Probate vs letters of administration: which grant do you need?

If there is a valid will and a named executor able to act, you normally need a grant of probate. If there is no valid will, or the executor cannot act, you normally need letters of administration instead. Both give you the same thing in practice: legal authority to access accounts, sell property and settle the estate.

TL;DR

• Probate is needed when there is a valid will and an available executor, while letters of administration apply if no valid will exists or no executor can act.
• The application process is similar for both, but probate confirms an existing appointment, whereas administration creates one based on the court’s priority list.
• Applying on the correct form and reporting inheritance tax before you apply can prevent delays and unnecessary expense.
• Distributing estate assets before the grant arrives can lead to personal liability and is a common mistake.
• Taking advice from a solicitor is sensible for estates involving property, disputes or tax issues, while straightforward cases may be handled yourself.

What a grant of probate is, in plain English

A grant of probate is the court’s official confirmation that a will is valid and that the person named as executor has the legal power to carry out its instructions. Until that grant arrives, an executor’s authority exists on paper only. Banks, land registries and pension providers will generally not release funds or transfer assets on the strength of a will alone.

The grant itself does not create the executor’s authority. It confirms authority the executor already holds under the will, and it gives third parties the proof they need to act on your instructions. That distinction matters more than it sounds, because it explains why an executor can technically begin some tasks (registering the death, notifying organisations) before the grant arrives, while others (selling a house, closing an investment account) have to wait.

Once probate is granted, an executor is generally able to:

• Access the deceased’s bank and building society accounts to pay debts and expenses
• Sell or transfer property held in the deceased’s sole name
• Collect in investments, pensions and other assets named in the will
• Distribute the estate to beneficiaries according to the will’s terms
• Settle outstanding inheritance tax with HM Revenue & Customs

HMRC’s Inheritance Tax Manual confirms that probate is the official proof of a will and that an executor’s authority derives from the will itself, with the grant confirming that office. For inheritance tax questions specific to the estate, HMRC’s own guidance sits alongside the probate process rather than replacing it.

What letters of administration are and how administration works

Letters of administration serve the same function as probate, but they apply when there is no valid will, or when a will exists but no executor is able to take on the role. Instead of an executor named by the deceased, the court appoints an administrator, and that person’s authority comes from the grant itself rather than from any document the deceased signed.

Who gets appointed follows a fixed order of priority set out in intestacy law. A spouse or civil partner ranks first, followed by children, then parents, then siblings, and so on down a defined list. GOV.UK explains that letters of administration are issued when there is no valid will or when a will exists but no executor can apply, and that letters of administration with will annexed are used when a valid will exists but does not name an executor, or the named executor cannot act.

That “with will annexed” version is worth understanding on its own terms. It sits between the two main routes: there is a will, and its instructions on who inherits still apply, but because no executor is named or available, the person handling the estate is legally an administrator rather than an executor.

A few practical points follow from this:

• The person most entitled under the priority order does not have to take on the role
• Form PA16 lets someone renounce their right to apply, passing it down the list
• Form PA12 lets the person entitled appoint up to four people under a power of attorney to apply and administer the estate on their behalf
• Without a will, the intestacy rules, not personal wishes, decide who inherits

Practical differences: a short decision checklist

The two grants converge more than most people expect, and the Law Society’s public guidance makes the point directly: both are called grants of representation, and the application process is essentially the same either way. What differs is the source of authority and a handful of practical steps.

• When each applies: probate needs a valid will and an available executor, letters of administration cover everything else, including intestacy and wills without a workable executor
• Who has authority: an executor’s authority comes from the will itself, an administrator’s authority comes from the grant
• How authority arises: probate confirms an existing appointment, letters of administration create one under the court’s order of priority
• Which forms to use: PA1P applies where there is a will, PA1A applies where there is not
• HMRC prerequisites: GOV.UK’s application guidance is clear that you must value the estate and, where inheritance tax is due, report and start paying it before you can apply for either grant
• Timing: both routes typically take around the same time to process once submitted correctly
• Common complications: disputes over a will’s validity or an executor’s conduct tend to affect probate cases, while disputes over entitlement under the intestacy order tend to affect administration cases

The forms point is one readers get wrong often enough to be worth repeating on its own. Filing PA1P when there is no will, or PA1A when there is one, is a common cause of avoidable delay. HMCTS will query it, and the query adds weeks you did not need to lose.

The tax step catches people out just as often. You cannot apply for either grant until the estate has been valued and, where inheritance tax is due, reported to HMRC using the correct forms. Full reporting can require HMRC to issue a code before the probate application goes in, so leaving this until the last minute rarely goes well.

