A Step-by-Step Guide to the Probate Process in England and Wales

A Step-by-Step Guide to the Probate Process in England and Wales

What Is Probate?

Probate is the legal process of dealing with the estate of someone who has died. It means finding and valuing everything they owned, paying their debts and any tax, and passing what is left to the people entitled to it. That is the people named in the will or, if there is no valid will, the people the intestacy rules choose.

People use the word "probate" for the whole job of administering an estate. Strictly, it is the court document, the grant of probate, that confirms the executor's authority to act. If there is no will, the equivalent document is a grant of letters of administration, and the person dealing with the estate is the administrator rather than the executor. Both documents are types of "grant of representation".

Step 1: Register the Death

In England and Wales a death must be registered at the local register office within five days. Order several copies of the death certificate. Banks, insurers and other organisations each want their own copy.

Step 2: Locate the Will

If the person made a will, find the original. Look at home, ask their solicitor, and check whether it was stored with the Probate Service. If the solicitor's firm has closed, the Solicitors Regulation Authority can help trace the files.

If you cannot find a will, the National Will Register may be able to help. If no will can be found, the estate is dealt with under the intestacy rules.

Step 3: Establish Whether Probate Is Needed

Probate is not always needed. It may not be needed if everything was owned jointly and passes automatically to the surviving owner, or if the estate is small and made up of cash that the banks agree to release without a grant.

Probate will be needed if the estate includes a property that has to be sold or transferred, or if any bank or other organisation insists on seeing a grant.

Step 4: Value the Estate

Before you apply, work out what the estate is worth: everything owned, less everything owed, including mortgages, loans and funeral costs. A property may need a professional valuation, especially if inheritance tax could be due.

Step 5: Report to HMRC and Pay Any Inheritance Tax

Even if no inheritance tax is due, you may still have to report the estate to HMRC. If tax is due, you must complete form IHT400. Inheritance tax must normally be paid within six months of the end of the month in which the person died. Under the Direct Payment Scheme, some banks will pay the tax straight to HMRC from the deceased's account.

Step 6: Apply for the Grant of Probate

The application fee is £526 for estates over £5,000 (since 13 July 2026). There is no fee for smaller estates. Extra copies of the grant cost £2 each if you order them with the application and £16 each afterwards, so order enough at the start. GOV.UK says you will usually get the grant within 12 weeks of applying, whether you apply online or by post. If you apply online you can track the application.

Step 7: Collect the Assets

Show the grant to the banks, building societies and other organisations holding the assets. Open a separate executor's bank account for the estate's money.

Step 8: Advertise for Creditors

Place notices under section 27 of the Trustee Act 1925 in The London Gazette and a local newspaper. This protects you from personal liability for debts you did not know about.

Step 9: Pay Debts, Expenses, and Legacies

Pay every known debt, the funeral costs, the costs of administration and any cash gifts from the estate's money. Debts do not die with the person. They must be paid before the beneficiaries receive anything.

Step 10: Prepare Estate Accounts and Distribute

Prepare a full set of estate accounts and have the beneficiaries approve them before you make the final payments. The whole process usually takes six to twelve months.

Whether You Need a Solicitor

You do not have to use a solicitor. Professional help matters most where the estate is large or complicated, where inheritance tax is due, where there is a dispute, or where the executor does not have the time or confidence to do it alone.

If you are an executor and want help, contact Safe Harbour Legal. Aaron offers grant only probate, grant only with the full inheritance tax account, and full estate administration, each at a fixed fee. All fees, with VAT, are set out on the fees page.

This guide is intended as general legal information and does not constitute legal advice. Safe Harbour Legal is a trading name of Legal Studio, authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.