Probate Fees in Ireland: Court Charges vs Solicitor Costs on a €500,000 Estate
There are two completely different bills hiding inside the words "probate fees." The first is a small, fixed court fee paid to the Probate Office — on a €500,000 estate that is just €350 if a solicitor applies, or €700 if you apply yourself. The second is the solicitor's professional fee, which on a €500,000 estate typically runs €3,000–€7,000 plus VAT and is the part you can actually negotiate. Neither is the same thing as the inheritance tax (CAT) the beneficiaries may owe.
Most people hear "probate costs €X" and assume one number covers everything. It doesn't. To budget properly you need to separate three things that are constantly confused with one another: the court fee, the solicitor fee, and the tax (Capital Acquisitions Tax). This guide pulls them apart, gives you the exact official court-fee scale, shows what solicitors really charge and how, and then works a full €500,000 estate two ways — doing it yourself versus using a solicitor.
The Probate Office court fee — fixed, scaled, and non-negotiable
When you apply for a Grant of Probate (where there's a will) or a Grant of Administration (where there isn't), you pay a fee to the Probate Office of the High Court. This fee is set in law by the Courts Service of Ireland, it scales in bands with the net value of the estate (assets minus debts), and you cannot haggle over it. Crucially, it is far smaller than most people expect — and the rate depends on who lodges the application.
A personal applicant (a family member doing it without a solicitor) pays roughly double what a solicitor application pays at each band. That is the Courts Service's published scale, not a typo — the higher personal-applicant fee reflects the extra Probate Office staff time a DIY application takes.
| Net value of the estate | Solicitor application | Personal applicant |
|---|---|---|
| Up to €100,000 | €100 | €200 |
| €100,001 – €250,000 | €200 | €400 |
| €250,001 – €500,000 | €350 | €700 |
| €500,001 – €750,000 | €500 | €1,000 |
| €750,001 – €1,000,000 | €650 | €1,300 |
| Over €1,000,000 | €650 + €400 per extra €500,000 (or part) | €1,300 + €800 per extra €500,000 (or part) |
Source: Courts Service of Ireland — Probate fees. Bands are set by statutory fee order and can change; confirm the current figures before you apply.
So a €500,000 estate sits in the €250,001–€500,000 band: €350 via a solicitor or €700 personally. A €1.2m estate, applied for by a solicitor, would be €650 + €400 (for the part above €1m) = €1,050. That is the entire court fee. It is not 1% or 2% of anything — those percentages you may have seen relate to the solicitor's fee, discussed next.
"Probate will cost me a percentage of the estate, paid to the courts." No. The court fee is a flat banded charge — €350 on a €500k estate through a solicitor. There is no percentage payable to the Probate Office or to Revenue for the grant itself. The percentage you've heard about is one of several ways a solicitor may price their own work.
Solicitor fees: percentage vs fixed vs hourly
You are not legally required to use a solicitor for probate in Ireland — the Probate Office publishes the forms and runs a personal-application process. But for an estate with a property, multiple accounts, or any complexity, most people instruct a solicitor. There are three common ways they charge.
1. Percentage of the estate
Historically common, and still used by some firms: a fee of around 1%–2% of the gross value of the estate, sometimes plus a separate charge per asset dealt with. On a €500,000 estate that is €5,000–€10,000 plus VAT. The Law Society and the Legal Services Regulatory Authority require solicitors to give you a written estimate up front under Section 150 of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015, so a percentage quote should never be a surprise on the final bill.
2. Fixed fee
Increasingly the norm for straightforward estates, and usually the cheapest of the three. A typical fixed quote for a standard estate (a will, one property, a handful of bank accounts, no disputes) is around €2,000–€5,000 plus VAT, plus outlays. Always check what "fixed" excludes — selling the house, dealing with a foreign asset, or sorting a contested point is often billed on top.
3. Hourly rate
Used for messier estates: typically €150–€300 per hour plus VAT, with the total depending entirely on how many hours the matter takes. This can be the fairest method for a simple estate (you only pay for the work) or the most expensive for a complicated one (the meter keeps running).
