine annual court accounting in New Mexico. A supervised personal representative must file an account with the district court not less than annually (Section 45-3-505(C)) and may not distribute without a prior court order (Section 45-3-504), but supervised administration is exceptional (Sections 45-3-501, 45-3-502). Form 4B-602 NMRA exists for an accounting where one is needed |
| Small estate by affidavit | Thirty days after the death, a person holding personal property of the decedent must pay or deliver it to a claiming successor who presents an affidavit stating that the value of the entire estate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $50,000, that thirty days have elapsed, that no application or petition for appointment of a personal representative is pending or has been granted anywhere, and that the claiming successor is entitled to the property (NMSA 1978, Section 45-3-1201(A), as amended effective January 1, 2012). A transfer agent must change registered ownership of a security on the same affidavit (Section 45-3-1201(B)). It "may not be used to perfect title to real estate" (Section 45-3-1201(C)). It is presented to the bank or transfer agent, never filed with a court, and there is no court fee and no statewide 4B form for it |
| Homestead affidavit | Where spouses owned a homestead as community property and one dies intestate, or dies testate devising that interest to the survivor, the homestead passes to the survivor and no probate or administration is necessary (NMSA 1978, Section 45-3-1205(A)). Six months after the death the surviving spouse may record an affidavit with the county clerk in the county where the homestead is located (Section 45-3-1205(B)). The ceiling is measured on assessed value, not market value: the definition requires that "the full value of this property as assessed for property taxation purposes does not exceed five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000)" (Section 45-3-1205(C), as amended effective July 1, 2011) |
| Allowances | A surviving spouse is entitled to a family allowance of $30,000, and if there is no surviving spouse each minor child and each dependent child takes $30,000 divided by the number of those children; the family allowance is exempt from and has priority over all claims against the estate (NMSA 1978, Section 45-2-402, effective July 1, 1995). In addition, the surviving spouse is entitled to a personal property allowance of up to $15,000 in excess of any security interests, in household furniture, automobiles, furnishings, appliances and personal effects, and if there is no surviving spouse the decedent's children take the same value jointly (Section 45-2-403). New Mexico has no homestead allowance: the phrase appears nowhere in Chapter 45, and Section 45-2-404 is reserved |
| Filing fee | New Mexico has two filing fees because it has two forums. A case filed in the county probate court costs $30: "Clerks of the probate courts shall receive a filing fee of thirty dollars ($30.00) for each probate case" (NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-14, repealed and reenacted by Laws 2023, chapter 44, Section 11, effective July 1, 2023). A case filed in the district court is docketed as a civil case, and the statutory docket fee is $117 (Section 34-6-40(A), effective July 1, 2009); a judicial district that has established an alternative dispute resolution program adds $15 (Section 34-6-45(A)), so the amount most New Mexico district courts collect is $132. Confirm the current total with the clerk before you file. If a case was properly filed within the jurisdiction of the probate court and is later transferred to the district court, no filing fee is charged in the district court (NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-10(B), effective July 1, 2023) |
| Fee waiver | New Mexico calls it free process, not a fee waiver motion. "The district court may grant free process to any party in any civil or criminal action or special statutory proceeding upon a proper showing of indigency" (NMSA 1978, Section 34-6-27(B)). In the county probate court the statewide forms are Form 4B-201 NMRA, an affidavit of poverty and indigency, and Form 4B-202 NMRA, an order allowing free process. In the district court the route is Rule 23-114 NMRA on Forms 4-222, 4-223 and 4-224 NMRA, with a presumption of indigency for current recipients of public assistance and an alternative showing that annual gross income does not exceed 185 percent of the federal poverty guidelines |
| State estate tax | New Mexico does not collect an estate tax on deaths on or after January 1, 2005, but the Act was never repealed, so the accurate statement is a two-part one. The Estate Tax Act (NMSA 1978, Sections 7-7-1 to 7-7-12) is still on the books and imposes a tax equal to the federal credit for state death taxes under Internal Revenue Code Section 2011, a credit that has been zero for deaths after 2004, so the tax computes to zero. The Taxation and Revenue Department describes the tax as phased out due to federal tax law changes as of January 1, 2005, and its live Estate Tax page still states that residents and nonresidents are subject to the Act and that where there is a federal requirement to file a federal estate tax return the personal representative must also file a state return, on Form RPD-41058, so the department can issue a certificate of no tax due. Source: the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department, tax.newmexico.gov, verified July 2026 |
| State inheritance tax | None. New Mexico does not impose an inheritance tax, so no state tax turns on a beneficiary's relationship to the decedent and no tax waiver or consent to transfer is needed to move an account. New Mexico did have an inheritance and transfer tax historically, superseded by the Estate Tax Act when it took effect in 1973 (3.8.1.9 NMAC), so the correct statement is that none applies now rather than that none ever existed |
| Statewide forms | Yes, and they are good. The Supreme Court approves the 4B series, Forms 4B-101 to 4B-1001 NMRA, and the New Mexico Courts publish all 24 of them free at nmcourts.gov/forms-files/probate/, along with a plain-language guide and a Diné translation. They cover the informal probate court case end to end. Most counties publish nothing of their own; a few sell a printed packet. Cite them as Form 4B-302 NMRA and the matching rules as Rule 1B-102 NMRA |
| E-filing | The district courts have real statewide e-filing and the county probate courts have none. The district court system is Tyler Technologies' Odyssey File & Serve, branded by the courts as eFile & Serve, and the New Mexico Courts state that civil case e-filing "is available and mandatory for attorneys" at the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals (Rule 12-307.2 NMRA), the district courts (Rule 1-005.2 NMRA), the magistrate courts (Rule 2-205 NMRA) and the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court (Rule 3-205 NMRA). Self-represented filers are prohibited from using it: "Self-represented parties are prohibited from electronically filing documents and shall continue to file documents through traditional methods" (Rule 1-005.2(B)(1) NMRA), and the clerk converts a paper filing into electronic format for the filer (Rule 1-005.2(I)(2)). The probate courts are outside the system entirely, because the rule defines the electronic filing system as the one approved for use by the district courts and the Probate Court Rules contain no electronic-filing rule. Probate court filing is paper, at the counter or by mail |
| Case search | Case Lookup at caselookup.nmcourts.gov is the free public tool and it covers Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, District Court, Magistrate Court and Municipal Court data. Its court-type filter offers District, Magistrate, Metropolitan and Municipal only; there is no probate court option, and it is an index with no document images. County probate court cases are not in any statewide system: the Bernalillo County Probate Court says so in its own words, that its database "only contains records for cases filed in the Bernalillo County Probate Court" and that "each county has its own probate court, and other counties' probate court records are not available on line." For a probate court file or a certified copy, ask the county clerk's office. Registered users can also reach district court probate dockets through re:Search NM, which replaced Secured Odyssey Public Access on April 7, 2023 |
Before you begin — know the assets and liabilities
New Mexico probate turns on three questions the family should answer before anything is filed. First, what does the estate consist of and how is each asset titled, because property in joint tenancy, real estate covered by a recorded transfer on death deed, bank accounts with a payable on death designation and brokerage accounts with a death beneficiary all pass outside probate and never enter the estate. Second, what is the whole estate worth, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, because that single figure decides whether a bank will release an account on a Section 45-3-1201 affidavit without any court case at all: the ceiling is $50,000 measured against the entire estate, not against the one account you are trying to collect (NMSA 1978, Section 45-3-1201(A)). Third, does anyone disagree, because agreement is what keeps a case in the cheap forum.
Two New Mexico specifics reward getting this right early. A surviving spouse who owned the family home with the decedent as community property may not need probate for the house at all, if the assessed value for property tax purposes does not exceed $500,000 and the other conditions in Section 45-3-1205 are met; the route is an affidavit recorded with the county clerk six months after the death, not a court filing. And the choice of forum is a real choice: an informal, uncontested probate can be opened in either the county probate court for $30 (Section 34-7-14) or the district court for $117 plus, in districts with an alternative dispute resolution program, $15 (Sections 34-6-40(A), 34-6-45(A)). If a case was properly filed within the jurisdiction of the probate court and is later transferred to the district court, no filing fee is charged in the district court (NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-10(B), effective July 1, 2023), so starting in the probate court costs nothing if the case later has to move up. Identify every asset and debt and confirm how each asset is titled and valued first. Sunset's asset-discovery work, searching more than 2,300 financial institutions, exists for this step.
Which court handles probate
New Mexico is the dual-forum state. Every one of its 33 counties has two courts that can open a probate, and they exist side by side rather than one replacing the other. The county probate court is a county office within the judicial branch, funded by the county (NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-4), sitting at the county seat unless the board of county commissioners designates another location, with an elected part-time probate judge (Section 34-7-1) whose clerk is normally the county clerk (Section 34-7-22(A)). It can do informal probate only. The district court for that county's judicial district is a state court, and it can do everything: it has exclusive original jurisdiction over formal proceedings with respect to decedents' estates, including determinations of testacy, appointment of personal representatives, construction of wills, determination of heirs and successors, and formal distribution and closing of estates, and over disclaimers, apportionment of estate taxes and governing instruments other than wills (Section 45-1-302(A)). It is also the only court that can determine title to and value of real or personal property as between the estate and any interested person, including strangers to the estate claiming adversely (Section 45-1-302(B)).
For an informal case the two forums genuinely overlap. Section 45-1-302(C) says that "the probate court and the district court have original jurisdiction over informal proceedings for probate of a will or appointment of a personal representative," and Section 45-1-302.1 says that "the district courts have concurrent jurisdiction with the probate courts in each county within their respective judicial district as to all matters concerning informal probate." In practice most families use the county probate court, because it costs $30 rather than $132 (Sections 34-7-14, 34-6-40(A), 34-6-45(A)), the county clerk is used to walk-in filers, and there is no e-filing hurdle. Informal in New Mexico means without notice and without a hearing before the case opens, not casual: Section 45-1-201(25) defines informal proceedings as those conducted without notice to interested persons, except as provided in Section 45-3-306. A personal representative appointed informally by a probate court holds the same office and the same powers as one appointed by a district court, including the power over title to estate property that an absolute owner would have, exercisable without notice, hearing or order of court (Section 45-3-711(A)). What the probate court cannot do is litigate a dispute about that title.
