Updated September 7, 2026. Quick answer: In Arizona, arizona (a UPC state) requires a bond of a personal representative unless the will expressly waives it, or all heirs/devisees file a written waiver, or the representative is an exempt institution (bank, trust company, public fiduciary, etc.), or a surviving spouse qualifies for summary/small-estate procedures.
Arizona executor bond: what the statute says
Each line is a short extract quoted from the statute cited; the section has the exceptions.
- Waiver. A.R.S. § 14-3603(A)(1): “The will expressly waives the bond…”
- Amount. A.R.S. § 14-3604(A): “If bond is required and the provisions of the will or order do not specify the amount…” “…in an amount not less than the estimate provided, however, that said bond may be reduced by the amount of any real estate, less encumbrances thereon, if the letters issued to the personal representative contain the restriction that sales of real property by the personal representative are subject to court confirmation.”
- Surety and cost. A.R.S. § 14-3604(A): “…duly executed by a corporate surety, or one or more individual sureties whose performance is secured by pledge of personal property, mortgage on real property or other adequate security.”
For the rest of the process and its fees, see Arizona probate cost.
Does Arizona require an executor to post a bond?
Arizona (a UPC state) requires a bond of a personal representative unless the will expressly waives it, or all heirs/devisees file a written waiver, or the representative is an exempt institution (bank, trust company, public fiduciary, etc.), or a surviving spouse qualifies for summary/small-estate procedures.
“A bond is required of a personal representative unless either: 1. The will expressly waives the bond. 2. All of the heirs if no will has been probated, or all of the devisees under a will that does not provide for waiver of the bond, file with the court a written waiver”
Source: Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 14-3603
Can the will waive it in Arizona?
Yes. A bond is not required if ‘the will expressly waives the bond.’
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Can the heirs or beneficiaries waive it in Arizona?
Yes. If there is no probated will, all heirs may file a written waiver; if the will exists but doesn’t waive bond, all devisees under it may file a written waiver instead.
If a bond is required, how much?
When a bond is required and the will or court order does not set the amount, Arizona requires a bond in an amount not less than the person’s sworn best estimate of the decedent’s personal estate and real estate (less encumbrances) plus the income expected from them during the next year, per its own bond-amount statute. The bond may be reduced by the amount of the real estate, less encumbrances, if the letters restrict sales of real property to court confirmation.
“his best estimate of the value of the personal estate of the decedent, real estate, less encumbrances thereon and of the income expected from the personal and real estate during the next year…in an amount not less than the estimate provided”
Source: Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 14-3604
What makes Arizona different
Arizona layers institutional exemptions (national banks, state-chartered trust companies, title insurers, the public fiduciary) on top of the standard UPC will/heir waiver options, and separately exempts a qualifying surviving spouse using small-estate summary procedures; a broader menu of default exemptions than most UPC states.
| Bond-requirement source | Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 14-3603 |
| Arizona courts (general reference) | Arizona judicial branch |
| Confidence | High |
Every statute quoted on this page was read directly from the state’s own legislature/code site this session, or, where that site blocked automated access, from a reputable legal-citation mirror quoting the same official text with its official citation (disclosed below). General information, not legal advice; a probate court has final discretion over bond in every state; confirm your own case with the court or a local attorney before relying on the default described here.
Related: how long creditors have to file a claim against an estate in Arizona.