Question 1

What makes a will valid in Utah?

Accepted Answer

A person 18 or older with testamentary capacity may make a will. Capacity means the person can identify family members and others in his or her life, understands those relationships and the nature and extent of his or her property, and can form a plan for disposing of it; capacity is presumed even if the person is under a guardianship or conservatorship. A will must be in writing, signed by the testator (or by someone else in the testator's conscious presence and at his or her direction), and signed by at least two witnesses, each within a reasonable time after seeing the signing or the testator's acknowledgment of the signature or of the will. An interested witness does not invalidate the will. Utah also recognizes electronic wills signed by the testator and two witnesses in the testator's physical or electronic presence.

Question 2

Is a handwritten will valid in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Yes. A will that does not meet the witness requirements is valid as a holographic will, whether or not witnessed, if the signature and the material portions of the document are in the testator's handwriting. Intent that the document be a will may be shown by other evidence, including portions not in the testator's handwriting.

Question 3

Does a will need to be notarized in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Yes. A will may be made self-proved at signing, or at any later time, by the testator's acknowledgment and the witnesses' affidavits before a notary or other officer authorized to administer oaths, using the statutory certificate form.

Question 4

Who inherits if someone dies without a will in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Surviving spouse: the entire estate if the decedent has no surviving descendants, or if all of the decedent's descendants are also descendants of the surviving spouse; otherwise the first $75,000 plus one-half of the balance. The rest (or everything, if there is no spouse) passes to descendants per capita at each generation; if none, to parents; if none, to descendants of the parents (siblings, nieces and nephews); if none, half to paternal and half to maternal grandparents or their descendants; if none, to descendants of a deceased spouse. If there is no taker, the estate goes to the state for the permanent state school fund.

Question 5

What is a surviving spouse entitled to in Utah?

Accepted Answer

The surviving spouse of a decedent domiciled in Utah may elect to take one-third of the augmented estate (which includes the probate estate and many nonprobate transfers). If the spouse would receive less than $75,000 from the listed sources, a supplemental elective-share amount brings the total to $75,000. The petition must be filed in court and mailed or delivered to the personal representative within nine months after death or within six months after the will is probated, whichever is later. Utah is not a community property state.

Question 6

What is the small estate limit in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Thirty days after the death, a successor may collect money owed to the decedent and tangible personal property (including instruments such as stock certificates) by presenting an affidavit stating that the value of the entire estate subject to administration, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, is not more than $100,000; that 30 days have passed since the death; that no petition to appoint a personal representative is pending or granted anywhere; and that the successor is entitled to the property. The affidavit is not filed with the court; it is signed before a notary and given to the bank or other holder. Up to four registered boats, motor vehicles, trailers or semitrailers may also be transferred through the Motor Vehicle Division on the affidavit (with the $100,000 figure computed excluding those vehicles). Water company shares are not eligible. The Utah courts' guidance states this procedure is not used for real property.

Question 7

Is there a simplified probate process in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Utah follows the Uniform Probate Code, so most estates can use informal probate (an application to the court's registrar, without a hearing) rather than formal court-supervised proceedings. For very small estates, if the inventory shows the estate (less liens) is worth no more than the homestead allowance, exempt property, family allowance, administration costs, reasonable funeral expenses and last-illness medical expenses, the personal representative may distribute immediately without notice to creditors and close the estate by a verified closing statement.

Question 8

How does probate work in Utah?

Accepted Answer

1) File an application for informal probate and appointment with the registrar, or a petition for formal probate, in the district court of the county where the decedent was domiciled (or, for a nonresident, where the decedent's property was located). Informal probate or formal testacy proceedings generally must begin within three years after death. 2) The personal representative is appointed and receives letters (bond is usually not required). 3) The personal representative may publish a notice to creditors once a week for three weeks and may mail notice to known creditors (doing so shortens the claim period). 4) Within three months after appointment, prepare an inventory with date-of-death values and send it to interested persons who request it (filing it with the court is optional). 5) Pay allowed claims, expenses and taxes. 6) Distribute the estate and close it, for example by filing a verified closing statement no earlier than four months after the original appointment, once the creditor claim period has expired.

