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Probate

When faced with the Fees for probate on the death of a loved one, few people want to have to then deal with the bureaucracy of the legal system in sorting out their affairs, dealing with the tax authorities and distributing the wealth.

We are specialists in Probate Administration and dealing with HM Revenue & Customs. You might ask us to get for you the Grant of Representation so that you can administer matters yourself, or you might ask us to take over the whole process, from registering the death all the way through to finalising matters with H M Revenue & Customs and dividing the estate.

We offer a range of services which can be tailored to your needs. We can help whether there was a Will left or not. Contact us for no obligation expert advice.

Probate Fees

From 6 December 2018, the Solicitors Regulation Authority requires all firms of solicitors offering particular services to display fully transparent pricing and service information for those services.

Of the services covered by these rules, the only one offered by Gaddu & Hall is Probate.

Pricing Information

Gaddu and Hall Solicitors offer a fixed fee service for almost all work. This includes estate and trust administration, areas in which clients often feel vulnerable and exposed due to the imposition of charging by reference to hourly rates.

Exact fees are subject to discussion and agreement with you at the outset of matters, but it is important to us that you feel secure and certain in the knowledge of what you will be paying for our work.

As a sign of commitment to our working relationship, after our initial meeting we require the following before we commence work:

  1. A signed client care/terms and conditions agreement; and
  2. Your identification documents.

Probate Fees

From 25 November 2019, the Solicitors Regulation Authority have required all firms of solicitors offering particular services to display fully transparent pricing and service information for those services.

Of the services covered by these rules, the only one offered by Gaddu & Hall is Probate.

Pricing and Service Information

  • We do not charge by reference to time spent (i.e by hourly rates) but instead seek to agree with you a fixed fee for each stage of the estate administration.
  • We break the estate administration up into three stages, for which we would charge you separately.
  • Stage 1 may include:
    • Collating and reviewing the deceased’s papers to determine what they owned and owed (at the outset of matters, normally taking up to two weeks to send correspondence to relevant banks and other businesses);
    • Preparing the inheritance tax account (carried out when all information about the deceased is received, normally taking up to two weeks); and
    • Applying for the Grant of Representation (taking place when all above information is available and normally taking one to two weeks). The time taken for the Grant to be issued is entirely depending on how busy the Probate Registry is.
  • Stage 2 may include:
    • Collecting in or transferring assets and settling liabilities, including the deceased’s debts (taking place immediately upon being in receipt of funds, but which can take at least four to six weeks to complete);
    • Dealing with any enquiries from H M Revenue & Customs (the time taken for which depends entirely on how quick HMRC are to respond and the nature of their enquiries); and
    • Preparing interim accounts (which is an ongoing matter).
  • Stage 3 may include:
    • Finalising inheritance tax matters (taking place throughout the administration, can take several months depending on enquiries raised);
    • In simple matters, settling the deceased’s income tax affairs (taking place when all information is available and usually taking no more than a few weeks);
    • Preparing the final estate accounts; and
    • Distributing the estate (taking place at the end of the administration and usually taking no longer than one week).
  • Each stage is invoiced at its conclusion. As per the SRA Standards and Regulations 2019, invoices cannot be raised until a substantial amount of the work has been completed.
  • We have three tiers of charging for each stage of the administration according to its complexity. An estate may fall into different tiers in each stage; for example, gathering information on the estate and its assets may be complex leading to a high tier for stage 1, but then distributing the estate and the tax position of the estate may be relatively straight forward leading to a lower tier for stage 3.
  • Generally, for very simple estates – for example, estates where there is no property to sell, and along with this there are limited financial assets – bank accounts, for example, but no shares or share portfolios – we would expect matters to take around six months to complete.
  • For estates made more complex due to there being a need to make an inheritance tax return and calculate IHT, where there are multiple UK properties and/or shares, we would expect matters to take up to twelve months to complete.
  • For complicated and large value estates, especially if there are assets abroad or the deceased person was non UK domiciled, we would expect matters to take at least twelve months to complete, possibly as long as twenty four months.

The below table provides a guide through which we would assess the complexity of an estate administration at each stage – but please note that this is a guide only:

 Simple Estate – Stage 1

  • Return of estate information only
  • Gaddu and Hall to value assets and liabilities
  • Limited assets
  • Main residence only to be valued
  • No shares to be valued
  • Exclusively England and Wales

£1,000 to £2,500 plus VAT

 Simple Estate – Stage 2

  • No property or shares to be sold
  • No significant debts other than the funeral
  • Majority of assets to be transferred rather than encashed

£1,000 to £2,500 plus VAT

 Simple Estate – Stage 3

  • Only filing IHT205 is necessary, so no further HMRC issues
  • No significant estate income tax or Capital Gains Tax (CGT)
  • All beneficiaries and legatees are UK based and can be traced.

£1,000 to £2,500 plus VAT

 Medium Estate – Stage 1

  • Multiple properties and/or shares to be valued
  • Preparation of IHT400
  • Calculation of IHT if necessary
  • Exclusively England and Wales

£2,500 to £5,000 plus VAT

 Medium Estate – Stage 2

  • One property to be sold
  • Shares to be sold
  • Several debts

£2,500 to £5,000 plus VAT

 Medium Estate – Stage 3

  • Finalising IHT matters, including filing of IHT 400, but no additional queries from HMRC
  • Final income tax and/or Capital Gains Tax to pay and account for
  • There are some overseas beneficiaries and legatees, however these are traceable

£2,500 to £5,000 plus VAT

 Complex Estate – Stage 1

  • Non domiciled matters
  • Foreign assets

£5,000 plus VAT and above

 Complex Estate – Stage 2

  • Multiple properties to be sold
  • Overseas assets to be sold, encashed or transferred

£5,000 plus VAT and above

  Complex Estate – Stage 3

  • Managing HMRC queries regarding Inheritance Tax and finalising these
  • There are some or all beneficiaries and legatees that are untraceable

£5,000 plus VAT and above
  • As above, our fee is exclusive of VAT– and so 20% will be added to our fees for VAT.
  • The likely disbursements include:
    • Oath Settling Fee of £10
    • Probate Application Fee of £155
    • Copy Grants of Probate at 50p per copy (if requested at the time of the Grant Application)
    • Property Title Searches at £3 each
    • Bankruptcy Searches at £2 each
  • Further to the services outlined above, please note that the following services are NOT included in this fee structure:
    • Conveyancing;
    • Varying the terms of the Will or intestacy and any tax planning;
    • Settling more complicated income tax affairs;
    • Any contentious or disputed matters

The work will be carried out by James Hall and Bal Gaddu, the qualifications and experience of whom can be found on this website.