Guide · Texas · records
What an affidavit of heirship is, and is not, in Texas
An affidavit of heirship is a sworn or acknowledged statement about a family. Texas has a short chapter about it, chapter 203 of the Estates Code, and its evidence rule is for an affidavit that has been recorded in the county deed records. Read closely, the chapter is about evidence. It does not say the affidavit passes title, and it says the affidavit does not affect the rights of an omitted heir or creditor as otherwise provided by law.
In one paragraph
An affidavit of heirship is a statement of facts about a decedent’s family, sworn to or acknowledged before an officer who certifies it. Chapter 203 of the Estates Code, titled “Nonjudicial Evidence of Heirship,” calls it “an affidavit of facts concerning the identity of a decedent’s heirs” (§ 203.001(c), § 203.002). The phrase “affidavit of heirship” appears in § 201.053, not in chapter 203. Under § 203.001(a), a court “shall receive” a statement of facts about family history, genealogy, marital status or the identity of the heirs as prima facie evidence of the facts in it, in a proceeding to declare heirship or in a suit involving title to property, if two things are true: the statement is in an affidavit or other instrument acknowledged or sworn to before, and certified by, an authorized officer (or in a judgment of a court of record), and the affidavit or instrument has been of record for five years or more in the deed records of a county the section names. If there is an error in the statement, anyone interested in a proceeding in which the affidavit or instrument is offered in evidence may prove the true facts (§ 203.001(b)). The affidavit “does not affect the rights of an omitted heir or creditor of the decedent as otherwise provided by law” (§ 203.001(d)). Section 203.002 gives a form of 16 numbered paragraphs and says an affidavit “may be in substantially the following form.” A judgment in a proceeding to declare heirship is a different instrument with different effects (chapter 202). Chapter 203 does not say what an operator or a title company will accept.
What chapter 203 is
Chapter 203 has two sections. Section 203.001 is titled “Recorded statement of facts as prima facie evidence of heirship.” Section 203.002 is titled “Form of affidavit concerning identity of heirs.” This page also uses § 201.053, which speaks to a buyer who relies on an affidavit of heirship, and chapter 202, the court proceeding to declare heirship.
The statutes site marks both sections of chapter 203 “eff. January 1, 2014.” This page does not say what law applies to an affidavit recorded before then, or to a death long before then. It also does not cover an affidavit of heirship in Oklahoma or any other state, where other law applies.
What a recorded statement can do
The core rule is § 203.001(a). A court “shall receive in a proceeding to declare heirship or a suit involving title to property a statement of facts concerning the family history, genealogy, marital status, or the identity of the heirs of a decedent as prima facie evidence of the facts contained in the statement” if two things are true.
- How it was made. It is contained in “an affidavit or other instrument legally executed and acknowledged or sworn to before, and certified by, an officer authorized to take acknowledgments or oaths, as applicable,” or in “a judgment of a court of record” (§ 203.001(a)(1)(A) and (B)).
- How long it has been of record. The affidavit or instrument “has been of record for five years or more in the deed records of a county in this state in which the property is located at the time the suit involving title to property is commenced, or in the deed records of a county in this state in which the decedent was domiciled or had a fixed place of residence at the time of the decedent’s death” (§ 203.001(a)(2)).
What that means, read only for what the words say:
- Section 203.001(a)(2) speaks of an affidavit or instrument that “has been of record for five years or more.” An affidavit that has not been recorded, or has been of record for less than five years, does not meet those words. Chapter 203 does not say in terms how the five years are counted. The phrase “at the time the suit involving title to property is commenced” sits in the clause about the county where the property is located, and this page does not say whether it also sets the date the five years run to.
- The section names two settings: a proceeding to declare heirship and a suit involving title to property. Chapter 203 does not speak to what an operator or a title company will accept.
- “Prima facie evidence” is not defined in the chapter. Subsection (b) speaks to error: “If there is an error in a statement of facts in a recorded affidavit or instrument described by Subsection (a), anyone interested in a proceeding in which the affidavit or instrument is offered in evidence may prove the true facts.”
