Farra is a death administration assistant for UK families. Get step-by-step guidance for registering a death, applying for probate, notifying banks, and managing bereavement admin. From essential documents to practical checklists, Farra simplifies estate paperwork and funeral-related tasks so you can focus on what matters.
The probate application fee in England and Wales is £300 for any estate worth more than £5,000, plus £1.50 per sealed office copy. Estates of £5,000 or less pay nothing. The fee was raised from £273 to £300 on 27 January 2025 and remains at that level for 2026/27. Solicitor or probate specialist fees are entirely separate from this — and avoidable if you apply yourself.
Probate fees in England and Wales are set by His Majesty's Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) and apply when an executor or administrator applies to the Probate Registry for a Grant of Probate (where there is a will) or Letters of Administration (where there isn't). The structure is deliberately simple — a single flat fee regardless of how complex or valuable the estate is.
| Fee | Amount (2026/27) | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| Probate application fee | £300 | Estates worth more than £5,000 |
| Probate fee — small estates | £0 | Estates worth £5,000 or less |
| Sealed office copy of the grant | £1.50 each | Each bank, pension and asset holder typically wants one |
| Caveat (block on a probate application) | £3 | Lasts six months; rare unless contested |
| Standing search | £10 | Used by creditors to monitor for a grant being issued |
Critically, the probate fee is a flat fee — an estate worth £15,000 pays the same £300 as one worth £15 million. This is unusual for court fees and is the reason a previous government proposal in 2019 to introduce a sliding-scale probate fee (up to £20,000 for the largest estates) was widely criticised and ultimately dropped.
The headline £300 understates what most executors actually pay HMCTS, because almost every estate also needs sealed copies of the grant. Banks, pension providers, insurance companies and the Land Registry generally require an original sealed copy each — photocopies are not accepted. Here is what executors typically pay in total:
| Scenario | Total HMCTS fees | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Estate under £5,000 | £0 | No fee — file IHT205 / IHT400 short form only if applicable |
| Standard estate (1 fee + 5 copies) | £307.50 | £300 application + 5 sealed office copies @ £1.50 each |
| Larger estate (1 fee + 10 copies) | £315.00 | £300 application + 10 sealed office copies — typical for estates with multiple banks/pensions |
| Complex estate (1 fee + 20 copies) | £330.00 | £300 application + 20 sealed office copies — for property + multiple investments + foreign assets |
A practical rule of thumb: order one sealed copy for every bank account, pension, insurance policy and property the deceased held — plus 1–2 spares. Ordering them upfront with your application costs £1.50 each; ordering more later costs the same per copy but takes additional weeks. See our guide on death certificate copies for the parallel exercise — death certificates and sealed grant copies are different documents serving different recipients.
The probate fee is paid at the point of application — either online via the digital probate service or by debit/credit card when submitting a paper PA1P or PA1A form. HMCTS will not process the application until the fee is received. There is no instalment option for the fee itself.
A common difficulty: the estate has assets worth far more than the fee, but they're locked in bank accounts that can't be released until probate is granted. Three options to resolve this:
Help with Fees is HMCTS's means-tested fee remission scheme. Despite the name, it's an executor'sentitlement — the assessment looks at the executor's own income, savings and household, not the value of the estate they're administering. An executor on Universal Credit or a low pension can often apply for a £300-fee waiver even if they're handling a £500,000 estate.
Two stages to qualifying:
| Household | Gross monthly income for full waiver |
|---|---|
| Single, no children | £1,420 or less |
| Couple, no children | £2,070 or less |
| Add per child | +£425 (first child) / +£280 (each additional) |
Apply by completing form EX160 alongside the probate application. The decision usually arrives within 5 working days; if granted, you pay the reduced amount (or nothing) and the application proceeds normally.
