Confirmation in Scotland: The Scottish Probate Process

Scotland does not use the term probate. When someone who lived in Scotland dies, their executor applies to the Sheriff Court for Confirmation, the document that gives legal authority to collect in and distribute the estate.

What Is Confirmation?

Confirmation is the legal document, issued by the Sheriff Court, that gives an executor authority to ingather (collect in) and distribute a deceased person's estate in Scotland. It is Scotland's equivalent of a grant of probate, but it is not the same document and the two systems should not be conflated. Confirmation is generally needed whenever the deceased held money or property in Scotland, whatever their nationality, and it lists every asset in the estate individually rather than certifying a single lump sum. Without Confirmation, banks, building societies, share registrars and most other asset holders will not release funds or transfer property to an executor, no matter how clear the will or how close the family relationship. Some very small holdings can sometimes be released informally by individual institutions, but this is at their discretion, not a right.

Executor-Nominate and Executor-Dative

Scots law uses two different terms for an executor depending on how they came to the role. An executor-nominate is someone named as executor in the deceased's will; they apply for Confirmation on the strength of that appointment. Where there is no will, or the will fails to name a willing and able executor, nobody automatically has authority to act. Instead, someone, usually the surviving spouse, civil partner or nearest relative, must petition the Sheriff Court to be appointed as executor-dative under the rules of intestate succession. See our guide to intestacy in Scotland for how the estate is distributed, and to Scotland's "prior rights" and "legal rights", when there is no will. An executor-dative appointment is usually a more involved process than an executor-nominate application, and larger intestate estates commonly need a solicitor.

How to Apply for Confirmation

1. Establish whether there is a valid will naming an executor (executor-nominate), or apply to the Sheriff Court to be appointed executor-dative if there is no will or no willing executor.
2. Value the whole estate as at the date of death, including bank accounts, property, pensions, shares and personal belongings, without deducting debts or funeral costs at this stage.
3. Complete the confirmation inventory, form C1, listing every asset and its value, and work out whether Inheritance Tax is due, submitting the relevant HMRC account first if it is.
4. Submit the completed inventory, the original will (if any), the correct court fee and, where required, a bond of caution to the Sheriff Court for the area where the deceased lived.
5. Wait for Confirmation to be issued. Complete, straightforward small estate applications are often issued within a few working days; larger or contested estates take longer.
6. Use the Confirmation document, and individual certificates of confirmation where needed, to close accounts, transfer property and distribute the estate to beneficiaries or in line with the will.

Our guide to executor duties sets out the fuller list of responsibilities an executor-nominate or executor-dative takes on, including personal liability for mistakes.

Small Estates: The £36,000 Simplified Procedure

An estate is a "small estate" for Confirmation purposes if the deceased's total money and property came to £36,000 or less. This is a gross figure: debts, funeral expenses and mortgage balances are not deducted when checking whether an estate falls under the threshold. For a small estate, staff at the local Sheriff Clerk's office will, if asked, help prepare the inventory free of charge, and a bond of caution is generally not required. This makes the small estate route considerably cheaper and simpler than applying for a larger estate, where the sheriff clerk cannot assist with the paperwork and legal advice is usually needed. Once a complete small estate inventory, any will and the fee (small estates under a low value pay no fee) are lodged, Confirmation is typically issued within a few working days.

What Confirmation Lets the Executor Do

Confirmation is the proof of authority that asset holders rely on. Once it is granted, the executor can present it, or an extracted certificate of confirmation for a specific asset, to banks and building societies to close accounts, to share registrars to transfer shareholdings into their name or a buyer's, and to pension providers and insurers to release death benefits. Land and buildings are usually transferred separately once Confirmation is obtained, generally with a solicitor's involvement. Confirmation does not itself resolve who ultimately benefits from the estate; that depends on the will, or on the rules of intestate succession, including Scotland's prior rights and legal rights, where there is none. Confirmation only establishes who has the legal authority to gather in and hand over the assets.

How Scotland Differs from England, Wales and Northern Ireland

The word probate has no legal meaning in Scotland. In England and Wales, an executor applies for a grant of probate, or letters of administration if there is no will, from HM Courts and Tribunals Service; see our guide to the probate process for how that route works. Northern Ireland has its own Probate Office of the High Court, granting probate or letters of administration under broadly similar principles to England and Wales. Scotland's Confirmation, by contrast, is granted by the Sheriff Court, uses its own inventory form and terminology (executor-nominate, executor-dative, ingathering), and sits within a distinct body of succession law, principally the Succession (Scotland) Act 1964. A UK-wide estate with assets in more than one nation can need separate grants: Confirmation for the Scottish assets, and probate or letters of administration for assets in England, Wales or Northern Ireland.

This article is general information about Confirmation in Scotland, not legal advice, and it cannot prepare or submit an application on your behalf. Whether you need a solicitor, and how Inheritance Tax affects your application, depends on the size and complexity of the estate. Contact your local Sheriff Clerk's office for a small estate, or take advice from a Scottish solicitor for a larger or contested one.

For the wider picture of wills, probate and inheritance across the UK, see our UK wills and probate hub, part of our broader guide to United Kingdom law.