Updated September 7, 2026. Quick answer: In Maine, maine follows the Uniform Probate Code pattern (as Idaho and Hawaii do): bond is not required of a personal representative appointed in informal proceedings, with limited exceptions; in formal proceedings the court may require bond by order, but bond is not required if the will relieves the PR of it (absent an interested party’s request the court finds desirable).
Does Maine require an executor to post a bond?
Maine follows the Uniform Probate Code pattern (as Idaho and Hawaii do): bond is not required of a personal representative appointed in informal proceedings, with limited exceptions; in formal proceedings the court may require bond by order, but bond is not required if the will relieves the PR of it (absent an interested party’s request the court finds desirable).
“Bond is not required of a personal representative appointed in informal proceedings, except upon the appointment of a special administrator, when an executor or other personal representative is appointed to administer an estate under a will containing an express requirement of bond”
Source: 18-C M.R.S. § 3-603
Can the will waive it in Maine?
Yes. Bond is not required of a PR appointed in formal proceedings if the will relieves the personal representative of bond, unless bond has been requested by an interested party and the court is satisfied it is desirable, or as provided in a separate cross-referenced section (18-C §3-619(7)); a will-required bond may also be dispensed with by the court on a finding it is not necessary.
If a DIY will is the right route for you in Maine
Because Maine’s own bond rule turns on what your will says, a properly executed will is the actual lever here, not paperwork on the side. LawDepot builds a state-specific last will and testament, which you then sign and witness under your state’s rules.
LawDepot pays us a commission if you buy through this link and it costs you nothing extra. We are not a law firm and this is not legal advice. Affiliate Disclosure.
Can the heirs or beneficiaries waive it in Maine?
No. The fetched text gives interested persons a mechanism to request bond and to have the court find it ‘desirable’; the reverse of waiving a bond; rather than a mechanism for heirs to waive an otherwise-required bond.
If a bond is required, how much?
When a bond is required, Maine sizes it at 100% of the estimated value of the personal estate plus expected annual income, per its own bond-amount statute.
“best estimate of the value of the personal estate of the decedent and of the income expected from the personal and real estate during the next year…in an amount not less than the estimate”
Source: 18-C M.R.S. § 3-604
What makes Maine different
Maine’s current Probate Code (Title 18-C, which replaced the older 18-A) preserves the UPC informal/formal bond framework almost verbatim to Idaho’s and Hawaii’s parallel sections, but layers in a Maine-specific cross-reference to §3-619, subsection 7, as an added exception not present in the other two states’ equivalent provisions.
| Bond-requirement source | 18-C M.R.S. § 3-603 |
| Maine courts (general reference) | Maine 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 Maine.