Peter Levy, Consultant Solicitor in Astle Paterson’s Wills and Probate Department discusses recent proposals to alter Probate Court fees.
Peter explained, “It is usually necessary to obtain either a Grant of Probate (or, where no Will was left, Letters of Administration) in order to administer the estate of somebody who has died.
Proposals to change the Court fees will alter how much someone will need to pay to obtain the authority to administer the estate.
At present, the fee is either £155.00 where a Solicitor makes the application or £215.00 where the application is made by a private individual, in all cases where the estate is worth more than £5,000.00.
Under the new proposals, on an application to administer an estate with a value of up to £50,000.00, no Court fee will be require, but for estates that are worth more than £50,000 the Court fee will be increased.”
Currently, the proposed fees are as follows:-
| Value of Estate | Planned Court fee |
| Less than £50,000.00 | £0.00 |
| £50,000.00 to £300,000.00 | £300.00 |
| £300,000.00 to £500,000.00 | £1,000.00 |
| £500,000.00 to £1m | £4,000.00 |
| £1m to £1.6m | £8,000.00 |
| £1.6m to £2m | £12,000.00 |
| Above £2m | £20,000.00 |
The consultation period runs until 1st April 2016.
Should you have any questions, or should you be in the process of administrating an Estate, Peter Levy of Astle Paterson’s Wills & Probate department will be able to assist you. Please contact him on either 01283 531366 or by way of email at plevy@astlepaterson.co.uk.