Question 9

How long do creditors have to file claims against an estate in Utah?

Accepted Answer

If the personal representative publishes a notice to creditors (once a week for three successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county, and as required by Utah Code § 45-1-101), claims arising before death must be presented within three months after the first publication. A creditor who is mailed or given written notice has until the later of 90 days after the published notice or 60 days after the mailing or delivery. In any event, claims are barred if not presented within one year after death.

Question 10

Who can be an executor in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Priority for appointment as personal representative: the person named in a probated will, then a surviving spouse who is a devisee, other devisees, the surviving spouse, other heirs, and, 45 days after death, any creditor. A person under 21, or one the court finds unsuitable in formal proceedings, may not serve. The statute does not bar nonresidents, and a personal representative appointed in the decedent's home state has priority. No bond is required unless the will requires one, an interested person requests it before appointment, a special administrator is appointed without notice, or the court orders it; the court may also dispense with a bond.

Question 11

Does Utah allow transfer-on-death deeds?

Accepted Answer

Yes, under the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act. A transfer on death deed must contain the essential elements and formalities of a recordable deed, state that the transfer occurs at the owner's death, and be recorded before the owner's death in the county recorder's office where the property is located. It requires the same capacity as a will, needs no notice to, delivery to or acceptance by the beneficiary and no consideration, and cannot name a class of beneficiaries. It is revocable only by a later recorded and acknowledged instrument (not by a will or by destroying the deed). The statute includes an optional form.

Question 12

What does a quitclaim deed need to be valid in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Utah statutes provide short forms for warranty and quitclaim deeds. To be recorded with the county recorder where the property is located, a deed must carry a certificate of acknowledgment (or proof of execution) by a notary or other authorized officer, be an original (or a qualifying electronic document), include a brief caption stating the nature of the document, contain a legal description of the property, and name the grantees with a mailing address for tax notices. A water rights addendum may be submitted with a deed conveying land or water rights.

Question 13

What are the requirements for a power of attorney in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Utah has adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act. A power of attorney is durable unless it expressly says it ends on the principal's incapacity. It must be signed by the principal (or by another person in the principal's conscious presence at the principal's direction) before a notary public or other person authorized to take acknowledgments, and the principal must understand that he or she is appointing an agent to handle financial affairs. A principal living in, or about to move into, a hospital, assisted living, skilled nursing or similar facility may not name the facility's owner, operator, health care provider or employee as agent unless that person is a spouse, guardian or next of kin or the authority is limited to Medicaid eligibility. The statute includes a Statutory Form Power of Attorney.

Question 14

What are the requirements for a health care directive in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Effective January 1, 2026, Utah follows the Uniform Health Care Decisions Act. An adult may give health care instructions and create a power of attorney for health care. A power of attorney for health care must be in a record, signed by the individual, and signed by one adult witness who believes the act is voluntary and knowing and who is present (in person, by real-time audio-video, or in some cases by real-time audio). The witness may not be the agent, the agent's spouse or cohabitant, or, if the individual lives or receives care in a nursing home or assisted living facility, its owner, operator, employee or contractor. The statute includes an optional Advance Health Care Directive form.

Question 15

Does Utah have an estate or inheritance tax?

Accepted Answer

No state estate or inheritance tax. Utah's Inheritance Tax Act (Title 59, Chapter 11) was repealed effective May 6, 2026.

Question 16

How do I make a living will in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Effective January 1, 2026, Utah follows the Uniform Health Care Decisions Act. An adult may give health care instructions (the living-will part) in an advance health care directive. The statute includes an optional Advance Health Care Directive form that combines health care instructions with the appointment of an agent; use of the form is optional. A directive made before January 1, 2026 remains valid if it complies with the new chapter or complied with the law where and when it was made.

