Consultation outcome
Aligning the fees for grants of probate to cost recovery
Applies to England and Wales
Read the full outcome
Detail of outcome
This document is the consultation response for the consultation paper.
It will cover:
- an overview of this consultation
- a detailed response to the specific questions raised in the responses
- the next steps following this consultation
Original consultation
Consultation description
This consultation proposes to align the fees for professional and non-professional applicants of probate into a single fee of £273. This fee reflects the costs to Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) of providing the service and would not generate a profit for the government.
The objectives of this proposal are:
- to remove the unjustified discrepancy between professional and non-professional applicants for probate. This would bring the fee structure into alignment with HM Treasury’s Managing Public Money, where all users should pay the same fee for the same service.
- to ensure that the fee recovers the cost to Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) of delivering the service.
- to protect access to justice by ensuring that courts and tribunals are adequately resourced, while reducing the overall taxpayer subsidy for HMCTS.
This consultation was edited on 2 August 2021 to clarify the consultation’s closing date.
Documents
Updates to this page
Published 8 July 2021Last updated 2 August 2021 + show all updates
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Updated to clarify the consultation’s closing date.
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First published.