How to fill in form PA1P
A plain-English walkthrough of the HMCTS application for a grant of probate when there's a will — PA1P or its online equivalent.
What you need before you start, every section of the form, the IHT code that has to come first, the £526 fee, and what to post. England & Wales.
This is the same official PA1P file HMCTS publishes on GOV.UK — the link below fetches the current version live from GOV.UK the moment you click it, so it can never go out of date.
Current version: December 2025 · confirmed on GOV.UK 23 August 2026
PA1P is how an executor applies for the grant of probate when the person who died left a will. The form is rarely the hard part; the work is gathering the will, the assets and the right IHT route — and getting them in the right order before you apply.
PA1P or PA1A — and online or paper?
Two quick choices decide your route. Whether there's a will sets the form; how you submit sets the speed. GOV.UK is direct on the second: apply online if you can — paper takes longer to process.
An executor named in the will applies for a grant of probate. This is your form, and the walkthrough below. If no named executor can act, a beneficiary who inherits applies for letters of administration with the will annexed.
Where there is no valid will, you apply for letters of administration. PA1A asks who inherits under the intestacy rules rather than who is named as executor. Same court and same fee — different declarations.
Most people now apply online via the GOV.UK probate service — faster to process. Paper PA1P is for those who can't or prefer not to apply online, or cases the online service won't take. The fee and legal effect are identical.
Do you actually need probate?
Not every estate needs probate. Joint accounts and joint property pass by survivorship and don't require it. Very small sole-name balances (below the institution's own threshold — £50,000 at most major banks now) are often released against the death certificate alone.
Where probate is needed, the next question is the inheritance-tax route. An excepted estate reports its values on the application and applies straight away; a non-excepted estate sends HMRC the IHT400 first and waits for the unique code.
Use the check to confirm probate is needed, then walk the form below. The £526 fee applies to estates over £5,000; sealed copies are £2 each with the application (most executors order several at once), or £16 each if ordered later.
Do you need probate at all?
Tick anything that applies. Even one tick usually means probate is required. No ticks may mean it isn't.
Where there are no sole-name assets, no owned property, no IHT due, no business interests, and no foreign assets, probate is often not required. Joint accounts and joint property pass by survivorship; very small estates (below the institution's own threshold — £50,000 at most major banks now) can be released against the death certificate alone. Confirm with each institution before assuming.
Before you apply — the clock starts at death
Probate sits inside a sequence. Register the death, value the estate, settle any inheritance tax, then apply. For a non-excepted estate the IHT step gates the probate step — the grant cannot issue until HMRC's code has come through.
England, Wales and NI (8 days in Scotland). The death certificate it produces feeds Section A and is sent with the application.
From the end of the month of death. Interest accrues on unpaid tax after that. Non-excepted estates send the IHT400 and wait for HMRC's code.
There's no hard deadline to apply, but long delays can leave executors personally exposed. With the IHT route settled, apply.
GOV.UK: you'll usually get probate within 12 weeks of applying. Longer on paper, or if the application is 'stopped' for an error or query.
Seven sections, in plain English
The online probate service presents these as guided pages with built-in validation; the paper PA1P uses the same structure with everything to fill in by hand. Either route, the seven sections below cover what HMCTS will ask — and which parts most estates leave blank.
About the person who died
Identity, last address, marital status. The registrar's details should be exact.
Use the legal name as registered. If the deceased used another name (maiden name, professional name) and assets are held under it, also include it in the 'other names' field. The grant will be issued in the name shown on the death certificate.
Both as on the death certificate. The date of death starts the clock on inheritance tax deadlines (six months from end of month of death for IHT due, twelve months for the grant application without penalties).
Where the deceased lived at the date of death. If they had moved into care, the care home address (with the previous home address noted in the 'previous address' field). HMCTS uses this for jurisdictional fit — UK probate is for UK-domiciled estates primarily.
Married / civil partnership / divorced / dissolved / widowed / surviving civil partner / never married. This is checked against the will — marriage typically revokes a prior will (unless made in contemplation of marriage), and divorce typically removes the former spouse from beneficiary positions.
About the executors
All executors named in the will must be accounted for — applying, renouncing, or having power reserved.
The will names the executors. Even if some are not applying, all must be listed with current addresses. HMCTS verifies the named executors against the will document.
