How Long Does Probate Take
How long does it take to get a Grant of Probate?
How long does it take to Administer an Estate & Pay Beneficiaries
How long does Probate take?
Probate Information
How long will it take to apply for a grant of probate if the client died with a Will In place?
It can take anywhere between 3 weeks and 12 weeks to apply for a grant of probate with a valid will but the total time taken will depend on varying factors:
- How complex is the Estate?
- Number of properties owned by the client?
- Number of accounts and investments?
- What info is available about assets contained in the Estate?
- Did the deceased use a Financial Advisor for their portfolio?
- How quickly can the above information be collected?
Before the Probate application can be submitted, you or your probate provider will need to collect several bits of information:
- Get official Property valuations.
- Find bank account details.
- Search for any investment details.
- Find out which pension providers the deceased had.
- What debts did the deceased have.
- Were any gifts gifted in the last seven years.
- Collect total amounts for each account & Investment
- Work out how much Tax will be payable
- Which Tax Form will be needed IHT205 or IHT400
You will need all the above information to start your probate application. You can apply for a grant of probate yourself or The WillMaker Group can help guide you through the whole process.
What Happens if there’s no Will or the Will is invalid?
If the deceased has not left a Will, the Will is invalid or cannot be found, then the estate is classed as being intestate and gaining the Grant of Probate can take a little longer.
How long will it take to get my inheritance?
Payments can start to the beneficiaries as soon as you start collecting amounts from the deceased estate but if the inheritance needs to be shared between several beneficiaries then it may be better to put all the proceeds into an executors account before distributing any moneys.
Specifically named property gifts can be transferred as soon as you have the grant of probate.
How long will it take to administer the estate and pay out to beneficiaries?
The time it takes to administer the estate is dependent on the complexity.
But on average it takes between 3-6 months to bring all the assets together and distribute to the beneficiaries.
Here are some of things that may need to be completed when administering an estate:
- Open an executor bank account to keep funds until payments can be made to beneficiaries.
- Transfer pension funds
- Pay any debts
- Work out if any taxes need to be payed – income tax or capital gains tax
- Sell any properties or transfer ownership to beneficiaries
- Distribute funds to the beneficiaries
How long does it take for the probate registry to process my application?
Once your probate application has been submitted (either by yourself or by our legal team) to HM Courts and Tribunals Service, it can take up to 3 months for it to be completed and approved.
Once the Grant has been approved, the estate is ready to be administered.
How much does probate cost?
Some legal firms will offer grant of probate only, which on average will cost around £1,000 but could increase with more complex cases. If you require a full administration service, probate costs somewhere between £2,000 and £6,000 in the UK. Although if you have a more complex or a larger estate this cost could increase significantly. Some probate providers will charge a percentage of the estate, some will offer a fixed fee and some charge on an hourly rate.
We at The WillMaker Group offer a fixed fee quotation with no added extras.
What is a Grant of Probate only service?
Grant Only Services are generally for executors and administrators who have the time to deal with administering the assets themselves.
It is especially appropriate where an executor or administrator is familiar with the probate process, the estate has a limited number of assets or the estate is low in value.
What is Full Estate Administration?
Includes start to finish administration of the estate.
It is especially appropriate where you are not familiar with the probate process or the estate, you do not have the time to devote to administering the assets, the value of the estate is over £325,000 or you are concerned about beneficiaries questioning your activities as executor