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The £300 probate fee is not inheritance tax. They are entirely separate and payable for completely different reasons:
| Probate fee | Inheritance tax (IHT) | |
|---|---|---|
| Paid to | HMCTS (court service) | HMRC (tax authority) |
| Amount | £300 flat (or £0 under threshold) | 40% on estate value above £325,000 (or £500,000 with RNRB) |
| When due | At application | Within 6 months of end of month of death |
| Most estates pay it? | Yes (unless under £5,000) | No — only ~4% of UK estates owe IHT |
If you're trying to work out IHT, that's a different calculation entirely — use our free UK inheritance tax calculator for an instant estimate, or read the full IHT 2026/27 guide.
The HMCTS fee is usually the smallest line on a probate cost breakdown. The bigger costs are professional fees and (where applicable) inheritance tax. Indicative ranges:
| Cost | Typical range | Avoidable? |
|---|---|---|
| HMCTS probate application fee | £300 | No (unless under threshold or Help with Fees) |
| Sealed office copies | £7.50–£30 (5–20 copies) | Mostly no — needed by asset holders |
| Death certificates | £11 each (5–10 typically) | No |
| Solicitor (full estate administration) | £1,500–£10,000+ (often 1–5% of estate) | Yes — DIY is legal and common |
| Solicitor (grant-only / fixed fee) | £500–£1,500 | Yes — DIY is legal and common |
| Property valuation (if needed) | £100–£1,500 | Sometimes — free estate agent appraisals exist |
| Inheritance tax | £0–£millions (40% above thresholds) | Reducible via planning, gifts, charity |
See our DIY vs solicitor cost comparison for the full picture on professional fees.
For digital applications via the GOV.UK probate service, the £300 fee is paid by debit or credit card during the online submission. The system holds the application until payment clears.
For paper applications using PA1P or PA1A, you can:
You will receive a payment receipt either way. Keep this with the estate accounts — the £300 fee (and copy fees) is a legitimate estate expense and is reimbursable from estate funds before distribution to beneficiaries.
The current £300 fee took effect on 27 January 2025, replacing the £273 fee that had been in force since 26 January 2022. The 2025 increase was inflation-linked and intended to keep the probate service self-funding (cost-recovery basis) rather than relying on general tax revenue.
A previous attempt to introduce a sliding-scale fee — up to £20,000 for the largest estates — was proposed in 2017, paused for consultation, and ultimately dropped after wide criticism that it functioned as a stealth tax. There is currently no similar proposal on the table for 2026/27, and HMCTS has not signalled any change.
We track changes to UK bereavement-related fees and processing times on the UK Bereavement Statistics hub — bookmark it if you're working through an estate that may stretch over several months.
The probate application fee is £300 for any estate worth more than £5,000. Estates worth £5,000 or less pay no fee. Sealed office copies of the grant cost £1.50 each. The fee was raised from £273 on 27 January 2025 and remains at this level for 2026/27.
No. The most recent increase took effect on 27 January 2025, when the fee rose from £273 to £300. There has been no further change announced for the 2026/27 financial year. HMCTS reviews court fees periodically, so we monitor announcements and update this page whenever the fee changes.
No. Estates worth £5,000 or less are entirely exempt from the probate fee. You may not even need probate for a small estate — many banks and building societies will release accounts under £15,000–£50,000 on production of the death certificate alone, without requiring a grant. See our guide on whether you need probate before paying the fee.
The £300covers HMCTS's processing of the application and issuance of the Grant of Probate (or Letters of Administration where there's no will). It does not include solicitor fees, valuation fees, inheritance tax, or copies of the grant. Sealed office copies are £1.50 each and must be ordered separately — most estates need 5–10 copies.
Three options: (1) the executor pays the £300 from personal funds and reimburses themselves later from the estate; (2) most major UK banks (Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, Santander, Nationwide) will release funds directly to HMCTS for probate fees on production of the death certificate; (3) low-income executors can apply for Help with Fees (form EX160) for a reduced or waived fee.
No — probate is administered separately in each jurisdiction. In Scotland, the equivalent process is called confirmation and fees are based on estate value (£0 for estates under £50,000; £288 for £50,000–£250,000; £579 for over £250,000 as of 2026). In Northern Ireland, the standard fee is £261 with similar small-estate exemptions. The £300 flat fee on this page applies to England and Wales only.
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