Always ask for the quote written as "fee + VAT + outlays" and ask which method it's based on. A "1.5% fee" and a "€4,500 fixed fee" can land at very different totals on the same estate. VAT (currently 23%) applies to the solicitor's professional fee but not to the Probate Office court fee or to most third-party outlays.
Worked example: a €500,000 estate, done two ways
Let's run a real, named scenario all the way through so you can see where every euro goes.
Margaret, a widow in Galway, dies leaving a will. Her estate: a house valued at €380,000, savings of €110,000, and a credit-union account of €18,000 — gross €508,000. She owed a final €8,000 (funeral, utilities, a small loan), so the net estate is €500,000. Her son Liam is the executor and sole beneficiary. Liam wants to know what it costs to extract the grant — first if he does it himself, then if he hands it to a solicitor.
Option A — Liam applies personally (DIY)
- Probate Office court fee (personal applicant, €250,001–€500,000 band): €700
- Commissioner for oaths to swear the Oath / Statement of Affairs (Probate) Form SA.2 supporting docs: ~€30
- Death certificate copies (≈4 @ €20): ~€80
- Property valuation for Revenue/Probate (one auctioneer's valuation): ~€250
- His own time: several weeks of form-filling, phone calls and a trip to the Probate Office (no cash cost, real effort cost)
DIY cash total ≈ €1,060, plus Liam's time. No solicitor fee, no VAT on a professional fee.
Option B — Liam instructs a solicitor on a fixed fee
- Probate Office court fee (solicitor application, same band): €350
- Solicitor's professional fee (fixed, straightforward estate): €4,500
- VAT on the solicitor's fee @ 23%: €1,035
- Outlays the solicitor pays on Liam's behalf (death certs, valuation, commissioner, searches): ~€450
Solicitor route total ≈ €6,335. Note the court fee itself halved to €350 because a solicitor lodged it — but that €350 saving is dwarfed by the professional fee and its VAT.
| Cost line | DIY (personal) | Via solicitor (fixed fee) |
|---|---|---|
| Probate Office court fee | €700 | €350 |
| Solicitor professional fee | €0 | €4,500 |
| VAT @ 23% on professional fee | €0 | €1,035 |
| Outlays (certs, valuation, commissioner) | €360 | €450 |
| Cash total | ≈ €1,060 | ≈ €6,335 |
The gap — roughly €5,300 — is the price of professional time, lower personal risk of error, and someone else handling the property sale and Revenue filing. For a simple, single-property estate like Margaret's, DIY is very achievable. For an estate with foreign assets, a missing will, business interests, or any family disagreement, the solicitor route usually earns its fee.
What comes out of the estate before beneficiaries are paid
All of these probate costs — court fee, solicitor fee, valuations, certificates — are estate expenses. The executor pays them out of the estate's own money before dividing what's left among the beneficiaries. Liam doesn't fund the €6,335 from his own pocket; it comes off the top of Margaret's €500,000. The order in which an Irish estate's money is used is broadly:
- Funeral and testamentary expenses — the funeral, plus the costs of obtaining the grant (court fee, solicitor's probate fee, valuations).
- Debts of the deceased — loans, credit cards, outstanding utility and care bills, any tax the deceased personally owed (e.g. final income tax).
- Specific gifts and legacies set out in the will.
- The residue — whatever remains, divided per the will (or under intestacy rules if there's no will).
If the estate doesn't have enough liquid cash to cover the expenses (for example, the value is tied up in a house), the executor may have to sell an asset, or beneficiaries may agree to advance the funds. Beneficiaries only ever receive their share of the residue — i.e. after every estate cost above has been settled.
Probate costs are paid by the estate. Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT) is paid by each beneficiary on what they personally receive. They are entirely separate bills, owed by different people, calculated different ways. Don't merge them in your budgeting.
Why probate fees are NOT the same as CAT
This is the single most common point of confusion, so let's be precise. The probate fees above are the cost of getting legal authority to administer the estate. They are paid by the estate, to the court and the solicitor, regardless of who inherits or how much tax (if any) is due.
