How Long Does Probate Take in New York? Surrogate's Court Timelines and Common Delays

By Albert Goodwin, Esq., New York estate and trust attorney. Last reviewed: 2025.

Executors want to know when they can start acting for the estate. Beneficiaries want to know when they will receive their inheritance. This page answers both questions for estates handled in New York's Surrogate's Courts. It gives typical time ranges by scenario, a sample month-by-month timeline for a New York City estate, the statutory deadlines that fix part of the schedule, and the problems that most often stretch a case from one year into several.

The short answer

In our experience, an uncontested estate with a valid will, cooperative family members and no real property to sell usually takes about 9 to 15 months in New York City, measured from the filing of the probate petition to the final distribution. Some parts of that timeline are set by law, most importantly the seven-month creditor period that begins when letters are issued. That makes it difficult to close a full probate estate properly in much less than a year. The ranges below are general patterns from our practice. They are not promises about any particular estate.

Probate in New York happens in Surrogate's Court

New York does not have a court called "probate court." Wills are probated, and estates without wills are administered, in the Surrogate's Court of the county where the decedent was domiciled (SCPA 205). Each of the five boroughs has its own Surrogate's Court: New York County (Manhattan), Kings County (Brooklyn), Queens County, Bronx County and Richmond County (Staten Island). On Long Island, estates are handled in the Nassau County and Suffolk County Surrogate's Courts. The governing statutes are the Surrogate's Court Procedure Act (SCPA) and the Estates, Powers and Trusts Law (EPTL). They apply statewide, but each court has its own staff, calendar and filing practices. Two identical estates can therefore move at different speeds depending on the county.

The court issues a document called "letters." These are letters testamentary for an executor named in a will, or letters of administration for an administrator when there is no will. Banks, brokerages, title companies and city agencies will not deal with anyone on behalf of the estate until letters are issued. For most families, the first question is how long it will take to get letters.

A sample timeline for an uncontested New York City probate

This is how a typical uncontested probate with a will moves in a New York City Surrogate's Court. It assumes the executor is organized, every distributee signs a waiver, and there is no house or business to sell.

Every row on that table can slip. The rest of this page covers which slips are routine and which ones add months or years.

Stage one: getting appointed

Appointment usually takes two to four months in an uncontested case. The steps are listed below. An experienced lawyer will run several of them at the same time.

1. Retain an estate lawyer.
2. Obtain certified death certificates.
3. Gather the original will, the names and addresses of all distributees, and an estimate of the estate's assets.
4. The lawyer prepares the petition and supporting affidavits, and the executor signs them before a notary.
5. The lawyer sends waivers to the distributees. If anyone will not sign or cannot be reached, the lawyer asks the court to issue a citation instead.
6. The lawyer files the papers with the Surrogate's Court.
7. The court reviews the file, raises any deficiencies, and, if citations were needed, holds a return date.
8. The Surrogate signs the decree and letters issue.

For details on the petition and supporting documents, see our pages on letters testamentary and letters of administration.

Waivers versus citations

The biggest factor in early timing is whether every distributee signs a waiver. SCPA 1403 requires notice of the probate proceeding to every distributee, even those the will leaves out. A signed and notarized waiver lets the court proceed on the papers. If a distributee will not sign, lives abroad, or cannot be found, the court must issue a citation. The citation then has to be served. Personal service inside New York must be made at least 10 days before the return date, and service outside the state at least 20 days before (SCPA 307). If someone cannot be served personally, the court may order service by publication or another method. If a distributee is a minor or is under a disability, the court may appoint a guardian ad litem to protect that person's interest (SCPA 403). The guardian then needs time to review the file and report. Each of these steps typically adds one to several months.

Routine delays in getting appointed

A routine delay adds days or weeks, not months. A case with one or two of them still finishes close to the ranges above.

Ways to act before full letters issue

Families often assume that nothing can happen until probate is complete. New York law gives several ways to act sooner when an asset needs attention right away:

• Preliminary letters testamentary (SCPA 1412): The named executor can ask for preliminary letters while the probate proceeding is pending. They let the executor collect and protect assets, but the executor generally cannot distribute property, and the court may require a bond.
• Limited letters (SCPA 702): The court can issue letters restricted to a specific purpose, such as starting a lawsuit or collecting a particular account.
• Temporary administration (SCPA Article 9): When there is a delay in appointing a permanent fiduciary, for example during a will contest, the court can appoint a temporary administrator to manage the estate.

None of these shortens the overall case. They do keep a rental property managed, a business running, or a lawsuit filed on time while the main proceeding continues.

