IWC Estate Planning & Management Ltd. Regulated by the Society of Will Writers & Estate Planning Practitioners Registered Office: Suite 43-45 Airport House, Purley Way, Croydon, CR0 0XZ. Registered in England No. 4532330

How Long Does Probate Take?

It might not be the first question that springs to mind when you find that you are the executor of

a will, but eventually you will want (and possibly need) to know, just how long probate is going

to take. Beneficiaries may ask you, for one thing, and for another you will want to work out a

timeline of what you have to do when.

So just how long does probate take?

After applying for the Grant of Probate, it is normally received within six weeks. However, the

more complicated and large the estate is, the longer it will take to receive the Grant of Probate -

possibly months.

Once the Grant of Probate has been issued, there is more work for the executor to do. They must

call in assets, claim on any insurance policies, disperse the estate between beneficiaries, and

wind up all outstanding issues.

It may seem as though the task is never ending. However, there is something called the

executor's year, which means that, even with a complicated estate, the end is always in sight. An

executor's year is just that - the executor has a year in which to gather in all the information that

is required in order to do their job. Of course, it could take much less time than that, and usually

does (the average length of probate in the UK is 12 weeks), but when there are many

different trusts, policies, properties and beneficiaries to work through, the executor's year gives

the executor time to do their job correctly, whilst allowing everyone else a workable time frame.

Contact us to begin the process of obtaining the Grant of Probate, and we will do everything we

can to make sure that everything is done as quickly as possible.

Call us for a quote, instant help or impartial advice on Freephone

0800 612 6105 or 020 8150 2010