We are happy to announce that Adams County IN-OFFICE Estate Probates will be available on Monday, May 11, 2020 * BY APPOINTMENT *

·Scheduled appointments will help us limit your wait-time as well as the number of people in our small Register of Wills & Recorder of Deeds lobby area at any given time. We will strive to keep to the scheduled appointment time as much as possible.

·VIRTUAL ESTATES ARE STILL AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. Please contact our office to set up a virtual estate appointment at 717.337.9826, or email kheflin@adamscounty.us or bchenault@adamscounty.us

Please follow these helpful steps to probate in the office:

·Contact the Register of Wills Office to schedule a specific appointment to probate. Tele: 717.337.9826

·Plan to appear in person with only directly-related parties
(executor, administrators, non-subscribing witnesses) to minimize the amount of people to be in our office lobby. Those not directly-related to the estate should wait outside the courthouse building.

On the date of probate:

·Please follow the signs posted in the courthouse main lobby to enter the Register’s office waiting lane.located along the service elevator wall] in the courthouse lobby.

·Wait for your turn to enter the Register & Recorder office . As you approach our Entrance door, kindly STOP TO WAIT for a staff member to prompt you to enter to give us time to wipe counter areas between customers. .

·After probating, please wait in our Register of Wills lobby as we prepare the Short certificates; which we will then hand to you before you leave.
·Executor’s Letters will be mailed after we process the probate paperwork.

Suggestion: FEEL FREE TO BRING INK PENS FOR YOU AND YOUR PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE(S) IF YOU WISH.

Note: We will also check your Attorney box to see if there are any items to pick up for your office to take along with you.

TITLE SEARCHING FROM YOUR OFFICE:

Please search land records and estate records online. Images for estate records are now online.

PUBLIC TERMINAL SEARCHING: (title searchers, attorneys & staff and public):
Public terminals are available for public searching in the lower level. No public terminal searching is available in the Register & Recorder Office at this time. You will be able to have access to Register & Recorder records, Prothonotary Civil records, and Tax Services records on the public terminals. LOCATION: The lower level floor where the Public Defender’s office used to be located.

If you need to stop by to check your Attorney box, you will still need to get in the waiting line. Please follow the signs posted in the courthouse main lobby to enter the Register’s office waiting lane.[located along the service elevator wall] in the courthouse lobby, and wait for your turn to enter the Register & Recorder office . As you approach our Entrance door, kindly STOP TO WAIT for a staff member to prompt you to enter. Please know that we will try to keep your wait-time as short as possible.

We thank you for your patience in knowing that we are also assisting Recorder of Deeds customers, as well as Walk-in customers from the public community.

Thank you in advance for your understanding during our gradual re-opening and as we try to format procedures that work for the safety of everyone. We look forward to seeing each of you.

RECORDING FOR LEGAL COMMUNITY:

IF YOU HAVE RECORDING/FILING FOR OUR OFFICE, WE ASK THAT YOU MAIL IT TO US SO THAT IT CAN BE PROCESSED. A secure DROP-OFF Receptacle is available outside the courthouse doors (under the roof area) to save time of coming inside the building during the work-day hours. We will check the box throughout the day. Please use binder clips and/or envelopes to secure that your work is in order.

About Us

Register of Wills office has records dating back to 1800 when Adams County was formed, before that the county was a part of York County. Register of Wills office is a resource for genealogical information. Responsibilities are Jurisdiction over the Probate of Wills, Granting of Letters after a person dies. Letters of Administration are issued, if there is no Will. The Register is an agent for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s, Department of Revenue and collects Inheritance Tax for the State.

Effective September 1, 2016, Pursuant to the newly revised Orphans' Court Rules, as of today, only the standardized forms provided by the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania will be accepted. This is in regards to Rule 10.5 and Rule 10.6.

Effective July 27, 2016, Our office will only accept REV-1500’s that are dated January, 2016 (01-16). The date of the form can be found on the first page in the upper left-hand corner. If an inheritance tax return is submitted to us for filing with a different form date we are required to reject it per the Department of Revenue. This information was provided to Karen Heflin, Register of Wills at the annual Register of Wills/Clerk of Orphans’ Court Convention.

Effective May 2, 2016, I request that the address and telephone/cell number for any estate fiduciary be referenced on the Petition for Letters. This will ensure a way to contact the fiduciary should the estate become unrepresented by counsel during the administration process. Also, our office will begin to keep an original death certificate at the time of probate. We will not make copies or provide this information as public record. The death certificate will be kept in the file as part of original estate documents. Thanking you in advance for your cooperation.

Hours and Holidays:

8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.**

Monday - Friday

** Please note that 4:00 p.m. will be the cut-off to accept probates and inheritance tax payments. If you have a special circumstance, please call or email the office. Thank you.** (Posted: June 19, 2018)

Contact Information:

Karen Heflin, Register of Wills

County of Adams

Register of Wills

117 Baltimore Street

Room 102

Gettysburg, PA 17325

Phone: 717-337-9826

Fax: 717-334-1758
Email

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2020 Holiday Schedule

New Year’s Day................January 1, 2020

Martin Luther King Day...January 20, 2020

Presidents’ Day..............February 17, 2020

Good Friday..........................April 10, 2020

Memorial Day........................May 25, 2020

Independence Day..................July 3, 2020

Labor Day ....................September 7, 2020

Columbus Day................October 12, 2020

Veterans’ Day..............November 11, 2020

Thanksgiving Day........November 26, 2020

Thanksgiving Holiday..November 27, 2020

Christmas Holiday.......December 24, 2020

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2021 Holiday Schedule

New Year’s Day.................January 1, 2021

Martin Luther King Day....January 18, 2021

Presidents’ Day..............February 15, 2021

Good Friday............................April 2, 2021

Memorial Day........................May 31, 2021

Independence Day (Observed) July 5, 2021

Labor Day ....................September 6, 2021

Columbus Day.................October 11, 2021

Veterans’ Day..............November 11, 2021

Thanksgiving Day........November 25, 2021

Thanksgiving Holiday..November 26, 2021

Christmas Holiday.......December 24, 2021

Christmas Day.............December 27, 2021

New Year's Day (Observed) Dec. 31, 2021