When we refer to “taxable”, we mean that a deceased person has to pay Inheritance Tax on their death. They have 6 months (from the end of the month in which they died) to pay this tax to HMRC without incurring fines which are 4% above the Bank of England Base Rate (Inheritance Tax thresholds and interest rates – GOV.UK). The Executors therefore need to have a good idea of the tax due by this point, or make a lump sum payment to avoid this. They have up to 1 year to send the tax return without incurring fines.
From sending the tax return to HMRC, it usually takes about 1 month to be issued with a code which allows you to apply for Probate. If Probate can be applied for online (solicitors have different rules to non-solicitors on this), a legal statement – which is like a witness statement – can be created once the code is received and at this point Probate can be applied for. At present, it is taking between 2-12 weeks from the Probate Registry receiving the application to give the Grant of Probate. You cannot call them for an update before 12 weeks have expired. If it cannot be applied for online, it is usual to take around 5 months to get the Grant of Probate.
Once the Grant of Probate has been received, the timeline heavily relies on the financial institutions (and the property market if you are selling a house) as the task at this point is to collect in money. This can be very quick or very slow, depending on how responsive they are.
All in all, a taxable estate often takes around 18 months – 2 years from start to finish, but it can take longer if it is exceedingly complex.
We refer to “non-taxable” when we mean that a deceased person doesn’t have to pay Inheritance Tax on their death. The Executors need to figure out if tax is going to be due quickly, because they have 6 months (from the end of the month in which they died) to pay this tax to HMRC without incurring fines.
If no tax is due, in most cases, an asset & liability schedule needs to be prepared at the same time as preparing the application to Probate (although in some cases, a full tax return may be required and the timelines are similar to those above). If Probate can be applied for online, this can be done quickly, but the waiting times at the Probate Registry can be long. At present, it is taking between 2-12 weeks from the Probate Registry receiving the application to give the Grant of Probate. You cannot call them for an update before 12 weeks have expired. If it cannot be applied for online, it is usual to take around 5 months to get the Grant of Probate.
Once the Grant of Probate has been received, the timeline heavily relies on the financial institutions (and the property market if you are selling a house) as the task at this point is to collect in money. This can be very quick or very slow, depending on how responsive they are.
All in all, a non-taxable estate often takes around 12 months – 18 months from start to finish, but it can take longer if it is exceedingly complex.
You appoint an Executor (or Executors) when you make your Will. An Executor is a trusted person who will act on your behalf in matters to do with your estate upon your death. Executors can be family members or friends, or you can ask a solicitor to be an Executor.
The Executor is the person who gets the Grant of Probate and does all of the tasks listed above in the “Estate Administration” section. Being someone’s Executor or Administrator can be a time-consuming task, and it comes with a lot of responsibility as the Executor is personally liable for any loss (this means that if they do something wrong, they pay from their own pocket!). For this reason, many people choose to pay a solicitor to complete the estate administration for them, as it then becomes the solicitor’s role to ensure that everything is done correctly. Solicitors can also undertake tasks that greatly reduce the risk to the Executor, and this is paid for by estate money.
Some more unusual tasks that Executors may be involved in are finding a Will, re-homing any animals left behind, checking a family tree, checking all bank statements for the last (up to) 14 years to check for lifetime gifts, doing an “unknown asset search”, disposing and distributing personal items, insuring any property, running businesses and managing any claims against the estate from people who have not been included in the Will.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, the Executors make a promise to the Court to produce accounts if they are asked for them, and therefore it is a good idea to keep accounts at the time.
This is a difficult question, as professional fees depend heavily on the estate itself and its complexity. Call us on 0116 212 1000 or 01858 445 480 to speak to someone, or take a look at fees for examples.
No, you can complete administration yourself, but it can be complex and risky. Remember, executors have personal liability and therefore if anything goes wrong, it could be a costly mistake!
More often than not, the bill will come from estate assets as it is an estate expense. Usually, Lawson West take our fees directly from the money we recover from the deceased’s estate.
The bank can often pay for the funeral directly, and you are under no obligation to fund this personally.
Unlike European countries, debts are not passed to the beneficiaries of the estate. This means that if there is more debt than assets, the debtors are paid a proportionate amount of the available funds. You will not have to pay from your own funds in most cases.
You can step down entirely, or have your “power reserved” if you don’t want to act right now, but don’t want to come off completely: it is your choice and we can help achieve it.
Unlike many other law firms, we do not charge an hourly rate or a percentage of the estate value: we think it is integral to our relationship with you that you know exactly how much your matter will cost from the start.
Further, with fixed fees, you’re investing in efficiency—our incentive is to resolve your matter swiftly and effectively. Hourly rates, by contrast, reward time spent, not outcomes. Fixed pricing aligns our goals with yours: fast, focused, and results-driven service. We are able to offer fixed fees because of our vast experience – we know what we are going to see throughout the lifetime of your matter. We find that our clients appreciate this refreshing take on fees, and this sets us apart from other firms.
Expertise – with helpful articles on Estate Administration:
Our highly-skilled and supportive team of professionals can advise on all aspects of probate, wealth protection, wills, Lasting Powers of Attorneys, Court of Protection and trusts. This includes probate administration, deputyships, loss of capacity (health and finances), advising beneficiaries, executors and trustees as well as IHT implications of estates and wealth transfer or protection.
