How to sort out an estate without a will: a step-by-step guide

Even if you think a will isn’t immediately apparent, it can be worth doing some extra checks. If you’re not sure how to look for one, here’s some general guidance.

• The person who died may have told you where they kept their will or let their chosen executors know. If so, that’s the easiest place to start.

• If they didn’t tell you where it is, wills are usually kept in one of a few places. That might be at home, with a solicitor, with their bank, or with a will storage company. You can check these places yourself or use the National Wills Register's search serviceOpens in a new window (England and Wales only). This costs between £58 and £126.  

• In Northern Ireland, not all wills are registered in the National Will Register. You may need to speak to a legal professional who can help in advertising for a missing will. 

• In Scotland, there is no central register of wills. 

• You can also search for probate recordsOpens in a new window on GOV.UK. However, probate usually isn’t recorded until six months after someone dies, so this search often won't help if the person died recently.

For full guidance, see our guide What to do when someone dies.

When someone dies without a valid will, they are said to have died "intestate". This means the law decides who inherits their estate, using rules called intestacy rules. These rules also decide who can apply to sort out the estate, usually starting with the closest living relative. This means a spouse or civil partner first, then adult children, then other close relatives.

You can check who is entitled to apply, and who is entitled to inheritOpens in a new window on GOV.UK. In Northern Ireland, see the Department of JusticeOpens in a new window website.

If you’re entitled to apply and able to take on the responsibility, you can apply for a grant of letters of administration. This is also known as a grant of representation or confirmation in Scotland. This makes you the administrator of the estate.

In Scotland, where a person dies without a will, the first step will be to apply to the court to appoint an executor. There are specific Scottish rules that determine who can be appointed.  

As an administrator or executor, you have two options: sort out the estate yourself or use a solicitor or probate specialist.

If several people are equally entitled to apply for the grant of letters of administration, such as the children of the deceased, it's best to agree between you who will apply, or whether you'll all apply together. If you can't agree, it may be worth contacting a probate specialist, since multiple separate applications could be submitted and cause delays.

As a rough guide, simple estates can take around six to nine months to sort out. More complicated estates, for example those with property, multiple bank accounts, or overseas assets, can take a year or longer.

So in reality it depends on how complicated the estate is, and how quickly you can gather the information you need.

In Scotland, estates may take longer than noted above due to court waiting times.

A few things can slow the process down. These include waiting for the grant of letters of administration, tracing all the person's assets and debts, and dealing with any disputes between relatives about who should inherit. 

Yes, and you can still pay a solicitor for specific tasks along the way, such as checking your probate application or advising on how to distribute the estate.

The sooner you apply for probate, the sooner you can distribute the estate. Find out more about intestacy rulesOpens in a new window on GOV.UK.

Yes, a probate specialist is  worth considering if it’s unclear what assets the person had, or if there are complex family relationships to navigate. 

A probate specialist can make the process easier and quicker, even for straightforward estates, but you’ll need to budget several thousand pounds for their services.

If you think the estate will have enough left over, you may be able to recover the cost from the estate.

Find out more in our guide What happens to debts when someone dies and how to pay them. 

If no relatives can be found, the estate passes to the Crown, as ownerless property. HM Treasury is then responsible for dealing with it. 

In Scotland, ownerless estates are dealt with by the King's and Lord Treasurer's Remembrancer (the KLTR).

Before you apply for probate, you need to find and make at least six certified copies of the following documents:

• death certificate

• birth certificate

• marriage or civil partnership certificate (if the person was married). 

You’ll need to attach copies of these to probate forms and to access the person’s bank accounts, investments or life insurance.

Before applying for probate, or confirmation in Scotland, you’ll need to value the estate. To do this, you’ll need to:

• find the value of assets such as property, pensions, savings, shares, jewellery or valuable collectibles, getting a professional valuation for anything you think is worth more than £500
• include the value of any gifts the person gave away in the seven years before they died, as some of these may be subject to Inheritance Tax deduct the value of any debts, including mortgages, credit cards or loans, along with any funeral costs being paid from the estate
• calculate the estate's value once debts and other costs have been deducted.

You’ll also need to establish whether they held any jointly owned assets, such as a property or bank account, as this affects what needs to be included.

How a jointly owned asset, such as a car, house or land, was held affects how it’s valued. Assets are usually owned either as joint tenants or as tenants in common.

Joint tenants means both owners have equal rights to the whole asset, which automatically passes to the surviving owner when one dies. The person who died can’t leave their share of the asset in their will, but it still needs to be valued and included when calculating Inheritance Tax, although tax may not be due if it falls within the tax-free allowance or the joint owner is a spouse or civil partner.

