Rhode Island Executor Bond Requirement

Updated September 7, 2026. Quick answer: In Rhode Island, rhode Island requires every executor, administrator, and guardian to give bond to the probate court before entering upon the trust, with letters testamentary issuing only if the named executor ‘gives bond as by law required’; the state does not use a UPC informal/formal split.

Does Rhode Island require an executor to post a bond?

Rhode Island requires every executor, administrator, and guardian to give bond to the probate court before entering upon the trust, with letters testamentary issuing only if the named executor ‘gives bond as by law required’; the state does not use a UPC informal/formal split.

“An order or request in a will that an executor or guardian shall be exempt from giving bond or surety shall only exempt the executor or guardian from giving surety.”

Source: R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-17-4 (see also §§ 33-8-1, 33-17-1)

Can the will waive it in Rhode Island?

Sometimes. A will’s order or request that the executor be exempt from bond only exempts the executor from giving surety (i.e., a bonding company backer); it does not eliminate the bond obligation itself, and the probate court may still require bond with surety at any time regardless of the will.

Can the heirs or beneficiaries waive it in Rhode Island?

No. No heir/beneficiary-consent waiver mechanism was found in the fetched sections; the only waiver route identified is the will’s surety-only exemption, which remains subject to court override.

If a bond is required, how much?

“every executor, administrator, and guardian, before entering upon the execution of his or her trust, shall give bond to the probate court in any sum as it shall require”

Source: R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-17-1

What makes Rhode Island different

Rhode Island stands out for narrowing what a will’s no-bond clause actually does: rather than eliminating the bond outright, a testator’s exemption request only removes the requirement to back the bond with a paid surety, leaving the executor still obligated to execute a bond personally, and the probate court can reimpose full surety at any time.

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.