Must a Grant of Probate always be obtained after someone dies?

Contrary to popular belief, it is not always necessary to obtain a Grant of Representation (otherwise known as a Grant of Probate if someone dies leaving a Will, and a Grant of Letters of Administration if they did not).

Whether a Grant must be obtained is generally dictated by the type and value of assets someone has in their estate when they pass away. If someone owns any freehold or leasehold land in their sole name, a Grant will always be needed to transfer or sell the property. If the person who has passed away has left money in a bank account, the relevant bank will have a threshold above which they will want to see a Grant before they release any money some banks have higher thresholds than others and there is no hard or fast tule on this. Some banks will permit amounts as large as £50,000 to be released before they require a Grant.

If someone dies leaving more than £5,000 with NS&I (for example, Premium Bonds) then a Grant will have to be produced to be able to encash the asset.

What is a Grant of Probate (or Grant of Letters of Administration)?

A Grant is a document issued by the Probate Registry who are part of the government’s Court service.

A Grant effectively shows that the Court have authorised the executors (named in a Will) or administrators (usually close family members) to administer an estate. A Grant is a piece of paper with the Court seal on it naming the deceased, giving their date of death and confirms who is entitled to administer their assets.

Banks and other organisations effectively want to see a Grant after someone dies so they are sure they are releasing/transferring assets under the authority of the right person or people. That way, if the Probate Registry have issued a Grant to a specific person or persons, the bank in question can be certain they are releasing money to the correct people.

How is a Grant obtained?

Effectively, a snapshot of the finances of the person who has passed away has to be compiled as at their date of death. The value of all of their assets has to be ascertained (usually by writing to the organisations that hold funds on behalf of someone that has died and supplying them with a death certificate). Any property and personal items with a value would have to be valued (often fairly informally).

The same exercise has to be performed with any liabilities to include the funeral account and any funeral related expenses (funeral reception, any memorial, etc). This will allow the gross value of the estate and the net value to be established.

Once this has been done a Grant can then be applied for.

What about Inheritance Tax (IHT)?

If any tax is due in the estate, the minimum payment must be made to the Revenue before the Grant can be applied for. The Revenue used to provide a form to the Probate Registry confirming the initial tax had been paid, but nowadays they provide a code the applicant can then use to apply for a Grant.

What’s the fee?

The Probate Registry currently charge £273 for a Grant of Probate and £1.50 for each “office copy”. An office copy Grant of Probate is a copy that bears the Court seal. It is normally a good idea to obtain a number of office copies to supply to the various organisations that would need to see them, rather than circulating the same office copy between a number of organisations one after the other. Photocopies are normally, unfortunately, not accepted.