How to Apply for Probate UK: Step-by-Step Guide

Overview

Probate is the legal authority that lets you deal with someone's estate after they die. The document you receive is called a grant of probate (where there's a Will) or a grant of letters of administration (where there isn't). Without it, banks, pension providers, and the Land Registry generally won't release funds or allow property to be transferred.

Some smaller estates can be wound up without probate, typically where assets sit below a bank's internal threshold or where everything was held jointly and passes automatically to a surviving co-owner, but this varies from institution to institution. The grant itself is issued by HM Courts and Tribunals Service through the Probate Registry.

Once you have it, you can collect in the money and possessions, pay off any debts and inheritance tax due, and then distribute what's left to the beneficiaries. The person applying takes on real responsibility here: executors and administrators can be held personally liable if they get the distribution wrong or miss a creditor, so it pays to be methodical.

Key steps

1. Register the death and gather the paperwork. You'll usually need to register the death at the local register office within five days (eight in Scotland). You'll be given a certified copy of the death certificate, and I'd recommend ordering several extra copies straight away because banks, insurers, and utility providers often want to see an original. The 'Tell Us Once' service lets you notify most government departments in a single sitting.
2. Find the Will and identify the executors. Check the deceased's paperwork, safe, and any solicitor they used. The Will names the executor or executors who have the legal authority to apply. If there is no Will, the rules of intestacy decide who can apply as administrator, usually the spouse, civil partner, or closest adult blood relative. Read the Will carefully before doing anything else, because it sets out who inherits and under what conditions.
3. Value the estate. You need a full picture of what the person owned and what they owed on the date of death. That means listing property, bank accounts, investments, pensions, vehicles, personal possessions of value, and any business interests, then subtracting debts such as mortgages, loans, credit cards, and outstanding bills. For property you'll often want a written valuation from an estate agent or surveyor. Joint assets need to be handled separately because the share that passes may depend on how the asset was owned.
4. Deal with inheritance tax. Before the Probate Registry will issue a grant, HMRC needs to know about the estate. You'll complete either a shorter form for estates that clearly fall below the tax threshold or a fuller account for estates that are larger or more complex. If inheritance tax is due, at least part of it usually has to be paid before probate is granted, which can be awkward when the money is locked inside the estate. There are ways around this, including the direct payment scheme with banks, and it's worth asking about them early.
5. Submit the probate application and administer the estate. You can apply online through gov.uk or by post using form PA1P (with a Will) or PA1A (without one). A court fee applies, and additional copies of the grant can be ordered for a small extra fee per copy, which I'd recommend because you'll need to send one to each financial institution. Once the grant arrives, you collect in the assets, settle debts and taxes, prepare estate accounts, and finally distribute what remains to the beneficiaries named in the Will or under intestacy.

Common questions