Where the estate is opened.
Only if the statute's conditions are met. Read the section below.
See the tax section for the exemption or the repeal.
See the property section for the statute's words.
Living trust or probate
A revocable living trust holds assets you title in the trustee's name. You can serve as trustee while you are able.
At death, the successor trustee handles those assets. Property you leave in your own name can still go through the probate court. A pour-over will sends leftover assets into the trust, and those leftover assets may pass through probate first.
The probate path
In Connecticut, the estate is opened in the Connecticut Probate Court.
The Connecticut Probate Courts have jurisdiction over probating wills and the administration of estates. When a person who owns property dies, the Probate Court oversees division of the property, either under a will or under Connecticut law if there is no will. The court sees that debts, funeral expenses, and taxes are paid before remaining assets are distributed. A petition asks the Probate Court to admit the will and issue letters testamentary, or to issue letters of administration if there is no will.
Source: Trusts and Estates, Connecticut Probate Courts
Fees
In Connecticut, probate compensation is a statutory commission.
Connecticut has no statutory percentage schedule for an executor or administrator. An Office of Legislative Research report states that, under common law, fiduciaries are entitled to just and reasonable fees. The Probate Court reviews the fiduciary's bill and may reduce it. The report lists the factors as responsibility, character of the work, special problems, result, knowledge and skill, promptness, time, value of the estate, and any other relevant circumstances.
Source: Fiduciary Fees, Connecticut Office of Legislative Research, 97-R-1450
Small estate
Connecticut's small-estate figure on this page is $40,000 when the statute's conditions are met.
Under General Statutes section 45a-273, if the decedent's solely owned tangible and intangible personal property, excluding property that passes outside probate by operation of law, does not exceed forty thousand dollars, and the decedent had no solely owned real property in Connecticut, a surviving spouse, next of kin, or other interested person may file an affidavit in the Probate Court instead of a petition for probate or letters. The court sends a copy to the Department of Administrative Services and shall not issue a decree until thirty days after that copy was sent.
Source: Conn. Gen. Stat. sec. 45a-273, Chapter 802b
Estate or inheritance tax
Connecticut levies an estate tax.
For estates of decedents dying during 2026, the Connecticut estate tax exemption amount is $15 million. The 2026 estate tax table in the Department of Revenue Services instructions says none if the Connecticut taxable estate is not over $15,000,000, and 12% of the excess over the federal basic exclusion amount if it is over $15,000,000.
Source: Connecticut Department of Revenue Services, Estate and Gift Tax Information
Property of spouses
Spouses in Connecticut hold separate property.
The Judicial Branch law library pathfinder quotes the Connecticut rule, citing General Statutes section 46b-36, that neither husband nor wife acquires by the marriage any interest in the real or personal property of the other during that other's lifetime, and that either spouse may dispose of that spouse's property without the other's consent.
Source: Rights of Surviving Spouse in Connecticut, Connecticut Judicial Branch Law Library
Questions
The answers use the same statute and court pages as the sections above.
Does a living trust avoid probate in Connecticut?
A revocable living trust holds the assets you title in the trustee's name. The successor trustee handles those assets. Property still titled in your own name can be a probate matter. A pour-over will can send leftover assets into the trust, and those leftover assets may still pass through probate first.
What is the small-estate procedure in Connecticut?
Under General Statutes section 45a-273, if the decedent's solely owned tangible and intangible personal property, excluding property that passes outside probate by operation of law, does not exceed forty thousand dollars, and the decedent had no solely owned real property in Connecticut, a surviving spouse, next of kin, or other interested person may file an affidavit in the Probate Court instead of a petition for probate or letters. The court sends a copy to the Department of Administrative Services and shall not issue a decree until thirty days after that copy was sent.
How are probate fees set in Connecticut?
Connecticut has no statutory percentage schedule for an executor or administrator. An Office of Legislative Research report states that, under common law, fiduciaries are entitled to just and reasonable fees. The Probate Court reviews the fiduciary's bill and may reduce it. The report lists the factors as responsibility, character of the work, special problems, result, knowledge and skill, promptness, time, value of the estate, and any other relevant circumstances.
Does Connecticut tax an estate or an inheritance?
For estates of decedents dying during 2026, the Connecticut estate tax exemption amount is $15 million. The 2026 estate tax table in the Department of Revenue Services instructions says none if the Connecticut taxable estate is not over $15,000,000, and 12% of the excess over the federal basic exclusion amount if it is over $15,000,000.
How does Connecticut treat property of spouses?
The Judicial Branch law library pathfinder quotes the Connecticut rule, citing General Statutes section 46b-36, that neither husband nor wife acquires by the marriage any interest in the real or personal property of the other during that other's lifetime, and that either spouse may dispose of that spouse's property without the other's consent.
Sources
These are the statute and court pages used above.
- Trusts and Estates, Connecticut Probate Courts
- Fiduciary Fees, Connecticut Office of Legislative Research, 97-R-1450
- Conn. Gen. Stat. sec. 45a-273, Chapter 802b
- Connecticut Department of Revenue Services, Estate and Gift Tax Information
- Rights of Surviving Spouse in Connecticut, Connecticut Judicial Branch Law Library