Probate Fees: What to Expect and How to Minimize Costs
Nov. 14, 2025
When a loved one dies, probate can be challenging to navigate, especially due to the time and costs involved. In these cases, it helps to think about probate fees as a set of line items you can anticipate and influence.
Some expenses are fixed by the court, while others depend on the size of the deceased's estate, the documents involved, and how smoothly information is gathered. With a clear view of those moving parts, you can choose approaches that keep fees reasonable without sacrificing accuracy.
At Lewis & Van Sickle, LLC, located in Green Bay, Wisconsin, we help our clients understand how probate fees work so the process doesn’t add unnecessary stress. Contact us today to learn more about what to expect with probate fees and how you can minimize these costs while administering your loved one's estate.
Probate Fees in Wisconsin
Probate is the court-supervised process to transfer assets, pay valid debts, and close an estate. Probate fees cover the costs of filings, notices, and confirmations, as well as the time required for legal and accounting tasks. While no two cases are identical, most estates share a similar structure of court costs, professional fees, and administrative expenses.
In Wisconsin, the fee for filing probate is typically 0.2% of the total value of the property, but no less than a minimum of $20. Further statutory fees, such as those for guardianship, claims against the estate, or terminating a life estate, are broken down in the Statutory Fees Register in Probate.
Typical Expenses You May Encounter
Most estates encounter a familiar list of expenses. Knowing what these expenses may entail ahead of time can help you budget and avoid surprises. As you prepare to open or continue a probate case, some of the expenses you may encounter include:
Court filing fees: These cover opening the estate, filing inventories, motions, and obtaining certified copies that financial institutions may require.
Publication and mailing fees: Estates typically pay to publish a notice to creditors and mail notices to interested persons, which establishes official timelines.
Personal representative bond fees: Some estates require a bond to protect beneficiaries. Premiums for these bods are typically paid from estate funds unless waived by the court or will.
Appraisal and valuation fees: Real property, closely held businesses, and unique items may need professional valuations to support the inventory and tax filings.
Legal and accounting service fees: Drafting filings, answering court questions, handling tax returns, and advising the personal representative often make up a large portion of costs.
Document retrieval and recording fees: Death certificates, deed recordings, vehicle title transfers, and similar tasks carry state or county fees.
While not every estate will require every fee, most will need more than one. If you are unsure which fees apply to probating your loved one's estate, reach out to an experienced probate attorney.
Fee Drivers That Raise Costs
During probate, some factors can predictably increase the number of fees. However, proactively addressing them early can often save you money. The most common items that can increase probate costs include:
Multiple or hard-to-find assets: Scattered accounts, unregistered vehicles, or undocumented collectibles typically take time to identify, value, and transfer.
Disputes among interested persons: Conflicts over personal property, creditor claims, or distributions can lead to hearings and additional filings that add costs.
Missing or outdated documents: A will that doesn’t match the available assets, beneficiary designations that haven't been updated, or missing records often lead to repeated follow-ups.
Reducing these drivers is mostly about preparation and communication. When documents and expectations align early, the estate spends less time fixing preventable problems later.
When Small Estates and Alternatives Apply
Not every situation requires complete, formal administration. Depending on the assets included in the estate and the applicable thresholds, some estates may qualify for simplified procedures or transfers outside probate. Joint tenancy with right of survivorship, transfer-on-death deeds, and pay-on-death designations can move assets directly to beneficiaries.
These tools don’t eliminate the need to address debts, taxes, or title updates, but they can help narrow the estate’s footprint if you’re evaluating your options. Some steps must be set up during your loved one's life, while others may apply after they pass, depending on what they left in place.
Tax Responsibilities During Probate
Filing and managing the deceased's taxes typically coincide with other probate tasks, so it helps to map out filings at the start. You’ll usually need to file the decedent’s final individual return, request an estate EIN, and decide whether the estate requires a fiduciary income tax return (Form 1041) if any assets earned interest or were sold after death. Keep a single record of all sales, expenses, and distributions, and plan for estimated payments when income is significant so interest and penalties don’t pile up.
Practical Steps to Keep Fees Manageable
When managing a deceased's estate, there are specific cost-saving measures that you can use without compromising accuracy or compliance. If you’re about to open a case or you’re already in one, consider the following steps to keep the process efficient and focused on the essentials:
Create a single asset and debt inventory: A consolidated list with account numbers, titling, balances, and institution contacts that reduces duplicate calls and follow-ups.
Organize documents before filing: Death certificates, the original will, beneficiary forms, deeds, tax returns, and loan statements should be gathered and labeled for quick access.
Use beneficiary and transfer tools appropriately: Accounts with pay-on-death or transfer-on-death designations, and jointly titled property, often move faster and reduce court steps.
Coordinate appraisals intelligently: Group valuations on the same day and provide appraisers with prior assessments or comparables to limit repeat visits.
Keep communication tight: Decide how the personal representative and the firm will share updates so questions are batched, which limits billed time.
Track deadlines on a single calendar: Creditor periods, inventory due dates, and tax milestones should sit in one place to prevent late filings and rush fees.
After you have these basics in place, you can revisit the tasks that don’t add value. Estimates can save money by avoiding recreating work, maintaining a clean paper trail, and limiting last-minute requests that trigger expedited charges.
Contact a Skilled Probate Attorney Today
Probate is often required after someone passes away to validate their will and manage the distribution of assets among the surviving beneficiaries. However, probate involves specific costs and fees that can catch you off guard if you don't plan for them in advance.
If you’re facing probate decisions in Wisconsin, our attorney at Lewis & Van Sickle, LLC can help you set a clear plan that keeps costs manageable and moves the estate forward. With offices in Green Bay and Pulaski, Wisconsin, we serve clients in the surrounding areas of Oconto, Shawano, Kewaunee, and Sturgeon Bay. Reach out to schedule a conversation about your next step.