How Do I Get A Copy Of My Deceased Father's Will?

[Tefler]

I'm trying to do the probate application for my mother, who passed away recently. In order for her to claim my late father's unused nil band allowance for Inheritance Tax, we appear to need a copy of his will - which wasn't kept. How does one get such a thing now?

And does anybody know which form we need to fill in to transfer that nil band to my mother's estate? Dad died in November 2006, if that helps.

[jno]

have you had a look here?

https://www.gov.uk/search-will-probate

[Peter Pedant]

the copy of the will is from the probate registry
( actually the one where the will was probated)

ten quid I think - if you go down there they are very helpful ....(compared to some govt offices - non contentious I suppose)

[Hymie]

If Tefler’s father’s Will was not probated (which is very possible if the estate was of low value and/or the majority passing to his wife), then the Will is lost.

Having dealt with my late mother’s estate a couple of years ago – I believe that the relevant probate form (to claim the unused nil band) accepted their marriage certificate as sufficient evidence along with a declaration – I certainly did not have a copy of my late father-in-law’s Will.

The relevant HMRC form to claim the unused nil band is IHT217.

[OldBather2]

Look up your nearest Probate Office (easy on the internet?) and you can get a copy from them.I think you may need proof of identity.I got the will of my Father (who I hadn't seen for years,it was quick and easy,and quite cheap.
The latter question I don't know anything about.Sorry.

[Tefler]

Thanks for the gen on getting the will.

I'm finding the gov.uk site a bit difficult to negotiate at the moment, particularly in trying to find the right form for the transfer of the nil rate to my mother's estate. I'll just need to give them a ring on Tuesday, I suppose - I was hoping to get it all done and dusted before then.

[Hymie]

Once you have gathered all the evidence in relation to your mother’s estate, and completed the necessary forms (and attended the relevant court to swear on oath that the information supplied is correct) – it will take around 8 weeks for you to be granted probate to allow the executor(s) of the Will to distribute the estate as per your mother’s Will.

In relation to my mother’s estate (and the unused nil band) the value did not reach the personal limit (for tax purposes), but I completed IHT217 just in case some additional assets were discovered – plus the tax office would know that even if I have not valued the assets correctly, the estate value was nowhere near where tax would be payable.

[Tefler]

That's really helpful, Hymie.