Probate in Virginia · 133 counties

Virginia Probate Courts

Estates here go through the Circuit Court / Commissioner of Accounts. Pick a county on the map or search below — each record shows where to file and where every detail comes from.

Small-estate limit

$75,000

Wait 60 days

Death taxes

None

No state death tax

Executor fee

Reasonable

Reasonable fee set by the court

Handwritten wills

Valid

Unwitnessed, in testator’s hand

Plate · VA

Every Virginia county, on one map

Population, low → high courthouse probate office checked

§ I

Virginia probate rules

Court: Circuit Court / Commissioner of AccountsIn Virginia, probate is handled by the Clerk of the Circuit Court in each county and city. Personal representatives are supervised by court-appointed Commissioners of Accounts who audit inventories and accountings.
Small estates: $75,000 entire personal probate estate (personal property only; real property not included)Va. Code Ann. § 64.2-601
Filing the will: Must be offered for probate promptly; generally within 1 year
Creditor claims: 6 months from qualification of personal representative for debts proceeding before Commissioner of AccountsVa. Code Ann. § 64.2-550
Executor fees: Reasonable compensation under Guidelines for Fiduciary Compensation; typically 5% of receipts on personal property, 5% of income, and 1% on real property soldVa. Code Ann. § 64.2-1208 & Judicial Council Guidelines · calculator
Estate tax: NoneVirginia repealed its state estate tax effective July 1, 2007.
Inheritance tax: NoneNo inheritance tax in Virginia.
Typical duration: 6 to 15 months
Official courts site: vacourts.govCase search: Virginia Judiciary Online Case Information System (OCIS 2.0)

Re-checked Sept 2026 against: law.lis.virginia.gov (statute)

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§ II · Register

All 133 counties

Sorted by population. office checked = probate office address/phone confirmed on the court's own website. courthouse mapped = located in OpenStreetMap.

