Updated September 7, 2026. Quick answer: Maine prices probate on a statutory tier schedule starting at $40 for estates under $10,000; a $250,000 estate costs $450.00.
If a trust could save your estate this fee in Maine
A living trust avoids probate entirely in Maine, which means the estate skips the $40.00 above along with every other cost the court charges once a case is open. LawDepot builds a state-specific one.
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What Maine charges to open probate
Maine sets this fee on a statutory tier tied to the estate’s value, starting at $40.00 for estates of $10,000 or under and rising in steps as the estate gets larger.
| Estates of $10,000 or under | $40.00 |
| Estates of $200,001 to $250,000 | $450.00 |
| Estates of $300,001 to $400,000 | $575.00 |
Where this money goes and who sets it
The authority for this figure is 18-C M.R.S. § 1-602(2). In the source’s own words: “For receiving and entering each petition or application for all estates, testate and intestate, including foreign estates, and the filing of a notice by a domiciliary foreign personal representative, except for the filing of a successor personal representative, when the value of the estate is: A. $10,000 and under, the fee is $40; B. $10,001 to $20,000, the fee is $60; C. $20,001 to $30,000, the fee is $75; D. $30,001 to $40,000, the fee is $95; E. $40,001 to $50,000, the fee is $125; F. $50,001 to $75,000, the fee is $190; G. $75,001 to $100,000, the fee is $250; H. $100,001 to $150,000, the fee is $325; I. $150,001 to $200,000, the fee is $375; J. $200,001 to $250,000, the fee is $450; K. $250,001 to $300,000, the fee is $500; L. $300,001 to $400,000, the fee is $575; M. $400,001 to $500,000, the fee is $625; N. $500,001 to $750,000, the fee is $700; O. $750,001 to $1,000,000, the fee is $750; P. $1,000,001 to $1,500,000, the fee is $875; Q. $1,500,001 to $2,000,000, the fee is $950; or R. More than $2,000,000, the fee is $1,200, and continuing in steps of $250 for every increase in value of $500,000 or part thereof above $2,500,000.”
What this fee doesn’t cover
Because Maine prices this by tier, the fee jumps at each threshold in the table above rather than climbing smoothly with the estate’s value. Either way, this is the court’s own charge just to open the file and issue letters, separate from what an attorney charges to actually handle the estate and separate from any state estate or inheritance tax the estate itself might owe.
Sources
Source: 18-C M.R.S. § 1-602(2).