- Subsection (c) says an affidavit of facts concerning the identity of a decedent’s heirs as to an interest in real property, filed in such a proceeding or suit, “may be in the form prescribed by Section 203.002.” Section 203.002 says the affidavit “may be in substantially the following form.” Neither makes the form mandatory.
Where it stops
An heir the affidavit leaves out
Section 203.001(d) says: “An affidavit of facts concerning the identity of a decedent’s heirs does not affect the rights of an omitted heir or creditor of the decedent as otherwise provided by law. This section is cumulative of all other statutes on the same subject and may not be construed as abrogating any right to present evidence or rely on an affidavit of facts conferred by any other statute or rule.”
The estate vests at death
The estate of a person who dies intestate “vests immediately in the person’s heirs at law,” subject to payment of the decedent’s debts, except as exempted by law, and of court-ordered child support that was delinquent on the date of death (§ 101.001(b), § 101.051(b)). Chapter 203 does not say that an affidavit transfers or conveys anything. Its words are about what a court receives as evidence of facts about the family, including who the heirs are. Which of the heirs takes what is set by the descent statutes in chapter 201. The guide to who counts as an heir covers the parts of that chapter people ask about.
Who signs
Chapter 203 does not say who may be the affiant, beyond what the form, which is optional, has the affiant state: that the affiant is “personally familiar with the family and marital history” of the decedent and has “personal knowledge of the facts stated” (§ 203.002, paragraph 1). The word “disinterested” does not appear in chapter 203. It appears in chapter 202, in the rules for testimony in a court proceeding to declare heirship (§ 202.151(b)(1), (c)) and, in one situation, for who may serve citation on a distributee who is absent from or not a resident of Texas (§ 202.054(b)).
A will
If a person dies leaving a lawful will, the part of the estate the will devises vests in the devisees, and the part it does not devise vests in the heirs at law (§ 101.001(a)). The form has the affiant state that the decedent died without a written will and tells the affiant to modify the statement if the decedent left one (§ 203.002, paragraph 10).
Example: a buyer and an omitted child
An invented family
Harold Voss died in 2016 owning a mineral interest in a tract in a Texas county. He left no will. He had three children with his wife, Martha. A man named Lyle Brandt has always said Harold was his father. Harold never married Lyle’s mother, never lived in the household where Lyle lived in Lyle’s first two years, never signed an acknowledgment of paternity, never adopted Lyle, and no court ever decided the question. In 2017 a family friend swore an affidavit listing Harold’s three children, and it was recorded in the deed records of the county where the tract lies. In 2021 a buyer paid one of the three children for that child’s share. The buyer had read the affidavit and had never heard of Lyle.
Section 201.053(a) says a person who purchases for valuable consideration any interest in property of the heirs of a decedent “acquires good title to the interest that the person would have received, as purchaser, in the absence of a claim of the child described by Subdivision (1)” if the person:
- “in good faith relies on the declarations in an affidavit of heirship that does not include a child who at the time of the sale or contract of sale of the property” (A) “is not a presumed child of the decedent” and (B) “has not under a final court decree or judgment been found to be entitled to treatment under Section 201.052 as a child of the decedent”; and
- “is without knowledge of the claim of the child described by Subdivision (1).”
Section 201.053(b) adds that this “does not affect any liability of the heirs for the proceeds of a sale” to the child who was not included in the affidavit.
Condition (A) turns on whether the omitted child “is not a presumed child of the decedent.” Chapter 22 of the Estates Code, its definitions chapter, does not define “presumed child,” and neither does chapter 201. Section 22.004(b) says the term “child” does not include a child who does not have a presumed father unless a provision of the Code expressly states that such a child is included, and § 201.052(c) speaks of a person who “is not otherwise presumed to be a child of the decedent”; neither section defines the term. The Family Code defines a “presumed father” as a man who, by operation of law under § 160.204, is recognized as the father of a child until that status is rebutted or confirmed in a judicial proceeding (Fam. Code § 160.102(13)). This example reads “presumed child” through § 160.204. That is an assumption. Section 201.053 does not say so, and this page does not say how a court would read the term.