Tenants in common means each owner can hold a different share of the asset, which doesn't automatically pass to the other owner. The person who died can leave their share in their will, and their share needs to be valued and included when working out Inheritance Tax.

If the asset is not held jointly with a spouse or civil partner, the value might be subject to a joint ownership discount which can reduce the value for inheritance tax purposes. 

Joint bank accounts are nearly always held as joint tenants. While ownership usually passes automatically to the surviving account holder, you’ll still need to value it as part of the estate, typically by dividing the balance by the number of account holders, unless there’s an agreement stating otherwise.

HMRC often looks more closely at joint accounts held by unmarried couples or other combinations, such as a parent and child, treating each holder as owning a share proportionate to what they contributed. If Inheritance Tax is due on funds in a joint account, it's usually paid by the surviving account holder who inherits by survivorship, rather than from the estate, unless the will states otherwise. 

For accounts passing automatically by survivorship, income arising after death belongs to the surviving holder. For accounts held as tenants in common, income attributable to the share belonging to the person who died passes to the estate.

In Scotland, jointly owned property can be treated differently from in England and Wales. 

Some jointly owned property passes automatically to the surviving owner when one person dies. If this happens, it will not usually need to be included in the confirmation process. 

If the property does not pass automatically, the person’s share will form part of their estate and will pass according to their will or, if there is no will, the intestacy rules. 

If you’re unsure how a property or other asset was owned, it’s important to get legal advice before distributing the estate. 

You can find this information for a fee from the relevant land registry for the country the property is in.

For other assets such as shares, contact the company directly to find out how they were owned and what the person’s share was worth.

Once you know the value of the estate and its debts, you’ll need to work out how much Inheritance Tax is due. This must be paid within six months from the end of the month the person died, after which interest is charged. For example, if someone died on 3 January, the Inheritance Tax would need to be paid by 31 August. If the tax isn’t paid by then, interest starts being charged from 1 August.

To avoid paying interest, it’s worth considering paying some or all of the tax before you’ve finished valuing the estate. You can pay the Inheritance Tax to HMRC directly from the person’s bank accounts, using HMRC’s specific forms. If you pay it from your own money instead, you can claim it back from the estate later.

In Northern Ireland, instead of a code you will receive a stamped IHT421 from HMRC that you will need to send to the Probate office with your application.  

Find out more in our guide A guide to Inheritance Tax in the UK. 

If you need to sell assets from the estate before you can pay the tax, ask HMRC for a “grant of credit”Opens in a new window This lets you get probate first, so you can sell the assets and use the money to pay the tax.   

Find guidance on:

• working out Inheritance TaxOpens in a new window on GOV.UK

• paying Inheritance TaxOpens in a new window on GOV.UK.

Once you’ve valued the estate, you’ll need to complete the relevant forms and send them, along with the application fee, to your nearest Probate Registry. In Scotland, you  send a petition to the applicable sheriff court.

If Inheritance Tax was payable, you’ll also need to include the code (or stamped IHT421) you received from HMRC. The exact process varies depending on where you live.

In England and Wales, you don’t usually need to apply for probate if the estate was jointly owned and passes to a surviving spouse or civil partner, or if it doesn't include land, property or shares.

In Scotland, probate is called confirmation. Confirmation gives the executor the legal authority to collect, manage and distribute the person's estate after they die. 

The forms required for confirmation depend on the size and nature of the estate, and whether the deceased died before or after 1 January 2022.  

For deaths before 1 January 2022, the forms you need depend on the size of the estate

You can find information about applying for confirmation, and the related fees, on the Scottish Courts and Tribunals ServiceOpens in a new window website or by contacting your local sheriff clerkOpens in a new window

Contact the Belfast Probate OfficeOpens in a new window to request an appointment. They will help you complete the necessary forms when you attend.  

Or you can apply for probate onlineOpens in a new window on nidirect. 

Applications depend on whether the deceased left a Will and on other reasons. You must be aged 18 years of age or over to apply. 

You can access the financial assets of the person who died by asking banks and other institutions to release them to you. It’s worth opening a separate bank account for the estate, sometimes called an executorship account, to keep it separate from your own finances and make things clearer for beneficiaries.

If you open a separate account, consider using a different bank to your own, so that any money held benefits from full Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) protection. While the FSCS allows temporary protection of up to £1 million for six months for the proceeds of an estate, the standard protection is £120,000 per financial institution, which may be lower than the estate's value.

Find out more in our guide How safe are my savings if my bank or building society goes bust?