Cases move up, and New Mexico has written down exactly when. Rule 1B-101(B)(2) NMRA requires a probate court case to be transferred to district court under Rule 1B-701 NMRA if a formal appointment of a personal representative is requested, if a formal closing of the estate or administration is required by the Probate Code or requested by any interested party, if a contest arises as to the administration of an estate or the probate of a will, if a determination of testacy or heirship is requested by any interested party, if a hearing is required to determine a matter involving the estate, or if transfer is requested by any interested party or ordered by the probate judge. Section 34-7-18(B) and (C) add two more triggers, where federal law requires distribution to the estate and there is no other estate account, and where a will requires a bond to be deposited with the court. A disqualified or interested probate judge must transfer as well (Section 34-7-9), and a pending formal testacy proceeding freezes the probate court, which "shall not act upon any application for informal probate" while it is pending (Section 45-3-401(C)). The probate or district court may also decline an application for informal appointment for any reason, which is not an adjudication and does not preclude a formal appointment (Section 45-3-309). The transfer is made on Form 4B-1001 NMRA, and if a case was properly filed within the jurisdiction of the probate court and is later transferred to the district court, no filing fee is charged in the district court (Section 34-7-10(B)).
Venue is the county where the person lived. Venue for the first informal or formal testacy or appointment proceeding after a death is in the county where the decedent had a domicile at the time of death, or, if the decedent was not domiciled in New Mexico, in any county where property of the decedent was located at the time of death (Section 45-3-201(A)). The non-domiciliary rule is not an option for a New Mexico resident's estate. Venue for all subsequent proceedings stays where the initial proceeding occurred unless it is transferred (Section 45-3-201(B)), and where the first proceeding was informal, the district court in that place may on petition transfer the proceeding and the file to a court where venue is proper (Section 45-3-201(C)). Where a proceeding could be maintained in more than one place, the court in which it is first commenced has the exclusive right to proceed, and duplicate proceedings are held in abeyance until venue is decided (Section 45-1-303(A) and (B)).
New Mexico's 33 counties are grouped into 13 judicial districts (Section 34-6-1). Eleven of the thirteen cover more than one county. That grouping is administrative, not a venue rule: the principal office of each district judge is at a county seat within the district as provided by rule of the district court, and an additional office may be established where the convenience of the public is better served (Section 34-6-17). Some multi-county districts staff a clerk's office in only one of their counties and route all filings there, so check the district's own page for which counter takes filings for your county. This knowledge base has a separate page for each of the 33 counties, because the courthouse, the counter, the hours, the payment methods and the local practice differ even though the statutes do not.
| Judicial district | Counties it covers |
|---|---|
| First Judicial District Court | Santa Fe, Rio Arriba, Los Alamos |
| Second Judicial District Court | Bernalillo |
| Third Judicial District Court | Doña Ana |
| Fourth Judicial District Court | Guadalupe, San Miguel, Mora |
| Fifth Judicial District Court | Eddy, Chaves, Lea |
| Sixth Judicial District Court | Grant, Luna, Hidalgo |
| Seventh Judicial District Court | Socorro, Torrance, Sierra, Catron |
| Eighth Judicial District Court | Taos, Colfax, Union |
| Ninth Judicial District Court | Curry, Roosevelt |
| Tenth Judicial District Court | Quay, De Baca, Harding |
| Eleventh Judicial District Court | McKinley, San Juan |
| Twelfth Judicial District Court | Otero, Lincoln |
| Thirteenth Judicial District Court | Cibola, Sandoval, Valencia |
The probate process
- Wait out the first 120 hours, and gather the two documents the court must have. No written statement of informal probate and no informal appointment can issue until at least one hundred twenty hours have elapsed since the death (NMSA 1978, Sections 45-3-302, 45-3-307(A)); if the decedent was a nonresident, the appointment order waits thirty days unless the domiciliary personal representative is the applicant or the will directs New Mexico law. Meanwhile obtain certified copies of the death certificate and locate the original will. The original, duly executed and apparently unrevoked will must be in the court's possession before it can be informally probated (Section 45-3-303(A)(5)), and a will with the required signatures and an attestation clause showing execution under Section 45-2-502 or 45-2-506 "shall be probated without further proof" (Section 45-3-303(C)).
- Work out whether you need a probate at all. Property in joint tenancy, real estate covered by a recorded transfer on death deed, payable on death bank accounts and brokerage accounts with a death beneficiary pass outside the estate. Personal property may be collectable thirty days after the death on an affidavit stating that the entire estate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $50,000 (Section 45-3-1201); that affidavit goes to the bank or transfer agent, not to a court. A surviving spouse who held the home as community property may be able to record a homestead affidavit with the county clerk six months after the death instead of probating it, if assessed value for property tax purposes does not exceed $500,000 and the other conditions are met (Section 45-3-1205).
- Choose the forum. For an informal, uncontested case you may file in either the county probate court or the district court for your judicial district (Sections 45-1-302(C), 45-1-302.1). Most families use the county probate court because it is $30 rather than $132 (Sections 34-7-14, 34-6-40(A), 34-6-45(A)) and takes paper at the counter. Go straight to the district court if you already know the case is formal or contested: a will contest, a determination of heirs, a formal appointment, supervised administration, a dispute about who owns something, or any matter needing a hearing belongs there under Section 45-1-302(A) and Rule 1B-101(B)(2) NMRA.
- Confirm venue and the county's filing counter. File in the county where the decedent had a domicile at the time of death, or, for a non-resident, in any New Mexico county where the decedent owned property at death (Section 45-3-201(A)). In most counties the probate court's clerk is the county clerk (Section 34-7-22(A)), so that is the counter, and the county's probate court hours are set by the clerk and published on the county's website (Section 34-7-8); in a small county the probate judge may be seen by appointment only, which is consistent with the part-time office (Section 34-7-1(B)). Check the county page in this knowledge base and the county's own site for the address, the hours and the payee.
- Prepare the application on the statewide forms. Use Form 4B-302 NMRA where there is a will, an application for informal probate of the will and for informal appointment of a personal representative, or Form 4B-301 NMRA where there is none. Applications must be directed to the probate or district court and verified by the applicant to be accurate and complete (Section 45-3-301(A)). The application states your interest; the decedent's name, date of death, age and county and state of domicile at death; the names and addresses of the spouse, children, heirs and devisees, with ages for minors; a venue statement if the decedent was not domiciled in New Mexico; whether any personal representative has been appointed anywhere; whether a demand for notice has been received; and that the three-year limit has not run. By verifying it you submit personally to the jurisdiction of the court in any proceeding for relief from fraud or for perjury (Section 45-3-301(G)). Form 4B-101 NMRA is the court's own flow chart of the whole case.
- File on paper and pay the fee. The county probate courts are entirely outside e-filing, so the application, the original will and the death certificate go to the counter or in the mail, and an out-of-state filer has to mail or deliver the original will physically. The probate court fee is $30 for each probate case (Section 34-7-14). If you file in the district court instead, the docket fee is $117 (Section 34-6-40(A)) plus $15 in a judicial district with an alternative dispute resolution program (Section 34-6-45(A)), commonly $132 in total, and you still file on paper, because "self-represented parties are prohibited from electronically filing documents and shall continue to file documents through traditional methods" (Rule 1-005.2(B)(1) NMRA); the clerk converts your paper filing into electronic format (Rule 1-005.2(I)(2)). Several districts refuse personal checks, so confirm the payment methods and the payee before you go. If you cannot pay, ask for free process: Forms 4B-201 and 4B-202 NMRA in the probate court, and Rule 23-114 NMRA on Forms 4-222, 4-223 and 4-224 NMRA in the district court.
- Qualify and receive the letters. The court makes the findings required by Section 45-3-303 or Section 45-3-308, issues its order (Form 4B-303 or 4B-304 NMRA), and, once you file your acceptance of appointment (Form 4B-305 NMRA) and any required bond, issues letters of administration (Form 4B-306 NMRA) or letters testamentary (Form 4B-307 NMRA). Administration of the estate is commenced by the issuance of letters (Section 45-3-103), and qualification means filing that bond and statement of acceptance with the appointing court (Section 45-3-601). Order several certified copies; banks, brokerages and title companies keep them. Note that the court may decline an informal appointment for any reason, which is not an adjudication and leaves a formal appointment open (Section 45-3-309).
- Send the notices within 30 days. If an informal probate was granted and no personal representative with a Section 45-3-705 duty was appointed, the applicant gives written information of the probate to the heirs and devisees within 30 days, naming the applicant, the court and the date (Section 45-3-306(B)). A personal representative must, not later than thirty days after appointment, give notice of the appointment to the heirs and devisees, stating the representative's name and address, that the recipient has or may have an interest, whether bond has been filed, and where the papers are on file, and adding that the estate is administered without court supervision but that recipients may request information and may petition the court (Section 45-3-705(A) to (D), Form 4B-401 NMRA). Then file the statement of who was notified with the appointing court (Section 45-3-705(E), Form 4B-402 NMRA).
- Prepare the inventory within three months. Within three months after appointment, prepare an inventory of property owned by the decedent at the time of death, listed in reasonable detail with each item's estimated value as of the date of death and the type and amount of any encumbrance (Section 45-3-706(A), Form 4B-601 NMRA). Send a copy to interested persons who request it; you may also file the original with the court, but you are not required to (Section 45-3-706(B)). Do not assume a 90-day court filing deadline: the period is three months and the filing is optional.
- Decide whether to publish a creditor notice, and watch the one-year bar either way. Publication is permissive. You may publish a notice to creditors once a week for three successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the proceeding is pending, which cuts creditors off four months after the first publication (Section 45-3-801(A)), and you may mail written notice to a known creditor, which gives that creditor the later of that four months or sixty days from the mailing (Section 45-3-801(B)). You are not liable to anyone for giving or failing to give notice (Section 45-3-801(C)). Independently of any of that, pre-death claims are barred unless presented within the earlier of one year after the death or the Section 45-3-801 periods (Section 45-3-803(A)). Publishing is worth it when you want certainty sooner; the statewide form is Form 4B-501 NMRA.
- Pay the allowances, then the claims, then distribute. The surviving spouse's family allowance of $30,000 is exempt from and has priority over all claims against the estate (Section 45-2-402), and the personal property allowance of up to $15,000 in household furniture, automobiles, furnishings, appliances and personal effects comes on top of it (Section 45-2-403). New Mexico has no homestead allowance. If the inventory and appraisal show that the entire estate, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed the family allowance, the personal property allowance, costs and expenses of administration, the reasonable and necessary medical and hospital expenses of the last illness and reasonable funeral expenses, you may distribute immediately without giving notice to creditors and close under the summary procedure (Sections 45-3-1203, 45-3-1204, Form 4B-702 NMRA).
- Deal with real property by deed, not by court order. A personal representative has the same power over the title to estate property that an absolute owner would have, and that power may be exercised without notice, hearing or order of court (Section 45-3-711(A)). New Mexico real estate is conveyed out of the decedent's name by a personal representative's deed, recorded with the county clerk in the county where the land lies. Deeds are easy to get wrong, and the New Mexico Courts' own probate guide suggests hiring an attorney for this part. If someone disputes who owns the property, that dispute cannot be decided in the probate court: title as between the estate and an adverse claimant is determined by the district court in formal proceedings (Section 45-1-302(B)).