Question 17

How do I make a medical power of attorney in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Utah calls it a power of attorney for health care. It must be in a record, signed by the individual, and signed by one adult witness who believes the act is voluntary and knowing and who is present (in person, by real-time audio-video, or in some cases by real-time audio). The witness may not be the agent, the agent's spouse or cohabitant, or, if the individual lives or receives care in a nursing home or assisted living facility, its owner, operator, employee or contractor. The optional statutory Advance Health Care Directive form can be used.

Question 18

How do living trusts work in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Utah has adopted the Uniform Trust Code, now codified in Utah Code Title 75B, Chapter 2 (Trusts, renumbered by Chapter 310, 2025 General Session). A trust is created only if the settlor has capacity (the same standard as for making a will), indicates an intention to create the trust, the trust has a definite beneficiary (or is a charitable, animal-care or noncharitable-purpose trust), and the other statutory requirements are met. A trust need not be in writing, but an oral trust and its terms can be proved only by clear and convincing evidence. For trusts created by instruments signed on or after May 1, 2004, the settlor may revoke or amend the trust unless its terms expressly make it irrevocable. Property transferred to the trustee passes under the trust terms without probate; assets left in the decedent's own name may still need probate or a small estate affidavit.

Question 19

What does an executor have to do in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Main duties and deadlines for a Utah personal representative: qualify by filing any required bond and a statement accepting the duties before receiving letters; optionally publish a notice to creditors once a week for three successive weeks in a county newspaper (and on the state public legal notice website), requiring claims within three months after the first publication, and mail notice to known creditors; within three months after appointment, prepare an inventory of the decedent's property at date-of-death fair market value, with encumbrances, and send a copy to interested persons who request it; pay allowed claims, expenses and taxes; distribute the estate; and close it, for example by filing a verified closing statement no earlier than four months after the original appointment, once the creditor claim period has expired.

Question 20

How do I get letters testamentary in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Letters are issued in the district court of the county where the decedent was domiciled (or, for a nonresident, where property was located). In informal probate, the applicant files an application for informal probate and appointment with the registrar; formal probate is by petition to the court. Informal probate or formal testacy proceedings generally must begin within three years after death. Priority goes to the person named in a probated will, then a surviving spouse who is a devisee, other devisees, the surviving spouse, other heirs, and 45 days after death any creditor; a person under 21 may not serve. Before receiving letters, the personal representative files any required bond and a statement of acceptance; bond usually is not required unless the will requires it, an interested person asks, or the court orders it. The Utah courts' self-help pages describe the process and forms.

Question 21

Does Utah have an affidavit of heirship?

Accepted Answer

No statute provides an affidavit of heirship for real estate. Heirs are determined by the district court in a formal testacy proceeding, which may ask for an order that the decedent died intestate, or through informal probate and appointment of a personal representative, who then deeds real estate to the heirs.

Question 22

How can you avoid probate in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Non-probate transfers available in Utah: (1) Transfer on death deed for real estate, recorded before death, with an optional statutory form (Utah Code §§ 75-6-401 to 75-6-416). (2) Joint bank accounts belong to the surviving party, and P.O.D. accounts pass to the named payee (Utah Code § 75-6-104). (3) Transfer-on-death registration of securities in beneficiary form (Utah Code Title 75, Chapter 6, Part 3). (4) Survivorship affidavit to transfer up to four vehicles, boats, trailers or semi-trailers when the rest of the estate subject to administration is $100,000 or less (Utah State Tax Commission form TC-569C, under Utah Code § 75-3-1201). (5) Small estate affidavit for personal property (Utah Code § 75-3-1201). (6) Revocable living trust (Utah Code Title 75B, Chapter 2).

