Queensland Probate Fee Calculator

How the Queensland probate fee is set

Queensland charges a single flat filing fee, currently $847.60, regardless of the estate's value. The prescribed supporting affidavit (Form 105) does not ask for an estate value.

The same $847.60 fee applies to an application for probate, letters of administration, a reseal of a foreign grant under the British Probates Act 1898, and an order to administer under the Public Trustee Act 1978. Whichever of these you are filing for, the fee is the same.

The notice fee and other costs

Before filing, you must advertise a notice of intention to apply through the Queensland Law Reporter, published by the Incorporated Council of Law Reporting for the State of Queensland and lodged through its ICLRQ Online Customer Portal. Advertising currently costs $161.70, including GST, for each public notice.

You will also need a certified copy of the death certificate, which carries its own Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages fee. If you engage a solicitor, their fees are additional and sit outside this fee schedule and calculator.

How to apply for probate in Queensland

The process runs in a set order. First, advertise your intention to apply using the wording of Form 103 through the ICLRQ portal. Then send a copy of that notice to the Public Trustee and wait at least 7 days after the Public Trustee receives it before filing. Separately, you must also wait 14 days after the notice appears in the Queensland Law Reporter before your application can be filed.

These are two distinct waiting periods running from different starting points, the 14 days from Queensland Law Reporter publication and the 7 days from the Public Trustee's receipt of the notice, and both need to have passed before filing. The core forms are Form 101, for probate or letters of administration with a will, or Form 102, for letters of administration on intestacy, plus a supporting affidavit.

Legal firms file through the Court's Online Services Portal. A self represented applicant files in person or by post at a Supreme Court registry in Brisbane, Cairns, Rockhampton or Townsville; no lawyer is required, though the Court notes that postal and in person filings are digitised on receipt and can take longer to process than an electronic filing through a solicitor.

Concessions and fee waivers

A reduced fee of $154.70 applies to an individual applicant, rather than a corporation, who holds a current health care card, pensioner concession card, seniors health card or an equivalent Commonwealth concession card, has been granted legal aid, or receives youth allowance, austudy or an ABSTUDY benefit. A registrar must approve this reduction on application.

A separate, discretionary reduction is available on the ground of financial hardship, where the registrar considers income, everyday living expenses, and bank balances. Corporations can also apply for a reduction, under a stricter test.

Small estates

Queensland publishes no dollar threshold for when probate is unnecessary. The Court's own guidance says probate may not always be needed where assets are of low value, such as a small bank account, where real estate is being transferred directly to a beneficiary named in the will, or where real estate is simply being sold, and points to a separate Titles Queensland process that can avoid the need for probate for some real estate transfers.

In every case, the Court defers to the asset holder, telling readers to check with the relevant bank or institution to confirm its own requirements.

How long it takes

Queensland does not publish a processing time figure for probate applications. The only official statement is that applications filed in person or by post are digitised on receipt and take longer to reach an electronic grant than applications filed online by a solicitor.

What this calculator does not cover

This tool estimates only the Supreme Court of Queensland filing fee, which is flat regardless of estate value. It does not include the Queensland Law Reporter advertising fee, the death certificate fee, solicitor's fees, or any cost specific to a contested matter.

It does not tell you whether a grant is needed for a particular estate; Queensland leaves that to each asset holder's own policy, and to the separate Titles Queensland process available for some real estate transfers.