Probate or Letters of Administration - A "What Do I Do" Guide

The passing of a loved one is never an easy thing. As time passes, after a person dies, you begin to ask yourself “What do I do now?”

Common questions that people ask themselves are:

• What happens to our home?
• What happens to our bank accounts?
• What about the insurance policies?
• How am I going to support myself and my children now?

You might approach HDB (Housing and Development Board), or the bank, or insurance companies seeking answers. More often than not, they will tell you one thing:

We cannot do anything until you have a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration.

And you are left with “Huh? What is that?”

What is a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration?

When a person passes, for you to access their personal details of their assets, you’ll need some form of legal authority.

A Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration gives you that Authority.

A Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration are Court orders that give you the authority to get access to a deceased person’s assets, or the deceased’s money, and subsequently distribute it to the deceased’s family or loved ones. The person’s assets are collectively known as an “Estate”. The process of probate involves obtaining either a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration from the Family Court, which legally recognises an individual as the executor to facilitate the distribution of the deceased’s estate.

You do not need both the Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration to distribute an estate.

The section below will help you determine which one you need.

• Grant of Probate

  A Grant of Probate is needed when a person has passed on leaving behind a Will.

  Where there is a Will, the deceased person’s estate is distributed in accordance with the wishes of the deceased, i.e. the terms that are set out in the Will.

Follow this step-by-step checklist to navigate the Probate process effortlessly! We also included instructions to locate a Will and the necessary Court documents that will be needed for a smooth process ahead.

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The checklist provides step-by-step instructions to navigate the Probate process effortlessly - including instructions on how to locate a Will, and what documents to prepare for a smooth application.

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• Letters of Administration

  A Letters of Administration is needed when a person has passed on intestate, meaning he or she did not leave a Will.

  Where there is no Will, the entire estate is distributed in accordance with the law of intestate succession, where there is a priority based on your relationship with the deceased (which is normally the surviving spouse and child/children, or surviving parents where applicable). This is when the Intestate Succession Act applies.

For example,

A husband has passed on, leaving behind his wife and no children. His whole estate will be given to his wife, purely based on the intestate succession act.

Or,

A husband has passed on leaving behind his wife and 2 children. His wife will inherit 50% of his whole estate. His 2 children will split the remaining 50% in equal shares, meaning 25% of the whole estate each.

There are other scenarios of intestate succession where a person has passed on intestate and leaves no surviving spouse and children. Contact us to see whether you have a claim to his estate. All we need are a few details and we will do the rest for you!

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Along with instructions on locating a Will, our Checklist includes diagrams illustrating the beneficiaries of the estate in order of priority under the Intestate Succession Act for better clarity.

This checklist also includes a list of required documents that must be submitted to apply for Letters of Administration.

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How do I go about looking for a Will?

Usually, a person who has made his or her own Will, will inform a loved one (normally a family member), that he or she has made one.

However, if you are unsure, here is what you can do:

• Look through the person’s personal belongings and effects. People will usually keep all their important documents together.
• Speak to the surviving family members to find out whether they have been told of a valid Will involving the deceased’s estate.
• Take out an advertisement in the newspapers if there is a valid will concerning the deceased’s estate (however this can be costly).

If you are still unable to locate a Will, feel free to contact us. We can perform a search of the Will Registry to determine whether a Will has been registered. We are also able to put an advertisement on the Law Society website asking other law firms on whether they have prepared a Will.

[Please note that charges are payable for such searches or advertisements.]

• If you have located a Will, you need a Grant of Probate.
• If you cannot locate a Will, you need a Letters of Administration.

What forms part of the Estate?

Before proceeding with the necessary Court application, it is best practice to determine what assets form part of the estate.

Common types of assets are:

• Properties (HDB flats, private property and even commercial properties)
• Bank accounts
• Insurance policies
• Shares

Before moving on, let’s look at each individual asset and see how they are held.

• Properties

  For example,

  Your husband and you are the joint tenants of a HDB. Your husband passes away. You do not need a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration. HDB flats will automatically belong to you because the Intestate Succession Act applies here. This is known as survivorship.

  In such a scenario, you should inform HDB to transfer the flat ownership to you.

  However, if the deceased was Muslim and lived in Singapore, the branch of the Islamic law that regulates inheritance under The Administration of Muslim Law Act, and administered by the Syariah Court, would apply instead.

  In this case, the individual with the largest number of shares in the estate, according to the Inheritance Certificate, would be the one to file for the Grant of Letters of Administration and run the estate.

  You can read more about the HDB inheritance process when a person dies on the HDB website here.