Step-by-step: how to apply for a grant of representation

Whichever grant applies to your situation, the sequence of steps is nearly identical. Following it in order saves time later.

1. Register the death and locate the original will, if one exists, checking carefully whether it names an executor able to act.
2. Value the estate. List all assets and debts, including property, savings, pensions and any jointly held items.
3. Report inheritance tax where due. Use the correct HMRC forms and start paying any tax owed. GOV.UK guidance confirms you cannot apply for the grant until this step is complete where full reporting applies.
4. Choose the right form. PA1P if there is a will you can rely on, PA1A if there is not.
5. Gather supporting documents, including the death certificate, the original will where applicable, and details of the estate’s assets.
6. Submit the application, online where possible. GOV.UK notes that online applications tend to move faster than paper ones.
7. Wait for the grant. GOV.UK says that you will usually get the grant within around 12 weeks of applying, though it can take longer if HMCTS asks for more information or if you applied by post.
8. Respond promptly to any HMCTS query. A request for clarification or a missing document is common and rarely serious, but ignoring it is what turns a short delay into a long one.

Pro Tip: Keep a single folder, physical or digital, with the death certificate, will, and every asset valuation as you gather them. Half the delay in probate applications comes from chasing paperwork after submission rather than before it.

A solicitor or probate practitioner can handle this process on your behalf, though GOV.UK confirms that applying yourself is possible and often cheaper, with both online and postal routes available.

When you might not need a grant of representation

Not every estate needs a grant at all. Assets held jointly, such as a house owned as joint tenants or a joint bank account, generally pass automatically to the surviving owner by survivorship, without any need for probate or letters of administration.

Smaller estates can sometimes avoid the process entirely, too. Many banks, building societies and organisations holding smaller balances, including some National Savings and Premium Bonds holdings, will release funds without a grant if the amount involved falls below their own internal limit.

There is no single figure that applies everywhere, and that is the part people get wrong most often.

• Jointly owned property and joint accounts usually pass by survivorship, not by grant
• Small balances held by some institutions may be released on request
• Written evidence from HMCTS or the will may still be asked for
• Each organisation sets its own threshold, so the same estate can clear one bank’s limit and miss another’s

Thresholds for releasing funds without a grant vary considerably between banks and other organisations. Always ask the institution directly, and get any promise to release funds without a grant confirmed in writing before you rely on it.

Costs, timescales and whether to use a solicitor

Around 12 weeks is the timescale GOV.UK gives for receiving a grant after a correct application, whether that grant is probate or letters of administration. That figure assumes the application was complete and accurate the first time. A missing valuation, the wrong form, or an HMCTS query can each add weeks.

Court fees for the grant itself are fixed: there is no fee if the estate is worth £5,000 or less, and the application fee is £526 if it is worth more than £5,000. What varies is what you pay for help getting there.

• A solicitor can offer a grant-only service, handling the application while you deal with the rest of the administration yourself
• A full administration service covers everything from valuation through to final distribution to beneficiaries
• Complex estates, especially those with property to sell, business assets, or inheritance tax to calculate, tend to justify the cost of professional help
• Disputes between beneficiaries or challenges to a will’s validity are situations where legal advice early on tends to prevent bigger problems later

The Law Society’s guidance makes a point worth holding onto here: a solicitor’s main value in this process is reducing the risk of mistakes and penalties, not simply saving you paperwork. For a straightforward estate with no property sale and no tax to pay, doing it yourself is often the more sensible route.

Common mistakes and how to avoid them

The single most damaging mistake is acting before the grant arrives. Selling property, closing accounts, or distributing money to beneficiaries ahead of the grant can create personal liability for whoever did it, even when their intentions were good.

A second common error sits with administrators specifically. The order of entitlement under intestacy is fixed, and applying out of turn, or without properly renouncing or delegating using PA16 or PA12, can hold up the whole application.

• Never access, spend, or distribute estate funds before the grant is issued
• Follow the correct order of entitlement exactly when applying as an administrator
• Report and pay inheritance tax through the correct HMRC process before applying
• Reply to HMCTS and any bank or organisation promptly rather than letting queries sit unanswered

Pro Tip: If you are not certain whether you are entitled to apply as an administrator, check the order of priority before you submit anything. Applying out of turn is one of the more common reasons an application gets sent back.

This article is general information, not a substitute for advice from a qualified lawyer. Consult a qualified legal professional about your own circumstances before acting on anything here.

Sources

• Applying for probate: after you’ve applied | GOV.UK
• Applying for probate: apply for probate | GOV.UK
• Dealing with someone’s affairs when they die | The Law Society

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