Question 23

Where can I get a power of attorney form in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Utah has an optional "Statutory Form Power of Attorney" for property and finances under the Uniform Power of Attorney Act (Utah Code 75A-2-301); the form states that it does not authorize the agent to make health care decisions. A power of attorney must be signed by the principal (or by another individual at the principal's direction in the principal's conscious presence) before a notary public or other person authorized to take acknowledgments, and the principal must have enough capacity to understand that they are appointing an agent for their financial affairs (75A-2-105). For health care, the Uniform Health Care Decisions Act (effective January 1, 2026) provides an optional "Advance Health Care Directive" form (75A-9-110). A power of attorney for health care must be in a record signed by the individual and by one adult witness who is present (in person or as the statute allows electronically) and is not the agent, the agent's spouse or cohabitant, or, for a nursing home or assisted living resident, the facility's owner, operator, employee or contractor (75A-9-107).

Question 24

How do I search probate court records in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Probate cases are filed in the district court of the county where the person lived at death or owned property (Utah Code 75-3-201); if there is a will, the original must be filed with the court. Xchange, the Utah courts' case-information database for district and justice courts, shows case summaries (parties, attorneys, documents filed, hearings, judgments); it requires a login and fees, and images of public district court documents can be purchased. Public terminals are available at most district court locations.

Question 25

How do I transfer a car title after someone dies in Utah?

Accepted Answer

Thirty days after the death, if no personal representative has been appointed or applied for, a survivor entitled to the vehicle can transfer the title with a Survivorship Affidavit (Utah State Tax Commission form TC-569C), signed before a notary. The survivor certifies that the decedent left no more than four boats, motor vehicles, trailers or semi-trailers, that the value of the rest of the estate subject to administration (less liens) does not exceed $100,000, that the survivor is entitled to the vehicle, and that the transfer will not prejudice creditors. If a personal representative has been appointed, the personal representative transfers the title using the letters.

Requirements for a valid will	A person 18 or older with testamentary capacity may make a will. Capacity means the person can identify family members and others in his or her life, understands those relationships and the nature and extent of his or her property, and can form a plan for disposing of it; capacity is presumed even if the person is under a guardianship or conservatorship. A will must be in writing, signed by the testator (or by someone else in the testator's conscious presence and at his or her direction), and signed by at least two witnesses, each within a reasonable time after seeing the signing or the testator's acknowledgment of the signature or of the will. An interested witness does not invalidate the will. Utah also recognizes electronic wills signed by the testator and two witnesses in the testator's physical or electronic presence. Section 75-2-501 was amended in 2025 (2025 Utah Laws ch. 338) to define testamentary capacity. A document not properly executed may still be treated as a will if clear and convincing evidence shows the decedent intended it as a will (§ 75-2-503). Source: Utah Code §§ 75-2-501, 75-2-502, 75-2-505, 75-2-1405
Handwritten (holographic) wills	Yes. A will that does not meet the witness requirements is valid as a holographic will, whether or not witnessed, if the signature and the material portions of the document are in the testator's handwriting. Intent that the document be a will may be shown by other evidence, including portions not in the testator's handwriting. Source: Utah Code § 75-2-502(2)-(3)
Self-proving affidavit	Yes. A will may be made self-proved at signing, or at any later time, by the testator's acknowledgment and the witnesses' affidavits before a notary or other officer authorized to administer oaths, using the statutory certificate form. Source: Utah Code § 75-2-504

