Last updated: September 10, 2026|General Vermont probate bond information — confirm current requirements with the licensing authority.

Court bond · Vermont Probate Division, 14 units

Vermont Probate Bond

Vermont never adopted the Uniform Probate Code, and its bond rule reflects it. Under 14 V.S.A. §906, every executor or administrator shall give a bond — there is no will clause, no informal- proceeding carve-out, and no categorical assent path that skips the filing. That is the opposite of Maine, where most informally-probated estates pay no bond at all, and stricter than New Hampshire, which offers a full administration waiver for a sole beneficiary serving as their own administrator. In Vermont, the only thing that moves is whether the Probate Division orders sureties — decided county by county across the state's 14 elected Probate Divisions. This page covers the §906/§2101 mechanics, how the 14 units work, your surety options, and what a Vermont probate bond costs.

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The New England outlier

Vermont is the one New England state that never rewrote its bond default

Maine adopted the Uniform Probate Code as Title 18-C in 2019, importing the UPC's bond-averse default: most informally probated estates pay no bond at all unless something specific triggers one. Vermont's Title 14 was never rebuilt around the UPC. Its bond rule still runs through Chapter 61 — the same chapter that has governed executors and administrators for decades — and §906's “shall give a bond” applies to every appointment, with no proceeding type or will clause that switches it off.

Default bond posture: Vermont vs. its UPC-adjacent neighbors

What each state's own bond statute says happens with no special circumstances

State	Default rule	What actually flips it
Vermont	Bond required in every case — 14 V.S.A. §906	Court may waive only the SURETIES, via Form 700-00004 (unanimous heirs + judge sign-off) or a small-estate filing
Maine	No bond in most informal proceedings — 18-C M.R.S. §3-603	A formal proceeding, a will that expressly requires bond, a special administrator, or a §3-605 demand
New Hampshire	Bond required unless waived — RSA 553:13	Estates ≤$25,000 get a personal bond without sureties; RSA 553:32 fully waives administration for a sole beneficiary serving as administrator

Vermont's Title 14 has never been reorganized around the Uniform Probate Code; Maine's Title 18-C is explicitly UPC-based, adopted effective July 1, 2019.

Managing an estate that also touches Maine's informal-vs-formal bond split? The two states' defaults run in opposite directions, so don't assume Vermont's rules carry over. See our national guide on how bond waivers work state by state for the full picture beyond New England.

Two chapters, one requirement: §906 mandates it, §2101 sizes it

Vermont splits its probate bond rule across two different chapters of Title 14 — a structural quirk most other states don't share. Chapter 61 (Executors and Administrators) is where the mandate itself lives: §906 states plainly that “an executor or administrator shall give a bond to secure the executor's or administrator's performance of the executor's or administrator's duties,” and that “the Probate Division of the Superior Court shall set the amount of the bond and may order that the bond have sureties.” When two or more people are appointed together, §908 lets the court take separate bonds from each — with or without sureties — or one joint bond from all of them.

The amount-and-sureties mechanics, though, live 1,200 sections later in Chapter 101 (Probate Bonds). §2101 is where the court's authority to set “such sum and with such surety or sureties as the court directs” is actually spelled out, and it's this chapter that governs what happens if a bond later looks insufficient (§2104) or when a fiduciary is finally discharged and the surety exonerated (§2107). Practically: §906 tells you a bond is coming, and §2101 is the chapter your surety company and the court clerk are actually working from once it's time to write it.

14 V.S.A. §2101 — no multiplier, just the estate's value

Worked Example

GivenExecutor reports an estate valued at $310,000

No multiplier applied

Bond Amount$310,000 bond

GivenExecutor reports an estate valued at $310,000

No multiplier applied

Bond Amount$310,000 bond

14 V.S.A. §2101; per the Vermont Judiciary's own probate guidance, 'the amount of the bond is generally the value of the estate' — unlike states that run the figure through a fixed multiplier.

That figure is the coverage amount the surety is on the hook for, not your premium — the premium is a small percentage set by underwriting. For how carriers price that percentage, see what determines your surety bond cost. Want the math on your own estate figure? Try the probate bond calculator.