On the invented facts, none of the presumptions in Fam. Code § 160.204(a) fits Lyle: Harold never married Lyle’s mother, and he never lived in the household where Lyle lived in Lyle’s first two years. Nor has any final decree or judgment found Lyle entitled to treatment as a child under § 201.052. On that reading, conditions (A) and (B) would be met. Condition (2), and the good-faith part of condition (1), turn on what the buyer actually knew and relied on. Had Lyle been a child born to Harold and an earlier wife during their marriage, Harold would be presumed his father under § 160.204(a)(1), and on the same reading § 201.053(a) would not cover an affidavit that left out such a child. Separately, § 203.001(d) says the affidavit does not affect the rights of an omitted heir or creditor as otherwise provided by law. The example shows how narrow the buyer’s protection is, and how many facts it rests on. It is not a prediction of how a court would rule.
The statutory form, paragraph by paragraph
Section 203.002 sets out an “Affidavit of Facts Concerning the Identity of Heirs.” It is a form with blanks and with notes to the person filling it in. The table follows its 16 numbered paragraphs and the jurat, in the statute’s order.
| Paragraph | What the form calls for |
|---|---|
| 1 | The affiant’s name and residence, that the affiant is personally familiar with the family and marital history of the decedent, and that the affiant has personal knowledge of the facts stated. |
| 2 | From what date to what date the affiant knew the decedent, the date and place of the decedent’s death, and the decedent’s residence at death. |
| 3 | The decedent’s marital history and, if a spouse is dead, the date and place of the spouse’s death. |
| 4 and 5 | The decedent’s children, each with name, birth date, name of the other parent and current address, or the date of death of a child and that child’s descendants. Then that the decedent did not have or adopt any other children and did not take any other children into the home or raise any, except those named (or “none”). |
| 6, 7 and 8 | The decedent’s mother and father, each with name, birth date, and current address or date of death. The decedent’s siblings, each with name, birth date, and current address or date of death, the parents of each sibling, and the descendants of each deceased sibling, or “none.” Form notes: paragraphs 6 and 7, “Include if decedent was not survived by descendants”; paragraph 8, “Include if decedent was not survived by descendants or by both mother and father.” |
| 9 | The names of other persons who have knowledge of the decedent, the decedent’s children, parents or siblings, or “none.” Form note: “Optional.” |
| 10 and 11 | That the decedent died without leaving a written will, and that there has been no administration of the decedent’s estate. The form says to modify each statement if it is not so. |
| 12 and 13 | That the decedent left no unpaid debts, and that there are no unpaid estate or inheritance taxes, except as listed. |
| 14 | “To the best of my knowledge,” the real property in which the decedent owned an interest, or “none.” |
| 15 and 16 | The names of the heirs of the decedent. Then additional information as appropriate, such as the size of the decedent’s estate. Form note on paragraph 15: “Optional.” |
| Jurat | A signature and date by the affiant, then the state and county and a “Sworn to and subscribed to before me” block for the notarial officer, with signature, seal if any, printed name and commission expiration. |
Paraphrased from § 203.002 as read on the state’s statutes site. The quoted phrases are the form’s own words.
Recording
Section 203.001(a)(2) speaks of the deed records of two kinds of county: one “in which the property is located” and one in which the decedent was domiciled or had a fixed place of residence at death. The Property Code has general rules for recording instruments. Three of them:
- “An instrument concerning real or personal property may be recorded if it has been acknowledged, sworn to with a proper jurat, or proved according to law” (§ 12.001(a)).
- “To be effectively recorded, an instrument relating to real property must be eligible for recording and must be recorded in the county in which a part of the property is located” (§ 11.001(a)). The subsection adds an exception for certain security interests granted by a utility.