- Handle the taxes. File the decedent's final Form PIT-1 New Mexico Personal Income Tax Return, attaching a copy of the death certificate, and file Form FID-1 New Mexico Fiduciary Income Tax Return if the estate itself has income. New Mexico does not collect an estate tax on deaths on or after January 1, 2005 and does not impose an inheritance tax; only an estate that is required to file a federal Form 706 is asked to file New Mexico Form RPD-41058 so the Taxation and Revenue Department can issue a certificate of no tax due. A federal return is required only above the federal exclusion, $15 million per individual for deaths in 2026 (Internal Revenue Service Revenue Procedure 2025-32, Public Law 119-21).
- Close no earlier than six months after your appointment. File a verified closing statement with the court, no earlier than six months after the date of original appointment of a general personal representative, stating that the time limited for presentation of creditors' claims has expired, that you have fully administered the estate by paying or settling all presented claims, expenses of administration and death taxes and distributing the assets to the persons entitled, and that you have sent a copy to all distributees and to all unpaid, unbarred creditors along with a full written account (Section 45-3-1003(A), Form 4B-701 NMRA). If no proceedings involving you are pending in the district court one year after the closing statement is filed, your appointment terminates (Section 45-3-1003(B)). A formal order of complete settlement, which discharges the personal representative from further claim or demand of any interested person, is available only in the district court (Section 45-3-1001).
Types of probate
New Mexico's probate paths are statewide, set by the New Mexico Uniform Probate Code (NMSA 1978, Chapter 45), and they work the same way in every county. What differs by county is not the path but the counter. Which path fits turns on four things: whether anyone disagrees, whether there is a will, what the whole estate is worth wherever located, and whether real estate has to move. The first question is the one that picks the forum, because the county probate court can handle informal matters only and everything formal or contested is exclusive to the district court (Sections 45-1-302(A) and (C), 45-1-302.1).
| Path | When used | Which court | Statute |
|---|---|---|---|
| Informal probate of a will and informal appointment of a personal representative | The common path where there is a will and nobody disputes it. The applicant files a verified application (Form 4B-302 NMRA) with the original will and a death certificate, at least 120 hours after the death. There is no notice beforehand and no hearing: the case is decided on the papers, and the court issues a written statement of informal probate plus an order appointing the personal representative, followed by letters testamentary (Form 4B-307 NMRA). | Either the county probate court or the district court | Sections 45-3-301, 45-3-302, 45-3-303, 45-1-302(C) |
| Informal appointment of a personal representative with no will | The same path for an intestate estate. The application is Form 4B-301 NMRA, the order is Form 4B-303 NMRA, and the authority document is letters of administration (Form 4B-306 NMRA). Appointment priority is the same whether the proceedings are formal or informal: a person with priority under a probated will, then the surviving spouse who is a devisee, then other devisees, then the surviving spouse, then other heirs, then, forty-five days after the death, any creditor. | Either the county probate court or the district court | Sections 45-3-307, 45-3-308, 45-3-203(A) |
| Formal testacy proceeding | Litigation to determine whether the decedent left a valid will. It is commenced by petition, with notice to interested persons and a hearing before a district judge, and it may be used to probate a will formally, to set aside or prevent an informal probate, or to obtain an order that the decedent died intestate. While it is pending the probate court may not act on any application for informal probate or informal appointment. | District court only | Sections 45-1-302(A)(1), 45-3-401, 45-3-402 |
| Formal appointment proceeding, determination of heirs, and will construction | Used where the appointment itself is disputed, where someone without priority should serve, where the heirs have to be determined, or where the will needs construing. An objection to an appointment may be made only in formal proceedings, and appointment of a person who does not have priority may be made only in formal proceedings. | District court only | Sections 45-1-302(A)(1), 45-3-203(B) and (E), 45-3-414 |
| Supervised administration | The exceptional route, and rare. It is a single in rem proceeding to secure complete administration and settlement of the estate under the continuing authority of the district court, which extends until an order approving distribution and discharging the personal representative. It is mandatory where the will directs it, available against a will directing unsupervised administration only on a finding that it is necessary to protect interested persons, and otherwise where the court finds it necessary. A supervised personal representative may not distribute without a prior court order and must file an account with the court not less than annually. | District court only | Sections 45-3-501, 45-3-502, 45-3-504, 45-3-505(C) |
| Summary administrative procedure | A way of finishing a small estate quickly, and it has no dollar threshold. The test is relative: if it appears from the inventory and appraisal that the value of the entire estate, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed the family allowance, the personal property allowance, costs and expenses of administration, reasonable and necessary medical and hospital expenses of the last illness and reasonable funeral expenses, the personal representative may distribute immediately without giving notice to creditors. It presupposes an opened case and an appointed personal representative, so it is not a way of avoiding probate. | Either court, inside an already opened case | Sections 45-3-1203, 45-3-1204 (Form 4B-702 NMRA) |
| Special administration | A stopgap where someone must act before a personal representative can be appointed and qualify. A special administrator may be appointed informally on Form 4B-901 NMRA, with the order at Form 4B-902 NMRA, the acceptance at Form 4B-903 NMRA and letters of special administration at Form 4B-904 NMRA. A special administrator is excluded from the Section 45-3-705 notice duty and from the Section 45-3-706 inventory duty. | Either the county probate court or the district court | Section 45-3-614; Forms 4B-901 to 4B-904 NMRA |
| Collection of personal property by affidavit | New Mexico's true small-estate route for personal property. Thirty days after the death, anyone indebted to the decedent or holding tangible personal property or an instrument evidencing a debt, obligation, stock or chose in action must pay or deliver it to a claiming successor who presents an affidavit stating that the value of the entire estate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $50,000, that thirty days have elapsed, that no application or petition for appointment of a personal representative is pending or has been granted in any jurisdiction, and that the claiming successor is entitled to the property. A transfer agent must re-register a security on the same affidavit. It cannot be used to perfect title to real estate. | No court at all: presented to the bank, employer or transfer agent | Section 45-3-1201 |
| Homestead affidavit for a surviving spouse | Where spouses owned a homestead as community property and one dies intestate, or dies testate devising that interest to the survivor, the homestead passes to the survivor and no probate or administration is necessary. Six months after the death the surviving spouse records an affidavit with the county clerk in the county where the homestead is located, covering ten listed points including that no personal representative has been appointed anywhere, that funeral expenses, expenses of last illness and all unsecured debts have been paid, and that no federal or state tax is due. The ceiling is assessed value for property tax purposes, not market value: it must not exceed $500,000. | No court: recorded with the county clerk | Sections 45-3-1205, 45-3-1206 |
| Transfers that never enter the estate | Assets that pass by their own terms with no ceiling: real estate held in joint tenancy, real estate with a recorded transfer on death deed, bank accounts with a payable on death designation, brokerage accounts with a death beneficiary designation, and life insurance and retirement accounts with a living beneficiary. These are the four routes the New Mexico Courts' own probate guide names. Confirming how each asset is titled is the first thing a family should do, because it often shrinks the estate enough to change which of the paths above applies. | No court | Non-probate transfers; New Mexico Courts probate guide |
Two traps are worth naming. Form 4B-702 NMRA is the summary administration closing statement under Section 45-3-1204 and is not the Section 45-3-1201 affidavit; the New Mexico Courts publish no 4B form for the Section 45-3-1201 affidavit at all, and their self-help guide calls it an Affidavit of Successor in Interest and tells readers to check with the local probate court for the form. And the $50,000 in Section 45-3-1201(A)(1) is measured against the value of the entire estate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, not against the balance of the account being collected.
Executor duties
Personal representative duties in New Mexico
Personal representative is New Mexico's statutory term, and Section 45-1-201(37) provides that it includes executor, administrator, successor personal representative and special administrator, so a family that says executor is not wrong. The office is created by an order of the district court or probate court and takes effect on the issuance of letters (NMSA 1978, Section 45-3-103), after qualification by filing any required bond and a statement of acceptance with the appointing court (Section 45-3-601). The duties below are the same whichever forum appointed you: an informal appointment fully establishes the status, powers and duties of the office (Section 45-3-307(B)). A special administrator is excluded from the notice and inventory duties.
| Duty | Source | Timing |
|---|---|---|
| File a verified application directed to the probate or district court, with the original will where there is one and a certified death certificate | Sections 45-3-301, 45-3-303(A)(5); Forms 4B-301 and 4B-302 NMRA | At least 120 hours after the death, and within three years of it (Sections 45-3-302, 45-3-108) |
| Qualify by filing any required bond and a statement of acceptance of the duties of the office, then receive letters | Sections 45-3-601, 45-3-103; Forms 4B-305, 4B-306 and 4B-307 NMRA | Before letters issue |
| Give written information of an informal probate to the heirs and devisees, where no personal representative subject to the Section 45-3-705 duty was appointed | Section 45-3-306(B) | Within 30 days after the informal probate is granted |
| Give notice of your appointment to the heirs and devisees, stating your name and address, that the recipient has or may have an interest, whether bond has been filed, and where the papers are on file, and then file a statement with the appointing court naming everyone notified | Section 45-3-705(A) to (E); Forms 4B-401 and 4B-402 NMRA | Not later than thirty days after appointment |
| Prepare an inventory of property owned by the decedent at death, in reasonable detail, with each item's estimated value as of the date of death and any encumbrance; send a copy to interested persons who request it, and file the original with the court only if you choose to | Section 45-3-706(A) and (B); Form 4B-601 NMRA | Within three months after appointment; sending on request is mandatory, filing is permissive |
| Decide whether to publish a notice to creditors once a week for three successive weeks, and whether to mail written notice to known creditors | Section 45-3-801(A) to (C); Form 4B-501 NMRA | Optional, on appointment; publication cuts creditors off four months after first publication |
| Honor the claim bar: pre-death claims are barred unless presented within the earlier of one year after the death or the periods running from a Section 45-3-801 notice | Section 45-3-803(A) and (C) | One year after the death at the outside, whether or not notice was published |
| Pay the family allowance of $30,000, which has priority over all claims, and the personal property allowance of up to $15,000 | Sections 45-2-402, 45-2-403 | Before general creditors |
| Convey New Mexico real property by personal representative's deed where it must be transferred or sold, recording it with the county clerk where the land lies | Sections 45-3-711(A), 45-3-715 | As the administration requires; no court order is needed |
| File the decedent's final Form PIT-1 with a copy of the death certificate, and Form FID-1 if the estate has income; file federal Form 706 and New Mexico Form RPD-41058 only if a federal return is required | New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department, verified July 2026 | On the ordinary filing deadlines |
| File a verified closing statement stating that the claim period has expired, that the estate is fully administered and distributed, and that distributees and unpaid unbarred creditors have received a copy and a full written account | Section 45-3-1003(A); Form 4B-701 NMRA | No earlier than six months after the date of original appointment |
Forms and documents
Probate forms in New Mexico
New Mexico has a good statewide probate form set and most counties publish nothing of their own. The Supreme Court approves the 4B series, Forms 4B-101 to 4B-1001 NMRA, and the New Mexico Courts publish all 24 of them free at nmcourts.gov/forms-files/probate/, together with a plain-language guide and a Diné translation. Rule 1B-102 NMRA confirms the pairing, defining its terms "as used in the Probate Court Rules, Rules 1B-101 to 1B-701 NMRA, and the Probate Court Forms, Forms 4B-101 to 4B-1001 NMRA," and every 4B form carries a note on its face saying which rule it is used with. Cite a form as Form 4B-302 NMRA and a rule as Rule 1B-102 NMRA.