Probate steps	1) File an application for informal probate and appointment with the registrar, or a petition for formal probate, in the district court of the county where the decedent was domiciled (or, for a nonresident, where the decedent's property was located). Informal probate or formal testacy proceedings generally must begin within three years after death. 2) The personal representative is appointed and receives letters (bond is usually not required). 3) The personal representative may publish a notice to creditors once a week for three weeks and may mail notice to known creditors (doing so shortens the claim period). 4) Within three months after appointment, prepare an inventory with date-of-death values and send it to interested persons who request it (filing it with the court is optional). 5) Pay allowed claims, expenses and taxes. 6) Distribute the estate and close it, for example by filing a verified closing statement no earlier than four months after the original appointment, once the creditor claim period has expired. The Utah courts' self-help pages describe the informal probate process and forms. Source: Utah Code §§ 75-3-107, 75-3-201, 75-3-301, 75-3-603, 75-3-705, 75-3-801, 75-3-1003
Simplified probate	Utah follows the Uniform Probate Code, so most estates can use informal probate (an application to the court's registrar, without a hearing) rather than formal court-supervised proceedings. For very small estates, if the inventory shows the estate (less liens) is worth no more than the homestead allowance, exempt property, family allowance, administration costs, reasonable funeral expenses and last-illness medical expenses, the personal representative may distribute immediately without notice to creditors and close the estate by a verified closing statement. Source: Utah Code §§ 75-3-301, 75-3-1203, 75-3-1204
Small estate affidavit	Thirty days after the death, a successor may collect money owed to the decedent and tangible personal property (including instruments such as stock certificates) by presenting an affidavit stating that the value of the entire estate subject to administration, wherever located, less liens and encumbrances, is not more than $100,000; that 30 days have passed since the death; that no petition to appoint a personal representative is pending or granted anywhere; and that the successor is entitled to the property. The affidavit is not filed with the court; it is signed before a notary and given to the bank or other holder. Up to four registered boats, motor vehicles, trailers or semitrailers may also be transferred through the Motor Vehicle Division on the affidavit (with the $100,000 figure computed excluding those vehicles). Water company shares are not eligible. The Utah courts' guidance states this procedure is not used for real property. Section 75-3-1201 was amended effective May 7, 2025 (2025 Utah Laws ch. 123) to exclude water company shares; the $100,000 limit did not change. A holder who wrongly refuses to honor a proper affidavit may be liable for up to three times the property's value plus costs and attorney fees. Source: Utah Code §§ 75-3-1201, 75-3-1202
Deadline for creditor claims	If the personal representative publishes a notice to creditors (once a week for three successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county, and as required by Utah Code § 45-1-101), claims arising before death must be presented within three months after the first publication. A creditor who is mailed or given written notice has until the later of 90 days after the published notice or 60 days after the mailing or delivery. In any event, claims are barred if not presented within one year after death. These limits do not prevent enforcement of a mortgage or other lien on estate property, claims covered by liability insurance (to the policy limits), or Medicaid recovery. A person collecting by small estate affidavit may publish a notice to creditors by affidavit. Source: Utah Code §§ 75-3-801, 75-3-803
Who can be executor	Priority for appointment as personal representative: the person named in a probated will, then a surviving spouse who is a devisee, other devisees, the surviving spouse, other heirs, and, 45 days after death, any creditor. A person under 21, or one the court finds unsuitable in formal proceedings, may not serve. The statute does not bar nonresidents, and a personal representative appointed in the decedent's home state has priority. No bond is required unless the will requires one, an interested person requests it before appointment, a special administrator is appointed without notice, or the court orders it; the court may also dispense with a bond. Persons with priority may nominate another qualified person to serve. Source: Utah Code §§ 75-3-203, 75-3-603, 75-3-605
Finding probate court records	Probate cases are filed in the district court of the county where the person lived at death or owned property (Utah Code 75-3-201); if there is a will, the original must be filed with the court. Xchange, the Utah courts' case-information database for district and justice courts, shows case summaries (parties, attorneys, documents filed, hearings, judgments); it requires a login and fees, and images of public district court documents can be purchased. Public terminals are available at most district court locations. Probate court: https://www.utcourts.gov/en/self-help/case-categories/probate/informal-probate.html Source: Utah Courts, Informal Probate; Utah Courts, Xchange: Public Case Search

