PA1A-Probate Application Form when there is no Will
When the deceased died intestate (leaving no Will) you must use the PA1A form for your probate application. You must provide this to the probate registry along with the corresponding Inheritance tax form and death certificate. You do not need to complete the PA1P form if you are using this form.
PA1P – Probate Application Form when there is a Will
When the deceased died with a Valid Will you must use the PA1P form for your probate application. You must provide this to the probate registry along with the corresponding Inheritance tax form, Will and death certificate. You do not need to complete the PA1A form if you are using this form.
IHT 400
The inheritance tax forms for an estate where inheritance tax is payable or there’s no Inheritance Tax to pay, but the estate doesn’t qualify as an excepted estate. The iht400 must be accompanied by the PA1 application form, the will and the death certificate.
IHT 422
This form you would use when there is inheritance tax to pay on an Estate, a trust, a gift to a trust where the person making the gift is still alive or any other immediately chargeable transfer. This must be sent with the corresponding PA1 form, IHT400 form, the will and death certificate.
IHT 423
This Form is used to pay the Inheritance Tax that is due, by transferring money from the deceased’s bank or building society account(s).
IHT 400 help sheet
Guidance notes on how to work out the interest on Inheritance tax payments when they are being paid in instalments
IHT 400 notes
Guidance notes on how to fill in the forms you need to complete your Inheritance Tax account, follow the correct procedure to apply for a grant of probate and pay the correct amount of Inheritance Tax, if there is any to pay.
IHT 421
Probate Summary form to be filled out if you are applying for a grant of representation in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland.
IHT 217 (NRB)
The inheritance tax form used to apply to claim or transfer a deceased spouses nil rate band. You will need information for the first deceased spouse estate in order to complete these forms.
IHT 435 (RNRB)
This is the inheritance tax form used to apply to claim the residence nil rate band. The residence nil rate band allows an additional £270,000 of tax allowance to be claimed when there is a property passing to direct descendants.
If you are applying for probate on an estate where Inheritance Tax is payable it is important to ensure that you fully understand what is being asked of you in these application forms. It is recommended that you review all of the relevant forms that you may be required to complete before undertaking the work. This allows you to collect all of the necessary information and knowledge you will need in order to correctly complete the forms. When applying for probate yourself you will need to understand how to correctly calculate your inheritance tax liability and apply the correct exemptions if there are any available.
If at any point you do not confident in your ability to complete the application to the standard that HRMC and the Probate Registry require it is highly advisable to seek professional assistance.
Estates that are just under, on or above the Inheritance tax Threshold are looked at closely to ensure that there is no loss to HMRC. If, after review, your application is found to have mistakes or inaccuracies you will be contacted and asked to rectify these, failing to remedy an error can result in a penalty. In some cases, you may be asked to make a new application in which case you will have to pay the application fee again. In certain circumstances if there is an inaccuracy on the application that could have resulted in loss to HMRC you may incur a penalty. There are certain precautions you can take that will help increase your chances of a successful probate application process.
You can find further information about penalties and compliance to HMRC on the Government Website under Inheritance Tax Manual – Penalties.
Being an Executor of an Estate is not just about completing and submitting probate and inheritance tax applications. An executor has a responsibility to the estate and its beneficiaries and is accountable if they do not take reasonable care in the administration on the Estate. For further information about the duties of an executor go to our Duties and responsibilities of an Executor page.
If you have been named the executor of an estate and are unable or do not feel comfortable to act you can speak to one of our advisers on 08007318722 or fill in our contact form and a member of our team will call you back for a Fixed Fee full administration quote.