Three things to know before you print anything. First, the whole set was renumbered by Supreme Court Order No. 18-8300-014, effective for all cases pending or filed on or after December 31, 2018, so any older form number you find in a 2016-vintage guide is superseded. Second, the set is informal-only: there is no notice-of-hearing form, because a contested matter transfers out on Form 4B-1001 NMRA, and there is no renunciation or waiver form, because consent is a signature block inside Forms 4B-301 and 4B-302 NMRA. Third, there is no statewide form for the Section 45-3-1201 collection affidavit or the Section 45-3-1205 homestead affidavit, and no proof-of-publication form, because the newspaper supplies its own affidavit. The New Mexico Courts' own guide tells readers to check with the local probate court for the collection affidavit, which it calls an Affidavit of Successor in Interest.
A county may publish its own packet on top of the statewide set, and some do: verified examples in July 2026 include a printed packet sold for $5 by the Bernalillo County Probate Court, a probate packet sold for $5 through the Catron County Clerk, and Will and No-Will packets provided for $10 by Santa Fe County. Where a county publishes none, the statewide 4B set is the whole answer. Check the county page in this knowledge base before assuming either way. Note also that the statewide forms listing mixes the 24 statewide 4B forms with a set of Second Judicial District duplicates, so do not treat a district court copy as a statewide form.
| Form | What it is | When used |
|---|---|---|
| Form 4B-101 NMRA | Opening and closing a probate court case, a flow chart | Read first; it walks the whole informal case, starting with the choice of whether to file in the probate court or the district court |
| Form 4B-201 NMRA | Affidavit of poverty and indigency | Filed with the application where the filer cannot pay the $30 probate court fee (Section 34-7-14) |
| Form 4B-202 NMRA | Order allowing free process | The order granting the Form 4B-201 request (Section 34-6-27(B)) |
| Form 4B-301 NMRA | Application for informal appointment of personal representative, no will | Opens an intestate informal case at least 120 hours after the death (Sections 45-3-301, 45-3-307) |
| Form 4B-302 NMRA | Application for informal probate of will and for informal appointment of personal representative | Opens a testate informal case; the original will goes with it (Section 45-3-303(A)(5)) |
| Form 4B-303 NMRA | Order of informal appointment of personal representative, no will | The court's order in an intestate case. The file name says "for" and the document says "of"; cite the document title |
| Form 4B-304 NMRA | Order of informal probate of will and appointment of personal representative | The court's order in a testate case |
| Form 4B-305 NMRA | Acceptance of appointment as personal representative | Filed as part of qualifying, before letters issue (Section 45-3-601) |
| Form 4B-306 NMRA | Letters of administration, no will | The authority document in an intestate case (Section 45-3-103) |
| Form 4B-307 NMRA | Letters testamentary, will | The authority document in a testate case (Section 45-3-103) |
| Form 4B-401 NMRA | Notice of informal appointment of personal representative | Sent to heirs and devisees not later than thirty days after appointment (Section 45-3-705(A)) |
| Form 4B-402 NMRA | Proof of notice | Filed with the appointing court, giving the names and addresses of everyone notified (Section 45-3-705(E)) |
| Form 4B-501 NMRA | Notice to creditors by publication and by written notice | Optional. Publication runs once a week for three successive weeks (Section 45-3-801) |
| Form 4B-601 NMRA | Inventory | Prepared within three months after appointment; sent to interested persons on request, filed with the court only if you choose (Section 45-3-706) |
| Form 4B-602 NMRA | Accounting | Used where an accounting is needed. Outside supervised administration there is no routine annual court accounting in New Mexico |
| Form 4B-701 NMRA | Verified closing statement of the personal representative | Filed no earlier than six months after the date of original appointment (Section 45-3-1003(A)) |
| Form 4B-702 NMRA | Verified small estate closing statement of the personal representative | Closes a case administered under the summary procedure (Sections 45-3-1203, 45-3-1204). It is not the Section 45-3-1201 affidavit |
| Form 4B-801 NMRA | Proof of authority | Used to evidence the personal representative's authority to a third party |
| Form 4B-802 NMRA | Certificate acknowledging receipt of documents related to proof of authority | The matching acknowledgment |
| Forms 4B-901 to 4B-904 NMRA | Application, order, acceptance and letters of special administration | Where someone must act before a personal representative can be appointed and qualify |
| Form 4B-1001 NMRA | Order transferring case from probate court to district court | The instrument that moves a case up under Rule 1B-101(B)(2) NMRA and Rule 1B-701 NMRA |
| Forms 4-222, 4-223 and 4-224 NMRA | Application and affidavit of indigency, order, and attorney certificate for free process in the district court | The district court equivalent of Forms 4B-201 and 4B-202 NMRA, under Rule 23-114 NMRA |
Fees
New Mexico has two filing fees because it has two forums. A case filed in the county probate court costs $30: "Clerks of the probate courts shall receive a filing fee of thirty dollars ($30.00) for each probate case" (NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-14, repealed and reenacted by Laws 2023, chapter 44, Section 11, effective July 1, 2023). A case filed in the district court is docketed as a civil case, and the statutory docket fee is $117 (Section 34-6-40(A), effective July 1, 2009); a judicial district that has established an alternative dispute resolution program adds $15 (Section 34-6-45(A)), so the amount most New Mexico district courts collect is $132. Confirm the current total with the clerk before you file. If a case was properly filed within the jurisdiction of the probate court and is later transferred to the district court, no filing fee is charged in the district court (NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-10(B), effective July 1, 2023), which is the strongest practical reason a family can safely start in the cheaper forum. The probate court's fees are deposited in the county clerk recording and filing fund where the county clerk is the probate clerk, or in the county general fund where the county has created a separate probate clerk (NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-22). Nothing extra may be charged in the district court for a service with no prescribed fee: "Services required to be performed by district court clerks are without charge when no fee is prescribed by law" (Section 34-6-43).
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Filing a probate case in a county probate court | $30 for each probate case (NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-14, repealed and reenacted by Laws 2023, chapter 44, Section 11, effective July 1, 2023; the figure itself dates to Laws 1993, chapter 132, Section 1) |
| Docketing a civil case, which is what a formal probate is, in a district court | $117 by statute (Section 34-6-40(A), effective July 1, 2009), of which $20 goes to the court automation fund and $25 to the civil legal services fund |
| Alternative dispute resolution fee added by districts that run an ADR program | $15 on all new and reopened civil cases except domestic relations cases (Section 34-6-45(A), as amended 2017), which is what makes the commonly published district court total $132 |
| Transfer of a properly filed probate court case up to the district court | No filing fee is charged in the district court (Section 34-7-10(B), effective July 1, 2023) |
| Fee waiver in the county probate court | Free process on Form 4B-201 NMRA, an affidavit of poverty and indigency, and Form 4B-202 NMRA, an order allowing free process (Section 34-6-27(B)) |
| Fee waiver in the district court | Free process under Rule 23-114 NMRA on Forms 4-222, 4-223 and 4-224 NMRA. Indigency is presumed for current recipients of public assistance, and otherwise shown where annual gross income does not exceed 185 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. The order form lets the court leave the $15 ADR fee unwaived and excludes certification fees, publication fees and copy charges unless granted |
| Copies and certification at a county probate court | Set by the county, subject to a statutory ceiling: where the county clerk is the probate clerk, document copies are capped at $1.00 per page and reasonable certification fees are authorized (Section 14-8-14(B)). Ask the office for its own published figures; do not assume the $30 filing fee includes certified copies of letters, because no statute says it does |
| Certified copies at a district court | $0.35 per page, plus $1.50 for a certificate and seal authenticating a paper as a true copy (Rule 1-099(C) NMRA) |
| Attorney e-filing convenience fees at a district court | Charged by the vendor, not the court: eFile & Serve $12, File Only $8, Serve Only $0 (New Mexico Courts, verified July 2026). These do not apply to a self-represented filer, who files on paper |
Payment methods and payees are genuinely local and worth confirming before you drive anywhere. Verified in July 2026: the Second Judicial District takes attorney firm checks, cash, money orders and certified checks and states that no personal checks shall be accepted (Rule 1-099 NMRA); the Fourth takes cash, cashier's checks, money orders and in-state attorney checks and accepts neither personal checks nor credit cards; the Seventh takes cash, money orders and cashier's checks and does not accept personal checks; and the Tenth asks that money orders be made payable to the 10th Judicial District Court. On the probate court side the payee depends on whether the county clerk is the probate clerk or the county has created a separate probate clerk under Section 34-7-22, so ask the office rather than assuming. Source for the statutory figures: the official NMSA 1978 compilation published by the New Mexico Compilation Commission at nmonesource.com, verified July 2026.
Timeline
- 120 hours after the death: the earliest anything can issue. The court "shall issue a written statement of informal probate if at least one hundred twenty hours have elapsed since the decedent's death" (NMSA 1978, Section 45-3-302), and the same 120 hours governs an informal appointment (Section 45-3-307(A)). Where the decedent was a nonresident, the appointment order waits thirty days after the death unless the domiciliary personal representative is the applicant or the will directs New Mexico law.
- 30 days after the death: the Section 45-3-1201 affidavit becomes available. Thirty days after the death, a claiming successor may present the affidavit to a bank, employer or transfer agent and collect personal property where the entire estate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $50,000. No court is involved and no fee is charged.
- 30 days after the informal probate, and 30 days after appointment: the two notice duties. The applicant gives written information of an informal probate to the heirs and devisees within 30 days (Section 45-3-306(B)), and, not later than thirty days after appointment, the personal representative gives notice of the appointment to the heirs and devisees and files a statement with the appointing court naming everyone notified (Section 45-3-705, Forms 4B-401 and 4B-402 NMRA).
- Three months after appointment: the inventory is prepared, not necessarily filed. Within three months after appointment the personal representative prepares the inventory with each item's estimated value as of the date of death (Section 45-3-706(A), Form 4B-601 NMRA), sends a copy to interested persons who request it, and may also file the original with the court (Section 45-3-706(B)).
