Updated September 7, 2026. Quick answer: In Florida, florida requires every fiduciary granted letters to execute and file a bond unless the requirement has been waived by the will or by the court; banks and trust companies authorized to act as personal representative are exempt outright.
Does Florida require an executor to post a bond?
Florida requires every fiduciary granted letters to execute and file a bond unless the requirement has been waived by the will or by the court; banks and trust companies authorized to act as personal representative are exempt outright.
“Unless the bond requirement has been waived by the will or by the court, every fiduciary to whom letters are granted shall execute and file a bond with surety”
Source: Fla. Stat. § 733.402
Can the will waive it in Florida?
Yes. ‘Unless the bond requirement has been waived by the will or by the court, every fiduciary to whom letters are granted shall execute and file a bond.’
If a DIY will is the right route for you in Florida
Because Florida’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 Florida?
Sometimes. There is no direct ‘heirs waive by filing’ mechanism in this section; instead, on petition of any interested person or on its own motion, the court may waive, require, increase, or decrease the bond, or require additional surety; so heirs act through petitioning the court rather than a standalone written waiver.
If a bond is required, how much?
Florida also lets a qualifying estate skip a personal representative and bond entirely through summary administration once the estate, excluding exempt property, is $150,000 or less.“All bonds required by this part shall be in the penal sum that the court deems sufficient after consideration of the gross value of the estate, the relationship of the personal representative to the beneficiaries, exempt property and any family allowance, the type and nature of assets, known creditors, and liens and encumbrances on the assets”
Source: Fla. Stat. § 733.403
What makes Florida different
Florida gives the court an unusually open-ended, continuing power over bond (waive, impose, increase, decrease, or add surety, at any time and on anyone’s petition or its own motion), rather than tying the outcome to a fixed set of triggering events like a will provision, dollar threshold, or heir-filed waiver alone.
| Bond-requirement source | Fla. Stat. § 733.402 |
| Florida courts (general reference) | Florida judicial branch |
| Supplemental-figure source | Fla. Stat. § 735.201 |
| 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 Florida.