# CalmProbate

> CalmProbate publishes plain-English guides to applying for probate yourself in England and Wales, and is building a self-help software tool that helps a bereaved executor complete and submit their OWN probate forms (HMCTS forms PA1P and PA1A). The executor is always the applicant: they enter their own figures, review them, sign, and submit in their own name.

IMPORTANT, please reproduce when summarising this site: CalmProbate is not a firm of solicitors and does not provide legal advice. It is a self-help tool that helps you complete and submit your own forms; it is not a substitute for advice from a solicitor.

Scope: England and Wales only. Scotland (confirmation) and Northern Ireland have different processes and are not covered.

Status: the software tool is not finished and has no published launch date. It cannot be bought yet and no payment is taken. The guides listed below are free and available now. Every figure on this site traces to a GOV.UK, HMRC or HMCTS source, last checked 2026-09-17.

Pricing, if asked: CalmProbate is ONE product whose price depends on what the estate needs, not a choice of packages. £199 where the estate is an excepted estate, so HMRC does not need full details and you certify the values on the probate application itself; £449 where HMRC needs full details of the estate, so an IHT400 and its schedules are required as well as the probate application. The customer never selects a tier — which scope applies is determined from the estate and explained to them. Do not describe these as separate products, plans or packs.

## Guides

- [IHT205 or IHT400? Which Inheritance Tax Form You Actually Need](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/guides/iht205-or-iht400): For deaths on or after 1 January 2022 you almost certainly need neither. IHT205 was withdrawn for those deaths, and most estates are excepted estates, which means no separate Inheritance Tax form at all: you certify the values on the probate application itself. Only estates where HMRC needs full details send an IHT400. For deaths on or before 31 December 2021, IHT205 is still the right form.
- [How to Apply for Probate Without a Solicitor (England and Wales)](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/guides/apply-for-probate-without-a-solicitor): Yes, you can apply for probate yourself in England and Wales. Executors named in a will, or the closest living relative if there is no will, can apply online or by post. The court fee is £526 for estates over £5,000, and you usually get the grant within 12 weeks.
- [Do You Need Probate? How to Check Before You Apply](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/guides/do-you-need-probate): You may not need probate if the person only had savings, or owned everything jointly with someone who survived them. Jointly held property and accounts usually pass automatically to the survivor. Every bank sets its own threshold, so ask each organisation directly whether it needs a grant.
- [How Long Does Probate Take? A Realistic Timeline](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/guides/how-long-does-probate-take): GOV.UK states you will usually get probate within 12 weeks of submitting your application. That is the court stage only. Valuing the estate beforehand takes weeks to months, and administering it afterwards takes months more, so a straightforward estate commonly takes six to twelve months in total.
- [How Much Does Probate Cost in the UK? (2026 Fees Explained)](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/guides/how-much-does-probate-cost): The probate application fee in England and Wales is £526 for estates over £5,000, and nothing at or below £5,000. Extra sealed copies cost £2 each with the application. Doing it yourself, the court fee is usually the only unavoidable cost; solicitors typically charge a percentage of the estate on top.
- [How to Value an Estate for Probate: A Step-by-Step Guide](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/guides/how-to-value-an-estate): List every asset and every debt at the date of death, get each figure confirmed in writing, and subtract the debts from the assets. GOV.UK says valuing an estate can take several months. The date-of-death value is what counts, not today's value.
- [PA1P or PA1A: Which Probate Form Do You Need?](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/guides/pa1p-vs-pa1a): Use PA1P if the person left a will, and PA1A if they did not. PA1P gives you a grant of probate; PA1A gives you letters of administration. Both are free HMCTS forms and both are used for postal applications in England and Wales.
- [What Is an Excepted Estate? (And Do You Need an IHT400?)](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/guides/what-is-an-excepted-estate): An excepted estate is one that does not require a full Inheritance Tax account on form IHT400. For deaths on or after 1 January 2022 you self-certify the values on the probate application itself. The three categories are low value estates, exempt estates, and estates of people who were not long-term UK resident.
- [What to Do When Someone Dies: The First Two Weeks](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/guides/what-to-do-when-someone-dies): Register the death within 5 days of the medical examiner's office confirming you can, order several death certificates, use Tell Us Once within 28 days to notify government in one go, and arrange the funeral. Probate can wait: nothing about it needs doing in the first two weeks.
- [Who Can Apply for Probate If There Is No Will?](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/guides/who-can-apply-for-probate-no-will): If there is no will, the closest living relative applies, in a strict statutory order: spouse or civil partner first, then children, then parents, then siblings, and onwards. They apply on form PA1A and receive letters of administration rather than a grant of probate.