Capital Acquisitions Tax is a completely different charge. It is an inheritance and gift tax paid by the person who receives a gift or inheritance, at 33% on the value they receive above their lifetime tax-free threshold. The threshold depends on the relationship to the deceased (Revenue.ie, thresholds effective from 2 October 2024):
| Group | Relationship to deceased | Tax-free threshold |
|---|---|---|
| A | Child (incl. certain step/foster children) inheriting from a parent | €400,000 |
| B | Sibling, niece/nephew, grandchild, lineal ancestor | €40,000 |
| C | Everyone else (cousins, friends, unrelated) | €20,000 |
Back to our example: Liam is Margaret's son, so he uses the Group A €400,000 threshold. He inherits the net residue (€500,000 less the probate costs). Say after costs he receives ≈ €493,665. Above his €400,000 threshold, that's roughly €93,665 taxable at 33% — a CAT bill of about €30,909, which Liam pays via a self-assessed Form IT38, separately from anything the estate paid the court or solicitor. (Surviving spouses and civil partners are fully exempt from CAT, and the dwelling-house exemption can wipe out the tax on a home in qualifying cases — see CAT reliefs.)
- "Probate fees" is really three separate bills: the court fee, the solicitor fee, and (for beneficiaries) CAT. Budget them apart.
- The Probate Office court fee on a €500,000 estate is just €350 via a solicitor or €700 as a personal applicant — a flat banded charge, never a percentage.
- Solicitors charge three ways — percentage (≈1–2%), fixed (≈€2,000–€5,000+VAT), or hourly (≈€150–€300+VAT). Always get a written Section 150 estimate.
- On Margaret's €500,000 estate, DIY costs ≈ €1,060 in cash; the solicitor route ≈ €6,335 — the gap is professional time and lower risk of error.
- All probate costs come out of the estate first; beneficiaries only share the residue that's left.
- CAT is the beneficiary's bill, not the estate's — 33% above your group threshold, filed on your own IT38. It is not part of the probate fee.
FAQ
How much is the probate court fee in Ireland?
It is a banded fee set by the Courts Service, based on the net value of the estate. A solicitor application pays €100 (up to €100,000), €200, €350, €500 or €650 (up to €1,000,000); a personal applicant pays roughly double at each band (€200, €400, €700, €1,000, €1,300). For estates over €1,000,000 add €400 (solicitor) or €800 (personal) per extra €500,000. See the Courts Service fee schedule.
Do I have to use a solicitor for probate in Ireland?
No. You can apply as a personal applicant — the Probate Office provides the forms and a personal-application process. Doing it yourself avoids the solicitor's professional fee (and its VAT) but takes more time and carries more risk of error, so it suits simpler estates. Note the court fee is higher for personal applicants than for solicitor applications.
What does a solicitor charge for probate on a €500,000 estate?
Typically €3,000–€7,000 plus VAT for a straightforward estate, depending on how they price it: a fixed fee (often €2,000–€5,000+VAT), a percentage of the estate (around 1%–2%, so €5,000–€10,000+VAT here), or an hourly rate (€150–€300+VAT). You're entitled to a written estimate before they start under Section 150 of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015.
Who pays the probate fees — the estate or the beneficiaries?
The estate. The executor or administrator pays the court fee, solicitor fee, valuations and certificates out of the estate's funds before distributing anything. Beneficiaries receive only their share of what's left (the residue). This is separate from CAT, which each beneficiary pays personally on what they receive.
Are probate fees the same as inheritance tax (CAT)?
No. Probate fees are the cost of getting legal authority to administer the estate, paid by the estate. CAT (Capital Acquisitions Tax) is a 33% tax paid by each beneficiary on the value they receive above their tax-free threshold (€400,000 Group A, €40,000 Group B, €20,000 Group C). They are different bills, owed by different people. CAT is self-assessed on Form IT38.
Is VAT charged on probate fees?
VAT (currently 23%) applies to the solicitor's professional fee, not to the Probate Office court fee and generally not to third-party outlays like death certificates or court fees. So on a €4,500 fixed solicitor fee you'd add about €1,035 VAT — but the €350 court fee carries no VAT.
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