Washington Medicaid estate recovery is an expanded-estate program: the state can recover from a deceased recipient's probate estate and from non-probate assets too. After an Apple Health recipient who was 55 or older and received long-term care dies, that reach extends to jointly held property, payable-on-death accounts, community property agreements, life estates, and death-triggered living trusts. That is the opposite of the probate-only rule many families assume, and it changes how Washington estates should be planned.

Key Takeaways

  • Washington is an expanded-estate state, not probate-only. Under RCW 43.20B.080 the state recovers from a recipient's estate "and from nonprobate assets of the individual as defined by RCW 11.02.005," reaching joint tenancy, payable-on-death and transfer-on-death accounts, community property agreements, life estates, and death-triggered living trusts.
  • Who is subject: recipients who were 55 or older when they received nursing facility care, home and community-based services, hospice, Medicaid personal care, private duty nursing, or related hospital and prescription-drug services. For dates of service on or after January 1, 2014, standard Apple Health with no long-term care component is not recovered, but from January 1, 2010 through December 31, 2013 every Medicaid service was recoverable, and Washington applies the law as it stood on the date of service.
  • Lien limits soften the reach: a lien on a life estate cannot exceed the property's fair market value times the life-estate factor for the recipient's age, and a lien on a joint-tenancy interest cannot exceed fair market value divided by the number of joint tenants. Neither of those two liens may be enforced against a property right that vested before July 1, 2005, a limit on those two liens rather than a general cutoff.
  • Mandatory protections: recovery is deferred while a surviving spouse is alive, while a child age 20 or younger is alive, or while a blind or disabled child of any age is alive.
  • Undue-hardship relief is a delay, not a cancellation: Washington delays recovery when the property is an heir's sole income-producing asset, when recovery would cost an heir shelter they cannot otherwise afford, or when the recipient is survived by a state-registered domestic partner.
  • The home-equity cap is an eligibility rule, not an estate-recovery shield: Washington elects the federal maximum exempt home equity of $1,130,000 for 2026, but that figure governs who qualifies, not what the state can recover after death.

In This Guide

What Washington Medicaid Estate Recovery Is

Medicaid estate recovery is a federal requirement, not a Washington invention. Federal law, 42 U.S.C. 1396p(b), enacted by the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 (OBRA 93), requires every state to seek recovery from the estate of a deceased recipient who was 55 or older when they received nursing facility services, home and community-based services (HCBS), and related hospital and prescription-drug services, and from a recipient of any age who was permanently institutionalized. In Washington, the Apple Health Medicaid program is administered by the Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA), long-term care eligibility is processed by the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) Home and Community Services, and estate-recovery collections are handled by the Office of Financial Recovery (OFR) under RCW 43.20B.080 and WAC chapter 182-527.

Two points matter at the outset. First, recovery happens only after death: Medicaid does not take the home while the recipient is alive. Second, federal law sets a floor every state must meet, but it also gives each state an option to go further, and Washington has taken it.

Washington Recovers From Non-Probate Assets

Federal law lets a state limit recovery to the probate estate or expand it to assets that pass outside probate, "including such assets conveyed to a survivor, heir, or assign of the deceased individual through joint tenancy, tenancy in common, survivorship, life estate, living trust, or other arrangement." Many states use the narrower probate-only definition. Washington does not.

RCW 43.20B.080 provides that for a recipient who was 55 or older, "the department shall seek adjustment or recovery from the individual's estate, and from nonprobate assets of the individual as defined by RCW 11.02.005." The implementing regulation, WAC 182-527-2730, defines the recoverable estate as all property that passes under the recipient's will or by intestate succession and, for a recipient who died on or after September 14, 2006, the nonprobate assets defined by RCW 11.02.005 plus any life estate interest held immediately before death.