- “An instrument that is properly recorded in the proper county is” notice to all persons of the existence of the instrument and subject to inspection by the public (§ 13.002).
Those sections are about instruments in general, and the Property Code has other recording rules this page does not cover. This page does not say how a court would apply each one to an affidavit of heirship, or how § 11.001(a) and the two counties in § 203.001(a)(2) fit together.
Next to a judgment declaring heirship
In a proceeding to declare heirship, a court may determine “the persons who are a decedent’s heirs and only heirs” and their shares and interests (§ 202.001). The table sets the two side by side, from the text of each chapter.
| Topic | Recorded affidavit (chapter 203) | Judgment declaring heirship (chapter 202) |
|---|---|---|
| Who makes it | An affiant. In the form, the affiant swears to being personally familiar with the family and marital history and to personal knowledge (§ 203.002, paragraph 1). | A court, on an application. The people who may bring one under § 202.004 include the decedent’s personal representative and a person claiming to be a creditor or the owner of all or part of the estate. |
| Who has to be notified or heard | Chapter 203 does not provide for notice to anyone. | Each unknown heir, each person named as an heir in the application, and each person shown by the county deed records, on the filing date of the application, as owning a share or interest in real property described in the application must be made a party (§ 202.008). The court appoints an attorney ad litem for heirs whose names or locations are unknown (§ 202.009(a)). |
| What it establishes | Prima facie evidence of the facts in it, in a proceeding to declare heirship or a suit involving title to property, if it was acknowledged or sworn to before, and certified by, an authorized officer and has been of record five years or more as § 203.001(a)(2) describes. If there is an error, anyone interested in a proceeding in which it is offered in evidence may prove the true facts (§ 203.001(b)). | The judgment must state the heirs’ names and their shares and interests in the decedent’s property, and must say so if the proof was deficient (§ 202.201). It is a final judgment (§ 202.202(a)), which may be appealed or reviewed within the same time limits and in the same manner as other judgments in probate matters (§ 202.202(b)). |
| An omitted or unserved heir | Does not affect the rights of an omitted heir or creditor of the decedent as otherwise provided by law (§ 203.001(d)). | Two separate rules. Under § 202.204(a), the judgment is conclusive in a suit between an heir omitted from the judgment and a bona fide purchaser for value who purchased property after entry of the judgment without actual notice of the omitted heir’s claim, regardless of whether the judgment is later modified, set aside, or nullified. Under § 202.203, an heir of the decedent who is not served with citation by a qualified delivery method or personal service in the proceeding may (1) have the judgment corrected by bill of review, at any time but not later than the fourth anniversary of the date of the judgment, or after any length of time on proof of actual fraud, and (2) recover the heir’s just share of the property or the value of that share from the heirs named in the judgment and from those who claim under them and are not bona fide purchasers for value. |
| Recording | Must have been of record five years or more in the deed records of a county described in § 203.001(a)(2) for that section to apply. | A certified copy may be filed with the county clerk of the county where real property described in the judgment is located, recorded in the deed records, and indexed under the decedent as grantor and the heirs named as grantees. On filing, the judgment is constructive notice of the facts stated in it (§ 202.206). |
| When it can be made | Chapter 203 sets no deadline for making one. | A proceeding to declare heirship may be brought at any time after the decedent’s death (§ 202.0025). |
The table says what each statute provides. It does not say which fits a given family; that is a question for the family and its attorney.
The two also meet inside a court case. Section 202.151(b) says that, except as subsection (c) provides, testimony about a decedent’s heirs and family history in a proceeding to declare heirship must be taken in one of four ways: from “two disinterested and credible witnesses in open court”; by deposition; by “a recorded statement of facts contained in” an affidavit or instrument that satisfies § 203.001, or in a judgment described in § 203.001(a)(1)(B); or in accordance with the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure.
