Register in Probate » General Information » Probate Procedures

Informal Probate

Informal probate is a full administration of a deceased person’s estate supervised by the Probate Registrar. All required probate documents are filed with the court and are considered public records. Although consulting with a Wisconsin probate attorney is recommended, doing so is not required. 

Before making the decision to begin an Informal Administration, please review all forms in their entirety.  It is also recommended that you review A Personal Representative's Guide to Informal Estate Administration in Wisconsin, a publication provided by the Wisconsin Register in Probate Association.

To open a new Informal Probate please complete the following documents:
 

	Form	Link to form
PR-1801	Application for Informal Administration	Click here to access form
PR-1806	Proof of Heirship	Click here to access form
	Original Last Will and Testament
PR-1803	Waiver and Consent (must be completed by all interested persons)	Click here to access form
GF-131A	Order Appointing Guardian ad Litem (if required)	Click here to access form
PR-1802	Declination to Serve as Personal Representative (if necessary)	Click here to access form
PR-1807	Consent to Serve	Click here to access form
PR-1804	Notice to Creditors (if all interested persons completed a Waiver and Consent)	Click here to access form
	Or
PR-1805	Notice Setting Time to Hear Application and Deadline for Filing Claims	Click here to access form
PR-1808	Statement of Informal Administration	Click here to access form
	Surety Bond (obtained from an insurance agent) for estimated value of administration
PR-1810	Domiciliary Letters	Click here to access form
PR-1930	Consent to Serve as Trustee (if required)	Click here to access form
PR-1931	Letters of Trust (if a trustee is required under the terms of the Will)	Click here to access form
F-13033	Probate Claims Notice (if required)	Click here to access form

When all forms necessary to begin informal administration are completed, and if you are not represented by an attorney, please call 920-448-4275 to make an appointment to meet with the Register in Probate. This appointment will take approximately one half hour. It is important that all forms necessary to open an informal estate administration have been completed, in their entirety, prior to this appointment. All personal representatives, unless represented by counsel, must provide a surety bond for the estimated value of the estate. Please contact your insurance agent for more information on obtaining a surety bond.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

After you have been appointed as Personal Representative, the following documents are required to close the estate:
 

	Form	Link to Form
PR-1817	Affidavit of Service * Showing that a copy of the Inventory was mailed to all interested persons; and * Showing that a copy of the Final Account (PR-1814) was mailed to all interested persons	Click here to access form
	Proof of Publication - Obtain from the Green Bay Press Gazette after publication
PR-1811	Inventory * Due 6 months after personal representative is appointed * Filing fee of .2% of value of estate is required	Click here to access form
PR-1814	Final Estate Account	Click here to access form
PR-1815	Estate Receipt * Each distributee must provide a receipt for all distributions received; and * Each creditor who filed a Claim Against Estate	Click here to access form
	Closing Certificate for Fiduciaries - Obtain from Wisconsin Department of Revenue Click here to obtain more information from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue
PR-1816	Statement of Personal Representative to Close Estate	Click here to access form