Louisiana probate code · checked October 2026

Louisiana Small Estate: The Limit, the Tracks, and the Form

For money and belongings, Louisiana's affidavit limit is $200,000 — applied to the estate after the assets that pass automatically are taken out. Immovable property is inside the Louisiana count: the $200,000 ceiling covers the whole succession, house included, and the recorded affidavit is prima facie evidence for transferring it. Louisiana sets no waiting period for its affidavit.

Run the free Louisiana check

The Louisiana line, in facts

The affidavit limit today: $200,000, judged by the law in force on the date of death.

How it moves: presented to whoever holds the property; no court case is opened.

The wait: no statutory waiting period.

The tracks in Louisiana

Track	Limit	How it works
Small-estate affidavit	$200,000	Presented to whoever holds the property; no court case.
Ancillary small succession (decedent domiciled outside Louisiana)	$125,000	The court track for a primary home.

What catches families in Louisiana

The number changed in 2026: Act 293 of the 2026 Regular Session raised the small-succession ceiling from $125,000 to $200,000 for a person who died domiciled in Louisiana (effective August 1, 2026; one firm reports August 8 — the Act's default date governs here). $125,000 survives only for successions of people domiciled outside Louisiana.
There is no waiting period — but every heir who does not sign must receive 30 days' mailed notice of intent first; that notice rule is not a wait.
A testate small succession has an extra fence: no Louisiana immovable property, and probate would have had the same effect as intestacy.

Vehicles in Louisiana

Vehicles pass as succession property under the small succession affidavit; OMV also accepts an Affidavit of Heirship (Form DPSMV 1696, La. R.S. 32:707.1) with death certificate to retitle a vehicle.

Debts, and the signer's duty

No debt-paid or solvency precondition is stated in Arts. 3431-3434; by signing, an heir-affiant accepts the succession.

Rules checked October 2026 · Sources: La. Code Civ. Proc. art. 3421(1) as amended by 2026 Act 293 (HB 215); La. Code Civ. Proc. arts. 3431, 3432 (intestate affidavit), 3432.1 (testate affidavit), 3434. This page reads the published law; it is not legal advice, and the court is the final word.

← All 50 state pages · Guides