Reading a recorded affidavit
Section 203.002 says an affidavit “may be in substantially the following form,” so a given affidavit may be laid out differently. If it follows the form, these are things a reader can look for on its face. Each comes from the sections above.
- The jurat. Is there an acknowledgment or oath, certified by an officer authorized to take one? (§ 203.001(a)(1)(A).)
- The recording. Which county is it recorded in, and when? The section names a county in this state where the property is located when the suit involving title is commenced, or one where the decedent was domiciled or had a fixed place of residence at death, and the affidavit has to have been of record there for five years or more (§ 203.001(a)(2)).
- The affiant. Whether the affiant states personal familiarity with the family and marital history and personal knowledge of the facts, and from what date to what date the affiant says they knew the decedent (form paragraphs 1 and 2).
- The marriages and the children. The marital history, and each child by name, with a date of death for any who died and the descendants of those who did (paragraphs 3 to 5). The answer on other children, including any the decedent took into the home or raised, sits in paragraph 5.
- A will or an administration. Paragraphs 10 and 11 are to be modified if there was a will or an administration. If there was a will, only the part of the estate the will does not devise vests in the heirs at law (§ 101.001(a)(3)).
- The interest. Paragraph 14 lists the real property in which the decedent owned an interest, stated to the affiant’s best knowledge.
- The heirs. Paragraph 15, the list of the decedent’s heirs, is marked “Optional” in the form. An affidavit that leaves it out still states the family facts in the other paragraphs.
What the face of the paper cannot show is whether the facts are true or whether someone was left off. Subsections 203.001(b) and (d) speak to the same limits: anyone interested in a proceeding where the affidavit is offered may prove the true facts, and the affidavit does not affect an omitted heir’s rights as otherwise provided by law.
Sources
Everything above comes from the texts below. The state’s statutes site runs as a script page, so the links go to the chapter page and its section anchor. Statute text was read there, and the site says it is current through the 89th Legislature, 2nd Called Session, 2025.
- Tex. Est. Code ch. 203, Nonjudicial Evidence of Heirship, §§ 203.001 and 203.002. https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.203.htm#203.001
The whole chapter. The rule for a recorded statement of facts, and the form. Opened September 29, 2026. - Tex. Est. Code ch. 202, Determination of Heirship, §§ 202.001, 202.0025, 202.004, 202.008, 202.009, 202.054, 202.151, 202.201 to 202.204 and 202.206. https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.202.htm#202.001
The court proceeding to declare heirship, and the recording of its judgment. Opened September 29, 2026. - Tex. Est. Code ch. 201, Descent and Distribution, §§ 201.052 and 201.053. https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.201.htm#201.053
Paternal inheritance, and the effect of reliance on an affidavit of heirship. Section 201.052 is at the same address with #201.052. Opened September 29, 2026. - Tex. Est. Code ch. 22, Definitions, § 22.004. https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.22.htm#22.004
Child; used for the example only. Opened September 29, 2026. - Tex. Est. Code ch. 101, Estate Assets in General, §§ 101.001 and 101.051. https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.101.htm#101.001
Passage of the estate at death, and liability for debts. Opened September 29, 2026. - Tex. Fam. Code ch. 160, §§ 160.102 and 160.204, Definitions and Presumption of Paternity. https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/FA/htm/FA.160.htm#160.204
Used for the example only. Section 160.102(13) defines “presumed father” and is at the same address with #160.102. Opened September 29, 2026. - Tex. Prop. Code chs. 11, 12 and 13, §§ 11.001, 12.001 and 13.002. https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PR/htm/PR.12.htm#12.001
Chapters 11 and 13 are at the same address with PR.11 and PR.13 in place of PR.12. General rules on recording instruments and the effect of recording. Opened September 29, 2026.
Tell us about the interest
Who died, about when, and where the minerals are is enough to start. If an operator has written to the family, include its name and the owner number from the letter or a check stub.
We are independent landmen, not attorneys, and we do not give legal opinions.
Or call (307) 263-8515, or write to hello@heir.land.