Probate
Probate is the legal right to deal with someone’s property, money, and possessions (their ‘estate’) when they die.
How to apply for Probate?
You need to apply to get probate. Before applying, you must check that it’s needed and that you’re eligible to apply. You also need to estimate and report the estate’s value to find out if there’s Inheritance Tax to pay. But first, you need to check if you need to apply for probate by contacting the financial organisations the person who died used (for example, their bank and mortgage company) to find out if you’ll need probate to get access to their assets. Every organization has its own rules.
How long does it take to apply for a Grant of Probate?
It can take anywhere between 1 and 6 months to apply for a grant of probate in the UK, depending on how complex the estate is and how many assets there are to deal with. Once you have got probate it can take up to another 6 months to close accounts, sell shares and property and deal with any outstanding taxes. This means that it can take up to a year to complete the probate process. You’ll usually get the grant of probate or letters of administration within 8 weeks or more of sending in your original documents. It can take longer if you need to provide additional information. If you ordered copies of your probate document for use outside the UK, these would take longer to arrive than your UK copy.
You may not need probate if the person who died:
• Only had savings
• owned shares or money with others – this automatically passes to the surviving owners unless they’ve agreed otherwise
• owned land or property as joint tenants with others – this automatically passes to the surviving owners
Only certain people can apply for probate. Who can apply depends on whether there’s a Will. If there is a Will, executors named in it can apply, and if there is no Will, the closest living relative can apply.
How can Alphalink Legal assist me with the Probate Process?
Have you been appointed as Executor of a Will, or do you require assistance in administering an estate?
At Alphalink Legal, we offer a complete estate administration service to deal with everything for you. As every estate differs, we encourage you to contact us to discuss this further so that we can provide you with an estimate of our fees. Our Solicitors can handle every aspect of the administration process and keep you updated for peace of mind.
Pricing
We offer fixed fees for small and medium-sized estates where there is no inheritance tax payable, however, if there is a large estate and the estate is taxable then charges will be at our Solicitor’s prevailing hourly rate.
Please contact our office on 03301113506 for a more detailed breakdown of our fees.
Office address
Please visit us today for more information
Admirals park, Victory Way, Dartford DA2 6QD