One or more named executors apply. Up to four can apply jointly. The first-named applicant becomes the lead applicant for HMCTS correspondence.
Three options for each: (a) Renunciation (form PA15) — the executor renounces probate entirely, cannot change mind later. (b) Power reserved — the executor steps back for now but reserves the right to apply later (requires notice to the other executors). (c) Citation — applicants compel a non-responding executor to act or renounce, via court process (PA13). Most cases use renunciation.
If a named executor died before the testator, that executor falls away automatically. If they died after but before applying, their executor 'continues' (the chain of representation). If incapacitated, evidence of capacity loss is needed. Where no named executor is able or willing to act, a beneficiary who inherits applies instead — for letters of administration with the will annexed.
About the estate
Gross and net values. The IHT pathway test sits inside this section.
The total value of everything the deceased owned at death — property at market value, bank balances, investments, life policies (NOT in trust), business interests, vehicles, valuables. Joint assets passing by survivorship are NOT in the gross estate; only the deceased's share of tenancy-in-common property is.
Gross estate minus liabilities — outstanding debts, mortgage on owned property, funeral expenses, unpaid utility bills as at date of death. The net figure is what HMRC and HMCTS use for the IHT and grant calculations.
Two routes. (1) Excepted estate — clearly within the nil-rate band, no IHT due, no foreign assets, trusts, large gifts or reliefs: you report the estate values on the probate application itself and apply straight away, with no separate IHT form. (2) Non-excepted estate — tax is due, the estate is over the threshold, or there are complications: the full IHT400 with supplementary pages must go to HMRC first.
Where IHT400 is required, HMRC issues a unique code once it has received the account and any tax due is paid (or the first instalment). HMCTS will not issue the grant of probate without that code. This is the single most common cause of delay in larger estates — applying for probate before the code arrives.
Foreign domicile (if applicable)
Most UK probate applications skip this. Material only where the deceased was non-UK-domiciled at death.
Domicile is the legal concept of permanent home, often inherited at birth or acquired through long-term intent. Different from residence (where you currently live) and nationality (citizenship). UK domicile is the default for most UK-born adults.
If the deceased was non-UK-domiciled, IHT historically applied only to UK-situs assets. From April 2025 the rules moved to a long-term-residence basis (the FIG regime), which changes IHT scope for internationally connected estates. Any non-UK element needs cross-checking against the current rules — this is squarely solicitor or chartered-tax-adviser work.
Where the surviving spouse is not UK-domiciled (or, post-2025, not long-term UK resident) but the deceased was, the spouse exemption may be limited unless an election is made. This affects the IHT computation, not just probate — confirm the position under the current rules before relying on the full exemption.
Foreign property (if applicable)
Where the deceased owned property outside the UK, separate grants may be needed.
A UK grant of probate can be 'resealed' for use in some Commonwealth countries (Australia, Canadian provinces, NZ, Singapore, others). The reverse also applies — a foreign grant from a Commonwealth country can be resealed for use here. Quicker than applying afresh.
Where resealing is not available (most non-Commonwealth jurisdictions), a fresh application is made in the foreign jurisdiction. The UK grant supports the foreign application. Timeline is jurisdiction-specific — France, Spain, USA each have their own process.
Brexit-era complication: the EU Succession Regulation (Brussels IV) applies to UK estates only via reciprocal national rules now, not the regulation itself. UK nationals with EU property should have considered choice-of-law in their will; if so, that election is honoured by EU jurisdictions.
Inheritance Tax
Confirmation of the IHT route taken — the references HMCTS expects to see.
If the estate qualifies as 'excepted' (within the threshold, no foreign assets, no trusts, no gifts above the nil-rate band, no reliefs claimed), the probate application incorporates the estate values directly. No separate IHT form is filed, and you apply straight away.
Where IHT400 is required, it must be submitted to HMRC first. HMRC issues the unique code once the account has been received and any tax due is paid (or the first instalment for property — IHT can be paid in 10 annual instalments for property; investments must be paid in full).
IHT400 has its own set of supplementary schedules. Common ones: IHT402 (transferable nil-rate band from a deceased spouse), IHT403 (gifts in the last 7 years), IHT405 (houses, land, buildings), IHT413 (business interests), IHT417 (foreign assets), IHT418 (trusts). The IHT Calculator on this site shows the headline maths; the IHT400 walkthrough covers the schedules in full.