RCW 11.02.005 is the provision that gives the expanded definition its teeth. It states that a "nonprobate asset" includes "a right or interest passing under a joint tenancy with right of survivorship, joint bank account with right of survivorship, transfer on death deed, payable on death or trust bank account, transfer on death security or security account, deed or conveyance if possession has been postponed until the death of the person, trust of which the person is grantor and that becomes effective or irrevocable only upon the person's death, community property agreement, individual retirement account or bond," or other death-triggered contracts. Each of those arrangements is exactly what families in probate-only states rely on to keep a home out of Medicaid's reach.

Asset Type Passes outside probate? Subject to Washington recovery?
Real property titled solely in the recipient's name No (passes through probate) Yes
Real property held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship Yes Yes, as a nonprobate asset (lien limited to the recipient's fractional interest)
Community property and community property agreements Yes Yes, as a nonprobate asset
Life estate held by the recipient at death Yes (vests in remaindermen) Yes (lien limited to the value of the life estate)
Bank account with a payable-on-death (POD) beneficiary Yes Yes, as a nonprobate asset
Account or security with a transfer-on-death (TOD) designation Yes Yes, as a nonprobate asset
Transfer-on-death deed Yes Yes, as a nonprobate asset
Living trust that becomes effective or irrevocable only at death Yes Yes, as a nonprobate asset
Properly funded irrevocable trust (completed gift, no retained interest, funded before the look-back) Yes Generally no (not a death-triggered nonprobate asset and not in the estate)
A life-estate or joint-tenancy right that vested before July 1, 2005 Varies No lien under those two provisions (the limit does not extend to other asset types)
Any asset, while a surviving spouse or protected child is living Varies Deferred (no recovery yet)

The practical lesson: the common probate-avoidance moves keep an asset out of probate court, but Washington's expanded definition follows the asset anyway.

Who Is Subject to Recovery

Washington pursues estate recovery against recipients who were 55 or older when they received services subject to recovery, a rule that has applied since July 1, 1994. For dates of service on or after January 1, 2014, the services that trigger recovery are the long-term-care and state-only-funded ones: nursing facility care, hospice, Medicaid personal care, COPES, Community First Choice, Basic Plus, Core and other home and community-based waiver services, private duty nursing, the PACE managed-care premium share used to pay for long-term care, and the hospital and prescription-drug services received while the recipient was getting those services. For those dates, a recipient with only standard Apple Health and no long-term care component is not subject to recovery, nor is one who received long-term services before turning 55. Long-term services and supports authorized under the Medicaid Transformation Project are exempt from estate recovery for dates of service beginning July 1, 2017.

That long-term-care limit is specific to the date of service, and it is the point families most often get wrong. RCW 43.20B.080(4) requires Washington to apply the estate-recovery law as it existed on the date the benefits were received, and under WAC 182-527-2742(3), for dates of service from January 1, 2010 through December 31, 2013, every Medicaid service was subject to recovery, not only long-term care. So a recipient who was 55 or older with ordinary Apple Health coverage in those four years can still see those payments in a claim. Check the dates on the notice before assuming a non-long-term-care period is off the table.

Medicaid payments for Medicare cost-sharing made on behalf of Medicare Savings Program enrollees, the premiums, deductibles, coinsurance, and copayments the state pays for Qualified Medicare Beneficiaries and related groups, are excluded from estate recovery by federal law. If a recovery claim lists Medicare Savings Program cost-sharing, those amounts should be removed.

Recovery applies Recovery does NOT apply
Recipient age 55 or older when the services were received (rule in effect since 7/1/1994) Recipient under 55 when long-term care was received
Nursing facility care, hospice, or HCBS waiver services (COPES, CFC, Basic Plus, Core) Standard Apple Health with no long-term care component, for dates of service from 1/1/2014
Medicaid personal care, private duty nursing, or the PACE long-term-care premium share Medicaid Transformation Project LTSS (dates of service from 7/1/2017)
Hospital and prescription-drug services received alongside those services Medicare Savings Program cost-sharing (federal carve-out)
Any Medicaid service for dates of service 1/1/2010 through 12/31/2013

Limits on Washington Medicaid Estate Recovery Liens

Reaching a non-probate asset does not mean the state can take the whole thing. Washington's lien on a life estate or a joint-tenancy interest is capped at the recipient's own share.