- Four months from the first publication, if you publish: the optional early creditor cut-off. Publication runs once a week for three successive weeks and requires claims within four months after the date of first publication (Section 45-3-801(A)); a mailed written notice gives that creditor the later of that four months or sixty days from the mailing (Section 45-3-801(B)).
- Six months after the death: the earliest a surviving spouse may record the homestead affidavit with the county clerk, where the homestead was held as community property and its full value as assessed for property taxation purposes does not exceed $500,000 (Section 45-3-1205(B) and (C)).
- Six months after the date of original appointment: the earliest an informal case can be closed, by verified closing statement (Section 45-3-1003(A), Form 4B-701 NMRA). The 2016 amendment raised this from three months, so any source saying three months is out of date.
- One year after the death: the outer bar on pre-death creditor claims, which runs whether or not any notice was ever published (Section 45-3-803(A)(1)).
- One year after the closing statement is filed: if no proceedings involving the personal representative are pending in the district court, the appointment terminates (Section 45-3-1003(B)). Separately, an interested person other than the personal representative may petition for a formal order of complete settlement after one year from the original appointment (Section 45-3-1001(A)).
- Three years after the death: the outer limit for opening a probate. After three years a limited proceeding is still available where nothing happened in the window, but the personal representative has no right to possess estate assets beyond what is necessary to confirm title in the successors, and claims other than expenses of administration may not be presented (Section 45-3-108(A)(4)). Proceedings to construe a probated will or to determine the heirs of an intestate are not subject to the limit (Section 45-3-108(B)).
- Nine months after the death, federal only: a federal estate tax return is due nine months after death only for estates above the federal exclusion, $15 million per individual for deaths in 2026 (Internal Revenue Service Revenue Procedure 2025-32, Public Law 119-21). Where a federal Form 706 is required, New Mexico asks for Form RPD-41058 on the same deadline so the Taxation and Revenue Department can issue a certificate of no tax due.
State-specific considerations
California uses statewide Judicial Council forms (the DE-series). The same forms apply in all 58 counties, although counties may add local cover sheets. Los Angeles requires LASC PRO 010.
Two courts in every county, and the choice is real. This is the fact that makes New Mexico unlike the states around it. Each of the 33 counties has a county probate court and sits in one of 13 judicial districts served by a district court, and both courts can open an informal probate (NMSA 1978, Sections 45-1-302(C), 45-1-302.1). The probate court can do nothing else. Everything formal or contested is exclusive to the district court (Section 45-1-302(A)). Do not describe the probate court as being outside the judiciary: the New Mexico Courts count the 33 county probate courts as part of the judicial branch. Describe it as what it is, a county office within the judicial branch, funded by the county (Section 34-7-4), whose judge is elected and part-time (Sections 34-7-1, 34-7-2) and whose clerk is normally the county clerk (Section 34-7-22(A)).
The probate court can administer real property; it just cannot litigate title to it. This is the most common overclaim about New Mexico probate. A personal representative appointed informally by a probate court holds the same office and the same powers as one appointed by a district court, including the same power over the title to estate property that an absolute owner would have, exercisable without notice, hearing or order of court (Section 45-3-711(A)). New Mexico real estate is conveyed out of the decedent's name by a personal representative's deed recorded with the county clerk. What is reserved to the district court, and only in formal proceedings, is jurisdiction to determine title to and value of real or personal property as between the estate and any interested person, including strangers to the estate claiming adversely (Section 45-1-302(B)).
New Mexico has written down exactly when a case moves up, and there is no second filing fee when it does. Rule 1B-101(B)(2) NMRA requires transfer to the district court under Rule 1B-701 NMRA if a formal appointment is requested, if a formal closing is required or requested, if a contest arises, if a determination of testacy or heirship is requested, if a hearing is required, or if any interested party or the probate judge asks for it. Section 34-7-18(B) and (C) add transfers where federal law requires distribution to the estate with no other estate account, and where a will requires a bond to be deposited with the court. The transfer order is Form 4B-1001 NMRA. If a case was properly filed within the jurisdiction of the probate court and is later transferred to the district court, no filing fee is charged in the district court (NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-10(B), effective July 1, 2023).
The court can also just say no, without deciding anything. "The probate or the district court may decline an application for informal appointment of a personal representative for any reason. A declination of informal appointment is not an adjudication and does not preclude appointment in formal proceedings" (Section 45-3-309). This is the statutory basis for the very common event of a probate judge sending a filer to the district court, and it costs the filer nothing on the merits.
Informal means no notice and no hearing, not casual. Section 45-1-201(25) defines informal proceedings as those conducted without notice to interested persons before the court, except as provided in Section 45-3-306. Notice of the application goes only to anyone who demanded it and to any un-terminated personal representative, and "no other notice of informal probate is required" (Section 45-3-306(A)). The notices come afterwards: written information to the heirs and devisees within 30 days of the probate (Section 45-3-306(B)), and notice of appointment within thirty days of appointment with a statement filed naming everyone notified (Section 45-3-705).
The inventory is prepared, not filed, and the period is three months. Both halves of the common misstatement are wrong. Section 45-3-706(A) requires the personal representative to prepare an inventory within three months after appointment, and Section 45-3-706(B) makes sending a copy to interested persons who request it mandatory while leaving the filing permissive: the personal representative "may also file the original of the inventory with the appropriate court." There is no 90-day court filing deadline in New Mexico.
Creditor notice is optional, and the one-year bar runs anyway. Section 45-3-801 says a personal representative "may" publish once a week for three successive weeks and "may" mail written notice, and adds that the personal representative is not liable to anyone for giving or failing to give notice. Publication is a tool for cutting claims off four months after the first publication, not a required step. Independently, pre-death claims are barred unless presented within the earlier of one year after the death or the Section 45-3-801 periods (Section 45-3-803(A)).
Six months to close, not three. An informal closing statement cannot be filed earlier than six months after the date of original appointment of a general personal representative (Section 45-3-1003(A)). The 2016 amendment raised the period from three months, and sources predating it, including the New Mexico Courts' own July 2016 self-help guide, still say three. Use six.
There is no routine annual court accounting outside supervised administration. Supervised administration is a single in rem proceeding under the continuing authority of the district court, and a supervised personal representative may not distribute without a prior court order and must file an account not less than annually (Sections 45-3-501, 45-3-504, 45-3-505(C)). It is exceptional. Everywhere else, the personal representative administers without court supervision, which is what the Section 45-3-705(D) notice tells the heirs, and the only account required is the full written account that accompanies the closing statement.
Small-estate figures, read exactly. The collection affidavit ceiling is $50,000 measured against the value of the entire estate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, available thirty days after the death, presented to the holder rather than filed with a court, and unusable to perfect title to real estate (Section 45-3-1201). The homestead affidavit ceiling is $500,000 of value as assessed for property taxation purposes, not market value, on a community-property homestead, recorded with the county clerk six months after the death (Section 45-3-1205). The summary administrative procedure has no dollar threshold at all: its test is whether the entire estate, less liens and encumbrances, exceeds the allowances and the listed expenses (Section 45-3-1203).
The allowances, and the one New Mexico does not have. The family allowance is $30,000 and it is exempt from and has priority over all claims against the estate (Section 45-2-402, effective July 1, 1995). The personal property allowance is up to $15,000 in household furniture, automobiles, furnishings, appliances and personal effects, in excess of any security interests (Section 45-2-403). New Mexico has no homestead allowance: the phrase appears nowhere in Chapter 45, and Section 45-2-404 is reserved. Do not import one from another state's version of the Uniform Probate Code.
Self-represented filers cannot e-file, in either forum. The county probate courts have no e-filing at all: Rule 1-005.2(A)(3) NMRA defines the electronic filing system as the one approved for use by the district courts, and the Probate Court Rules contain no electronic-filing rule. In the district courts e-filing through eFile & Serve is mandatory for attorneys, but Rule 1-005.2(B)(1) NMRA states that "self-represented parties are prohibited from electronically filing documents and shall continue to file documents through traditional methods," and the clerk converts a paper filing into electronic format for the filer (Rule 1-005.2(I)(2)). So a family handling an estate itself files on paper in both forums, and the original will has to be physically delivered or mailed.
County probate court records are county records. Case Lookup covers New Mexico's state courts, and its court-type filter offers District, Magistrate, Metropolitan and Municipal only. County probate court cases are not in it. The Bernalillo County Probate Court states the position plainly, that its own database "only contains records for cases filed in the Bernalillo County Probate Court" and that "each county has its own probate court, and other counties' probate court records are not available on line." Bernalillo and Santa Fe are the two counties known to publish their own probate index; elsewhere, ask the county clerk's office for a case file or a certified copy.
Every probate judge seat is on the November 3, 2026 ballot. A probate judge is elected at each general election at which the governor is elected (Section 34-7-2), and Laws 2023, chapter 44, Section 15(B) extended the sitting judges' terms to December 31, 2026, so the whole cohort turns over on January 1, 2027. Because of that, this knowledge base names the office rather than the person: the county probate judge and the county probate court. Confirm who is sitting with the county before relying on any name you find online.
No estate tax that computes to anything, and no inheritance tax, but the Act was not repealed. The Estate Tax Act (Sections 7-7-1 to 7-7-12) is still on the books and imposes a tax equal to the federal credit for state death taxes, which has been zero since 2004, so nothing is collected on a death on or after January 1, 2005. The Taxation and Revenue Department describes the tax as phased out due to federal tax law changes as of that date, and still asks for Form RPD-41058 where a federal Form 706 is required. New Mexico does not impose an inheritance tax. Given the federal exclusion of $15 million per individual for deaths in 2026, almost no New Mexico estate files either return.
