Probate fee increases are due to come into effect as early as May 2017. The full extent of the increase is shown in the table below:
| Value of estate (before inheritance tax) £ | Existing fee* £ | New fee £ |
| Up to 5,000 | Nil | Nil |
| 5,001 – 50,000 | 155/215 | Nil |
| 50,001 – 300,000 | 155/215 | 300 |
| 300,001 – 500,000 | 155/215 | 1,000 |
| 500,001 – 1,000,000 | 155/215 | 4,000 |
| 1,000,001 – 1,600,000 | 155/215 | 8,000 |
| 1,600,001 – 2,000,000 | 155/215 | 12,000 |
| Over 2,000,000 | 155/215 | 20,000 |
*£155 for applications via a solicitor, £215 for personal applications
The Ministry of Justice’s response to the original consultation paper notes that it expects “these reforms to probate fees to deliver around £300 million in additional income per year – a substantial contribution to the running costs of HMCTS [Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service].” An earlier attempt to increase HMCTS funding by levying a flat non-means-tested fee on all trail defendants was withdrawn in late 2015 after a public outcry. The hike in probate fees is unlikely to provoke such a response, not least because 58% of estates fall within the £50,000 threshold and will thus face no fee.*£155 for applications via a solicitor, £215 for personal applications
The increased probate fees – effectively 1% on a £2m estate – are a de facto tax (which is not IHT relievable, to add insult to injury). Only 13 out of 813 respondents to the consultation agreed with the scale, but the response document put their minority views first. Hypothecating taxes (real or disguised) to specific areas of expenditure is one of the ways in which the government is heading in its search for extra income.