How long does probate take in the UK? A plain-English guide to timelines, costs and the home you may not be able to sell yet

Probate is the legal process by which someone's estate is administered after they die. It is one of the most common reasons families end up speaking to a solicitor for the first time, often at a moment when no one wants to deal with administration.

This guide is general information about how the process works in England and Wales. The actual administration of an estate is a reserved legal activity in many cases and we do not provide it. We aim only to help you understand the timeline, the costs, and what can make probate easier or harder before you get there.

What probate actually is

Probate is the legal authority to deal with someone's estate. Where there is a will, an executor named in the will applies for a grant of probate. Where there is no will, the next of kin (under set rules) applies for letters of administration. Together these are called grants of representation.

The grant gives the executors or administrators the legal authority to collect in the deceased's assets, pay off any debts and taxes, and distribute what remains to the beneficiaries.

A realistic timeline

There is no statutory deadline for completing probate, but most straightforward estates take between six and twelve months. Some take far longer.

• Gathering information about the estate (assets, liabilities, valuations): 4 to 8 weeks
• Preparing and submitting the application: 1 to 4 weeks
• Waiting for the grant from HM Courts and Tribunals Service: usually within 12 weeks of submitting the application, according to gov.uk, sometimes longer if there are queries
• Collecting in assets and clearing liabilities: 1 to 6 months depending on what the estate holds
• Final distribution: typically a final wait of at least six months from the grant before final distributions are made, to give any potential claimants time to come forward

For estates that include a property to be sold, the timetable extends until the sale completes. For estates with overseas assets, the process can take significantly longer.

Why dying without a will slows things down

Intestacy adds complexity. Without a will:

• There is no named executor. The next of kin in the statutory order applies for letters of administration, which can take longer to organise.
• The intestacy rules decide who inherits. The administrators must establish family relationships, sometimes formally, before they can distribute.
• Disputes are more common, particularly in blended families and where unmarried partners are involved.
• The administrators may need to take additional steps (such as advertising for unknown creditors) to protect themselves from later claims.

All of this is doable, but it adds weeks or months and significant cost. The single most useful thing most people can do for their family is leave a clear, valid, current will, and make sure the named executors know they have been named.

The cost of probate

There is an application fee charged by HM Courts and Tribunals Service. As at 2026, the standard fee is £300 for estates above £5,000 and there is no fee for estates below that. There is no application fee for the deceased's surviving spouse where they apply themselves to a small estate, in some circumstances.

Professional fees vary widely. A simple estate handled by a solicitor on an hourly basis may cost a few thousand pounds. A complex estate, especially one involving foreign assets, business interests or inheritance tax, can run into tens of thousands. Some firms charge a percentage of the estate, often 1% to 5%; others charge fixed fees. It is worth comparing quotes and asking how they bill before you instruct.

The home and mortgage trap

For families where most of the estate is held in a property, the wait for probate can create real cash-flow problems.

The deceased's sole-name bank accounts are typically frozen on death until the grant is issued. If a mortgage was held jointly with someone still alive, the survivor remains responsible. If the mortgage was solely in the deceased's name, the lender will usually allow a grace period but ultimately wants to be paid.

Selling the property to clear the mortgage and free up capital is rarely possible before the grant. The home may sit, costing money, while the family waits. If inheritance tax is also due, the bill can fall due before the home can be sold.

The Direct Payment Scheme allows banks and other institutions to release funds directly to HMRC to pay inheritance tax, which helps. But the gap between death and the grant can still be a difficult one for families holding a property they cannot yet sell.

How a will, a trust or an LPA make probate easier

None of these eliminate probate. They make it cleaner and faster.

• A clear, current will avoids intestacy and gives the executors a clear set of instructions.
• A property held in joint names as joint tenants passes by survivorship to the surviving owner and is outside the probate estate. This often matters more for couples than they realise.
• Some assets nominated to specific beneficiaries (pensions, certain death-in-service payments) pass directly to the nominee and bypass probate altogether.
• A trust set up during lifetime is owned by the trustees and is generally outside the probate estate.
• A lasting power of attorney does not apply on death, but it allows the donor's finances to be managed in life. That means bank accounts and bills are not left frozen if the donor loses capacity, and the donor's affairs are usually in better order at the point probate is needed.

When probate is not needed

Probate is not always required. Where the estate is small (most banks have their own threshold, typically between £15,000 and £50,000), or where everything was held jointly with a spouse, the financial institutions may release funds without a grant. The executors are still responsible for any inheritance tax due, but the legal administration is much lighter.

A note on the regulated work

Administering an estate in exchange for a fee is a reserved legal activity in many cases, and is regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority or equivalent. We do not provide probate services. If you need an estate administered, you should instruct a solicitor or a regulated probate specialist.

What we can do, before probate is ever needed, is help families put the structure in place that makes the estate easier to administer when the time comes: a current will, a clear letter to executors, the right ownership structure on the property, and an LPA in place.

Simply Estate is an estate planning firm. We help families put the foundation in place that makes probate cleaner when the time comes. Visit our estate planning page to book a free, no-obligation review.