Small-estate alternatives
New Mexico gives a family three genuinely different ways to keep an estate small, and they are often confused with each other. Two of them involve no court at all. The third is not a way of avoiding probate but a way of finishing one quickly, and it has no dollar figure attached to it. Every figure below is measured the way its own statute measures it, which is the detail that decides whether the route works.
| Path | How it qualifies | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Collection of personal property by affidavit (NMSA 1978, Section 45-3-1201) | The value of the entire estate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $50,000; thirty days have elapsed since the death; no application or petition for appointment of a personal representative is pending or has been granted in any jurisdiction; and the claiming successor is entitled to payment or delivery. The ceiling was raised from $30,000 effective January 1, 2012 | The claiming successor presents the affidavit directly to the bank, employer, insurer or other holder, which must then pay or deliver, and a transfer agent must change the registered ownership of a security on the same affidavit (Section 45-3-1201(B)). Nothing is filed with a court and there is no fee. It cannot be used to perfect title to real estate (Section 45-3-1201(C)). The New Mexico Courts publish no 4B form for it and call it an Affidavit of Successor in Interest, pointing readers to their county probate court for the form |
| Homestead affidavit for a surviving spouse (Section 45-3-1205) | The spouses owned the homestead as community property, and the decedent either died intestate or died testate devising that interest to the surviving spouse. The homestead is the principal place of residence, and its full value as assessed for property taxation purposes does not exceed $500,000, a cap raised from $100,000 effective July 1, 2011. Six months must have elapsed since the death, no personal representative may have been appointed anywhere, and funeral expenses, expenses of last illness and all unsecured debts must have been paid | The homestead passes to the survivor and no probate or administration is necessary (Section 45-3-1205(A)). The surviving spouse records the affidavit with the county clerk in the county where the homestead is located, attaching a copy of the deed and, where the property passes by will, the original will (Section 45-3-1205(B)). A purchaser from or lender to the surviving spouse named in a recorded affidavit is protected (Section 45-3-1206). The measure is assessed value, never market value |
| Summary administrative procedure (Sections 45-3-1203, 45-3-1204) | There is no dollar threshold. The test is relative: it must appear from the inventory and appraisal that the value of the entire estate, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed the family allowance, the personal property allowance, costs and expenses of administration, reasonable and necessary medical and hospital expenses of the last illness, and reasonable funeral expenses | This presupposes an opened case with an appointed personal representative and a completed inventory, so it is a fast finish rather than a way of avoiding probate. The personal representative may immediately disburse and distribute the estate to the persons entitled without giving notice to creditors, then file a closing statement on Form 4B-702 NMRA. A Section 45-3-1204 closing statement has the same effect as one filed under Section 45-3-1003 |
| Transfers that never enter the estate | No ceiling of any kind. Real estate held in joint tenancy, real estate covered by a transfer on death deed recorded before the death, bank accounts with a payable on death designation, brokerage accounts with a death beneficiary designation, and life insurance and retirement accounts with a living beneficiary | The institution or the county records show the surviving owner or the named beneficiary on proof of death. No court filing is involved. These are the routes the New Mexico Courts' own probate guide names, and confirming how each asset is titled is the single most useful thing a family can do before deciding whether a probate is needed at all |
The allowances belong alongside these routes because they change the arithmetic. A surviving spouse is entitled to a family allowance of $30,000, exempt from and with priority over all claims against the estate, and if there is no surviving spouse each minor and dependent child takes $30,000 divided by the number of those children (Section 45-2-402). On top of that the surviving spouse is entitled to a personal property allowance of up to $15,000 in household furniture, automobiles, furnishings, appliances and personal effects, in excess of any security interests (Section 45-2-403). New Mexico has no homestead allowance. An estate that fits none of these routes is opened as an ordinary informal probate in either forum, or as a formal proceeding in the district court if anything is disputed.
Recent updates
| Date | Change | Source |
|---|---|---|
| July 1, 2023 | Laws 2023, chapter 44 overhauled New Mexico's probate courts. It repealed and reenacted or amended NMSA 1978, Sections 34-7-1, 34-7-3, 34-7-4, 34-7-7, 34-7-8, 34-7-9, 34-7-10, 34-7-14, 34-7-17, 34-7-18 and 34-7-22, and repealed Sections 34-7-5, 34-7-6, 34-7-12, 34-7-13, 34-7-15, 34-7-16, 34-7-19, 34-7-20, 34-7-21, 34-7-23, 34-7-24 and 34-7-25. The provisions a family notices are Section 34-7-1(B), which states that the position of probate judge is a part-time position; Section 34-7-8, which puts the court's hours in the hands of its clerk and requires them to be published on the county's website; Section 34-7-22, which designates the county clerk as clerk of the probate court unless the county creates a separate one by ordinance; and Section 34-7-10(B), which provides that no filing fee is charged in the district court where a properly filed probate court case is transferred up. | NMSA 1978, Chapter 34, Article 7; nmonesource.com |
| July 1, 2023 | The probate court filing fee statute was reenacted in its current form: "Clerks of the probate courts shall receive a filing fee of thirty dollars ($30.00) for each probate case" (Section 34-7-14). The $30 figure itself dates to Laws 1993, chapter 132, Section 1. The correct citation for the probate court fee is Section 34-7-14, not the district court fee statute. | NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-14; nmonesource.com |
| July 1, 2016 | Two Uniform Probate Code changes that still trip up older sources. Laws 2016, chapter 69, Section 720 raised the earliest informal closing from three months to six months after the date of original appointment (Section 45-3-1003(A)), and Laws 2016, chapter 69, Section 715 repealed and reenacted the creditor notice statute in its present permissive form, once a week for three successive weeks with a four-month claim period (Section 45-3-801). Any source saying an estate can close at three months, including the New Mexico Courts' own July 2016 self-help guide, predates the first of these. | NMSA 1978, Sections 45-3-1003, 45-3-801; nmonesource.com |
| December 31, 2018 | The statewide probate form set was renumbered by Supreme Court Order No. 18-8300-014, effective for all cases pending or filed on or after that date. Forms are now numbered 4B-101 to 4B-1001 NMRA and paired with the Probate Court Rules, Rules 1B-101 to 1B-701 NMRA. Pre-2018 form numbers appearing in older guides are superseded. | Supreme Court Order No. 18-8300-014; Rule 1B-102 NMRA |
| October 1, 2019 | Electronic filing became available for all New Mexico district courts through eFile & Serve, the courts' name for Tyler Technologies' Odyssey File & Serve, and it is mandatory for attorneys under Rule 1-005.2 NMRA. Self-represented parties are prohibited from e-filing and continue to file on paper (Rule 1-005.2(B)(1) NMRA), and the county probate courts are outside the system entirely. Earlier phases were the Supreme Court on July 1, 2017 and the Court of Appeals on August 21, 2017; magistrate civil e-filing became mandatory on September 9, 2021, and magistrate and metropolitan subsequent criminal filings on October 14, 2024 under Supreme Court Order No. S-1-AO-2024-00023. | nmcourts.gov; Rule 1-005.2 NMRA |
| April 7, 2023 | Secured Odyssey Public Access migrated to re:Search NM, the registered-user tier of New Mexico court records. The free public tool remains Case Lookup at caselookup.nmcourts.gov, whose court-type filter covers District, Magistrate, Metropolitan and Municipal courts only. County probate court records are not in either system and are held by the probate court clerk (Section 34-7-7). | nmcourts.gov |
| June 11, 2026 | The Administrative Office of the Courts launched the New Mexico Courts HelpLine, a judiciary-operated information service on 1-855-268-7804, open Monday through Friday 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., with assistance in English and Spanish and interpreters available for Diné and other languages. It can provide court-approved forms and explain what a form asks for, and point callers to free or low-cost legal services, but it cannot apply the law to a caller's situation (Rule 23-113 NMRA). It is the best statewide first call for a self-represented probate filer. | selfrepresentation.nmcourts.gov, verified July 2026 |
| November 3, 2026 | All 33 county probate judge seats are on the general election ballot, with the winners taking office on January 1, 2027. A probate judge is elected at each general election at which the governor is elected (Section 34-7-2), and Laws 2023, chapter 44, Section 15(B) extended the sitting judges' terms to December 31, 2026, so the whole cohort turns over at once. Confirm who is sitting in your county with the county's own office rather than relying on a directory. | NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-2; Laws 2023, chapter 44, Section 15(B) |
| Deaths in 2026 | The federal estate tax exclusion is $15 million per individual for deaths in 2026, and it is indexed for inflation for 2027 and later years (Internal Revenue Service Revenue Procedure 2025-32, Section 3.14, implementing Public Law 119-21). New Mexico collects no estate tax on a death on or after January 1, 2005 and imposes no inheritance tax, so for almost every New Mexico family the federal figure is the only death-tax threshold that matters. | IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32; Public Law 119-21 |
Page last reviewed: July 2026.
