How to Obtain a UK Grant of Probate for a US Probate Case

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1Hiring a UK Solicitor

2Completing Probate Application Forms

3Swearing an Oath

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If you are the executor or personal representative of an estate, and the deceased person owned real property or other assets in the United Kingdom, you must obtain a UK grant of probate for the U.S. probate case. The grant of probate allows you to access the deceased person's assets in the UK, including any bank or investment accounts, and to transfer real estate. International probate can be extremely complicated, so hire a UK solicitor as well as a probate attorney in the US to help you handle the international estate.

Steps

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Hiring a UK Solicitor

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   Talk to the estate's attorney. If the estate already has an attorney, they can help you hire a UK solicitor to help with the UK grant of probate. If you haven't already hired an attorney for the estate, a US attorney may be beneficial in sorting out the international estate efficiently.

   • Lawyers who handle probate issues in the UK are called solicitors. They handle contractual and transactional issues for people in the UK, and some of them specialize in probate issues.
   • Ideally, the estate's attorney should assist you with your search for a UK solicitor.
   • They will be working with the solicitor you hire as well, and may have a better understanding of how to evaluate the potential solicitors you find.
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   Search for UK probate solicitors. Solicitors in the UK are highly regulated. To find someone who can assist with your international estate, look for someone who is a member of the Law Society's Wills and Inheritance Quality Scheme.

   • Members of the scheme have taken additional courses and have experience and qualifications that meet the Law Society's requirements to specialize in probate law.
   • You can find potential solicitors online at the Law Society's website. Just visit www.lawsociety.org.uk/findasolicitor.
   • Look for solicitors with offices near the location of the deceased person's assets, for convenience.
   • You also should focus on solicitors who have experience handling international estates, particularly those that are going through probate in the U.S.
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   Interview potential solicitors. Rather than simply finding a name on the internet and hiring that person automatically, make arrangements to interview two or three probate solicitors so you can find the one who will best suit the needs of the estate.

   • If you're not able to travel to the UK just to interview a solicitor, most will be willing to meet with you online or over the phone.
   • Keep in mind that you may have to travel to the UK later on to get your grant of probate, so there's no point in making an additional trip just to hire a solicitor.
   • The solicitor typically will have an initial consultation with you at no charge. Use this opportunity to learn more about each solicitor, including specifically how much experience they have handling international estates that are in probate in the U.S.
   • Also keep in mind that given the distance, communication is particularly important. Find out exactly when the solicitor will be available if you have a question or concern, and translate those hours into local time.
   • Given the time difference between the US and the UK, there may be a limited window during which you can communicate with the solicitor directly – unless you don't mind staying up late or getting up extremely early in the morning.
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   Sign a written agreement. Once you've chosen the solicitor with whom you want to work, get them to send you a written contract that outlines the terms of the representation and the fees the estate will be charged in detail.

   • Make sure you understand this agreement before you sign it. If you have any questions, you may want to call or email the solicitor and get an answer before you sign the agreement.
   • The solicitor will expect payment in British pounds. This typically means you'll have to pay using a credit card or bank draft.
   • Make sure you have an agreement on the best and most efficient method to pay the solicitor, and have a good understanding of the exchange rate between British pounds and American dollars.
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Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Completing Probate Application Forms

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   Download the required probate forms. You can download the forms and instructions you'll need to fill out those forms from the UK's government website. On the general website, click on "births, deaths, marriages and care" to find more information and links to download the forms you need.

   • The website itself has an outline that walks you through the basic probate process in the UK. Scroll down to the section on applying for a grant of representation (also called a grant of probate).
   • The executor of an estate is the one who applies for a grant of representation or grant of probate. This legal document gives you the legal right to access the deceased person's assets in the UK.
   • On the UK government website, you can find links to download all the forms you'll need, as well as brochures that provide instructions and additional information about the probate process.
   • Your UK solicitor also will help you with these tasks, but the website can give you a good understanding of how the process works and why your solicitor is asking for certain documents or information.
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   Gather documents and information. There are a number of original documents that must be included with your application for a grant of probate. As executor of the estate, you're responsible for getting these documents together so they can be sent to the probate registry in the UK.

   • You must submit an official copy of the death certificate, as well as the original will. Make sure you make a copy of the will for the estate's records before you send it to the UK.
   • Remove any staples or other fasteners from the will before you send it, and don't attach any other documents to it.
   • In addition to the original will, you also must make three copies of it to submit as well.
   • If any other documents are requested specifically by the probate service, or if your application indicates you should send them, they should be gathered as well. You may not know exactly what these documents are until you've completed the probate application.
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   Produce an affidavit of foreign law. Many UK courts require an affidavit that describes the foreign probate law (in your case, American probate law) as it applies to this particular estate. The affidavit also details the probate process and how far along in that process the estate is.