  • Life estate. When the recipient held a life estate, the lien against the property cannot exceed the value of the recipient's life estate, calculated as the property's fair market value multiplied by the life-estate factor that corresponds to the recipient's age on their last birthday. The remainder interest that already belonged to the remaindermen is not reached.
  • Joint tenancy. When the recipient was one of several joint tenants, the lien cannot exceed the value of the recipient's interest, calculated as the property's fair market value divided by the number of joint tenants on the day the recipient died. A surviving co-owner keeps their own share.
  • The July 1, 2005 line. WAC 182-527-2746 bars the agency from enforcing either of the two liens above against a property right that vested before July 1, 2005. So a joint-tenancy or remainder interest already locked in before that date is protected from those two liens. Read it narrowly, though: the limit attaches to those provisions, not to estate recovery generally.

Who Is Protected From Recovery

Federal law provides mandatory protections that apply in every state, Washington included. These are legal blocks, not discretionary favors: while one applies, recovery cannot proceed.

Under WAC 182-527-2738, the agency may not recover from the estate so long as there is a surviving spouse, a surviving child who is age 20 or younger, or a surviving child of any age who is blind or disabled. This mirrors the federal mandate at 42 U.S.C. 1396p(b)(2), under which recovery may be made only after the death of a surviving spouse and only when there is no surviving child who is under 21 or who is blind or permanently and totally disabled.

  • Surviving spouse. Washington cannot recover while the recipient's spouse is alive, regardless of the spouse's age, income, or assets. Recovery is delayed until after that spouse's death.
  • Surviving domestic partner (a delay you have to ask for). A state-registered domestic partner is not on the WAC 182-527-2738 list above. Survivorship by a state-registered domestic partner is instead a ground for undue hardship under WAC 182-527-2750, and RCW 43.20B.080(5)(a) requires the department to recognize an undue hardship for a surviving domestic partner whenever recovery would not have been permitted had that partner been a surviving spouse. The practical result is close to the spousal protection, but it comes as a hardship delay an heir must request, not automatically.
  • Child under 21. Recovery is blocked while any surviving child of the recipient is age 20 or younger.
  • Blind or disabled child of any age. If the recipient has a child who is blind or meets the disability standard, recovery is blocked while that child is alive.

A separate federal rule, the caregiver-child exception at 42 U.S.C. 1396p(c)(2)(A)(iv), lets a parent transfer the home penalty-free to an adult child who lived there for at least two years immediately before institutionalization and provided care the state determines delayed it. It applies during life, to the look-back penalty, not after-death recovery.

The Undue-Hardship Waiver

Federal law at 42 U.S.C. 1396p(b)(3) requires Washington to provide a process for waiving recovery in cases of undue hardship. Washington's regulation, WAC 182-527-2750, implements it as a delay of recovery rather than a cancellation, and defines undue hardship narrowly. It exists only when the property subject to recovery is the sole income-producing asset of an heir, when recovery would deprive an heir of shelter they cannot afford to replace, or when the recipient is survived by a state-registered domestic partner. When the agency finds undue hardship, it delays recovery until the hardship no longer exists, so the claim is postponed, not erased. RCW 43.20B.080(5)(a) separately requires the department to recognize undue hardship for a surviving domestic partner, as described above.

To apply, contact the Office of Financial Recovery when you respond to the claim and document the hardship with specifics: for a sole income-producing asset, evidence that the family depends on it for income; for a shelter hardship, evidence of the heir's residence and that comparable housing is unaffordable. If Washington denies the request, the estate can request an administrative hearing within 28 days of the date on the agency's notice.

How to Respond If You Receive a Claim

If your family member received long-term care through Apple Health and has died, the Office of Financial Recovery may send the estate a recovery claim notice. Work through it in order.

1
Step 1

Check the mandatory protections first

Is the recipient's spouse still alive? Is any child age 20 or younger? Is any child blind or disabled? If so, notify the Office of Financial Recovery with documentation, because recovery cannot proceed while one of those applies. A surviving state-registered domestic partner is handled differently: it is an undue-hardship ground you have to request, so take it up at step 4.

