Application For Family Allowance

There are all sorts of forms executors, beneficiaries, and probate court clerks have to fill out and correspond with during probate and estate settlement, including affidavits, letters, petitions, summons, orders, and notices.

Application For Family Allowance is a commonly used form within Texas. Here’s an overview of what the form is and means, including a breakdown of the situations when (or why) you may need to use it:

Atticus Fast Facts About Application For Family Allowance

Sometimes it’s tough to find a quick summary— here’s the important details you should know about Application For Family Allowance:

• This form pertains to the State of Texas

Government forms are not typically updated often, though when they are, it often happens rather quietly. While Atticus works hard to keep this information about Texas’s Form Application For Family Allowance up to date, certain details can change from time-to-time with little or no communication.

Step 1 - Download the correct Texas form based on the name and ID if applicable

Double check that you have both the correct form name and the correct form ID. Some Texas probate forms can look remarkably similar, so it’s best to double, even triple-check that you’re using the right one! Keep in mind that not all States have a standardized Form ID system for their probate forms.

Step 2 - Complete the Document

Fill out all relevant fields in Form Application For Family Allowance, take a break, and then review. Probate and estate settlement processes in TX are long enough to begin with, and making a silly error can push your timeline even farther back. No thank you!

Note: If you don’t currently know all of the answers and are accessing Form Application For Family Allowance online, be sure to avoid closing the browser tab and potentially losing all your progress (or use a platform like Atticus to help avoid making mistakes).

Step 3 - Have Form witnessed or notarized (if required)

Some States and situations require particular forms to be notarized. If you have been instructed to get the document notarized or see it in writing on the document, then make sure to hire a local notary. There are max notary fees in the United States that are defined and set by local law. Take a look at our full guide to notary fees to make sure you aren’t overpaying or getting ripped off.

Step 4 - Submit Application For Family Allowance to the relevant office

This is most often the local probate court where the decedent (person who passed away) is domiciled (permanently resides) or the institution involved with this particular form (e.g. a bank). Some offices allow you to submit forms online, other’s don’t, and we while we generally recommend going in-person to expedite the process, sometimes that simply isn’t an option.

It’s also a generally good idea to establish a positive working relationship with any probate clerk (unfortunately there’s enough people & process out there making things more difficult and unnecessarily confusing for them), so a best practice is to simply ask the probate clerk proactively exactly how and where they’d prefer you to submit all forms.

Need help getting in touch with a local probate court or identifying a domicile probate jurisdiction?

👉 Find and Contact your Local Probate Court

👉 What is a Domicile Jurisdiction?

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Different probate forms or processes can require different deadlines or response times for completing the appropriate form.

While some steps in the process are bound to specific deadlines (like petitioning for probate, having to submit an inventory of assets, or filing applicable notices to creditors and beneficiaries), many probate forms or processes are not tied to a specific deadline since the scope of work can vary based on situational factors or requirements involved.

Either way, there are a bunch of practical reasons why personal representatives should work to complete each step as thoroughly and quickly as possible when completing probate in Texas.

5 reasons you should submit this form as quickly as possible:

1. The sooner you begin, the faster Texas can allow heirs and beneficiaries to get their share of assets subject to probate. Acting promptly can also decrease the costs & overall mental fatigue through an otherwise burdensome process.
   
   Helpful Context: What’s the Difference Between Probate and Non-Probate Assets?

2. In general, creditors of an estate usually have around 3-6 months from the time you file notice to creditors to file any claims for debt against the deceased’s assets. If they don’t, then that debt is forfeited (and more importantly, the executor won’t be held personally responsible). So doing this sooner means you have a better idea of who is owed what and ensures you won’t get a surprise collector months later.

3. Not filing a will within 30 days (on average) could mean that the probate process proceeds according to intestate laws (laws that govern what happens to someone's stuff without a will) or is subject to unnecessary supervision by the probate court. And if you aren't directly related to the deceased (a.k.a. next of kin), this could also mean you lose your inheritance.

4. It’s important to file any necessary state tax returns on behalf of the deceased or estate by the following tax season in Texas. If you don’t, you could owe penalties and interest. This also includes any necessary federal tax returns such as Forms 1040, 1041, or even a Form 706 estate tax return.

5. If a house in the State of Texas is left empty (or abandoned) for a while, insurance can get dicey. For example, if the house burns down and no one has been there for a year, an insurance company may get out of paying your claim.

If you’re not using Atticus to get specific forms, deadlines, and timelines for Texas probate, then try and stay as organized as possible, pay close attention to the dates mentioned in any correspondence you have with the State’s government officials, call the local Texas probate clerk or court for exact answers regarding Form Application For Family Allowance, and when in doubt— consult a qualified trust & estates lawyer for that area.

Application For Family Allowance is one of the many probate court forms available for download through Atticus.

It may also be available through some Texas probate court sites, such as . In order to access the latest version, be updated with any revisions, and get full instructions on how to complete each form, check out the Atticus Probate & Estate Settlement software or consider hiring a qualified legal expert locally within Texas.

While Atticus automatically provides the latest forms, be sure to choose the correct version of Form Application For Family Allowance f using any other site or resource in order to avoid having to re-complete the form process and/or make another trip to the Texas probate court office.

Application For Family Allowance is a .pdf, so opening it should be as simple as clicking “View Form” from within the Atticus app or by clicking the appropriate link found on any Texas-provided government platform. Once you’ve opened the form, you should be able to directly edit the form before saving or printing.

Here’s the text, verbatim, that is found on Texas Form Application For Family Allowance. You can use this to get an idea of the context of the form and what type of information is needed.

No. ________________ IN THE ESTATE OF ) ) IN THE _____________ COURT FOR ) ______________ COUNTY, TEXAS ____________________________, ) DECEASED ) Application for Family Allowance _______________, ______________ of this estate, (“Applicant”) furnishes the following information to the Court: 1.The Inventory, Appraisement, and List of Claims of this estate has been approved. 1.The Affidavit in Lieu of Inventory, Appraisement, and List of Claims of this estate has been filed. 2. ________________ (“Decedent”) was survived by (include name, relationship to decedent, and identify if person is a minor or an adult i ncapacitated child): ______________________________________________________________________ , who was/were being supported by Decedent at the time of Decedent’s death. The family members listed above ______ have separate property adequate for his/her/their maintenance. 3. The amount of the family allowance should be determined by the facts and circumstances now existing and those anticipated to exist during the first year after Decedent’s death, and that allowance should be in the amount of $__________, payable ____________ ____ of $____________. Applicant requests t he Court t o si gn an order t o set t he amount of t he family allowance and specify the fund or other property fr om which the allowance should be paid. Respectfully submitted, _____________________________________ SIGNATURE Printed Name: _____________________________ Address: _________________________________ Phone: __________________________________ Email: __________________________________ Order On this day the Court heard and considered the Application for Family Allowance. The Court finds that a fair and reasonable allowance should be paid for the support of Decedent’s __ Surviving Spouse __ minor child/children _ _ incapacitated adult child/children, based on the facts now existing and those expected to exist during the first year after the death of Decedent, in the sum of $__________. It is ORDERED that a family allowance of $__________ shall be paid _______________ of $__________ to Decedent’s __ Surviving Spouse __ minor child/children __ incapacitated adult child/children, and that the ________________ pay the allowance from the funds belonging to the estate. SIGNED on ___________________________. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Judge Presiding