Is there a dollar limit on a spousal property petition?

No. Unlike the small estate affidavit, section 13650 has no value cap. What matters is that the property passes to the surviving spouse, not what it is worth — which is why it works for estates far too large for the affidavit route.

The surviving spouse, or the personal representative, guardian of the estate, or conservator of the estate of the surviving spouse. A guardian or conservator may file without separate authorization from the court supervising that proceeding.

Can I use it for only part of the estate?

Yes. Section 13650 applies to all or part of the estate, so a spousal petition can clear the property passing to the spouse while the remainder is administered normally.

The Spousal Property Petition

A California surviving spouse can often avoid full probate. Probate Code section 13650 lets them petition for an order that administration is unnecessary because the property passes to them, and for confirmation of their own half of the community property.

Two stapled documents laid side by side on a dark desk, one aged and yellowed, the other crisp and white, reading glasses between them. — For a surviving spouse the question is rarely whether they inherit. It is how much court is required to prove it.

What section 13650 allows

Probate Code section 13650 gives a surviving spouse a route around ordinary administration. The spouse — or the personal representative, guardian of the estate, or conservator of the estate of the surviving spouse — may petition the superior court of the county where the deceased spouse’s estate would be administered, requesting an order that administration of all or part of the estate is unnecessary because that property passes to the surviving spouse. The same petition may ask the court to confirm the surviving spouse’s ownership of property already belonging to them under sections 100 and 101, which is how the community half is put beyond argument. Two details matter in practice. The section reaches all or part of an estate, so it can be used alongside ordinary administration of the remainder. And it does not apply to property the petitioner has elected under section 13502 to have administered in the usual way.

Sources: Probate Code s.13650 - Spousal property petition · Probate Code s.6401 - Intestate share of the surviving spouse · Probate Code s.6400 - Property not disposed of by will passes to heirs · Verified 2026-08-20.

How it compares with the alternatives

Route	Value limit	Who it serves
Spousal property petition — §13650	None	A surviving spouse, for property passing to them
Small estate affidavit — §13100	$208,850 gross	Any successor, for defined categories of property
Full administration	None	Everything else

Why the absence of a limit is the point

The small estate affidavit stops at a threshold most California homes exceed on their own. The spousal petition has no cap, so a surviving spouse inheriting a seven-figure estate can still avoid full administration — and with it the statutory fee schedule, which is calculated on gross value without deducting the mortgage. That single difference is usually worth more than every other economy in the process combined.