What probate costs in Northern Ireland
These are the fees in the Court of Judicature (Non-Contentious Probate) Fee Schedule in force from 1 April 2026. They are court fees only — a solicitor's charges, if you use one, sit on top.
| What you are paying for | Fee |
|---|---|
| Estate valued at £10,000 or less | No fee |
| Application for a grant, estate over £10,000 | £326 |
| …plus, if you apply in person rather than through a solicitor | £81 |
| Certified or sealed copy of a document | £17 |
| Plain copy, up to 5 sheets (then 50p a sheet) | £8 |
| Second, subsequent or duplicate grant | £244 |
| Depositing a Will with the court for safekeeping | £49 |
| Search of the grant index | £33 |
The £81 catches people out. It is charged in addition to the £326, and only on personal applications. So doing it yourself costs £407 in court fees, not £326. Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK that charges more for applying without a solicitor — but it is still far cheaper than paying one.
How that compares with England and Wales
Worth knowing if you have read an English guide and assumed the numbers carry across. They do not, in either direction.
| Northern Ireland | England & Wales | |
|---|---|---|
| No fee if the estate is | £10,000 or less | £5,000 or less |
| Application fee above that | £326 | £526 |
| Extra charge for applying yourself | £81 | None |
| Total for a personal application | £407 | £526 |
| Extra copy of the grant | £8 (up to 5 sheets) | £2 with the application, £16 after |
So the free band is twice as generous in Northern Ireland, the headline fee is £200 lower, and the gap on a personal application is £119 rather than £200. Copies are the one line where England and Wales is cheaper, provided you order them at the same time as the application — ordering later costs eight times as much there.
When you need a grant, and when you do not
nidirect's position is that a grant is almost always needed where the person who died left any of the following:
- around £20,000 in any one account;
- stocks or shares;
- certain insurance policies;
- property or land held in their own name, or as tenants in common.
And that you may not need one where the estate is under £20,000, or where everything was owned jointly and passes automatically to the surviving owner.
Two cautions on that. First, “around £20,000” is deliberately loose: each bank and building society sets its own threshold for releasing money without a grant, and they vary widely, so the practical answer depends on which institution holds the account rather than on a single national figure. Second, the joint-ownership point turns on how a property is held. Property held as joint tenants passes to the survivor outside the estate; property held as tenants in common does not, and a share of it needs a grant — which is why that phrase appears in both lists.
Where there is no Will
You apply for letters of administration rather than a grant of probate, on form NIPF2. Because nobody was appointed as executor, the law decides who may apply, in this order:
- spouse or civil partner;
- children;
- grandchildren, where a child has died;
- parents;
- brothers and sisters;
- grandparents;
- aunts and uncles.
That order settles who administers the estate. It does not settle who inherits it — that is decided by section 7 of the Administration of Estates Act (Northern Ireland) 1955, and it does not work the way most people expect. A surviving spouse does not automatically take everything, and the share they do take changes depending on how many children there are. We set the whole thing out in our guide to the intestacy rules in Northern Ireland.
The part worth pausing on. Everything on this page is what happens after a death, and none of it can be changed at that point. Who administers the estate, who inherits, and in what shares, are all fixed by statute the moment someone dies without a Will. A Will is the only document that replaces that order with your own.
How to apply
Online
Personal applicants use the Probate Portal at apply-for-probate.nidirect.gov.uk. Solicitors and other legal professionals use a separate professional portal.
On paper
Paper applications are still accepted:
- NIPF1 — apply for probate where there is a Will;
- NIPF2 — apply where there is not a Will;
- NIPF7 — estate summary form, where an Inheritance Tax account is not required.
What you send with it
- the death certificate, or a coroner's certificate;
- the original Will and any codicil, where there is one;
- the Inheritance Tax form, completed and signed, or the NIPF7 estate summary;
- identity verification for the lead applicant;
- the court fee.
Additional documents can be required depending on the circumstances — a power of attorney, or a foreign grant where the person died abroad or held assets there.
The two Probate Offices
Northern Ireland did not follow England and Wales into a single central registry. There are two offices, and roughly 6,000 probate applications a year go through them:
- Belfast Probate Office — 2nd Floor, Royal Courts of Justice, Chichester Street, Belfast BT1 3JF;
- Londonderry Probate Office — The Courthouse, Bishop Street, Londonderry BT48 6PQ.
