Kentucky Probate Code: What You Need to Know About the 2026 Changes

When someone dies, most people assume wrapping up their loved ones will be a quick and easy process. Especially when they have a will that details exactly how they want their property to be distributed. This expectation is quickly ruined when they come face to face with the probate code. 

The probate code details the lengthy and complex process of probate. This code includes a  waiting period and other deadlines, plus an abundance of forms to fill out. Probate is no easy task, so finding an estate planning attorney Lexington KY residents trust can help you navigate probate court and the probate code is essential. 

Kentucky Doesn't Use the Uniform Probate Code

A probate code is a body of state laws that governs how a deceased person’s estate, property, and debts are managed and distributed. Unlike 19 other states, Kentucky has not adopted the Uniform Probate Code. Instead, Kentucky's own statutory scheme controls and spreads across KRS Chapters 391 through 396. 

KRS Chapter 391 deals with descent and distribution and governs who inherits when someone dies intestate, meaning without a will. KRS Chapter 392 deals with dower and curtesy and sets out a surviving spouse's statutory rights in the deceased spouse's property. These rights exist regardless of what a will says. KRS Chapter 394 governs wills, including what makes a will valid, how it can be revoked, and how it must be filed and recorded. KRS Chapter 395 governs personal representatives, fiduciary duties, and estate and probate administration. 

However, what you knew about probate in Kentucky might have just been changed by a new law. Contact an estate planning attorney in Lexington KY today to make sure you and your will are up to date and compliant with the new laws.

SB 50: An Update to Kentucky’s Probate Code

Kentucky's probate code was substantially rewritten by Senate Bill 50. Most of these provisions became effective July 2026. If your will, trust, or estate plan was drafted before that date, it was written under a different legal framework than the one that now applies. Here's what changed and why it matters.

Intestate Succession (KRS 391.010) 

Before SB 50, a surviving spouse's intestate share didn't depend on whose children were involved. The formula was the same whether every child belonged to both spouses or not. This is no longer true. Under the amended statute, a surviving spouse now takes the entire estate if the decedent has no descendants, or if every surviving descendant (i.e. children) is also a descendant of the surviving spouse. 

But if the decedent has one or more descendants who are not also the surviving spouse's descendants, like of a blended family with step-children, the spouse's automatic share drops. This is a significant change for blended families and anyone who assumed the "old rules" still applied. If you think your blended family might be affected by this change in the law, contact an estate planning attorney in Lexington KY to ensure your estate plan is settled. 

Dower and Curtesy (KRS 392.020) 

This change has caught a lot of people off guard, particularly business owners. Kentucky kept its traditional dower and curtesy framework, which gives a surviving spouse an absolute right to one-half of the decedent's "surplus" personal property, regardless of what a will says. However, SB 50 added a definition of surplus, which has changed what a surviving spouse has access to. It now expressly includes property payable under a beneficiary designation, transfer-on-death or payable-on-death accounts (including retirement accounts), property held in joint survivorship, assets in a revocable trust the decedent controlled, and property transferred within two years of death. The statute also gives the surviving spouse a direct legal claim against whoever received that property, if needed to satisfy the spouse's share. Contact a Lexington KY probate and estate planning attorney to talk through these changes in the law. 

In practical terms, this means a spouse who's unhappy with what a will leaves them can renounce the will, generally within six months after it's admitted to probate, and take the statutory dower or curtesy share instead, and that share now reaches assets many people assumed were safely outside a spouse's control. An estate planning attorney in Lexington KY can help you understand how these rules may affect your estate plan. If your estate plan was built around routing a business or major asset around a spouse using beneficiary designations or joint titling, it may no longer work as intended.

Real Estate Changes

The bill also amended how dower and curtesy apply to real property, in some cases allowing a surviving spouse to claim not just real estate owned at death, but a share of real estate the decedent owned in fee simple at any point during the marriage, even if it was sold or transferred before death. This is a meaningfully broader rule than existed before and is one more reason older estate plans deserve a second look.

Wills Statute (KRS 394) Now Recognizes Electronic Wills

The new law adopts the Uniform Electronic Wills Act and Uniform Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act. This change gives legal effect to electronic wills and other estate planning documents. This bill also changes how county clerks handle recorded wills. Now, the clerk must return the original will to whoever is designated no earlier than two years after the will is recorded.

Kentucky's Inheritance Tax 

Unlike most states, Kentucky still imposes a state inheritance tax based on the beneficiary's relationship to the decedent, not the size of the estate. As of 2026, Class A beneficiaries including spouses, parents, children, and grandchildren remain fully exempt. Class B beneficiaries face rates generally between 4% and 16% after a small exemption, and Class C beneficiaries (typically unrelated parties) face similar rates with an even smaller exemption. 

Will Contests

The probate code also allows for will contests. Any person aggrieved by the court’s decision to admit or reject a will have two years to challenge that ruling. Once the District Court has proven the will, the actual contest will be filed in Circuit Court in the same county. Commonly, challenges include lack of capacity or improper influence. Once the judge has admitted the will, the clock starts. 

Small Estate Exemption

In Kentucky, an estate with personal property valued at $30,000 or less can completely bypass formal probate administration. At EMWN, you can speak with an experienced estate planning attorney in Lexington KY to see if this applies to you and your loved ones' estate.

Important Deadlines

There are three deadlines to keep in mind while filing your probate petition. 

• 10-year limit to begin administration of estate. This means an estate must be probated within 10 years of a person’s death.

• 6-month creditor claim period. Creditors have a small window to step forward and claim any unpaid deaths.

• 60 day inventory filing. The executor or administrator of the estate must file a complete estate inventory using Form AOC-841. This lists all probate assets and their fair market values as of the date of death. 

How EMWN Can Help

People often ask about the probate process and how long it takes, what forms are needed, which court to file in. These questions are important, but what controls the process is the probate code. It serves as the guidelines for how the probate process gets applied. Reading the probate code can be especially tricky, and you want to ensure you are following and understanding the guidelines so everything goes smoothly and you do not miss a deadline. 

Contact an estate planning attorney in Lexington KY today to ensure your will and estate plan still meets your goals now that the July 2026 changes have been enacted.