  On the other hand, if the property is held in your husband’s sole name, you do need a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration.

• Bank Accounts

  Similarly, a bank account that is held in joint names will pass on to the survivor automatically. You do not need a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration, as the Intestate Succession Act applies here.

  Bank accounts that are held in sole names do need a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration.

• Insurance Policies

  For insurance policies, if a person has made nominations, you do not need a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration. The insurance companies will distribute the insurance policies in accordance with the nominations of the deceased person.

  If there are no nominations, you do need a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration.

• Shares

  Shares that are held in either private companies or public companies or both. Such shares are usually held in a person’s sole name. You will need a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration to distribute the shares of the deceased person.

  Any asset held in the person’s sole name (sole owner) does form part of the estate. You do need a Grant of Probate or a Letter of Administration.

Check out our article for more information on what forms part of your estate and the importance of Estate Planning in our article here.

What about CPF?

A common misconception is that people think that CPF forms part of the estate. That is not so. CPF is distributed in accordance with nominations made. Where there are no nominations, it will be distributed in accordance with intestacy rules (i.e. intestate succession).

What gets distributed in CPF savings upon a death:

• Savings in Ordinary, Special, Medisave and Retirement Accounts
• Discounted Singtel shares (SDS)
• Unused CPF life premiums

If you pass on without making a CPF nomination,

• Your CPF savings will be distributed by the Public Trustee office to your family. You would not be able to decide on the proportion of which you wish each member of your family to receive.
• It will also take some time, up to 6 months, for the The Public Trustee’s Office to identify the eligibility of such family members to receive your CPF savings.
• An administrative fee will also be charged by the Public Trustee Office and deducted from your CPF savings. So a lesser piece of the pie can then be shared amongst eligible family members.

In the event that you do get married, any prior CPF nominations will be revoked. Hence, it is important to note to make a new CPF nomination after you get married, this will also ensure that your new family nucleus will benefit from your CPF savings.

You can read more about the CPF nomination here.

Alternatively, you can click here to submit your CPF nomination directly.

How do you find out what other assets there are?

The easiest way to determine what assets there are is by looking through the person’s personal belongings and effects. Again, important documents such as bank statements, insurance policies and SGX statements are normally kept together. You may also approach the person’s insurance agent for assistance. You will also need to determine the value of each asset.

However, don’t worry if you are unable to find out what the deceased’s assets are. You may reach out to us, we are able to write to the necessary financial institutions and insurance companies to help you determine what the assets are.

Who should apply for a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration?

Depending on which type of Court order you need will also determine who should apply:

• Grant of Probate

  In a person’s Will, a person(s) is usually named as an Executor. An executor is in charge of executing the Will, i.e. taking out the necessary application and obtaining the legal right to give effect to the Will when the person dies.

  A Will will also name a Trustee. A Trustee is in charge of gathering all the assets and distributing them in accordance with the Will when the person dies.

  It is common that the Executor and Trustee are the same person.

  Hence, the person applying for a Grant of Probate should be the Executor.

• Letters of Administration

  For the purpose of Letters of Administration, a next-of-kin should apply.

For more information on Executors and Administrators, we discuss the Who, What, and Why’s in our article here.

How do I go about getting the Court order?

The Court processes for a Grant of Probate and Letters of Administration are relatively similar. However, there are certain differences in what documents are needed.

Documents needed for a Grant of Probate

To commence an application for a Grant of Probate, you will need the following documents:

• Originating Summons

  A Court document where you are asking the court to grant you powers to distribute an estate.

• Statement

  A Court document setting out the particulars of the executor and the deceased.

• The original Will

  You are required to present the original Will at the Family Justice Court.

• Death certificate

  You can obtain the death certificate at the MyLegacy website.

• Supporting affidavit

  A sworn statement that all the information you have provided is true and to the best of your knowledge.

• Administration oath

  A sworn statement that you will faithfully administer and account for the deceased’s estate.

• Schedule of assets

  A list of the deceased’s assets, including their values, that he or she owned at the time of passing.

Documents needed for a Letter of Administration

To commence a Letters of Administration, you will need the following documents:

• Originating Summons

  A Court document where you are asking the court to grant you powers to distribute the deceased’s estate.

• Statement

  A Court document setting out the particulars of the executor and the deceased.

• Death certificate

  You can obtain the death certificate at the MyLegacy website.