2
Step 2

Verify the services and their dates

Confirm the claim covers services received at age 55 or older, and read the dates of service line by line. Services before 55 and Medicaid Transformation Project LTSS from July 1, 2017 do not belong in the total, and Medicare Savings Program cost-sharing must be removed. Standard Apple Health with no long-term care component should not appear for dates from January 1, 2014 on, though it legitimately can for 2010 through 2013.

3
Step 3

Check the asset and the lien cap

Identify how each asset was held. A non-probate asset is still reachable here, but a life estate or joint-tenancy interest is capped at the recipient's own share, and a life-estate or joint-tenancy right that vested before July 1, 2005 is beyond those two liens.

4
Step 4

Assess an undue-hardship waiver

If a protection does not resolve the claim, evaluate whether the sole-income-producing-asset, shelter, or domestic-partner hardship applies.

5
Step 5

Respond within the deadline

To contest the claim, an administrative hearing request must reach the Office of Financial Recovery within 28 days of the date on the agency's notice. Missing that window can waive your defenses, so call an elder-law attorney promptly if you are unsure.

A hearing request is filed either in person at 712 Pear St. S.E., Olympia, WA 98504-0001 or by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the Office of Financial Recovery, P.O. Box 9501, Olympia, WA 98507-9501. Use certified mail so you have proof of the filing date.

Planning to Reduce Exposure in Washington

Because Washington reaches non-probate assets, the planning playbook that works in probate-only states does not work here. Adding a child as a joint owner, naming a payable-on-death beneficiary, recording a transfer-on-death deed, or signing a community property agreement keeps an asset out of probate but not out of Medicaid recovery. The protections that actually hold up in Washington are different:

  1. Spousal deferral, and the domestic-partner hardship delay. When the recipient is survived by a spouse, the agency may not recover while that spouse is alive. A surviving state-registered domestic partner does not get that automatic bar, but survivorship by one is a ground for an undue-hardship delay an heir can request. Either way it postpones the claim rather than releasing it. Treat that period as time to get advice, not as a window to move assets around.

  2. A properly drafted irrevocable trust, funded ahead of the look-back. A trust that is a completed gift during life, with no retained interest and no provision that makes it effective or irrevocable only at death, is not a death-triggered nonprobate asset and is not in the estate, so it generally falls outside recovery. It must be funded well before any Apple Health application: Washington looks back sixty months from the month the applicant both attains institutional status and applies for long-term-care services, and a transfer inside that window that left uncompensated value creates a penalty period of ineligibility.

  3. Understand the eligibility cap for what it is. Washington elects the federal maximum exempt home equity of $1,130,000 for 2026, the highest figure a state is permitted to use, and an applicant whose income runs over the special income level can still qualify for institutional coverage through the medically needy spend-down. These rules determine whether someone qualifies for coverage; they do not shield the home from recovery after death.

  4. Get Washington-specific legal advice. Estate-recovery planning that assumes a probate-only rule will fail here. An elder-law attorney licensed in Washington can structure a trust correctly, time it against the look-back, and weigh the tax tradeoffs.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will Washington Medicaid take my parent's house?

It can, and Washington reaches further than most states. Recovery applies to recipients who received long-term care at age 55 or older, and because Washington is an expanded-estate state, it can reach the home even when the home passed outside probate through joint tenancy, a transfer-on-death deed, a community property agreement, or a life estate. Recovery is blocked, though, while a surviving spouse, a child age 20 or younger, or a blind or disabled child of any age is alive. If the recipient is survived by a state-registered domestic partner, that is a ground for an undue-hardship delay an heir can request rather than an automatic block.

Is Washington a probate-only estate recovery state?

No. This is the most common misconception. Under RCW 43.20B.080, Washington recovers from a recipient's estate "and from nonprobate assets of the individual as defined by RCW 11.02.005," which includes joint tenancy, payable-on-death and transfer-on-death accounts, community property agreements, life estates, and death-triggered living trusts.

