Probate and Estate Administration Costs

We can help you through this difficult process by obtaining the Grant of Probate on your behalf.

How much does this service cost?

TOTAL: fixed fee of £2,160 inclusive of VAT at 20% and disbursements

This includes obtaining the grant in accordance with information provided by you.

Breakdown of costs:

Legal fees £1,500 (plus VAT at 20%)

VAT on legal fees £300

Disbursements:

• Probate court fee of £300 no VAT
• Case management fee of £50 + VAT of £10

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.

This fee applies to a simple estate with no foreign assets and no contentious issues.

As part of our fixed fee, we will:

• Provide you with a dedicated and experienced probate solicitor or paralegal to work on your matter
• Identify the legally appointed executors or administrators
• Accurately identify the type of Probate application you will require
• Obtain the relevant documents required to make the application
• Complete the online Probate Application in accordance with the information provided by you
• Draft a legal statement for your approval
• Make the application to the Probate Court on your behalf
• Obtain the Probate and securely send 1 copy to you

Potential additional costs:

• If there is no will, a paper submission to the Probate Court is required, an IHT400 is required to be submitted and or any Inheritance Tax payable, there is likely to be additional costs that could range significantly depending on the estate and how it is to be dealt with. We can give you a more accurate quote once we have more information.
• Dealing with the collection and distribution of assets is not included
• Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included.

Additional recommended disbursements: (where applicable, costs state if VAT is to be added at 20%):

• If any additional copies of the grant are required, they will cost £1.50 no VAT (1 per asset usually).
• Bankruptcy-only Land Charges Department searches £6 per beneficiary (plus VAT of £1.20)
• Post in The London Gazette £98 (plus VAT of £19.60) – Protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors.
• £150 (plus VAT of £30) Post in a Local Newspaper – (current Chester Price – fees may vary in other locations) This also helps to protect against unexpected claims.
• Land Registry fee of £7.00 (plus VAT of £1.40)

Factors which may increase costs

• The absence of a valid Will
• Multiple properties
• More extensive investments
• A large number of beneficiaries
• Inheritance tax payable
• An existing trust
• A will creating a trust
• Life policies
• Lifetime gifts
• Agricultural property or business property
• Lifetime and estate income tax
• Advice regarding (or the claiming of) the Residence Nil Rate Band.

On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with within 5 – 6 months. Typically, obtaining the relevant information from you takes 4 – 6 weeks and obtaining the grant of probate takes 16 – 20 weeks.

We anticipate that costs will be between 2 – 4% of the gross value of the estate plus VAT of 20%.  By way of example, on an estate valued at £250,000 Total costs are estimated at £5,000 – £10,000 (plus VAT of £1000 – £2000).

The exact cost will depend on the time spent on the matter in accordance with the hourly rates below together with the individual circumstances of the matter. For example, if there is one beneficiary and few bank accounts, costs will be at the lower end of the range. If there are multiple beneficiaries, a property and multiple bank accounts, costs will be at the higher end.

We will handle the full process for you.

This quote is for estates where:

• There is a valid Will
• There are no foreign assets
• There is no more than one property
• There are no more than 4 bank or building society accounts
• There are no other intangible assets
• There are 2 – 3 beneficiaries
• There are no disputes between beneficiaries on division of assets. If disputes arise this is likely to lead to an increase in costs
• There is no inheritance tax payable, and the executors do not need to submit a full account to HMRC
• There are no claims made against the estate

Disbursements in addition to this fee:

• Probate application fee of £300 no VAT
• Case management fee of £50 (plus VAT of £10)

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.

Potential additional costs:

• If there is no will, the estate consists of any share holdings (stocks and bonds), an IHT400 is required to be submitted or any Inheritance Tax payable, there is likely to be additional costs that could range significantly depending on the estate and how it is to be dealt with. We can give you a more accurate quote once we have more information.
• Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included.

Additional recommended Disbursements: (where applicable costs state if VAT is to be added at 20%):

If any additional copies of the grant are required, they will cost £1.50 no VAT (1 per asset usually).

• Bankruptcy only Land Charges Department searches £6 per beneficiary (plus VAT of £1.20)
• Post in The London Gazette £98 (plus VAT of £19.60) – Protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors.
• £150 (plus VAT of £30) Post in a Local Newspaper – (current Chester Price – fees may vary in other locations) This also helps to protect against unexpected claims.

Factors which may increase costs

• The absence of a valid Will
• Multiple properties
• More extensive investments
• A large number of beneficiaries
• Inheritance tax payable
• An existing trust
• A will creating a trust
• Life policies
• Lifetime gifts
• Agricultural property or business property
• Lifetime and estate income tax
• Advice regarding (or the claiming of) the Residence Nil Rate Band

Current Departmental hourly rates

How long will this take?

On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with within 6 – 12 months. Typically, obtaining the grant of probate takes 16 – 24 weeks. Collecting assets then follows, which can take between 4 – 12 weeks. Once this has been done, we can distribute the assets, which normally takes 6 – 16 weeks.