We can help individuals and business owners to protect and maximise their wealth and wellbeing interests and those of their loved ones. You will find us welcoming, caring, sensitive and knowledgeable.
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Please contact us to book an appointment or feel free to drop-in.
Yes. In most cases, there is no reason why the people inheriting your estate can’t be the same people as those dealing with the practicalities. We can tell you whether this will cause a problem in your particular circumstances.
No. If you have any asset worth over £5,000, any stocks and shares or a property then your executors will usually need to apply for probate. If you don’t make a Will, they need to apply for Letters of Administration instead, which is very similar. Unless your assets are all owned jointly with someone else and pass to them automatically, you will need Probate before your estate can be paid out.
We tailor-make your Will for you, the cost will depend on your own particular needs and circumstances.
If you don’t have a Will, anything which your children inherit passes to them at the age of 18. By making a Will, you can determine when your children will inherit, safeguarding the money for a time when they may really need it. You can include a provision saying that your children are not to inherit until they reach 21 or 25 (for example).
The Intestacy Rules don’t allow for any gifts to charity out of your estate but by making a Will you can leave a set amount or a percentage of your total estate.
Your Will is a private document whilst you are alive and will not become a public document until after you die and probate is granted. Anyone can then obtain a copy from the Probate Registry for a small fee.
While you are alive, no-one has any right to see your Will unless you want them to.
If you have children, you can name guardians to look after them if anything were to happen to you. The choice of guardians is up to you, we are happy to advise you on the factors to consider when making this important decision. If you haven’t named anyone to look after your children, it might be that members of your family need to go to court for permission to look after them. In the worst cases, it might mean that your children are taken into care until this is sorted out.
Everyone has something (clothes, a few pennies, animals etc) – but if they don’t, they at least need someone to be able to wrap everything up (such as outstanding debts etc) on their death (an executor). This can only be appointed in a Will.
If you are married and don’t have a Will, the law sets out that:
Often, we find that most people expect their spouse to have everything if they don’t have a Will. This can cause problems if the house is only in one person’s name, as they children can become entitled to part of the house.
It is therefore much simpler to clarify your wishes in a Will.
Yes, as long as they are over 18 when you die.
Will costs vary. You may have seen Wills advertised for £19.99 online but be aware of these – often they will try to sell extras in your Will that will be vastly more expensive. Our wills are all inclusive, with no hidden extras. Contact us for an up to date quote on 0116 212 1000 or on pskarlatos@lawson-west.co.uk.
Yes, but be wary if doing so! The Wills Act was created in 1837, and therefore we have nearly 200 years’ worth of law telling us what certain phrases and words mean, and how to interpret certain situations. If you accidentally use, or don’t use, one of these, the meaning of your Will may be interpreted incorrectly, meaning your Will may either fail or give your money to the wrong people. You are much better advised to use a solicitor for peace of mind: if it goes wrong, it could cost thousands of pounds to put right when you die.
Having a will doesn’t mean you don’t need probate and needing probate (or a certificate from the Court meaning the same thing) doesn’t require a Will. They are two separate things.
Whether or not you need to obtain a Grant of Probate (or another type of Grant, see “What is Probate” above) depends on the assets in the estate. You will need a Grant if the estate includes one or more of the following:
A house that is held in the sole name of the deceased, or it is held as a tenant in common;
A large amount of money in the bank (this is usually around £50,000, but varies from bank to bank)
A large amount of shares
A large pay out from a life insurance
Sometimes, asset holders will tell you they need a Grant of Probate or a Grant of administration before they can release the money. In this case, you will need to take one out.
You may also want to take out a Grant of Probate or a Grant of Administration because you think that someone will make a claim on the estate. By taking out a Grant, you give people notice that you intend to administer the estate, and therefore they need to bring a claim quickly.
It is advisable not to. If they are named in your Will, they will forfeit any gift you have left them by witnessing your Will. It is always best to use someone completely independent, such as a neighbour or a colleague.
If a Will is submitted to the Probate Registry after death it becomes a public document. Before this time, it is a private document and shouldn’t be shared with others.
After you have died, your Will could be contested for a number of reasons. People contest Wills for lots of reasons, such as:
They suspect the person who made the Will was forced into making a Will that said something that person didn’t want it to;
They suspect the person who made the Will didn’t have the mental capacity to make a Will at the time they did;
They suspect it is a fraudulent Will; or
They have not been adequately provided for in the Will.
You can prepare documents before you die to help to show that you intended to create a Will on the specified terms to help fight any challenge after death.
Of course! You can either make a new Will, which is often cleaner and easier, or a Codicil, if you only wish to make small changes to the Will.
Whilst you are alive, no, unless the Court of Protection approves a change because you have lost mental capacity and there is a compelling reason to change the Will.
After death, yes. The beneficiaries can agree to vary the terms of the Will if they so wish.
No, but you can make an application to the Court of Protection for a Statutory Will to be made. There needs to be a compelling case for this: an example may be where a young person was abused by a parent – if they died, their parent would inherit their wealth and therefore it would be appropriate to make a Will for the young person.
Not necessarily. The Intestacy Rules set out a strict order of who will inherit what. If you have children, your spouse may not inherit everything you own, whether or not you are close to your children or how wealthy they are in their own right. Your spouse might not even get the house, depending on how much it is worth.
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