14 units, 14 elected judges

Same statute, 14 different Probate Divisions to file with

Vermont's Probate Division is organized into 14 units, one per county, each with its own elected probate judge serving a four-year term — a structure that differs from states where a single judge or an appointed clerk of court handles probate. The 14 units are Addison, Bennington, Caledonia, Chittenden, Essex, Franklin, Grand Isle, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, Rutland, Washington, Windham, and Windsor.

AddisonBenningtonCaledoniaChittendenEssexFranklinGrand IsleLamoilleOrangeOrleansRutlandWashingtonWindhamWindsor

§906 and §2101 apply the same way in every unit — the bond mandate and the value-of-estate formula don't change by county. What does change: which elected judge reviews your surety-waiver request under Form 700-00004, how quickly that unit turns around a bond filing, and where the executed bond gets docketed. Tell us the county and we prepare the form your unit will accept the first time.

Three ways to satisfy the surety question — only one scales

Once §906's bond is a given, Vermont recognizes three distinct ways to handle the surety piece of it. Which one fits depends on the estate's size and how much your co-heirs trust the fiduciary's judgment.

No surety

Available two ways: a small estate filed on Form 700-00020PESM (no surety unless the judge orders one), or every heir signing Form 700-00004 with the judge's approval. Either way, the bond itself is still filed — just without a surety attached.

Personal surety

A financially responsible individual co-signs the bond alongside the fiduciary. Under §908, when multiple fiduciaries are appointed, the court can take separate or joint bonds with personal sureties from any or all of them — but that person becomes jointly liable for losses if the fiduciary breaches their duty.

Commercial surety

The product we write. A Treasury-listed surety carrier backs the bond for a premium instead of putting an heir or friend's personal assets on the line — the standard choice once an estate has real property, business interests, or heirs who'd rather not co-sign.

Not filing the bond the Probate Division actually ordered has real consequences: under §906, Letters don't issue without it, and under §2107, the fiduciary can't be discharged — or the surety exonerated — without a proper accounting on file first.

Official Vermont Requirements

"An executor or administrator shall give a bond to secure the executor's or administrator's performance of the executor's or administrator's duties. The Probate Division of the Superior Court shall set the amount of the bond and may order that the bond have sureties."

Vermont General Assembly — Vermont Statutes Annotated, Title 14 • 14 V.S.A. § 906

What a Vermont commercial surety bond costs

Once a commercial surety is the route — no small-estate exception, no unanimous Form 700-00004 waiver on file — the premium runs a small percentage of the §2101 bond amount, consistent with the 0.5%–1.5% industry-standard range for probate fiduciary bonds we track nationally. A fiduciary with strong personal credit and a straightforward estate typically prices toward the low end; estates with real property, business interests, or a fiduciary with credit challenges price higher.

Because Vermont sets the bond at the estate's full value rather than a fraction of it, the dollar premium for a given estate can run higher here than in a state that only bonds personal property or applies a discount for a corporate surety. Get your estate's approved figure from the Probate Division first — that number, not an estimate, is what we quote against.

From petition to a bond your Probate Division will accept

Confirm your role and county

Executor, administrator, trustee, or guardian — and which of the 14 Probate Divisions has jurisdiction over the estate.

Get the estate value approved

Since §2101 sets the bond at the estate's value with no multiplier, the Probate Division's approved figure is what drives your bond amount and premium.

Decide the surety path

Small estate with no surety ordered, all heirs signing Form 700-00004, a personal surety, or a commercial surety — each has a different filing.

Apply for the surety bond

If a commercial surety is the route, a quick review of the fiduciary's credit and the estate. Most probate bonds approve fast with an admitted, Treasury-listed surety.

File the executed bond with your unit

We issue the bond on the Estate Administration Bond form your county's Probate Division accepts, so Letters can be issued.

Have your Letters, court order, or an approved estate value? We'll write the bond to that exact figure and file it with your Probate Division.