Estates without a will usually take longer

When there is no will, the court appoints an administrator under SCPA Article 10, and the estate passes to distributees in the order set by EPTL 4-1.1. The petitioner must prove who those distributees are. If the decedent left a spouse and children, this is usually simple. If the closest relatives are siblings, nieces and nephews, or cousins, the court will want birth, marriage and death records going back one or two generations, often supported by an affidavit of heirship or a family tree. When the records are incomplete or come from abroad, the court may hold a kinship hearing before deciding who inherits. That can add many months.

Letters of administration are also often restricted. They may limit what the administrator can collect, or bar a sale of real property, without a further court order. Lifting those restrictions takes another application. In New York City, if no eligible relative petitions, the Public Administrator of the county may be appointed. For more on this path, see administering an estate without a will and our administration letters page.

Small estates: voluntary administration

If the decedent left personal property of $50,000 or less, not counting certain exempt property, and no real property in their sole name, the family can usually use voluntary administration under SCPA Article 13 instead of full probate or administration. A spouse, child or other eligible person files an affidavit with the Surrogate's Court and receives a certificate. The certificate lets that person collect bank accounts and other property up to the limit. In our experience the certificate often issues within a few weeks, and the estate can be wrapped up in a few months. Voluntary administration cannot be used to sell or transfer real property.

Major delays at the appointment stage

Will contests: If a distributee files objections to the will, the probate moves onto a litigation track. Under SCPA 1404, the objecting party may examine the attesting witnesses and the lawyer who drafted the will under oath. Discovery, medical records on the decedent's capacity, depositions of family members and motion practice follow. Many contests settle, but a contest that goes to trial can last years. See our page on will contests.

Unknown or missing relatives: Searching for a distributee whose address is unknown can take about six months before the court is satisfied with the search and any publication. If the identity of the distributees themselves is unknown, the court may require a diligent search, often with a genealogical report, and a guardian ad litem may be appointed for unknown heirs. Those cases commonly take a year or more just to reach the appointment. New York courts are strict about notice. They often require proof of a search even for remote relatives overseas who may not exist.

Rejection of the will: In rare cases the will is denied probate. The estate then passes as if there were no will, or under an earlier will, and the process starts over with a new petition.

Stage two: settling the estate

Once appointed, the fiduciary has four main jobs: find the assets, transfer them into the estate's name, sell what needs to be sold, and pay valid debts, expenses and taxes. This stage usually takes six to nine months in a simple estate.

Finding and collecting assets

Most people do not leave a list of their assets with their will. The executor has to go through the decedent's papers, mail and devices. Assets often surface months later when a statement or tax form arrives. New York has no central registry of a decedent's accounts, and paperless billing makes the search harder. If a relative or third party is holding estate property, the fiduciary can bring a discovery and turnover proceeding under SCPA 2103. That is its own small lawsuit with its own timeline. For accounts with no named beneficiary, see bank accounts at death with no beneficiary.

Once an asset is located, re-registering it in the estate's name usually takes several weeks. Brokerage transfers, co-op shares and vehicle titles each have their own paperwork, and each can be sent back for corrections.

The seven-month creditor period (SCPA 1802)

The seven-month creditor period is the one fixed waiting period in most New York estates. Under SCPA 1802, a fiduciary who in good faith pays claims or makes distributions after seven months from the issuance of letters is protected. If a creditor presents a claim after that point, the fiduciary is not personally chargeable for assets already paid out in good faith. The protection does not run the other way. If the fiduciary distributes before the seven months expire and there is not enough left to pay a valid claim presented within that period, the fiduciary can be personally liable for the shortfall.

A late claim is not automatically void. It can still be paid from assets remaining in the estate, and in some circumstances a creditor can pursue beneficiaries to the extent of what they received. For these reasons, careful executors usually wait for the seven-month mark before making significant distributions, and keep a reserve for expenses and taxes. Beneficiaries generally cannot compel payment of a legacy before seven months from letters (EPTL 11-1.5).

Selling real property

A house, condo or co-op apartment adds time even in a smooth case. The property has to be secured, insured, appraised, listed and sold, and co-op sales need board approval. Title companies may require a court order or the consent of all distributees before insuring a sale by an administrator whose letters are restricted. Expect three to twelve additional months.

Occupied property is the most common cause of serious delay we see. A relative or tenant who will not leave keeps the property from selling at a fair price, and removing an occupant in New York can take six months or much longer. We cover these situations in separate guides: getting access to a house after a death, access to an apartment after a death, a beneficiary living in the inherited house, and a brother who refuses to leave a parent's house. If the property needs repairs to sell, the estate generally stays open until the work is done and the sale closes.

Businesses and co-owned assets

Valuing and selling a closely held business can take a year or more, and there may be no buyer for that business at that time. When the decedent co-owned a company with people outside the estate, those co-owners may try to buy the estate's share for less than it is worth. Negotiation or litigation may be the only way to get fair value.

