South Carolina probate code · checked October 2026
For money and belongings, South Carolina's affidavit limit is $45,000 — applied to the estate after the assets that pass automatically are taken out. The South Carolina affidavit collects personal property only — but the $45,000 cap is measured on the ENTIRE probate estate (property passing under a will plus intestate property, less liens), so a house counts against the limit even though the affidavit cannot transfer it. The affidavit, where one exists, cannot be used until 30 days have passed since the death.
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The affidavit limit today: $45,000, judged by the law in force on the date of death.
The paper: Form 420ES (SCCA 420ES), Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property Pursuant to Small Estate Proceeding.
How it moves: filed with the court — a court paper, not an envelope.
The wait: 30 days after the death before the affidavit can be used.
For a surviving spouse: No spouse-specific cap in § 62-3-1201 or § 62-3-1203.
| Track | Limit | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Small-estate affidavit | $45,000 | Filed with the court. Form: Form 420ES (SCCA 420ES), Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property Pursuant to Small Estate Proceeding. |
| Small estates; summary administrative procedure (S.C. Code § 62-3-1203) - personal representative may distribute immediately after published creditor notice when the probate estate is within the cap | $45,000 | Summary administration (§ 62-3-1203) sits at the same $45,000 line: the personal representative may distribute immediately after published creditor notice when the probate estate is within the cap. |
The 420ES affidavit form expressly itemizes motor vehicles, mobile homes and boats among the personal property collected, so a vehicle inside the $45,000 probate-estate cap can be collected by affidavit.
No solvency test in § 62-3-1201; a successor who collects is answerable and accountable to any personal representative or person with a superior right (§ 62-3-1202), and the § 62-3-1203 summary route requires published notice to creditors first.
Rules checked October 2026 · Sources: S.C. Code § 62-3-1201; S.C. Code § 62-3-1202; S.C. Code § 62-3-1203; 2025 Act No. 26 (H.3472), eff. May 8, 2025. This page reads the published law; it is not legal advice, and the court is the final word.