Skip to content
Estate Affidavit Guide

Georgia Banking Affidavit of Surviving Relative Checklist: How to File, Step by Step

Georgia does not publish a fill-in form for Banking Affidavit of Surviving Relative — O.C.G.A. § 7-1-239 instead lists what a compliant filing must contain. Below is that requirement, explained in plain language and cited section by section. This is informational only and is not legal advice; we do not draft or individualize the filing.

Last reviewed

Georgia does not publish a fill-in form for Banking Affidavit of Surviving Relative — O.C.G.A. § 7-1-239 instead sets out what a compliant filing must contain. Here is the full sequence, with the statutory fact behind each step.

  1. Confirm the decedent died intestate with no more than $15,000 on deposit

    This affidavit applies only when the decedent died without a will and had $15,000 or less in a single financial institution. A larger deposit can still have up to $10,000 released this way, with the remainder requiring a different mechanism.

  2. Confirm you're the correct priority relative

    The statute's priority order has no exceptions: surviving spouse, then children pro rata, then parents pro rata, then siblings pro rata — stopping at the first category that has a living member.

  3. Prepare the affidavit

    No statewide form exists. The affidavit must state the claimant's relationship to the decedent as specified by the statute, that there is no known will, and that the claimant knows of no other corresponding claimant to the deposit. Many county probate courts publish their own template built from these required elements.

  4. Present the affidavit directly to the bank

    This goes straight to the financial institution holding the deposit — not to a court. Georgia law discharges the institution from liability to any other party once it pays in compliance with a properly executed affidavit.

  5. If the bank asks for a court order anyway, cite the statute's own language

    O.C.G.A. § 7-1-239 states payment under this section is authorized without the necessity of estate administration or a no-administration-necessary order. A bank asking for either is asking for more than the law requires.

The step families get stuck on is presenting the completed filing to a bank, DMV, or title company — see also how long the whole process actually takes once the waiting period passes.

What Georgia requires instead of a fill-in form

Georgia does not publish a fill-in banking affidavit of surviving relative form. That means the requirements above — read directly against O.C.G.A. § 7-1-239 — are what a compliant filing has to satisfy, whether you prepare it yourself where permitted or bring it to an attorney to draft.

The step that isn't really paperwork

Presenting it to the bank, DMV, or title company is where families actually lose time — most front-line staff have never processed this kind of filing before. Free one-pager: what to bring and what to say before you go, emailed now. Then a few short follow-ups over the next few weeks — then we stop. No ongoing newsletter.

Email only — we never ask for estate value, family details, or account numbers, and never sell your address.