Understanding Probate Fees

If you are new to dealing with probate, there may be some confusion over probate fees. This is because there are two types of fee. The first is the fee you pay to HM Courts and Tribunal Service for permission to probate the Will and access the finances of your loved ones. This fee is £105 and you also pay £1 for each copy of the documents needed to send to the financial institutions that hold the deceased’s assets.

If the deceased has assets of under £5000 after funeral expenses you will not need to apply for probate to access their money. This amount can be as much as £10,000, depending on the financial institution. If your loved ones assets exceed this amount you will need to apply for grant of probate and send your cheque off with the application for £105 plus the costs of each copy of the document to HM Courts and Tribunal service.

The second type of probate fee relates to paying someone to probate the Will. You can probate the Will yourself but you may not feel like doing so when you are already suffering the loss of your loved one. Probate services are usually available from a solicitor, or a fixed fee probate service. These fees can vary, depending on the service provided and how complicated the deceased’s finances are. Nobody ever intends to leave complicated finances for a loved one to deal with the trouble is few of us know when we are actually going to die.

What Do Probate Fees Include?

Probate fees include everything needed to deal with the estate. Before applying for probate you would visit a fixed fee probate service or a solicitor and ask them to apply for probate on your behalf. They would then access the deceased’s assets, chase up any debts and pay any bills. They would then cash in all assets. Depending on your loved ones estate this may involve the sale of any properties and stocks, shares and bonds.

Next they would calculate any inheritance tax owing on the estate, deal with HMRC on your behalf and pay any tax owing from the estate. Finally they would distribute the estate to the benefactors of the will accordingly.

Is There a Way to Keep the Cost of Probate Fees to a Minimum?

Dealing with probate yourself at your sad time of loss can be daunting. So many people opt to use a probate service instead. But the thought of unknown legal fees can be daunting. Solicitors charge huge amounts for the work they do, and at around £100 a letter, fees can quickly mount up.

A good way to keep costs down is by using a fixed fee probate service. This type of service will discuss the deceased's assets with you and tell you exactly how much

dealing with the estate will cost, so you won’t have to worry about huge probate fees once their work is complete.

IWC Estate Planning & Management Ltd. are a specialist Will Writing and Probate Company offering nationwide coverage. The company provides fixed fee probate services; rates are agreed with clients in advance. Fees are based on the work that has to be carried out, rather

than the estate value or at an hourly rate.

IWC are regulated by the Society of Will Writers and Estate Planning Practitioners and registered at Companies House. Their head office is located in Croydon, Surrey, with satellite office coverage across most of England. Follow us on Twitter @IWCLtd