Financial power of attorney	Utah has adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act. A power of attorney is durable unless it expressly says it ends on the principal's incapacity. It must be signed by the principal (or by another person in the principal's conscious presence at the principal's direction) before a notary public or other person authorized to take acknowledgments, and the principal must understand that he or she is appointing an agent to handle financial affairs. A principal living in, or about to move into, a hospital, assisted living, skilled nursing or similar facility may not name the facility's owner, operator, health care provider or employee as agent unless that person is a spouse, guardian or next of kin or the authority is limited to Medicaid eligibility. The statute includes a Statutory Form Power of Attorney. These provisions were renumbered from Title 75 into Title 75A in 2024; § 75A-2-105 was amended effective May 7, 2025 (2025 Utah Laws ch. 338). Source: Utah Code §§ 75A-2-104, 75A-2-105, 75A-2-106, 75A-2-301
Health care directive	Effective January 1, 2026, Utah follows the Uniform Health Care Decisions Act. An adult may give health care instructions and create a power of attorney for health care. A power of attorney for health care must be in a record, signed by the individual, and signed by one adult witness who believes the act is voluntary and knowing and who is present (in person, by real-time audio-video, or in some cases by real-time audio). The witness may not be the agent, the agent's spouse or cohabitant, or, if the individual lives or receives care in a nursing home or assisted living facility, its owner, operator, employee or contractor. The statute includes an optional Advance Health Care Directive form. A directive made before January 1, 2026 remains valid if it complies with the new chapter or complied with the law where and when it was made. Source: Utah Code §§ 75A-9-101 to 75A-9-129 (esp. §§ 75A-9-106, 75A-9-107, 75A-9-110, 75A-9-128)
Official power of attorney forms	Utah has an optional "Statutory Form Power of Attorney" for property and finances under the Uniform Power of Attorney Act (Utah Code 75A-2-301); the form states that it does not authorize the agent to make health care decisions. A power of attorney must be signed by the principal (or by another individual at the principal's direction in the principal's conscious presence) before a notary public or other person authorized to take acknowledgments, and the principal must have enough capacity to understand that they are appointing an agent for their financial affairs (75A-2-105). For health care, the Uniform Health Care Decisions Act (effective January 1, 2026) provides an optional "Advance Health Care Directive" form (75A-9-110). A power of attorney for health care must be in a record signed by the individual and by one adult witness who is present (in person or as the statute allows electronically) and is not the agent, the agent's spouse or cohabitant, or, for a nursing home or assisted living resident, the facility's owner, operator, employee or contractor (75A-9-107). Execution: https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title75A/Chapter2/C75A-2-S105_2025050720250507.html ; health care form: https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title75A/Chapter9/C75A-9-S110_2026010120250507.html ; health care witness rule: https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title75A/Chapter9/C75A-9-S107_2026010120250507.html Source: Utah Code 75A-2-105, 75A-2-301; 75A-9-107, 75A-9-110