Does putting my parent's house in joint tenancy or a transfer-on-death deed protect it?

Not from Washington Medicaid recovery. Joint tenancy with right of survivorship and transfer-on-death deeds are both listed as nonprobate assets under RCW 11.02.005, so the state can reach the recipient's interest. The lien on a joint-tenancy interest is capped at the recipient's fractional share, but the interest is not off limits as it would be in a probate-only state.

My parent received Apple Health for regular medical care, not a nursing home. Does recovery apply?

Usually not, but check the dates. For dates of service on or after January 1, 2014, recovery reaches only long-term-care services received at age 55 or older, so standard Apple Health with no long-term care component is outside the scope. The one gap: for dates of service from January 1, 2010 through December 31, 2013, all Medicaid services were subject to recovery, and Washington must apply the law as it stood on the date of service.

Does the $1,130,000 home-equity cap protect the home from recovery?

No. Washington elects the federal maximum exempt home equity of $1,130,000 for 2026, but that figure governs eligibility, deciding whether the home counts as an asset when someone applies. It does not shield the home from estate recovery after death.

Can my parent transfer the house to me to avoid recovery?

A lifetime transfer falls under the Medicaid look-back rules, not estate recovery. Washington applies a 60-month look-back, and an uncompensated transfer inside that window can create a penalty period of ineligibility. The caregiver-child exception, 42 U.S.C. 1396p(c)(2)(A)(iv), covers an adult child who lived in the home for at least two years immediately before institutionalization and provided care the state determines delayed it. Review any transfer with an elder-law attorney first.

Where to Get Help

For questions about a Washington Medicaid estate recovery claim, an undue-hardship waiver, or planning options, start with these resources.

Office of Financial Recovery (OFR) Handles Apple Health estate-recovery claims, undue-hardship requests, lien matters, and administrative hearing requests (due within 28 days of the notice date). Hearing requests by mail: P.O. Box 9501, Olympia, WA 98507-9501 (certified mail, return receipt requested) Hearing requests in person: 712 Pear St. S.E., Olympia, WA 98504-0001 Current contact numbers are listed on the notice you receive and on hca.wa.gov
Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) Administers Apple Health and publishes estate-recovery policy and eligibility standards. hca.wa.gov
DSHS Home and Community Services Processes long-term-care Medicaid eligibility and can confirm which services a recipient received. 1-877-501-2233 washingtonconnection.org
Northwest Justice Project (CLEAR) Free civil legal aid for low-income Washington residents, including estate-recovery questions. 1-888-201-1014 nwjustice.org
WashingtonLawHelp.org Plain-language legal guides on Apple Health, long-term care, and estate recovery. washingtonlawhelp.org
National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) Refers families to a Washington elder-law attorney for trust planning and estate-recovery defense. naela.org
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Learn More

MedicaidWashington Medicaid: A Guide for Seniors and FamiliesWashington Apple Health (Medicaid) covers long-term care via HCA and DSHS: $2,000 asset limit, no Miller Trust, spend-down, and a $1,130,000 home equity limit. MedicaidWashington Medicaid Eligibility and Income LimitsWashington Medicaid income limits 2026: 138% FPL and no asset test on the MAGI track, plus the $2,982 special income level and spend-down for long-term care. MedicaidHow to Apply for Washington MedicaidHow to apply for Washington Medicaid (Apple Health) in 2026: Washington Connection, the medically needy spend-down, documents, timelines, and how to appeal. MedicaidMedicaid Estate Recovery ExplainedMedicaid estate recovery explained: federal law, 51-state matrix, categorical protections, hardship waivers, and 2025-2026 reform updates. Verify before acting.

Find personalized help with Washington Medicaid estate recovery at brevy.com.

The information on Brevy.com is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional legal, financial, or medical advice. Rules vary by state and program and change frequently. Always verify with the relevant agency or a qualified professional. Brevy is not a law firm, financial advisor, or healthcare provider.

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Brevy Care Team

Expert eldercare guidance from Brevy's team of healthcare professionals and researchers.