Vermont Probate Court: Filing, Executor Duties, and Guardianship

Vermont probate court is the Probate Division of the Vermont Superior Court, with one probate unit in each of the state’s 14 counties. It handles wills and estates, trusts, guardianships, adoptions, name changes, and corrections to vital records. If you’re settling someone’s estate, you’ll file a petition in the county where the person lived, pay a filing fee based on the estate’s value (from $50 to $3,250), and, once appointed, work through creditor notice, debt payment, taxes, and distribution under the court’s supervision.

What Vermont Probate Court Handles

The Probate Division’s authority comes from 4 V.S.A. § 35, which assigns it more than two dozen categories of proceedings. The matters that bring most people in are:

  • Validating wills, appointing executors and administrators, and settling a deceased person’s property and debts.
  • Administering trusts.
  • Appointing guardians for minors and for adults who cannot manage their own affairs.
  • Adoptions and relinquishments for adoption.
  • Legal name changes.
  • Issuing new birth certificates and correcting birth, marriage, and death records.
  • Emancipation of minors.
  • Property held for younger beneficiaries under the uniform gifts to minors law.

The jurisdiction is broad, so most matters involving personal status, fiduciary relationships, or a deceased person’s affairs land here.1Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 4 V.S.A. 35 – Jurisdiction; Probate Division

Where To File

Venue depends on where the deceased person lived. If the person was a Vermont resident, file in the probate district where they lived at the time of death. If the person lived out of state but owned property in Vermont, file in any district where that property is located. Trust-related proceedings follow the venue rules in Title 14A (the Vermont Trust Code) instead.2Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 4 V.S.A. 311a – Venue; Probate Proceedings

Filing Fees

Vermont’s probate filing fee scales with the total value of the estate under 32 V.S.A. § 1434:

  • $10,000 or less: $50
  • $10,001 to $50,000: $110
  • $50,001 to $150,000: $265
  • $150,001 to $500,000: $500
  • $500,001 to $1,000,000: $1,000
  • $1,000,001 to $5,000,000: $1,750
  • $5,000,001 to $10,000,000: $2,500
  • Over $10,000,000: $3,250

These are entry fees paid to the state.3Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 32 V.S.A. 1434 – Probate Cases You can apply for a waiver if you receive public assistance, if your gross income is at or below 150% of the federal poverty guidelines, or if the court finds that paying would deplete resources you need for basic support.4Vermont Judiciary. Application to Waive Filing Fees and Service Costs

How To Open An Estate

The starting document is the Petition to Open Decedent’s Estate, form 700-00001, available on the Vermont Judiciary website. Submit it with:

  • The entry fee, by check or money order payable to Vermont Superior Court.
  • A certified death certificate.
  • The List of Interested Persons (form 700-00002), identifying heirs, beneficiaries, and anyone else with a legal stake.
  • The original will and any codicils, if one exists.
  • For out-of-state estates, an authenticated copy of the will and proof of probate from the primary estate.

The petition itself asks for estimated values of the decedent’s Vermont real estate and personal property, and the name of the person you’re proposing as executor or administrator.5Vermont Judiciary. Petition to Open Decedent’s Estate An executor named in a will who knows about the death is expected to file the death certificate and petition with reasonable promptness.6Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 14 – Chapter 3 – Probate and Procedure for Construction of Wills

Mail or E-File

You can mail the package to the probate court in the right county, or file electronically through Odyssey File & Serve. The system runs around the clock and accepts probate filings. There’s a $5.25 system-use fee per submission on top of the filing fee, paid by credit card or e-check. One catch: an original will cannot be e-filed and must be submitted on paper even if everything else goes in electronically.7Vermont Judiciary. Vermont eFiling General Policy and Procedure Guide

The Small Estate Shortcut

If the estate is worth $45,000 or less and consists entirely of personal property (no real estate, though a time-share interest counts), Vermont has a simplified process that skips much of the formality of full probate. You still file a petition to open, a list of interested persons, and a death certificate. You also include an inventory, an affidavit listing funeral expenses and known debts, and a bond without surety equal to the estate’s fair market value.8Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 14 V.S.A. 1901 – Commencement of Small Estate

Interested parties who don’t consent in writing get notice and 14 days to object. If no one objects, the court approves the fiduciary and any will without a hearing. Once the fiduciary pays creditors and distributes the balance, they file a sworn statement and can be discharged without further accounting. If the estate turns out to exceed $45,000, the fiduciary must petition to convert to full probate and pay the additional fees.