Scenarios
| Situation | Likely path in New Mexico | Where Sunset helps |
|---|---|---|
| Surviving spouse, co-owned home | Start by checking how the home is titled, because in New Mexico the answer often removes the house from the problem entirely. Real estate held in joint tenancy or covered by a recorded transfer on death deed passes outside the estate, and where the spouses owned the homestead as community property and the decedent died intestate or left that interest to the survivor, the homestead passes to the survivor and no probate or administration is necessary; six months after the death the survivor records an affidavit with the county clerk, provided the full value as assessed for property taxation purposes does not exceed $500,000 and the other conditions in Section 45-3-1205 are met. Accounts with a payable on death designation pass the same way. If solely held assets remain and the entire estate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $50,000, the spouse can often collect them thirty days after the death on a Section 45-3-1201 affidavit presented to the bank, with no court case at all. Otherwise an informal probate opens in the county probate court for $30 (Section 34-7-14). The spouse's family allowance of $30,000 has priority over all claims (Section 45-2-402), and the personal property allowance adds up to $15,000 (Section 45-2-403). | Asset discovery to confirm what is titled jointly, what carries a beneficiary designation, and what is left over, and to test the estate against the Section 45-3-1201 ceiling. Guidance on whether the homestead affidavit route is available and what the county clerk's recording counter needs. Packet generation for an informal probate on Forms 4B-302 and 4B-307 NMRA if one is needed. |
| Out-of-state adult child, small estate | Venue does not follow the child. If the parent had a domicile in New Mexico at death, the case belongs in that New Mexico county (Section 45-3-201(A)(1)). Often no case is needed: thirty days after the death the child can present a Section 45-3-1201 affidavit to each institution where the entire estate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $50,000, and nothing is filed and no fee is paid. If a probate is needed, the child can usually file by mail in the county probate court, but two New Mexico specifics matter. Probate court filing is paper only, so the original will has to be mailed or delivered physically, and self-represented parties are prohibited from e-filing in the district court as well (Rule 1-005.2(B)(1) NMRA). The fee is $30 in the probate court (Section 34-7-14) against $117 plus, in an alternative dispute resolution district, $15 in the district court (Sections 34-6-40(A), 34-6-45(A)). There is no hearing in an informal case, so a trip is often avoidable. | Asset discovery to establish whether the whole estate clears the Section 45-3-1201 ceiling and to find accounts the family did not know about. Packet generation for the informal application on Form 4B-301 or 4B-302 NMRA. Coordination with the county's filing counter on mailing the original will, the payee and the payment methods, and referral to a local attorney where the case turns formal. |
| Parent settling a predeceased child's estate, home must be sold | A sale means letters, so this is a full informal probate rather than an affidavit route. The parent applies in the county where the child had a domicile at death, at least 120 hours after the death (Sections 45-3-201(A)(1), 45-3-307(A)), on Form 4B-301 NMRA if there was no will or Form 4B-302 NMRA if there was, and receives letters of administration or letters testamentary. The parent then gives notice of appointment within thirty days and files proof of it (Section 45-3-705, Forms 4B-401 and 4B-402 NMRA), prepares the inventory within three months (Section 45-3-706, Form 4B-601 NMRA), and decides whether to publish a creditor notice to cut claims off four months after first publication (Section 45-3-801) while watching the one-year outer bar (Section 45-3-803(A)). The house is conveyed by personal representative's deed recorded with the county clerk, without a court order, because the personal representative has the same power over title that an absolute owner would have (Section 45-3-711(A)). If anyone disputes who owns the property, that goes to the district court in a formal proceeding (Section 45-1-302(B)), and there is no second filing fee on transfer (Section 34-7-10(B)). Closing comes no earlier than six months after appointment (Section 45-3-1003(A), Form 4B-701 NMRA). | Asset discovery for the child's accounts, policies and New Mexico real property, and confirmation of how the home is titled and encumbered. Packet generation for the informal application and for the notice, inventory and closing deadlines that follow. Referral to a vetted New Mexico probate attorney for the deed and for any dispute that would move the case to the district court. |
Self-help resources
| Resource | What it offers |
|---|---|
| New Mexico Courts HelpLine, 1-855-268-7804 | The judiciary's own information service, launched June 11, 2026, open Monday through Friday 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., in English and Spanish with interpreters available for Diné and other languages. It can provide court-approved forms, explain what a form is asking for, give a legal citation, describe court processes, and point callers to free or low-cost legal services. It cannot tell a caller what to write on a form or apply the law to a situation (Rule 23-113 NMRA). This is the best statewide first call for a self-represented New Mexico probate filer |
| New Mexico Courts statewide probate forms, nmcourts.gov/forms-files/probate/ | All 24 statewide Probate Court Forms, Forms 4B-101 to 4B-1001 NMRA, free, together with a plain-language guide and a Diné translation. Verified live in July 2026. This is the form library for an informal probate court case in any of the 33 counties. Note that the listing also carries a set of Second Judicial District duplicates, which are not statewide forms |
| New Mexico Courts Self-Representation site, selfrepresentation.nmcourts.gov | The judiciary's self-help hub, with a probate page carrying the same 4B forms, self-representation information by court district, a video library, and sections on adult guardianship and conservatorship, appeals, divorce, name change and landlord-tenant matters. Verified live in July 2026. Note that Guide & File, the courts' free document-preparation tool, has no probate interview: its interviews cover free process, divorce and orders of protection only |
| The county's own probate court or county clerk page, and the district's site at the ordinal district subdomain of nmcourts.gov | The authoritative source for the things that vary: the courthouse address, the hours (which the probate court's clerk sets and the county publishes under Section 34-7-8), the mailing address, the payee, the accepted payment methods, any local packet, and whether a multi-county district staffs a clerk's office in your county. Check both, because the two courts in your county are different offices at different addresses |
| Case Lookup, caselookup.nmcourts.gov | The free public index of New Mexico state court cases, covering Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, District Court, Magistrate Court and Municipal Court data, updated daily for district and magistrate cases. It is an index with no document images, and cases filed before the statewide court automation project completed in June 1997 may sit in a separate database. There is no probate court option in its court-type filter, because county probate court records are county records |
| Legal Resources for the Elderly Program, State Bar of New Mexico, 505-797-6005 or 1-800-876-6657 | A free statewide helpline for New Mexico residents aged 55 and older with no income restrictions, taking calls and voicemails Monday through Friday 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Mountain Time. The Bar names probate expressly among the civil areas it advises on, along with powers of attorney, transfer on death deeds and general estate planning, and it publishes free handouts on probate and on transfer on death deeds. This is the strongest probate-specific free resource in New Mexico |
| Modest Means Helpline, State Bar of New Mexico, 505-797-6013 or 888-857-9935 | Advice by phone from staff attorneys for New Mexico residents of modest means, up to 500 percent of the federal poverty guidelines, Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Mountain Time, with possible referral to a pro bono attorney. Callers aged 55 or older should use the Legal Resources for the Elderly Program instead |
| New Mexico Free Legal Answers, nm.freelegalanswers.org, and the State Bar of New Mexico Online Bar Directory at sbnm.org | A free question-and-answer service staffed by volunteer attorneys, and the Bar's directory for finding a New Mexico attorney. State Bar main line 505-797-6000 |
| New Mexico Legal Aid, 1-833-545-4357 | Statewide intake Monday through Thursday 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., with ten offices covering all counties, although most of San Juan County is covered by its partner DNA People's Legal Services. Eligibility is at or below 125 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. Probate is not one of its four staff practice groups; it reaches probate through the Volunteer Attorney Program, whose areas of law served include wills, probate and powers of attorney as free one-time consultations at scheduled clinics for households at or below 200 percent of the guidelines (clinic line 1-877-266-9861) |
| LawHelp New Mexico, lawhelpnewmexico.org | Plain-language legal information coordinated by New Mexico Legal Aid, with probate content under its wills, probate, estate planning and powers of attorney topic, authored by the Senior Citizens' Law Office, including pages on wills, transfer on death deeds, financial powers of attorney and asset co-ownership, with Spanish translations |
| New Mexico Supreme Court Law Library, 505-827-4850 | Reference help with statutes, rules and forms, by email at [email protected] and at P.O. Drawer L, Santa Fe 87504-0848. It does not give legal advice |
| New Mexico Compilation Commission, nmonesource.com | The official free publisher of NMSA 1978 and the New Mexico Rules Annotated. Use it to read a statute or a rule in its authoritative form; Chapter 45 is the Uniform Probate Code and Chapter 34 carries the court structure and the fees |
| The county clerk's recording office | Where the Section 45-3-1205 homestead affidavit is recorded and where a personal representative's deed is recorded, in the county where the property is located. In most counties the same office is also the clerk of the probate court (Section 34-7-22(A)) |
| New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department, tax.newmexico.gov | The state's own pages on the Estate Tax Act and Form RPD-41058, on the final Form PIT-1 for a decedent, and on Form FID-1 for an estate with income. Assistance line 505-827-0763 |
When to hire an attorney
A New Mexico attorney is worth involving when the case is heading for, or already sits in, the district court: a will contest or any dispute among heirs, a formal testacy or formal appointment proceeding, a determination of heirs, supervised administration, a request that someone without statutory priority be appointed, or a dispute about whether an asset belongs to the estate, which only the district court can decide in formal proceedings (NMSA 1978, Section 45-1-302). Counsel also earns its fee where real property has to be conveyed or sold, because the New Mexico Courts' own probate guide warns that deeds can be very tricky to draft and execute properly; where the estate is insolvent or a creditor claim is disputed; where a decedent lived elsewhere but owned New Mexico property; and where a business interest or a complicated set of accounts has to be valued. For a straightforward informal probate with an uncontested will and cooperative heirs, many New Mexico families complete the case themselves in the county probate court on the statewide Form 4B set for a $30 filing fee (Section 34-7-14), which is what those forms and the probate courts exist for. Sunset can connect families to a vetted New Mexico probate attorney when the situation requires counsel.
How Sunset helps in New Mexico
Find the accounts and assets. Sunset searches more than 2,300 financial institutions and New Mexico public records during estate settlement to surface bank and credit union accounts, retirement plans, brokerage holdings, life insurance, New Mexico real estate, vehicles, business interests and unclaimed property, and flags how each asset is titled so the family can tell what passes outside probate by joint tenancy, transfer on death deed or beneficiary designation, whether the entire estate clears the $50,000 collection-affidavit ceiling in Section 45-3-1201, whether a community-property homestead fits the $500,000 assessed-value test in Section 45-3-1205, and whether the estate comes anywhere near the federal estate tax exclusion of $15 million per individual for deaths in 2026.
Generate the probate packet. Sunset assembles the probate packet for the estate settlement path that fits, whether that is the informal application on Form 4B-301 or 4B-302 NMRA for the county probate court, the notice and proof of notice on Forms 4B-401 and 4B-402 NMRA, the inventory on Form 4B-601 NMRA, or the closing statement on Form 4B-701 NMRA, ready to file on paper in the county where the decedent had a domicile at death (Section 45-3-201(A)), and tracks the deadlines that follow: notice within thirty days of appointment (Section 45-3-705), the inventory prepared within three months (Section 45-3-706), and the earliest closing six months after appointment (Section 45-3-1003).
Find a local probate attorney. When the case needs counsel, because a will is contested, heirship has to be determined, supervised administration is sought, real property must be conveyed or sold, or the matter has moved to the district court under Rule 1B-101(B)(2) NMRA, Sunset connects families to a vetted New Mexico probate attorney serving the relevant county and judicial district.
Sunset is free for families. Revenue comes from bank partners that pay Sunset while estate funds sit in an FDIC-insured estate account ($3M coverage).
Frequently asked questions
Which court handles probate in New Mexico?
Both of them, and which one you use depends on whether anyone disagrees. Every one of New Mexico's 33 counties has a county probate court, a county office within the judicial branch funded by the county (NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-4), with an elected part-time probate judge (Section 34-7-1) whose clerk is normally the county clerk (Section 34-7-22(A)). Every county also sits in one of 13 judicial districts served by a district court. Section 45-1-302(C) gives both courts original jurisdiction over informal proceedings for probate of a will or appointment of a personal representative, and Section 45-1-302.1 confirms the district courts' concurrent jurisdiction over all matters concerning informal probate. Everything formal or contested is exclusive to the district court (Section 45-1-302(A)). The New Mexico Courts describe the county probate courts as courts of limited jurisdiction hearing informal probate and uncontested estates, with contested cases going to the district court.
Should I file in the county probate court or the district court?
If the case is informal and uncontested, either court will take it, and most families use the county probate court. It costs $30 for each probate case (Section 34-7-14) against a district court civil docket fee of $117 (Section 34-6-40(A)) plus $15 in a judicial district running an alternative dispute resolution program (Section 34-6-45(A)), commonly $132. The probate court takes paper at the counter, the county clerk is used to walk-in filers, and there is no hearing in an informal case. Go straight to the district court if you already know the case is formal or contested. Starting in the probate court is safe either way, because "if a case was properly filed within the jurisdiction of the probate court and later transferred to the district court, no filing fee shall be charged in the district court" (Section 34-7-10(B)).
Where do I file probate in New Mexico?
In the county where the person had a domicile at the time of death (Section 45-3-201(A)(1)). If the person was not domiciled in New Mexico, you file in any New Mexico county where they owned property at the time of death (Section 45-3-201(A)(2)); that is a rule for non-residents, not an option for a New Mexico resident's estate. Venue for all later proceedings stays where the initial proceeding occurred unless it is transferred (Section 45-3-201(B)), and where the first proceeding was informal the district court in that place may transfer the case and the file to a court where venue is proper (Section 45-3-201(C)). Where a proceeding could be brought in more than one place, the court where it is first commenced has the exclusive right to proceed (Section 45-1-303(A)).