Statement of truth and signatures
The legal commitment. The statement of truth replaced the old 'swearing an oath'. Wrong information here is potentially contempt of court.
That the will and any codicils are authentic; that the deceased died on the date stated; that the executors named are accounted for as described; that the estate values are accurate to the best of your knowledge after enquiry; that you will administer the estate according to law and the will.
Since 2017–18 you no longer swear an oath in front of a solicitor or commissioner. Instead the applying executors sign a statement of truth — a written declaration that the information is true. This applies on both the digital and paper routes.
Each applying executor signs the form itself — printed name, signature, date. Under the Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987, the signature must be on the form; separate signature pages are not accepted.
Post the completed form, the original will and any codicils, the death certificate and the fee to HMCTS Probate, PO Box 12625, Harlow, CM20 9QE. Make the cheque payable to 'HM Courts and Tribunals Service'. Applying online is faster and is the route GOV.UK recommends for personal applicants.
Fill it in, field by field
Every PA1P box explained in plain English, with the source record that fills it in for members. Your answers save to this device only — no account, no signup. Section 1 is fully live; sections 2–4 are in active build.
About the person who has died
Comes almost entirely from the death certificate plus the deceased's identity records. Most of these fields fill in from portal record P-05.
What to send with the application
Almost every hour spent on a probate application goes on finding these — not writing them down. Gather them once and the form follows. Each names the section it feeds. On the paper route you post the lot to HMCTS Probate, PO Box 12625, Harlow, CM20 9QE.
HMCTS needs the original will and any codicils; GOV.UK states that photocopies will not be accepted. Do not staple, pin, or attach anything to the will, and do not remove or add fastenings — marks or holes can raise questions about whether a document was once attached. HMCTS keeps the original; keep copies for your own records. Where the original is lost, establishing its contents is a separate court process and solicitor work.
0300 303 0648 for application questions. They can't give legal advice, but they can clarify how to complete a section — the right call when you're stuck.
The fee — £526, or nothing
The probate application fee is fixed, and it's the same whether you apply online or by paper PA1P. The only extra is sealed copies of the grant — worth ordering several at once so you can send one to each bank, registrar and the Land Registry in parallel rather than waiting in turn.
Charged when the estate is worth more than £5,000. On the paper route, pay by cheque made payable to 'HM Courts and Tribunals Service'.
There's no fee at all if the estate is £5,000 or less. You still complete the form; you just don't pay to apply.
Sealed copies of the grant are £2 each when ordered with the application (£16 each if ordered later). Order enough to send to every asset holder at once — it's the difference between days and weeks.
Many estates can be applied for personally for the £526 fee alone. Where a contested will, complex trust, foreign-domicile question or business succession applies, a regulated solicitor is the right answer — the Probate Cost Calculator on this site shows the order of magnitude before you commit. See what professional help typically costs
What happens next — and what's outside this page
HMCTS checks the application against the will and the death certificate. You may be asked to confirm or verify details — the statement of truth has replaced the old swearing of an oath, so there's no trip to a solicitor to swear. Then the grant is issued, usually within 12 weeks; longer if the application is 'stopped' for an error or query.
- This is a walkthrough, not a submission. The application is made on GOV.UK — apply online if you can; paper takes longer.
- Valoren is not a solicitor and does not give legal advice. Where the will is contested, or trusts, foreign domicile or business succession apply, a regulated solicitor is the right answer.
- Figures and timings are GOV.UK / HMCTS published references and can change. Confirm the current fee, address and processing time before you file.
The form is the short part.
The records are what make filling it in possible.
The will, the executors, the property, the accounts, the debts. Most of the hours probate takes are the hunt for those — not the application. Organised records collapse the hunt to days. Where tax is due, the IHT400 walkthrough covers the account that has to clear HMRC first.
Already appointed and administering the estate? Executor's First Hour — £179
Many people file PA1P themselves — that is what this walkthrough is for. If the estate behind it has stopped being simple — inheritance tax to pay, a trust, foreign assets, a dispute — Signum, Valoren’s own specialist desk, can take it on, and we say so plainly: it starts with a free intake, and if you do not need us, we will tell you. Prefer an independent adviser? STEP and the Chartered Institute of Taxation both keep public member directories, and neither pays Valoren a referral fee.