After You’re Appointed

Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration

Once the court approves the petition, the judge issues Letters Testamentary (if there’s a valid will naming an executor) or Letters of Administration (if there’s no will or the named executor can’t serve). These letters are your legal authority to act for the estate. Without them, banks won’t release account funds, buyers won’t close on property sales, and creditors won’t negotiate. When no executor is named, or the person died without a will, the court follows a priority list: surviving spouse or next of kin first, then creditors, then anyone else the court considers suitable.9Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 14 – Chapter 61 – Letters of Administration

Bond

Every executor and administrator must post a bond before the court issues letters. The bond protects beneficiaries and creditors in case the representative mismanages the estate. The court sets the amount and decides whether sureties are required (a bonding company guarantee that comes with a premium).10Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 14 V.S.A. 906 – Bond; Amount, Conditions Small estates use a bond without surety equal to the estate’s value, which is cheaper than a surety bond.

Notice To Creditors

Within 30 days of appointment, publish a Notice to Creditors in a local newspaper. Publication starts a four-month clock: creditors who don’t file claims within that window may be barred. If you’re certain the decedent had no debts (including potential Medicaid claims), you can ask the court to waive publication. The risk is real, though. Without publication, creditors have up to three years from the date of death to come forward, and if one appears after you’ve distributed assets, they can go after the people who received them.11Vermont Judiciary. Estates and Wills The four-month deadline is almost always worth the price of a newspaper notice.

Paying Debts In Order

Creditor deadlines depend on whether notice was published. Pre-death debts must be presented within four months of first publication; without publication, creditors get one year from the date of death. Tax liabilities are not subject to these deadlines and can be enforced regardless of the claims period.12Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 14 V.S.A. 1203 – Limitations on Presentation of Claims

When the estate can’t pay everyone, the executor follows this hierarchy:

  1. Administrative costs and expenses (court fees, attorney fees, fiduciary costs).
  2. Reasonable funeral, burial, and headstone expenses (capped at $3,800 excluding government payments), plus medical and hospital expenses from the decedent’s last illness.
  3. Employee wages earned within three months before death, up to $300 per claimant.
  4. All other claims, including any wages beyond the $300 cap.

Within a class, no creditor outranks another. If a class can’t be paid in full, those creditors share what’s available proportionally.13Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 14 – Chapter 66 – Claims Against Estates

Medicaid Estate Recovery

One creditor catches families off guard: the Department of Vermont Health Access files a claim to recover Medicaid benefits paid for nursing facility services or home-based long-term care if the recipient was 55 or older when they received those services. Federal law requires it, and the claim covers anyone who received covered services on or after January 1, 1994. DVHA’s claim must be presented within four months of the published creditor notice.12Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 14 V.S.A. 1203 – Limitations on Presentation of Claims

Taxes The Executor Handles

Vermont Estate Tax

Vermont imposes its own estate tax, and the threshold is well below the federal one. Estates valued at $5,000,000 or more owe a flat 16% on the amount above $5,000,000.14Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 32 V.S.A. 7442a – Imposition of Tax The executor must file Vermont Form EST-191 if the deceased had an interest in Vermont property and the federal gross estate plus certain adjusted taxable gifts exceeds $4,250,000, or if a federal estate tax return is required.15Vermont Department of Taxes. Estate Tax

Federal Estate Tax

For 2026, the federal basic exclusion amount is $15,000,000 per individual, following changes enacted by the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act signed into law on July 4, 2025. Estates below that owe no federal estate tax.16Internal Revenue Service. What’s New – Estate and Gift Tax Because Vermont’s exclusion is so much lower, many estates owe Vermont tax but nothing federally. The Vermont calculation involves a fraction based on Vermont-situs assets relative to the total federal gross estate, so estates near either threshold should work with a tax professional.

Final Income Tax Return

Separate from any estate tax, someone has to file the decedent’s final individual income tax return for the year of death. The deadline is the same as if the person were still alive, April 15 of the following year unless extended.17Internal Revenue Service. Filing a Final Federal Tax Return for Someone Who Has Died If the estate earns income during administration (interest, rent, capital gains from selling property), the executor may also need to file a federal fiduciary income tax return on Form 1041.

Executor Compensation

Vermont doesn’t set a percentage or fee schedule for executor pay. The statute allows executors and administrators to collect reasonable fees for their services and reimbursement for necessary expenses. If the will specifies a different form of compensation, that amount is treated as full payment unless the executor formally renounces it with the court.18Vermont General Assembly. Vermont Code 14 V.S.A. 1065 – Fees and Expenses What counts as reasonable depends on the estate’s complexity, the time involved, and the skill required. The probate court decides disputes.

Guardianship

The Probate Division also handles guardianship petitions for minors and adults. Once a Vermonter turns 18, the law presumes they can make their own decisions, and a parent is no longer considered a guardian. Establishing guardianship over an adult removes some of those rights, so the court treats it as a last resort after alternatives like powers of attorney or supported decision-making have been considered.19Vermont DAIL. Guardianship, Alternatives and Resources

Guardianship can be limited (covering specific areas such as finances or medical decisions) or full. Even under full guardianship, the person keeps fundamental rights, including the right to vote, free speech, and religious practice. A guardian cannot involuntarily commit someone to a psychiatric hospital. The court monitors guardians through periodic reporting to make sure the arrangement continues to serve the protected person’s interests.