Living will / advance directive	Effective January 1, 2026, Utah follows the Uniform Health Care Decisions Act. An adult may give health care instructions (the living-will part) in an advance health care directive. The statute includes an optional Advance Health Care Directive form that combines health care instructions with the appointment of an agent; use of the form is optional. A directive made before January 1, 2026 remains valid if it complies with the new chapter or complied with the law where and when it was made. Source: Utah Code §§ 75A-9-101 to 75A-9-129 (esp. §§ 75A-9-106, 75A-9-110, 75A-9-128)
Medical power of attorney	Utah calls it a power of attorney for health care. It must be in a record, signed by the individual, and signed by one adult witness who believes the act is voluntary and knowing and who is present (in person, by real-time audio-video, or in some cases by real-time audio). The witness may not be the agent, the agent's spouse or cohabitant, or, if the individual lives or receives care in a nursing home or assisted living facility, its owner, operator, employee or contractor. The optional statutory Advance Health Care Directive form can be used. Source: Utah Code §§ 75A-9-107, 75A-9-110
Revocable living trust	Utah has adopted the Uniform Trust Code, now codified in Utah Code Title 75B, Chapter 2 (Trusts, renumbered by Chapter 310, 2025 General Session). A trust is created only if the settlor has capacity (the same standard as for making a will), indicates an intention to create the trust, the trust has a definite beneficiary (or is a charitable, animal-care or noncharitable-purpose trust), and the other statutory requirements are met. A trust need not be in writing, but an oral trust and its terms can be proved only by clear and convincing evidence. For trusts created by instruments signed on or after May 1, 2004, the settlor may revoke or amend the trust unless its terms expressly make it irrevocable. Property transferred to the trustee passes under the trust terms without probate; assets left in the decedent's own name may still need probate or a small estate affidavit. Source: Utah Code §§ 75B-2-402, 75B-2-407, 75B-2-602
Ways to avoid probate	Non-probate transfers available in Utah: (1) Transfer on death deed for real estate, recorded before death, with an optional statutory form (Utah Code §§ 75-6-401 to 75-6-416). (2) Joint bank accounts belong to the surviving party, and P.O.D. accounts pass to the named payee (Utah Code § 75-6-104). (3) Transfer-on-death registration of securities in beneficiary form (Utah Code Title 75, Chapter 6, Part 3). (4) Survivorship affidavit to transfer up to four vehicles, boats, trailers or semi-trailers when the rest of the estate subject to administration is $100,000 or less (Utah State Tax Commission form TC-569C, under Utah Code § 75-3-1201). (5) Small estate affidavit for personal property (Utah Code § 75-3-1201). (6) Revocable living trust (Utah Code Title 75B, Chapter 2). Source: Utah Code §§ 75-6-104, 75-6-309, 75-6-401 to 75-6-416, 75-3-1201

Executor's duties	Main duties and deadlines for a Utah personal representative: qualify by filing any required bond and a statement accepting the duties before receiving letters; optionally publish a notice to creditors once a week for three successive weeks in a county newspaper (and on the state public legal notice website), requiring claims within three months after the first publication, and mail notice to known creditors; within three months after appointment, prepare an inventory of the decedent's property at date-of-death fair market value, with encumbrances, and send a copy to interested persons who request it; pay allowed claims, expenses and taxes; distribute the estate; and close it, for example by filing a verified closing statement no earlier than four months after the original appointment, once the creditor claim period has expired. Source: Utah Code §§ 75-3-601, 75-3-705, 75-3-801, 75-3-1003
Letters testamentary	Letters are issued in the district court of the county where the decedent was domiciled (or, for a nonresident, where property was located). In informal probate, the applicant files an application for informal probate and appointment with the registrar; formal probate is by petition to the court. Informal probate or formal testacy proceedings generally must begin within three years after death. Priority goes to the person named in a probated will, then a surviving spouse who is a devisee, other devisees, the surviving spouse, other heirs, and 45 days after death any creditor; a person under 21 may not serve. Before receiving letters, the personal representative files any required bond and a statement of acceptance; bond usually is not required unless the will requires it, an interested person asks, or the court orders it. The Utah courts' self-help pages describe the process and forms. Source: Utah Code §§ 75-3-107, 75-3-203, 75-3-301, 75-3-601, 75-3-603
Affidavit / determination of heirship	No statute provides an affidavit of heirship for real estate. Heirs are determined by the district court in a formal testacy proceeding, which may ask for an order that the decedent died intestate, or through informal probate and appointment of a personal representative, who then deeds real estate to the heirs. Source: Utah Code § 75-3-401
Transferring a car after death	Thirty days after the death, if no personal representative has been appointed or applied for, a survivor entitled to the vehicle can transfer the title with a Survivorship Affidavit (Utah State Tax Commission form TC-569C), signed before a notary. The survivor certifies that the decedent left no more than four boats, motor vehicles, trailers or semi-trailers, that the value of the rest of the estate subject to administration (less liens) does not exceed $100,000, that the survivor is entitled to the vehicle, and that the transfer will not prejudice creditors. If a personal representative has been appointed, the personal representative transfers the title using the letters. Source: Utah Code § 75-3-1201; Utah State Tax Commission form TC-569C

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