   • This affidavit typically must be completed by the estate's probate attorney in the United States. Don't think this is something you can do yourself.
   • If you haven't yet hired a U.S. probate attorney for the estate, you will need one to complete the affidavit of foreign law.
   • Talk to the UK solicitor to find out if there are any U.S. probate attorneys with whom they've already worked.
   • Even if the estate already has an attorney, talk to them about whether they've completed an affidavit of foreign law before. The interests of the estate are best served by having this legal document prepared by a U.S. attorney who's had experience preparing them before.
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   Fill out the PA1 probate application. Although you cannot submit the probate application online, you can fill it out online to print and mail it to the probate registry. You also have the option of printing the application and filling it out by hand before mailing it to the probate registry.

   • If you don't believe you'll be able to travel to the UK to swear your oath for the grant of probate, you can appoint a lasting power of attorney (LPA) to obtain the grant of probate on your behalf.
   • For example, you may want the solicitor you hired in the UK to obtain the grant of probate for you under an LPA. Discuss this matter with your solicitor.
   • The LPA must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before it can be used, and then you would fill out the PA1 probate application with their information included.
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   Complete the inheritance tax form. Even if the estate will not owe any inheritance taxes, you still must fill out the inheritance tax form before you can get a UK grant of probate. Ask your UK solicitor for assistance with this form.

   • This form, along with instructions, also can be downloaded from the UK government website at formfinder.hmctsformfinder.justice.gov.uk.
   • You should complete form IHT205 if no inheritance tax is owed. If that form doesn't apply to the estate, contact the courts to get a copy of form IHT400, or have the UK solicitor obtain one for you.
   • Keep in mind that you cannot receive a grant of probate until the inheritance tax forms are correctly completed and filed.
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   Submit your required documents. Once you have all your documents together, you must send them to the appropriate probate registry. To identify the right probate registry to use, choose the venue where you or your LPA will swear an oath. Then submit your documents to the probate registry responsible for that venue.

   • Check the list of venues, available on the same website where you downloaded the forms, or talk to your UK solicitor to find out which one you should use.
   • When you send your documents, they must be accompanied by a cheque for the appropriate fees. You can download a fee schedule from the same website where you downloaded the forms, or discuss this matter with your UK solicitor.
   • Expect fees to be approximately £215, plus 50p for each additional copy of the grant that you need.
   • You'll need to figure out ahead of time how many copies of the grant of probate you'll need, so you can get them all at once. Inventory the British assets and property in the will, and assume you'll need one copy of the grant of probate for each of the agencies or institutions holding those assets or property.
   • If you are located in the U.S., it may be difficult for you to get a cheque payable in British pounds that would be acceptable to the probate registry.
   • Your UK solicitor can help you with this. Simply arrange to send the funds to them, and they'll write the cheque for the fees.
   • To save time, send your documents to your solicitor so they can arrange them together with the cheque and submit everything together. The probate registry will not process your application until the fees are paid.
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Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Swearing an Oath

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   Receive your oath in the mail. Within a few weeks of receipt of your application, you'll be sent an oath, which is a written document you must sign. The oath will include additional instructions for how to make arrangements to swear that oath.

   • Expect to receive an acknowledgment of receipt of your application within 10-14 days of the date those documents are received. This is not your oath. The oath will follow separately.
   • If the probate registry has additional questions for you, they may contact you for additional information before sending you the oath. You should provide the name of your UK solicitor so those questions can be directed to them rather than to you personally.
   • The probate registry may need you to contact other people, such as witnesses to the will, or to sign additional documents before they send you the oath.
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   Schedule your appointment. You must make an appointment at the venue you've chosen to swear your oath. The oath must be sworn by the person named on the grant of probate. As executor of the estate, this typically is you unless you've arranged for an LPA to obtain the grant of probate on your behalf.

   • If you've decided to swear your oath in a solicitor's office, you must pay an additional fee of £10 plus 50p for each exhibit. A list of exhibits, typically including a copy of the will, is listed on your oath.
   • You also can schedule an appointment directly at a probate venue at no additional charge.
   • Swearing the oath only takes a few minutes. For this reason, unless you have other business in the UK, it's typically not necessary for you to travel there in person.
   • However, if you elect not to travel, you must arrange for an LPA to swear the oath on your behalf so you can obtain the grant of probate.
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   Swear your oath. On the day you've scheduled your appointment, either you or your LPA must appear in person to sign the prepared oath you were mailed as well as make a verbal oath with your right hand on the religious book of your choice.

   • In your verbal oath, you will swear or affirm that the information you provided on your application for a grant of probate is true and accurate to the best of your knowledge.
   • After you've completed the verbal oath and signed the prepared document, the commissioner of oaths or probate officer will acknowledge your oath.
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   Return your oath to the registry. Once you've sworn your oath, the written document will be returned to you (or your LPA, if you chose not to travel to the UK in person). This document must be submitted to the probate registry.

   • Provided all required documents and fees have been received and are in good order, the registry will issue your grant of probate within a week.
   • The original will you sent is kept, as it becomes a matter of public record in the UK. However, the original death certificate will be returned to you along with your grant of probate and all copies you requested.
   • You can expect these documents to be mailed to you within a week or two, or you can make arrangements for your solicitor to pick them up in person.
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