Before you apply

Before applying for probate you’ll need to complete the following steps.

  1. Check that probate is needed and that you can apply.

  2. Estimate the estate’s value for Inheritance Tax. Even if there’s no tax to pay, you’ll need the value as part of your probate application.

  3. Find out whether you need to report the full details of the estate to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). If you do not have to send full details or pay Inheritance Tax, it is called an ‘excepted estate’.

  4. If Inheritance Tax is due, start making payments. HMRC will then send you a unique code, which you need before applying. You can apply for probate straight away if it’s an excepted estate.

If more than one person is applying

The group of applicants choose one person to be the lead applicant. They will manage the probate application for all the applicants.

Each applicant must give the lead applicant their email address and mobile phone number. Everyone applying must have access to the internet.

Once the lead applicant signs the legal declaration, the other applicants will get:

  • an email with a link to the legal declaration
  • a text message with the access code to sign the declaration

The lead applicant cannot continue with the probate application until everyone signs the legal declaration.

The Courts and Tribunals Service can only discuss the application details with the applicants named in it.

Valuing an ‘excepted estate’ for probate

You’ll need to report estimates of the estate’s value as part of your probate application.

Use the online Inheritance Tax (IHT) checker to estimate the estate’s value. This will give you 3 of the 5 values you’ll need for your probate application:

  • gross estate value for IHT
  • net estate value for IHT
  • net qualifying value for IHT

Use these values to work out the other 2 values you’ll need:

  • gross value for probate
  • net value for probate

How to work out the gross value for probate

Work out the gross value of the estate for Inheritance Tax and then subtract the value of all of the following:

  • assets that were owned with someone else (‘joint assets’) and that are being passed to the surviving owner
  • gifts that were made in the 7 years before they died
  • assets that were owned abroad (for example, overseas property or money in foreign bank accounts)
  • assets held in a trust

How to work out the net value for probate

Subtract the value of any debts the person who died owed and the cost of the funeral from the gross value for probate.

Do not include debts that were owed jointly with someone else, for example, a mortgage on a joint property.

Get help

If you’re not sure whether to include something in the valuation, you can read the guidance on what counts as a gift.

If you need to report the full details of the estate to HMRC

Fill in and send form IHT400. You’ll need to do this within 12 months of the person dying and before applying for probate. ‘Full details’ means the estate’s assets and debts, any gifts made, and any reliefs and exemptions. These will provide you with the total value of the estate. Sometimes, full details are needed even if no Inheritance Tax is due.

If Inheritance tax is due

If Inheritance Tax is owed on the estate, you normally have to pay some before probate is granted. If you pay it out of your own bank account, you can claim the tax back from the estate.

What you’ll need to apply

You’ll need the death certificate or an interim death certificate from the coroner. You’ll also need the original will, if there is one.