Probate and Estate Administration
E A Neary Limited offers a specialist and personalised service from highly experienced Solicitors. The firm’s high standard of practice management and client care is recognised by its accreditation under the Law Society’s Lexcel Scheme.
Your work will be carried out by Elizabeth Neary, Director and owner of the firm, who has over 10 years of experience in probate and estate management.
We offer the following services:
1. Grant only service
We will draft the application to the Probate Registry to obtain the Grant on the Personal Representatives’ behalf. We will also prepare and submit a form to HMRC detailing assets in the estate.
Our fees for this service range between £1,000 (+ £200 VAT) and £3,000 (+ £600 VAT) depending on the complexity of the matter. If a form IHT 217 is required for transfer of unused nil rate band from the estate of a spouse, then our charges will be nearer to the higher figure.
We can explain to you what forms will be required and we would encourage you to telephone to speak with one of our advisors to be sure of the exact processes involved with your matter.
2. Full Estate Administration Service
We will help guide you through the process of estate administration and take away some of the emotional strain and worry that comes alongside having to act as an executor or administrator when a loved one has passed away.
Our fees for dealing with the administration of estates are based on an hourly rate of £350 (+ £70 VAT). Cost and timescales vary depending on a number of factors, including the complexity of the situation (number of beneficiaries, number of properties, bank accounts and other assets) and the amount of work that we are required to do. Our total costs for administering estates in the last year have ranged from £3,000 (+ £600 VAT) to £12,600 (+ £2,520 VAT). The average cost was £6,720 (+ £1,344 VAT)
The table below sets out our estimated fees based on scenarios of lower and higher complexities. We will provide you with a more accurate estimate of our fees once we have ascertained the full extent of the estate.
Complexity |
Number of assets |
Number of beneficiaries |
Typical work involved |
Our typical fees |
Estimated timescales |
Factors which may affect the cost or timescale |
| Low – Medium | 2-3 (eg one property and one or two bank accounts) | 2-3 |
For deaths on or after 1st January 2022: Preparing an excepted estate tax return using the MyHMCTS online portal For deaths on or before 31st December 2021: Preparing an excepted estate tax return in paper form Applying for Grant of Probate
|
From £3,000 (+ £600 VAT) to £6,500 (+ £1,300 VAT) Plus 3rd party disbursements |
6 -12 months |
Dispute between beneficiaries on division of assets Claims against the estate Applying for transfer of unused nil rate band from a pre-deceased spouse Dealing with HMRC enquiries The time taken to sell the property |
| Medium-High | 4 or more, including at least one property, multiple bank/building society accounts, stocks and shares, other investments | 4 or more |
Preparing an IHT400 tax return and schedules Applying for Grant of Probate Calculating and paying inheritance tax Advising on capital gains tax on sale of property |
From £6,500(+ £1,300 VAT to £12,500 + (+ £2,500) VAT Plus 3rd party disbursements |
12-24 months |
The firm is the executor Assets are unclear: a lot of time required to work through the deceased’s papers to determine assets held Obtaining valuations for specialist or unusual assets
Dispute between beneficiaries on division of assets Claims against the estate The deceased was a self-assessed taxpayer and earnings have not been properly declared to HMRC |
Other factors which can affect the cost and timescale
- There is no Will (intestate estate)
- The named executors are not able to act or have passed away, requiring a Grant of Letters of Administration with Will Annexed
- Missing beneficiaries (the firm will need to search for and identify them)
- There are overseas assets (eg an overseas property to be sold)
- There are business assets
- Deed of variation required
- The work is contentious (including executor clients not providing unanimous instructions)
- Trust creation and administration
Disbursements
Disbursement are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. They will vary depending on the types of asset in the estate and their value, but in a typical estate we would expect the following disbursements:
| Type | Cost | Variable factors |
| Probate application fee | £300.00 plus £16.00 for each additional copy required | |
| Bankruptcy- Searches | £6.00 (no VAT) | Number of personal representatives and beneficiaries against whom searches need to be made |
| Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Searches |
£8.40 (£7 + £1.40 VAT) per beneficiary International AML searches start from £14.00 (£14.00 + £2.80 VAT) per beneficiary |
|
| Land Registry Office Copy Entries | £7.00 (no VAT) | Number of office copies obtained depending on number of properties and whether leasehold and freehold titles are registered separately |
| Payment of funds due to a beneficiary directly to their bank account | £30 (£25 + £5 VAT) | |
| If a High Court sealed and certified probate document is required for use abroad |
£1.50 per copy (no VAT)
|
|
| Advertisement in the London Gazette to protect against unexpected claims from unknown creditors | £110.64 (£92.20 + £18.44 VAT) |
The Key Stages of Estate Administration
The work we do typically consists of the following:
Stage 1
Meeting with the executor/s and initial correspondence
Stage 2
Investigate and obtain various valuations for all assets and liabilities
Stage3
Prepare Inheritance Tax forms and lodge with HMRC and Probate Legal Statement (or PA1P/PA1A for more complex probate matters) to be sworn by the executor/s
Stage 4
Send Probate Legal Statement and IHT receipt to the Probate Registry Office
Once the Grant of Probate/Grant of Letters of Administration sealed order has been received:
Stage 5
Collect in all assets with Grant of Probate/Grant of Letters of Administration
Pay liabilities
Transfer assets to beneficiaries named in the Will
Stage 6
Complete Final Estate Accounts
Please note: Estate administration does not include the sale or transfer of any property in the estate. We would be pleased to provide you with a separate quotation for this work: please see our ‘Residential Conveyancing’ section for more information on our conveyancing costs and services.