#	County	Seat	Population	Record
1	Fairfax County	Fairfax	1,141,878	office checked
2	Prince William County	Manassas	489,640	courthouse mapped
3	Virginia Beach city	N	453,649	county site
4	Loudoun County	Leesburg	436,347	courthouse mapped
5	Chesterfield County	Chesterfield	383,876	courthouse mapped
6	Henrico County	Laurel	334,760	courthouse mapped
7	Chesapeake city	N	253,886	county site
8	Arlington County	Arlington	234,162	courthouse mapped
9	Norfolk city	N	230,930	county site
10	Richmond city	N	229,247	county site
11	Newport News city	N	183,118	county site
12	Stafford County	Stafford	165,428	courthouse mapped
13	Alexandria city	N	155,230	county site
14	Spotsylvania County	Spotsylvania Courthouse	149,588	courthouse mapped
15	Hampton city	N	137,098	county site
16	Albemarle County	Charlottesville	115,676	county site
17	Hanover County	Hanover	114,148	courthouse mapped
18	Suffolk city	N	100,659	county site
19	Montgomery County	Christiansburg	98,666	courthouse mapped
20	Roanoke city	N	97,171	county site
21	Roanoke County	Salem	97,026	courthouse mapped
22	Portsmouth city	N	96,793	county site
23	Frederick County	Winchester	95,994	county site
24	Rockingham County	Harrisonburg	86,568	county site
25	James City County	Williamsburg	82,654	courthouse mapped
26	Bedford County	Bedford	81,525	courthouse mapped
27	Lynchburg city	N	79,535	courthouse mapped
28	Augusta County	Staunton	78,247	courthouse mapped
29	Fauquier County	Warrenton	75,165	county site
30	York County	Yorktown	70,952	courthouse mapped
31	Pittsylvania County	Chatham	59,571	courthouse mapped
32	Franklin County	Rocky Mount	55,549	courthouse mapped
33	Campbell County	Rustburg	55,270	county site
34	Culpeper County	Culpeper	54,973	courthouse mapped
35	Washington County	Abingdon	54,050	courthouse mapped
36	Harrisonburg city	N	51,082	county site
37	Henry County	Martinsville	49,702	county site
38	Shenandoah County	Woodstock	45,228	courthouse mapped
39	Charlottesville city	N	44,983	county site
40	Prince George County	Prince George	42,871	county site
41	Manassas city	N	42,696	county site
42	Warren County	Front Royal	41,843	courthouse mapped
43	Danville city	N	41,837	county site
44	Louisa County	Louisa	41,037	courthouse mapped
45	Isle of Wight County	Isle of Wight	40,711	courthouse mapped
46	Gloucester County	Gloucester	40,057	courthouse mapped
47	Tazewell County	Tazewell	39,120	courthouse mapped
48	Orange County	Orange	38,574	courthouse mapped
49	Wise County	Wise	35,174	courthouse mapped
50	Botetourt County	Fincastle	34,125	county site
51	Pulaski County	Pulaski	33,655	courthouse mapped
52	Halifax County	Halifax	33,432	courthouse mapped
53	Petersburg city	N	33,309	courthouse mapped
54	Accomack County	Accomac	33,239	courthouse mapped
55	Caroline County	Bowling Green	32,640	courthouse mapped
56	Powhatan County	Powhatan	32,105	courthouse mapped
57	Amherst County	Amherst	31,396	courthouse mapped
58	Mecklenburg County	Boydton	30,648	courthouse mapped
59	Carroll County	Hillsville	29,239	courthouse mapped
60	Smyth County	Marion	29,216	courthouse mapped
61	Fredericksburg city	N	28,928	county site
62	King George County	King George	28,568	county site
63	Fluvanna County	Palmyra	28,462	courthouse mapped
64	Dinwiddie County	Dinwiddie	28,343	courthouse mapped
65	Wythe County	Wytheville	28,104	courthouse mapped
66	Winchester city	N	27,617	county site
67	Goochland County	Goochland	27,197	courthouse mapped
68	New Kent County	New Kent	26,134	county site
69	Staunton city	N	25,915	county site
70	Salem city	N	25,600	county site
71	Russell County	Lebanon	25,477	courthouse mapped
72	Fairfax city	Fairfax	25,144	county site
73	Page County	Luray	23,741	courthouse mapped
74	Waynesboro city	N	23,182	county site
75	Hopewell city	N	22,752	county site
76	Rockbridge County	Lexington	22,358	county site
77	Prince Edward County	Farmville	22,049	courthouse mapped
78	Lee County	Jonesville	21,745	courthouse mapped
79	Scott County	Gate	21,433	courthouse mapped
80	Greene County	Stanardsville	21,301	county site
81	Buchanan County	Grundy	19,087	courthouse mapped
82	King William County	King William	19,030	courthouse mapped
83	Westmoreland County	Montross	19,013	courthouse mapped
84	Colonial Heights city	N	18,393	county site
85	Southampton County	Courtland	17,975	courthouse mapped
86	Patrick County	Stuart	17,509	courthouse mapped
87	Buckingham County	Buckingham	16,978	courthouse mapped
88	Radford city	N	16,971	county site
89	Appomattox County	Appomattox	16,864	courthouse mapped
90	Bristol city	N	16,807	courthouse mapped
91	Giles County	Pearisburg	16,457	courthouse mapped
92	Manassas Park city	N	16,361	county site
93	Williamsburg city	N	15,847	county site
94	Brunswick County	Lawrenceville	15,749	courthouse mapped
95	Floyd County	Floyd	15,679	courthouse mapped
96	Nottoway County	Nottoway	15,566	courthouse mapped
97	Clarke County	Berryville	15,466	courthouse mapped
98	Grayson County	Independence	15,285	courthouse mapped
99	Nelson County	Lovingston	14,705	courthouse mapped
100	Falls Church city	N	14,685	county site
101	Alleghany County	Covington	14,595	courthouse mapped
102	Madison County	Madison	14,128	county site
103	Martinsville city	N	13,763	county site
104	Dickenson County	Clintwood	13,640	courthouse mapped
105	Amelia County	Amelia	13,480	courthouse mapped
106	Poquoson city	N	12,635	county site
107	Northumberland County	Heathsville	12,391	courthouse mapped
108	Lunenburg County	Lunenburg	12,038	courthouse mapped
109	Northampton County	Eastville	12,021	courthouse mapped
110	Charlotte County	Charlotte Court House	11,336	courthouse mapped
111	Greensville County	Emporia	11,133	county site
112	Middlesex County	Saluda	10,924	courthouse mapped
113	Lancaster County	Lancaster	10,859	courthouse mapped
114	Sussex County	Sussex	10,757	courthouse mapped
115	Essex County	Tappahannock	10,598	courthouse mapped
116	Cumberland County	Cumberland	9,878	courthouse mapped
117	Richmond County	Warsaw	9,184	courthouse mapped
118	Mathews County	Mathews	8,514	courthouse mapped
119	Franklin city	N	8,339	county site
120	Lexington city	N	7,528	county site
121	Rappahannock County	Washington	7,414	county site
122	King and Queen County	King and Queen	6,720	courthouse mapped
123	Galax city	N	6,717	county site
124	Charles City County	Charles	6,610	courthouse mapped
125	Surry County	Surry	6,593	county site
126	Buena Vista city	N	6,566	county site
127	Bland County	Bland	6,179	courthouse mapped
128	Covington city	N	5,545	county site
129	Emporia city	N	5,463	county site
130	Craig County	New Castle	4,843	county site
131	Bath County	Warm Springs	4,051	courthouse mapped
132	Norton city	N	3,492	county site
133	Highland County	Monterey	2,339	courthouse mapped

§ III

Virginia probate questions

What is the small estate affidavit limit in Virginia?

$75,000 entire personal probate estate (personal property only; real property not included) (Va. Code Ann. § 64.2-601). It can be used 60 days after death. Wait 60 days after death. Total estate cannot exceed $50,000. Real estate cannot be transferred via small estate affidavit.

How are executor and administrator fees calculated in Virginia?

Reasonable compensation under Guidelines for Fiduciary Compensation; typically 5% of receipts on personal property, 5% of income, and 1% on real property sold (Va. Code Ann. § 64.2-1208 & Judicial Council Guidelines). Courts can award more for extraordinary services, such as running a business or litigation.

What is the creditor claim deadline for estates in Virginia?

6 months from qualification of personal representative for debts proceeding before Commissioner of Accounts (Va. Code Ann. § 64.2-550). Claims filed after the deadline are generally barred.

Does Virginia recognize handwritten (holographic) wills?

Yes. Virginia recognizes holographic wills if wholly in the handwriting of the testator and signed, proved by two disinterested witnesses (Va. Code § 64.2-403).

Does Virginia have a state estate tax or inheritance tax?

Virginia has no state estate tax. There is no inheritance tax.