Victoria Probate Fee Calculator

How the Victorian probate fee is set

The Supreme Court of Victoria, through its Probate Office, charges a filing fee calculated on the gross value of the deceased's Victorian assets only, not their worldwide estate. Liabilities are not deducted before the fee is calculated.

One fee schedule item, an application for a grant of representation, covers probate, letters of administration and reseal of a foreign or interstate grant. The table above applies to all three.

A nil result at the lowest band is a waiver of the filing fee, not a statement that a grant is unnecessary. An executor can still need a grant to deal with Victorian real property, most bank accounts and share registries.

The advertising fee and other costs

Before applying, you must post a notice of intention to apply on RedCrest Probate, the Court's online platform. Posting the notice currently costs $38, whether the application is for a grant, a reseal, or administration by State Trustees.

If a notice needs to be republished, a $51.80 fee applies. Other possible costs include $22.50 to amend a granted document, $22.50 for a registrar's certificate verifying a copy, $31.10 for an exemplification of a grant, and a file search fee that varies with the type of search.

How to apply for probate in Victoria

Applications are made through RedCrest Probate, the Supreme Court's online e filing system. Before lodging, you post the notice of intention to apply on RedCrest Probate and then wait at least 15 days after the notice is published, as the Court's guidance requires.

You will need the original will and any codicils, the death certificate, and a list of assets and debts, which becomes the affidavit and inventory of assets and liabilities generated through RedCrest Probate; the originating motion itself is created automatically by the system.

No lawyer is required. The Court lists applying yourself, without a lawyer, as one of several recognised ways to apply, alongside using a lawyer or a trustee company, and describes the process as often straightforward for a self represented applicant, though it cannot give legal advice or help administer the estate afterward.

Concessions and fee waivers

Victoria's health care card concession rate does not reduce the grant filing fee or the advertising fee, which are a single amount for everyone; it applies only to some other court fees, such as file searches and contested probate summonses. Pension cards are not accepted.

A broader, full fee waiver is available under a different rule, for a person legally represented on a pro bono or legal aid basis or through a community legal centre, a person under 18, a person serving a sentence of imprisonment or otherwise detained, or on the separate ground of financial hardship. Two different forms cover the automatic waiver categories and the general hardship application.

Small estates

Victoria has no published dollar figure for when a grant is not needed. The Court's own guidance says only that some organisations, such as banks and insurers, may release money without sighting a grant if the amount is minimal and there are no complications, without defining minimal.

A separate indexed limit, $137,210 for deaths between 1 July 2026 and 30 June 2027, governs two specific mechanisms: the Probate Office's optional small estates service, which prepares a simple application for a $285 fee, and a State Trustees pathway under the Administration and Probate Act 1958. Neither of these is a general no probate rule: a grant is still obtained through the small estates service, and under the State Trustees pathway State Trustees is treated as holding a grant 14 days after its notice is published, which is not available to an executor generally.

How long it takes

The Probate Office's published target is 5 to 10 working days to review an application once filed, with the overall process, including the notice period, described as taking several weeks.

As of late September 2026, the Court's own notice said it was reviewing, in the week starting 21 September 2026, applications received in the week starting 31 August 2026, about three weeks behind. Check the Court's current notice for the latest position rather than relying on the published target alone.

What this calculator does not cover

This tool estimates only the Supreme Court of Victoria filing fee for the 2026 to 2027 financial year, based on the value of Victorian assets entered. It does not include the RedCrest Probate advertising fee, any amendment or certificate fee, solicitor's fees, or costs specific to a contested matter.

It does not determine whether a grant is required for a particular estate; that depends on what was owned, how it was held, and each institution's own policy.