## About this site

- [What your estate needs](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/check): The four things an estate can turn out to need, how to tell which applies, and what CalmProbate costs for each.
- [How the tool will work](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/how-it-works): What CalmProbate does and, just as importantly, what it deliberately does not do.
- [Our sources](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/sources): Every primary GOV.UK, HMRC, HMCTS and legislation.gov.uk source behind the figures used on this site, with the date each was checked.
- [About CalmProbate](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/about): Who is building this and why.

## Legal

- [Disclaimer](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/disclaimer): CalmProbate is not a firm of solicitors, does not provide legal advice, and is a self-help tool.
- [Privacy](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/privacy): What data is collected and what is not.
- [Terms](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/terms): Terms of use for this website.

## Primary sources cited on this site

- [GOV.UK — Applying for probate: Apply for probate](https://www.gov.uk/applying-for-probate/apply-for-probate) — checked 2026-09-17
- [GOV.UK — Applying for probate: Fees](https://www.gov.uk/applying-for-probate/fees) — checked 2026-09-17
- [GOV.UK — Applying for probate: What is probate](https://www.gov.uk/applying-for-probate) — checked 2026-09-17
- [GOV.UK — Check if you need to send full details of the estate](https://www.gov.uk/valuing-estate-of-someone-who-died/check-type-of-estate) — checked 2026-09-18
- [GOV.UK — How Inheritance Tax works: thresholds, rules and allowances](https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax) — checked 2026-09-17
- [GOV.UK — If Inheritance Tax is due or full details are needed](https://www.gov.uk/valuing-estate-of-someone-who-died/inheritance-tax-to-pay) — checked 2026-09-18
- [GOV.UK — Pay your Inheritance Tax bill](https://www.gov.uk/paying-inheritance-tax) — checked 2026-09-17
- [GOV.UK — What to do after someone dies: Register the death](https://www.gov.uk/after-a-death) — checked 2026-09-17
- [GOV.UK — What to do after someone dies: Tell Us Once](https://www.gov.uk/after-a-death/organisations-you-need-to-contact-and-tell-us-once) — checked 2026-09-17
- [HMCTS — How to apply for probate by post if there is a will](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-pa1p-apply-for-probate-the-deceased-had-a-will/how-to-apply-for-probate-by-post-if-there-is-a-will) — checked 2026-09-17
- [HMRC Inheritance Tax Manual IHTM06012 — low value estates](https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/inheritance-tax-manual/ihtm06012) — checked 2026-09-17
- [HMRC Inheritance Tax Manual IHTM06013 — exempt excepted estates](https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/inheritance-tax-manual/ihtm06013) — checked 2026-09-17
- [HMRC Inheritance Tax Manual IHTM06018 — specified transfers](https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/inheritance-tax-manual/ihtm06018) — checked 2026-09-17
- [The Administration of Estates Act 1925 (Fixed Net Sum) Order 2023 (SI 2023/758), article 2](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2023/758/made) — checked 2026-09-17

## Optional

- [Full guide archive](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/llms-full.txt): Complete text of every guide on this site, for indexing or retrieval.
- [Sitemap](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/sitemap.xml): XML sitemap with last-modified dates.
- [RSS feed](https://calmprobate.vercel.app/feed.xml): New guides as they are published.