What happens if someone contests the will?
The case leaves the probate court. Rule 1B-101(B)(2) NMRA requires a probate court case to be transferred to district court under Rule 1B-701 NMRA if a contest arises as to the administration of an estate or the probate of a will, if a formal appointment is requested, if a formal closing is required or requested, if a determination of testacy or heirship is requested, if a hearing is required, or if any interested party or the probate judge asks for transfer; Section 34-7-18(B) and (C) add federal-law distribution and will-required-bond transfers. The order is Form 4B-1001 NMRA, and no new filing fee is charged (Section 34-7-10(B)). A pending formal testacy proceeding also freezes the probate court, which may not act on any application for informal probate while it is pending (Section 45-3-401(C)). Separately, a contest of an informally probated will must be brought within the later of twelve months from the informal probate or three years from the death (Section 45-3-108(A)(3)).
How much does it cost to open probate in New Mexico?
$30 in the county probate court: "Clerks of the probate courts shall receive a filing fee of thirty dollars ($30.00) for each probate case" (Section 34-7-14, effective July 1, 2023). In the district court a probate is docketed as a civil case at $117 by statute (Section 34-6-40(A)), and a judicial district that has established an alternative dispute resolution program collects a further $15 (Section 34-6-45(A)), which is where the $132 published by districts including the Second, Fourth, Seventh and Tenth comes from. Confirm the total with your district's clerk. If you cannot pay, ask for free process rather than a fee waiver motion: Forms 4B-201 and 4B-202 NMRA in the probate court, and Rule 23-114 NMRA on Forms 4-222, 4-223 and 4-224 NMRA in the district court, where indigency is presumed for public assistance recipients or shown at or below 185 percent of the federal poverty guidelines.
What is the small estate limit in New Mexico?
$50,000, and it is measured against the whole estate rather than the account you want. Thirty days after the death, anyone holding personal property of the decedent must pay or deliver it to a claiming successor who presents an affidavit stating that the value of the entire estate, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed $50,000, that thirty days have elapsed, that no application or petition for appointment of a personal representative is pending or has been granted in any jurisdiction, and that the claiming successor is entitled to the property (Section 45-3-1201(A)). A transfer agent must re-register a security on the same affidavit (Section 45-3-1201(B)). Three things surprise people: the affidavit goes to the bank or transfer agent and is never filed with a court, so there is no fee; it cannot be used to perfect title to real estate (Section 45-3-1201(C)); and the New Mexico Courts publish no 4B form for it, calling it an Affidavit of Successor in Interest and pointing readers to their county probate court.
Can a surviving spouse avoid probate on the family home in New Mexico?
Often, yes, and the mechanism is unusual. Where spouses owned a homestead as community property and one dies intestate, or dies testate devising that interest to the survivor, the homestead passes to the survivor and no probate or administration is necessary (Section 45-3-1205(A)). Six months after the death the surviving spouse records an affidavit with the county clerk in the county where the homestead is located, stating ten listed matters including that no personal representative has been appointed anywhere and that funeral expenses, expenses of last illness and all unsecured debts have been paid (Section 45-3-1205(B)). The ceiling is assessed value, not market value: the definition requires that "the full value of this property as assessed for property taxation purposes does not exceed five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000)" (Section 45-3-1205(C)). A purchaser from or lender to the surviving spouse named in a recorded affidavit is protected (Section 45-3-1206).
How long does a New Mexico probate take, and how soon can I close it?
Nothing issues for the first 120 hours after the death (Sections 45-3-302, 45-3-307(A)), and an informal case cannot be closed earlier than six months after the date of original appointment of a general personal representative (Section 45-3-1003(A)). Six months is the floor, not the norm: the estate also has to be fully administered, and pre-death creditor claims are not barred until the earlier of one year after the death or the periods running from a Section 45-3-801 notice (Section 45-3-803(A)), so many families wait out the year unless they published. Publishing a creditor notice once a week for three successive weeks cuts claims off four months after the first publication (Section 45-3-801(A)). Anything you read saying an estate can close at three months predates the 2016 amendment and is wrong.
Do I have to file an inventory with the New Mexico court?
Usually no, and the deadline is three months rather than 90 days. Within three months after appointment the personal representative must prepare an inventory of property owned by the decedent at the time of death, listed in reasonable detail with each item's estimated value as of the date of death and the type and amount of any encumbrance (Section 45-3-706(A), Form 4B-601 NMRA). The personal representative must send a copy to interested persons who request it, and "may also file the original of the inventory with the appropriate court" (Section 45-3-706(B)). Filing is permissive. Outside supervised administration, which is a district court proceeding and exceptional (Sections 45-3-501, 45-3-505(C)), there is no routine annual court accounting in New Mexico either.
Do I have to publish a notice to creditors in New Mexico?
No. Section 45-3-801 is permissive throughout: a personal representative "may" publish a notice to creditors once a week for three successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the proceeding is pending, requiring claims within four months after the date of first publication, and "may" give written notice by mail to an individual creditor, who then has the later of that four months or sixty days from the mailing. Subsection C adds that the personal representative is not liable to anyone for giving or failing to give notice. Publishing buys certainty sooner. Whether or not you publish, pre-death claims are barred unless presented within the earlier of one year after the death or the Section 45-3-801 periods (Section 45-3-803(A)). The statewide form is Form 4B-501 NMRA.
Can I e-file a probate case in New Mexico?
Not if you are handling the estate yourself, and never in a county probate court. The county probate courts are outside e-filing entirely: Rule 1-005.2(A)(3) NMRA defines the electronic filing system as the one approved for use by the district courts, and the Probate Court Rules contain no electronic-filing rule, so probate court filing is paper at the counter or by mail. In the district courts, civil e-filing through eFile & Serve, the courts' name for Tyler Technologies' Odyssey File & Serve, is available and mandatory for attorneys (Rule 1-005.2 NMRA), but "self-represented parties are prohibited from electronically filing documents and shall continue to file documents through traditional methods" (Rule 1-005.2(B)(1) NMRA), and the clerk converts a paper filing into electronic format for the filer (Rule 1-005.2(I)(2)). One practical consequence: the original will has to be physically delivered or mailed.
How do I look up a New Mexico probate case?
It depends which court has it. District court probate cases are in Case Lookup, the free public tool at caselookup.nmcourts.gov, which covers Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, District Court, Magistrate Court and Municipal Court data and updates district and magistrate cases daily; it is an index with no document images, and its court-type filter has no probate court option. County probate court cases are county records and are not in any statewide system. The Bernalillo County Probate Court says so directly, that its own database "only contains records for cases filed in the Bernalillo County Probate Court" and that "each county has its own probate court, and other counties' probate court records are not available on line." Bernalillo and Santa Fe are the two counties known to publish their own index; elsewhere, ask the county clerk's office for the file or a certified copy. Registered users can also reach district court probate dockets through re:Search NM.
Where do I get New Mexico probate forms?
From the New Mexico Courts, free, at nmcourts.gov/forms-files/probate/. The Supreme Court approves the statewide 4B series, Forms 4B-101 to 4B-1001 NMRA, and the set covers an informal probate court case end to end: the flow chart at Form 4B-101 NMRA, the applications at Forms 4B-301 and 4B-302 NMRA, the orders at Forms 4B-303 and 4B-304 NMRA, the acceptance at Form 4B-305 NMRA, letters at Forms 4B-306 and 4B-307 NMRA, notice and proof at Forms 4B-401 and 4B-402 NMRA, creditor notice at Form 4B-501 NMRA, the inventory at Form 4B-601 NMRA, closing at Forms 4B-701 and 4B-702 NMRA, special administration at Forms 4B-901 to 4B-904 NMRA, and the transfer order at Form 4B-1001 NMRA. Cite them as Form 4B-302 NMRA. The whole set was renumbered by Supreme Court Order No. 18-8300-014 effective December 31, 2018, so older numbers in pre-2018 guides are superseded, and there is no statewide form for the Section 45-3-1201 or Section 45-3-1205 affidavits.
Does New Mexico have an estate tax or an inheritance tax?
Neither one produces a bill for a current death, but the accurate answer has two halves. New Mexico does not collect an estate tax on deaths on or after January 1, 2005; the Estate Tax Act (Sections 7-7-1 to 7-7-12) was never repealed, and it ties the tax to the federal credit for state death taxes under Internal Revenue Code Section 2011, which has been zero since 2004, so the tax computes to zero. The Taxation and Revenue Department describes the tax as phased out due to federal tax law changes as of January 1, 2005, and its live Estate Tax page still states that an estate required to file a federal estate tax return must also file with the department, on Form RPD-41058, which is how a certificate of no tax due is obtained. New Mexico does not impose an inheritance tax, so nothing turns on a beneficiary's relationship to the decedent. The federal estate tax applies only above the federal exclusion, $15 million per individual for deaths in 2026 (Internal Revenue Service Revenue Procedure 2025-32, Public Law 119-21).
What tax returns does a New Mexico personal representative actually have to file?
The income tax ones, almost always, and the death tax ones, almost never. File the decedent's final Form PIT-1 New Mexico Personal Income Tax Return; the Taxation and Revenue Department's instructions provide that where a taxpayer dies before filing, the spouse or personal representative may need to file and sign the return, that the due date is unchanged, and that a copy of the death certificate must be submitted with it. If the estate itself has income while it is open, file Form FID-1 New Mexico Fiduciary Income Tax Return. A federal Form 706 is required only above the federal exclusion of $15 million per individual for deaths in 2026, and only where a federal return is required does New Mexico ask for Form RPD-41058.
Do I need a lawyer to do probate in New Mexico?
Not for an uncontested informal case, which is exactly what the county probate courts and the statewide Form 4B set exist for; the New Mexico Courts describe probate courts as designed to help non-lawyers with probate cases that do not need to be filed in district court, and the fee is $30 (Section 34-7-14). Get help when the case is or may become formal: a will contest, a dispute among heirs, a determination of heirs, a formal appointment, supervised administration, or any dispute about whether an asset belongs to the estate, all of which are district court matters (Section 45-1-302). The courts' own guide also suggests hiring an attorney for a personal representative's deed. Free options exist: the New Mexico Courts HelpLine on 1-855-268-7804, and the State Bar's Legal Resources for the Elderly Program on 505-797-6005 or 1-800-876-6657, which names probate expressly and is free to New Mexico residents aged 55 and older with no income limit.
Shaped by the families we've helped
Thank you to the thousands of families who have trusted Sunset to help settle their loved ones' estates. This page is shaped by the questions they actually asked and the obstacles they actually hit — and that hard-won experience is what keeps it accurate, current, and genuinely useful to the families who come next.