Probate fees set to increase
On 8th July the Ministry of Justice announced a consultation on a proposal to align probate fees in England and Wales for professional and non-professional applicants.
Currently, a fee of £155 is payable for a probate professional to apply for a grant of probate, and £215 for an individual to apply for a grant of probate. The discrepancy reflected the additional administrative work for the Probate Service created by non-professional applicants. However, further to reforms to the probate process, this is no longer the case and it is therefore proposed to increase the fee for all applicants to a flat charge of £273, irrespective of the size of the estate. (There will continue to be no fee for estates worth less than £5,000.)
Whilst this is a significant rise for professional applicants, many will be heaving a sigh of relief that it is nothing like the last proposed fee hike (in 2018/19), where estates worth over £2 million would have incurred fees of £6,000.
The consultation closes on 23rd September 2021.
Should you have any questions regarding the proposed fee increase or applying for probate in general, please contact a member of our Private Client Department.
