Time to obtain probate
The length of time to administer an depends entirely upon the size of the estate, and the nature of the assets held by the Deceased.
The starting point with the probate process is to assess the assets and liabilities. Typically, this will involve writing to various financial institutions and banks etc, they will need to confirm the value of the Deceased’s assets as of the date of death. If the estate is under the Inheritance Tax threshold then typically a grant of probate maybe obtained quite quickly within a few months or even weeks.
By contrast if the estate involves inheritance tax issues then the estate administration can take much longer, as very specific Inheritance tax valuations will have to be undertaken in order to ensure that inheritance tax return (the IHT 400) is completed correctly, and any Inheritance Tax paid as this will be required by the Probate Registry. This involves the filing of a receipted IHT 421 form together when the application is made to the Probate Registry. Other Important time limits to be aware of are the need to file the Inheritance Tax return within 6 months if IHT is due. Overall, we find that probate takes an average of 8-12 weeks if no inheritance tax is payable and between 14 -16 weeks iif Inheritance Tax is payable.
Need help with probate quickly?
Call our probate helpline on: 0844 7400948
National Probate helpline Telephone: 0845 9011 686