Estate tax returns and tax clearance

Estate taxes affect only larger estates, but when they apply they control the timeline. Both the New York estate tax return (Form ET-706) and the federal estate tax return (Form 706) are due nine months after the date of death. Extensions of time to file are available, generally up to six months, but an extension to file does not extend the time to pay.

• New York: The basic exclusion amount is adjusted each year and is over $7 million for deaths in 2025. New York has a "cliff." If the taxable estate exceeds the exclusion amount by more than 5 percent, the exclusion is lost entirely and the whole estate is taxed. Small changes in valuation can therefore matter a great deal.
• Federal: The federal exemption is far higher, $13.99 million per person for deaths in 2025, so most New York estates that owe tax owe only New York tax. A surviving spouse's estate may still want to file a federal return to preserve the unused exemption (portability).

After the returns are filed, executors usually hold back part of the estate until the taxing authorities accept them. The IRS issues an estate tax closing letter only on request, and many practitioners rely on an IRS account transcript instead. Either one can take months. To sell New York real property, a title company will typically require a release of the New York estate tax lien. Taxable estates should therefore plan on at least 15 to 24 months from death to final distribution.

Every estate also has the decedent's final personal income tax returns and, often, estate fiduciary income tax returns. These do not usually cause long delays, but the final fiduciary return is filed at the end, after the last distribution.

Stage three: accounting and closing

Informal accounting with receipts and releases

Most New York estates close informally. The executor prepares an accounting showing what came in, what was paid out and how the remainder will be divided. Each beneficiary signs a receipt and release, usually before a notary, and receives their share. This takes about two to three months. The usual delays are beneficiaries who are slow to return paperwork and accountants who need time to finish the numbers for a more diverse estate. A release is a binding document. Beneficiaries should read the accounting before signing and ask questions if something is unclear.

Judicial accounting under SCPA Article 22

If a beneficiary will not sign a release, or the executor wants the court's approval for protection, the estate is settled through a judicial accounting under SCPA Article 22. A beneficiary can also petition to compel the fiduciary to account under SCPA 2205. A judicial accounting lists every receipt and disbursement in a court-prescribed format. All interested parties are cited. The court reviews the account, and a guardian ad litem may be appointed for minors or unknown parties. Preparing and filing the account often takes a few months, and court review takes several more. If no one objects, the court issues a decree settling the account.

If a beneficiary files objections, for example challenging legal fees, commissions, a sale price or unexplained transfers, the accounting becomes a contested proceeding with discovery and possibly a trial. It can run well over a year. See our page on estate accountings.

How Surrogate's Courts differ by county

The same statutes apply everywhere in New York, but practice varies by court. These are general patterns we have observed. Individual courts change staff and procedures over time.

• New York City (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, Staten Island): The volume of filings is high, especially in Kings and Queens. Clerk review of probate and administration files is detailed, and deficiency notices are common. A complete, well-prepared file avoids the most common cause of lost weeks. Kinship cases involving distant relatives tend to take longer in the city because so many estates involve family records from other countries.
• Nassau and Suffolk: These courts generally see fewer filings than the busiest city courts. Each has its own local practices and checklists, and contested matters still move at the pace of litigation.
• All counties: Will contests, kinship disputes and contested accountings take far longer than uncontested filings in every court. The difference between counties matters most for routine matters.

What executors can do to keep probate moving

• Order several certified death certificates at once.
• Find the original will early. A copy generally cannot be probated without an additional proceeding.
• Collect names, addresses and relationships of all close relatives before the first meeting with a lawyer.
• Sign and return papers promptly, with notarization done correctly.
• Talk to relatives about the waivers before they arrive so they know what they are signing.
• Secure and insure any real property immediately, and deal with occupants early.
• Calendar the nine-month estate tax deadline and the seven-month creditor date from the day letters issue.
• Keep beneficiaries informed. Most contested accountings start with a beneficiary who feels left in the dark.

If you are a beneficiary and the estate seems stuck

A delay is not always a problem. An estate waiting on the seven-month creditor period, a tax review or a home sale may be on schedule. If the executor has not filed for letters, will not answer basic questions, or has held assets for well over a year with no explanation, you have options. You can petition to compel an accounting (SCPA 2205), seek payment of your legacy after seven months (EPTL 11-1.5), or, in serious cases, ask the court to remove the fiduciary. See resolving conflicts between beneficiaries and executors and removal of an administrator. If you are planning ahead and want your own family to avoid this process, see how to avoid probate in New York.

Talk to us about a specific estate

Other lawyers may quote a shorter time. Our general answer is about a year for an uncontested New York City estate, and longer when the factors above apply. If you are an executor or a beneficiary and want to know where a particular estate stands and what is likely to come next, call us at 212-233-1233 or email [email protected].

This page provides general information about New York law and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Time ranges reflect general experience and are not a prediction or guarantee for any estate. Statutes, tax thresholds and court procedures change, so consult a New York attorney about your specific situation.