The cost of applying for probate in England and Wales is set to increase by 75 percent, rising from £300 to £526 starting July 13, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) announced. Probate is the legal process required to administer a deceased person's estate, and the application fee applies to estates valued over £5,000. Estates below this threshold remain exempt from fees.
This rise follows a 10 percent increase earlier in 2024, when fees were raised from £273 to £300. The MoJ attributes the latest hike to inflation and investment in improving service delivery. The ministry said the additional funds would help provide "an ever-improving service" that enables families to resolve probate matters more efficiently, including reducing dispute resolution to as little as two weeks. It emphasized that fee increases are a last resort and noted that vulnerable individuals can apply for fee reductions or exemptions through its Help with Fees scheme. Additionally, the cost of requesting copies of probate documents will be reduced from £16 to £2 as part of the broader fee adjustments.
Despite these assurances, solicitors and consumer rights advocates have expressed concerns over the impact of the increased fees on grieving families already under financial and emotional strain. Jo Summers, a family law solicitor and spokesperson for Step, an organization representing trust and estate practitioners, highlighted ongoing service challenges. She noted that while online probate applications have improved, many complex cases—such as those involving international elements, lack of wills, or appointed attorneys—still require paper applications, which face significant backlogs. Summers cautioned that the probate service has not yet reached pre-digitalization efficiency levels and called for the additional revenue to address these issues.
The fee rise also comes against a backdrop of fluctuating probate wait times in recent years. In late 2023, average waiting times peaked at nearly 16 weeks, with close to 7,000 applicants waiting six months or longer. More recent figures from the MoJ report that average wait times decreased to around five weeks by the final quarter of 2025.
Scott Dixon, a consumer rights expert, criticized the increase, describing it as "appalling," and suggested that the decade-long underinvestment in related services has created persistent inefficiencies. Dixon contrasted the probate fee rise with broader economic trends, noting disparities in investment returns between smaller and larger companies.
Alongside probate fees, the MoJ announced inflation-linked adjustments to more than 170 court and tribunal fees, averaging a 2.6 percent increase, with some fees rising by approximately one-third. The ministry reiterated its commitment to facilitating a probate process that is as smooth and straightforward as possible, despite the necessity of fee adjustments.