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Ala. Code § 43-2-350(b) · checked 2026-10-21
How long probate takes in Alabama
The longest fixed wait in probate in Alabama is usually the creditor claim period: 6 months from the grant of letters under Ala. Code § 43-2-350(b), or five months from the first publication of notice, whichever is later. An estate cannot be closed safely before that window shuts.
- 1Claim period 6 months
- 2Counted from Notice / letters
- 3Outer limit None stated
- 4Statute Ala. Code § 43-2-350(b)
The statute
“must be presented within six months after the grant of letters, or within five months from the date of the first publication of notice, whichever is the later to occur”
Source: Ala. Code § 43-2-350(b) (read from the FindLaw copy, current as of 2024-12-30). Last checked 2026-10-21.
Worked example: a death on January 15, 2026
| Checkpoint | Date |
|---|---|
| Date of death | January 15, 2026 |
| Trigger: the grant of letters | March 1, 2026 |
| Creditor claim period ends (6 months, Ala. Code § 43-2-350(b)) | September 1, 2026 |
Alabama starts the clock at the grant of letters, so the end date moves with the court. The example assumes that event comes 45 days after the death (March 1, 2026); a later filing pushes September 1, 2026 back day for day.
7 jurisdictions on this site give creditors longer and 30 give them less; the median is 122 days.
Steps that add time
- Getting appointed. Nothing runs until the grant of letters; the time between the death and the petition is outside the statutory period.
- Notice. Published notice and notice mailed to known creditors start or shorten the claim period; a creditor who should have been mailed notice may get extra time — here, or five months from the first publication of notice, whichever is later.
- Real estate. Alabama's small-estate route does not take real property, so an estate with a house in the state generally goes through administration or another court step.
- Accounting and closing. The final account, receipts from heirs and any tax filings come after the claim period ends.
Nearby East South Central timelines
Kentucky: 6 months; Mississippi: 90 days; Tennessee: 12 months from death.
Related: Alabama small estate limit · creditor claim periods compared · executor timeline.
General information from the statute as written on 2026-10-21; not legal advice. Dates are worked examples of the statutory periods, not deadlines for any real estate. The Alabama probate court and its clerk can confirm how the periods run in a given case.