The Probate Office offers a personal appointment service to help personal applicants, but not for a second or subsequent grant in the same estate — for those it says you must instruct a solicitor in this jurisdiction.
How long it takes
Neither nidirect nor the Department of Justice publishes a target or an average processing time for Northern Ireland, and we would rather say so than repeat a figure from an English guide. If a timescale matters to you — for a property sale, say — ask the Probate Office directly when you apply, rather than planning around a number you found online.
None of this is your executor's problem if you leave a Will
Drafted for Northern Ireland under the 1994 Order. From £69, usually delivered within 24 hours.
Make your Will — from £69 →Sources
- Department of Justice — Court of Judicature (Non-Contentious Probate) Fee Schedule, effective 1 April 2026 — every Northern Ireland figure on this page.
- nidirect — Probate — when a grant is and is not needed, and who may apply where there is no Will.
- nidirect — Apply for probate — the portal, forms NIPF1, NIPF2 and NIPF7, and the documents required.
- Department of Justice — Probate — the two Probate Offices, application volumes, and the limits of the personal appointment service.
- GOV.UK — Applying for probate: fees — the England and Wales comparison figures.
- Administration of Estates Act (Northern Ireland) 1955, section 7 — who inherits where there is no Will.
Frequently asked questions
How much does probate cost in Northern Ireland?
There is no court fee at all where the estate is valued at £10,000 or less. Above that, the fee on an application for a grant is £326. If you apply yourself rather than through a solicitor, a further £81 personal-applicant fee is charged on top, so a personal application costs £407. These are the fees in the Court of Judicature (Non-Contentious Probate) Fee Schedule effective 1 April 2026.
Is probate cheaper in Northern Ireland than in England and Wales?
The base fee is lower: £326 in Northern Ireland against £526 in England and Wales, and the no-fee threshold is twice as generous at £10,000 rather than £5,000. But Northern Ireland adds an £81 supplement for applying in person, which England and Wales does not, so a personal application costs £407 against £526 — still cheaper, but by less than the headline figures suggest.
Do I always need probate in Northern Ireland?
No. nidirect says a grant is almost always needed where the person who died left around £20,000 in any one account, stocks or shares, certain insurance policies, or property or land held in their own name or as tenants in common. You may not need one where the estate is under £20,000, or where everything was owned jointly and passes automatically to the survivor.
What happens if there is no Will in Northern Ireland?
You apply for letters of administration instead of a grant of probate, using form NIPF2. Because no executor was appointed, the law sets who may apply, in order: spouse or civil partner, then children, then grandchildren where a child has died, then parents, then brothers and sisters, then grandparents, then aunts and uncles. Who inherits is decided by section 7 of the Administration of Estates Act (Northern Ireland) 1955, not by the family.
Can I apply for probate online in Northern Ireland?
Yes. Personal applicants use the portal at apply-for-probate.nidirect.gov.uk and legal professionals use a separate professional portal. Paper applications are still accepted, using form NIPF1 where there is a Will and NIPF2 where there is not.
Where is the Probate Office in Northern Ireland?
There are two. The Belfast Probate Office is on the 2nd floor of the Royal Courts of Justice, Chichester Street, Belfast BT1 3JF. There is also a Londonderry Probate Office at The Courthouse, Bishop Street, Londonderry BT48 6PQ. Northern Ireland does not use the single central registry model that England and Wales moved to.
Do I need a solicitor for probate in Northern Ireland?
Not for a first grant — you can apply yourself, which is what the £81 personal-applicant fee covers. For a second or subsequent grant in the same estate the Probate Office will not offer its personal appointment service, and says you must instruct a solicitor in this jurisdiction.
Do I need a solicitor?
Not for a first grant. For a second or subsequent grant in the same estate, the Probate Office says you must instruct a solicitor in this jurisdiction.
What is the difference between probate and letters of administration?
A grant of probate is issued where there is a Will, to the executor it names. Letters of administration are issued where there is not, to whichever relative comes highest in the statutory order and is willing to act.
Does a Will avoid probate?
No — and no honest guide will tell you otherwise. A Will does not remove the need for a grant. What it does is name the person who applies, and decide who inherits, instead of leaving both to a statute written in 1955.