Once you have probate, you can contact the organisations holding the assets of the person who died, such as banks or pension providers. Interest and fees on debts solely in their name will often stop once you’ve notified the creditor, though they’ll usually ask for a copy of the probate or confirmation letter first.

You can then pay off any debts and taxes due including any costs recoverable from the estate. If the estate includes property or shares, you may need to sell these to cover the amounts owed.

Find out more in our guides:

• What happens to debts when someone dies and how to pay them

• Handling Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax when someone dies: a step-by-step guide.

If you’re selling a property, you can find advice on valuing it and the costs involvedOpens in a new window on Which?, or read our guide Selling a house fast – quick house sale companies if you're considering this route.

For shares, you may want to handle small amounts yourself, but for a larger or more complex portfolio, it's worth seeking professional advice.

After paying all debts and taxes, you must distribute what remains according to the intestacy rules. These vary by country.

If the estate is worth less than £322,000, the spouse inherits the entire estate, even if there are children. If it’s worth more than £322,000 and there are children:

• The spouse inherits up to £322,000 worth of assets, plus all personal possessions, and half of the remainder of the estate.

• The other half is divided equally between the children.

• If any child is under 18, their share is held in a statutory trust until they turn 18, or until they marry or enter a civil partnership, whichever comes first.  

Find out who can inherit if there’s no willOpens in a new window on Citizens Advice.

If there is a surviving spouse or civil partner and no children or other close relatives, they may inherit the whole estate, regardless of its value. 

If there is a surviving spouse or civil partner, they may be entitled to certain rights before the rest of the estate is shared out. These can include: 

• the family home, up to £473,000

• furniture and household contents, up to £29,000 

• a cash payment from the estate. The exact amount depends on the value of the estate and whether the person who died left children. 

In Scotland, a surviving spouse or civil partner and any children may also be entitled to claim part of the deceased person's money, savings, investments and belongings. These claims are known as legal rights. 

After these rights have been dealt with, the rest of the estate is distributed according to Scotland's intestacy rules. 

If a child of the person who died has already died but left children of their own, special rules may apply. If this affects the estate you're dealing with, it's a good idea to get legal advice. 

Find practical advice for times of bereavementOpens in a new window on gov.scot. 

The surviving spouse takes only if he or she survives the intestate by a period of 28 days and has priority, but what he or she is entitled to depends on whether the deceased left children, parents or siblings.  

If there are no surviving children, parents or siblings, the spouse inherits the full estate.  

If there are surviving children, parents or siblings but the estate is worth less than £250,000, the spouse inherits the entire estate.  

If it's worth more than £250,000 and there are children: 

• The spouse receives a statutory legacy of £250,000 absolutely and all personal chattels. 

• If there is one child, the spouse takes half of the remaining estate and the child the other half. 

• If there is more than one child, the spouse takes a third of the remaining estate and the children divide the remaining two thirds equally between themselves.  

Distribution where the spouse/civil partner and parents, survive: 

• The surviving spouse or registered civil partner receives a statutory legacy of  £450,000 absolutely and all personal chattels and one half of the residue. 

• The parents receive one half of the residue divided equally between the parents, if both alive, or given entirely to the sole parent.  

 Distribution where the spouse/civil partner and siblings survive, but no issue, no parents: 

• The situation is the same as in when there are surviving parent, but the siblings (or their children) receive what the parents of the deceased would have otherwise received.  

Find out what to do if there is no willOpens in a new window on nidirect.

Find more details on working out how to distribute the estate according to the intestacy rulesOpens in a new window on GOV.UK.

It can help to keep a record of all the money that has come in and gone out of the estate, since beneficiaries and creditors are entitled to ask to see this.

It doesn’t need to be a formal document, but it should cover all assets, liabilities and administration expenses, along with the final amount to be distributed.

You can find out what to include in GOV.UK’s guidance on records to keep for Inheritance Tax purposesOpens in a new window It’s good practice to have this record signed by you as executor, along with the main beneficiaries.

If the estate receives any income, for example bank interest or dividends on shares, this might be subject to income tax, which is paid by the executors from the estate’s funds. When the estate is distributed, the income and the tax paid should be reported to the beneficiaries. As estate administrator, you’ll need to complete an HMRC form called R185 for each beneficiaryOpens in a new window, to let them know how much income they’ve received. If you receive income from the estate, you may need to pay further tax on it, or you might be entitled to a refund, depending on your personal tax position.

Find out more about completing an R185 form on the Low Incomes Tax Reform GroupOpens in a new window website.

For more detailed support on what to do after a death, see our death and bereavement guides.