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Other Vermont fiduciary bonds you may also need

Fiduciaries and estates in Vermont often need more than one of these:

Guardianship bondsProtecting a minor's or ward's property Conservatorship bondsFor an incapacitated adult's estate Personal representative bondThe umbrella term explained nationally Probate bond calculatorEstimate the premium from your estate value

Handling an estate with assets in Massachusetts too? See how M.G.L. c. 190B's bond-always-attaches rule compares — Massachusetts shares Vermont's every-case mandate, but its four-path surety waiver under §3-603 runs very differently from Vermont's Form 700-00004 process. Settling an estate that crosses into New York's Surrogate's Court system? SCPA §801's bond formula and county Surrogate's Courts follow yet another structure entirely.

Vermont probate bond questions: §906, sureties, and filing

My will says my executor serves "without bond." Does Vermont honor that?

Not the way UPC states like Maine do. Vermont's Title 14 gives will language no operative effect on the bond requirement itself. 14 V.S.A. §906 says an executor or administrator "shall give a bond" — full stop — and the Probate Division sets the amount regardless of what the will says. The actual path to easing that requirement runs through the heirs, not the will: interested parties can sign the Waiver of Surety on Estate Administration Bond (Form 700-00004), but the judge still has to approve it, and even then the fiduciary signs an Estate Administration Bond (Form 700-00020) — just without a surety backing it. The bond filing never disappears; only the surety on it can.

All my co-heirs are willing to waive the surety — is approval automatic?

No. Form 700-00004 requires every heir at law to sign, with a notary witnessing each signature — but per the Vermont Judiciary's own guidance, "the judge's decision" is what ultimately controls whether the surety is waived, even with unanimous consent on file. If even one heir won't sign, the waiver fails outright. And unanimous consent only ever reaches the surety requirement, not the underlying bond — you still file the Estate Administration Bond, just without a commercial or personal surety attached to it.

Is there a multiplier like Ohio's 2x rule for setting my bond amount?

No — Vermont doesn't run bond amounts through a multiplier at all. 14 V.S.A. §2101 gives the Probate Division authority to set bonds "for such sum ... as the court directs," and the Vermont Judiciary's own guidance is direct about what that means in practice: "the amount of the bond is generally the value of the estate." No 1.5x, no 2x, no plus-one-year's-income add-on like several neighboring states use. Your estate's value, as the court approves it, is the bond figure.

I live out of state — can I still serve as executor of a Vermont estate?

Yes, but 14 V.S.A. §904 puts two conditions on it. First, the Probate Division appoints a nonresident executor or administrator only at its discretion — it's not automatic the way appointing a Vermont resident is. Second, once appointed, that nonresident fiduciary must "forthwith designate in writing" a Vermont resident who agrees to accept service of legal process and other communications on the fiduciary's behalf. Skip that filing and you don't have a properly qualified appointment, regardless of what the bond looks like.

The probate judge's appointment order got appealed — what happens to my bond?

Under 14 V.S.A. §905, if someone appeals an order appointing an executor or administrator to the Civil Division of the Superior Court and wins, the Civil Division doesn't set the bond itself — it appoints a different suitable person and certifies that judgment back down to the Probate Division. Only then does the Probate Division set the bond, and Letters of administration don't issue to the newly appointed fiduciary until that bond is filed. It's a two-court handoff, not a single order.

Which of the 14 county Probate Divisions handles my filing, and does the bond change by county?

Vermont runs probate through 14 Probate Divisions of the Superior Court, one per county, each with its own elected judge serving a four-year term — Addison, Bennington, Caledonia, Chittenden, Essex, Franklin, Grand Isle, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, Rutland, Washington, Windham, and Windsor. The bond math under §906 and §2101 is statewide and doesn't change by county, but where you file, how fast a unit turns around a bond review, and which judge signs off on a surety waiver under Form 700-00004 all depend on which of the 14 units has jurisdiction over the estate.

Reviewed by

Eric Drummond, Licensed Surety Producer

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All content is researched from official state and federal sources (.gov). BuySuretyBonds.com works with Treasury-certified, A-minimum rated surety carriers.

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General information, not legal, tax, or underwriting advice. Vermont probate bond requirements, amounts, and forms are set by Title 14 of the Vermont Statutes Annotated (14 V.S.A. §§ 904, 905, 906, 908, 2101, 2104, 2107) and administered by each county's Probate Division of the Superior Court, and they change over time. Confirm the current requirement with the unit handling your matter, and request a quote for your specific bond form and amount.

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