Arizona small claims cases are heard in the small claims division of justice court. The jurisdictional limit is $5,000, exclusive of interest and costs. The summons, complaint and Notice to Plaintiff and Defendant must be served on every defendant, and proof of service must reach the court within 45 days of the filing date.
A.R.S. § 22-503(A) gives the small claims division concurrent original jurisdiction with the justice court where the claim does not exceed $5,000, exclusive of interest and costs. The limit applies to the plaintiff's claim and to a counterclaim. A claim above the limit has to proceed as a civil action in justice court or superior court instead.
The small claims division sits inside the justice court and does not replace its ordinary civil jurisdiction. A.R.S. § 22-201 gives the justice court civil jurisdiction over claims up to $10,000, exclusive of interest and costs. So a claim between $5,000 and $10,000 is heard as a regular justice court civil action, and a claim above $10,000 is filed in superior court. The $5,000 figure is the small claims track; the $10,000 figure is the justice court's civil ceiling.
Matters excluded from small claims
A.R.S. § 22-503(B) excludes defamation, forcible entry, forcible detainer and unlawful detainer actions, specific performance, class actions, prejudgment remedies, injunctive relief, traffic and criminal matters, and actions against the state or its political subdivisions or officers in an official capacity.
A.R.S. § 22-513(A) allows the plaintiff to serve the summons and complaint by registered or certified mail in addition to any other available method. Service is complete on the delivery date shown on the return receipt. The receipt must be received and filed with the court, in person or by first-class mail.
A.R.S. § 22-513(B) allows personal service by a process server or an authorized officer if mail service cannot be made, or by any other means allowed under court rule. When personal service is used, an affidavit of service must be filed with the court.
A.R.S. § 22-513(A) permits the clerk of the small claims division to make service by certified restricted mail, return receipt requested. Availability of this option is a court-by-court practice, not a statewide guarantee.
Any other method must come from the Arizona Rules of Small Claims Procedure or the justice court's own rules. Substitute service does not apply to small claims the way it does in civil actions; the permitted methods above are the frame.
The proof requirement follows the method used. These are not interchangeable documents.
Registered or certified mail
Return receipt filed with the court
The return receipt, or the receipt printed from the postal or delivery service's website, establishes service. Service is complete on the delivery date shown; if the carrier left that field blank or illegible, service is complete when the receipt is received and filed with the court.
Personal service
Affidavit of service filed with the court
An affidavit of service is required when personal service is used, and it records the delivery date reflected on the certificate of service. No affidavit substitutes for a mail receipt, and no receipt substitutes for a personal-service affidavit.
Under the Arizona Judicial Branch guidance, failure to file proof of service within 45 days of the complaint filing date results in dismissal.
$5,000
Jurisdictional limit, exclusive of interest and costs, for the plaintiff's claim and for a counterclaim (A.R.S. § 22-503(A)).
45 days
Deadline from the complaint filing date to file proof of service. Missing it results in dismissal of the case (Arizona Judicial Branch small claims guidance).
20 days
Time for the defendant to file a written answer after being served.
65 days
Under Rule 5(c) of the Arizona Rules of Small Claims Procedure, the court may dismiss the case 65 days after service unless a hearing has been scheduled or the plaintiff has applied for entry of default judgment. The 65-day point conditions the court's dismissal power; it is not an unconditional requirement that the case be finished by then.
There is no right to a jury and no appeal in small claims. Amended complaints are not permitted; a plaintiff who needs to amend must dismiss and file a new action.
A.R.S. § 22-513(B) identifies a process server or an authorized officer for personal service, or any other means pursuant to court rule. This page does not state that any adult resident may serve a small claims summons — that question depends on the Arizona Rules of Small Claims Procedure and the practice of the issuing court, and it is flagged for attorney review rather than asserted here.
Arizona service qualifications →Statutory text and judicial guidance reviewed October 2026. This page is procedural information, not legal advice.
Maricopa County
Pinal County
Documented personal service in the justice court precinct where the case was filed, with an affidavit prepared for the 45-day filing window.
Call: (602) 675-8633