The third door, for estates under the statute's ceiling - and the document behind the Division's link is not a KDOR form at all. What ksrevenue.gov serves is the Kansas Judicial Council's Small Estates Affidavit, marked on every page that it can be used in place of KDOR Form TR-83b, Claim of Heir. It transfers personal property in probate estates not exceeding $75,000 - a ceiling the notes date precisely, raised from $40,000 to $75,000 effective July 1, 2023 - and it was amended to carry the vehicle block the Division requires: VIN, value, and an odometer certification per vehicle, so one sworn document does the probate job and the title job at once.
Written against TR-83b (Rev 12/2023), issued under K.S.A. 59-1507b.
Paragraph three is the one that catches people: all unpaid debts, claims or demands against the decedent or the estate, and all estate and inheritance taxes due, have been or will be paid - sworn before the property moves. An heir who signs it, collects the car, and then discovers a medical bill has sworn that promise already. Count the estate's debts before the notary appointment, not after.
Two documents, and they are not the same thing. Take the blank TR-83b from the ksrevenue.gov copy so you get the revision that is current today, then print our TR-83b guide and keep it beside you while you fill theirs in.
This is all 3 pages of the actual TR-83b, rendered from the PDF the Kansas Department of Revenue, Division of Vehicles publishes and completed end to end: letterhead, every field, and the blocks at the foot.
Amber — you write it
Grey — not yours to fill
Numbered — explained below
Page 1 of 3. The sworn frame: date and place of death, testate or intestate, the ceiling paragraph, the no-executor and debts-paid statements, the heirs table and the property list.Page 2 of 3. The vehicle block the Judicial Council added for the Division - value, VIN, year, make, style and a per-vehicle odometer certification - then distribution, signature, and the notary panel.Page 3 of 3. The notes on use: the ceiling's history, the discharge mechanism, and the sentence that VINs and odometer readings are only required when the form goes to the Division for a vehicle title.
Field by field
Every line, in the order you meet it
1
You fill this in
The frame
Affiant's name, the date, year, decedent and place of death, the testate or intestate box, and the ceiling statement.
Watch out: The ceiling is the probate estate's value, and the current figure with its effective date is printed in the notes - when in doubt, value first, swear second.
2
You fill this in
The two promises
No executor pending or appointed; all debts, claims and taxes paid or to be paid.
Watch out: These are the paragraphs that bind you personally. A quick call to the probate clerk confirms the first; the second is your arithmetic to stand behind.
3
You fill this in
Heirs and property
The table of beneficiaries or heirs with ages, relationships and addresses, then the property list with values.
Watch out: Insurance proceeds payable to the estate go on the list too, identified by policy number - the form's own parenthesis asks for exactly that.
4
You fill this in
The vehicle block
Value, VIN, year, make and style for up to three vehicles, each with its odometer reading and one ticked box.
Watch out: This block is why the county accepts the document for a title - complete it even though the property list already mentions the car, because the Division's requirements are the reason it exists.
5
You fill this in
Distribution, then the notary
Choose the apportionment sentence or the receive-and-distribute sentence, then sign before the notarial officer who completes county, date, signature, title, stamp and expiry.
Watch out: Sign nothing at home. Subscribed and sworn means the signature happens in front of the officer, and a pre-signed sheet gets you a second appointment.
At a glance
What goes where
On the form
What to put in it
The opening statement
The affiant, being duly sworn, states the date and place of death, whether the decedent died testate - with a will - or intestate, and that the probate estate does not exceed $75,000, with a certified copy of the death certificate attached.
Paragraphs two and three
That no petition for an executor or administrator is pending or granted, and that all debts, claims and taxes on the property transfers have been or will be paid.
The beneficiaries table
Name, age, relationship and address for the beneficiaries under the will or the heirs of the decedent.
The property list
The probate estate's personal property with values - including, the form notes, insurance proceeds payable to the estate, identified by policy number.
The vehicle block
Three vehicle rows, each with value, VIN, year, make and style, and each carrying its own odometer certification: no tenths, and the boxes actual, exceeds mechanical limits, or not actual with the printed odometer discrepancy warning.
Distribution and signature
The affiant either asks that the property be apportioned among the beneficiaries or agrees to receive and distribute it, then signs.
The notary block
State of Kansas, county, subscribed and sworn before a notarial officer, with the officer's signature, title, stamp and commission expiry - this is a sworn probate document, not a counter form.
What gets this one rejected
•An estate over the ceiling. The affidavit's own first paragraph caps it - a probate estate not exceeding $75,000 in value - and above that line the estate goes to court, not to a form.
•Using it while an executor is pending. Paragraph two is a sworn statement that no petition for appointment of an executor or administrator is pending or has been granted.
•No death certificate. The first paragraph attaches it - a certified copy, not a photocopy of a photocopy.
•A vehicle row without its odometer certification. The Judicial Council's notes say why the block exists: VIN and odometer readings are required if the form is submitted to the Division of Vehicles to obtain transfer of a vehicle title.
•Skipping the notary. This affidavit is subscribed and sworn before a notarial officer - the one estate door in the Kansas set that always sees a seal, because it is a probate instrument rather than a Division form.
Rules that decide whether it is accepted
•The transfer discharges the transferor. The notes state the mechanism: the transfer is treated as one to the personal representative of the decedent, and the receipt of the transfer operates as a full discharge and release of the transferor.
•One document, two audiences. The property list serves the probate purpose; the vehicle block serves the Division. Complete both halves and the same notarized sheet clears the estate and re-titles the car.
•Either form works. The Judicial Council document can be used in place of the KDOR Claim of Heir - the Division links it from its own forms page, so the county counter knows it on sight.
Every line here was read off TR-83b (Rev 12/2023) itself — the PDF is here — and off the Kansas Department of Revenue, Division of Vehicles pages.
This is plain-language help with a form, not legal advice, and where our wording and the agency's differ,
theirs governs.
