Grant of Probate: Process, Timeline and Costs 2026/27

What a grant of probate actually does

When someone dies leaving a valid will naming executors, those executors generally need a grant of probate before banks, investment platforms, and the Land Registry will release assets or allow property to be sold or transferred. The grant is the Probate Registry's official confirmation that the will is valid and that the named executors have the legal authority to administer the estate.

If someone dies without a valid will (intestate), the equivalent document is called a grant of letters of administration, issued to the person entitled to administer the estate under the intestacy rules — the process and costs are broadly similar, but the applicant is called an "administrator" rather than an "executor."

When probate is not needed

Not every estate requires a grant of probate. Common situations where it may not be needed include:

• Jointly owned assets — property held as "joint tenants" and joint bank accounts usually pass automatically to the surviving joint owner by survivorship, without needing probate for that specific asset.
• Small estates — many banks and building societies will release funds up to their own internal threshold (commonly somewhere between roughly £5,000 and £50,000, varying significantly by institution) without insisting on a grant, especially where the surviving spouse or a close relative is claiming the funds.

Where an estate includes property held in the deceased's sole name, or larger sums held with institutions that insist on seeing a grant, probate (or letters of administration) will usually be unavoidable.

The application fee

The Probate Registry charges a fixed application fee, regardless of the size of the estate (unlike some other jurisdictions, where the fee scales with estate value). Estates below a set value threshold are exempt from the fee entirely. Executors will usually also want to order several additional official copies of the grant (each carrying a small extra charge) since many institutions want to see and retain an original or certified copy rather than accepting a photocopy.

The Inheritance Tax reporting requirement

For estates above the excepted estate thresholds, executors must complete and submit an Inheritance Tax account (commonly the IHT400 form and its schedules) to HMRC, and generally pay any tax due, or arrange the first instalment, before the Probate Registry will issue the grant. This creates a well-known practical problem: the estate's main assets (property, investments) are often frozen until probate is granted, but the tax has to be paid before probate is granted.

Common solutions include:

• Using funds directly from the deceased's own bank account via the "direct payment scheme," where banks can pay Inheritance Tax straight to HMRC from the deceased's account, without needing the grant first.
• Taking out a specific executor's loan or bridging facility, secured against the eventual estate assets.
• Paying tax on property in instalments over up to 10 years (with interest), which is an option for the Inheritance Tax attributable to land and certain business assets.

Typical timeline

Once HMRC and the Probate Registry have everything they need in a correctly completed application, a grant is often issued within a matter of weeks. However, the overall timeline from death to grant frequently stretches to several months, particularly where:

• Inheritance Tax reporting and payment must be completed first for larger estates.
• The application contains errors, missing information, or unclear elements of the will that the Registry queries.
• Multiple executors need to coordinate, especially if based abroad or unable to sign documents quickly.

Practical steps for executors

• Gather date-of-death valuations for all assets and debts early — this is needed for both the probate application and the Inheritance Tax account.
• Check whether jointly owned assets or small balances can bypass the need for probate on those specific items.
• Establish early whether Inheritance Tax will be due, and if so, how it will be funded before the grant is issued.
• Order enough official copies of the grant at the point of application, since re-ordering later adds delay when dealing with multiple institutions in parallel.