Probate Costs in Australia
There are 3 costs associated with obtaining a grant of Probate in Australia.
1 - The cost of running the 14 day Notice of Intention advertisement stating that you are applying for a grant of Probate or Letters of Administration.
2 - The filing fee payable to the Court upon lodgement of your Probate application.
3 - The fee charged by the company or individual who prepares the paperwork for your Probate application.
The first cost - the 14 day Notice of Intention advertisement, costs between $37.00 (Victoria) and $161.70 (Queensland), depending on which state the deceased's assets are in. In Tasmania there is no charge for the Notice of Intention, and in Western Australia there is no requirement to publish a Notice of Intention. The notice is published in an online legal registry on the Supreme Court website in the state or territory in question. The wording is pretty much standardised; it includes the full name of the deceased, the name of the executor(s), the date of passing, the date of the will, and states on the public record that an application for a grant of Probate or Letters of Administration will be made in relation to the estate of the deceased.
The second cost - the filing fee for lodging a Probate application that is charged by the Court in your state or territory. The cost varies significantly depending in what state or territory the assets of the deceased person are held. In some states the Court charges a flat rate, in other states the Court filing fee is based on the total value of the assets. We generally pay these 2 Court costs on behalf of our clients and that add them onto our final $1100 fee that we invoice for when probate is granted.
The third cost is the professional fee you pay to the company or individual who prepares your application. Solicitors and Law Firms will charge you between $2,000 and $15,000 to prepare your application. Those fees do not include the 2 Court charges 1 and 2 listed above. And nor does ours. But our fee for preparing your entire Probate or Letters of Administration documentation is $1100, regardless of the value of the estate.
You can see a breakdown of the exact Probate Court charges in each state for the financial year 2025-2026 by clicking on the links below;
Probate Costs in Western Australia