• Supporting affidavit

  A sworn statement that all the information you have provided is true and to the best of your knowledge

• Administration oath

  A sworn statement that you will faithfully administer and account for the deceased’s estate

• Schedule of assets

  A list of assets, including their values, that a person owned at the time of passing

• Renunciation and Consent

  This is an additional document that states where there are persons who have a prior or equal right to the Letters of Administration, you will need them to renounce their right and consent to you making the application.

For example,

Your father has passed away leaving behind your mother and brother. Your mother has a prior right to you as she is the spouse. Your brother has an equal right to you. As your mother wants you to be the one applying, you will need to obtain from both your mother and brother a Renunciation and Consent.

From gaining understanding of the Process of Probate to obtaining the essential Court order for distribution authority, check out our comprehensive article here as we take you through each step of the procedure from start to finish, ensuring clarity and understanding at every stage.

What happens during the Court process?

Here’s a simplified overview of the Court process for a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration in Singapore:

• File your documents

  Once your documents are ready, you may proceed to file them at the Family Justice Court.

• The Court schedules a hearing date

  A hearing will be scheduled. You need to attend the hearing, unless the Court informs you that your application has been granted.

• The Court reviews filed documents

  Upon review, if all your documents are in order, the Court will inform you of the outcome.

• The Court will notify you on when you can collect the Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration

So I have the Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration. What do I do now?

Once you have received the necessary Court order, you should approach the relevant institutions.

You may be required to open an Estate bank account to collect all the monies to be received by the estate prior to distribution. This will depend on what type of assets there are.

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Conclusion

Understanding the significance of a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration is essential in navigating the complex legal process of managing a deceased person’s estate. Whether it involves distributing assets according to the deceased’s wishes or complying with legal regulations, obtaining these documents ensures clarity and legitimacy in handling the affairs of the departed.

Additionally, by comprehending their roles and procedures as discussed in this article, individuals can effectively fulfil their duties as Executors or Administrators, ensuring a smooth transition of assets and providing peace of mind to all involved parties.

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Download our Probate - Letters of Administration Checklist

Click on the FREE DOWNLOAD button below to download our Letters of Administration - A “What Do I Do" Checklist.

The checklist guides you through the process of applying for Letters of Administration in the case where someone has passed without a Will.

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• Multiple Device Compatible
• Check The Boxes to help you as you go down the list

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between Grant of Probate & Letters of Administration?

Grant of Probate and Letters of Administration are two legal documents that authorise a person to deal with the estate of someone who has passed away. The main difference between the two is:

Grant of Probate: This is issued when the deceased person left a valid Will, and the appointed executor named in the Will is applying to administer the estate. The Grant of Probate confirms the executor's authority to distribute the assets according to the terms of the Will.

Letters of Administration: This is issued when the deceased person did not leave a Will (intestate), or the Will is deemed invalid. In this case, an administrator is appointed by the court to manage and distribute the estate according to intestacy laws. The Letters of Administration grants legal authority to the administrator to handle the deceased person's assets to distribute them according to the terms of the Will.

Who becomes the administrator when there is no Will?

When there is no Will, the court will appoint an administrator to manage the estate. This person is typically a close relative of the deceased or another interested party who is willing to take on the responsibilities of handling the estate. The court will prioritise family members in the following order: surviving spouse, children, parents, siblings, other relatives. If no suitable family member is available or willing to serve as administrator, the court may appoint a professional administrator, such as a lawyer or a bank trust department, to handle the estate affairs.

Are there specific criteria for eligibility to apply for a Grant of Probate or a Letters of Administration in Singapore?

Yes, there are specific criteria for eligibility to apply for a Grant of Probate or a Letters of Administration in Singapore. To apply for a Grant of Probate, the deceased must have left a valid Will, and the executor named in the Will is usually the one who applies for the grant. If there is no valid Will or appointed executor, then a next-of-kin or beneficiary may apply for Letters of Administration instead. It is important to follow the legal procedures and requirements set by the Family Courts of Singapore when applying for either a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration.

How long does it typically take to obtain a Grant of Probate vs. a Letters of Administration in Singapore?

The time it takes to obtain a Grant of Probate versus a Letters of Administration in Singapore can vary depending on the complexity of the estate, any potential disputes, and the efficiency of the application process. In general, obtaining a Grant of Probate, which is typically required when there is a valid Will in place, may take around 3 to 6 months or longer, especially if there are complications or challenges involved.

On the other hand, obtaining a Letters of Administration, which is usually necessary when there is no valid Will or an executor cannot or does not wish to act, may also take around 3 to 6 months or more, depending on the circumstances and any issues that arise during the application process.

It's important to note that these timelines are approximates and can be influenced by various factors. It is recommended to seek legal advice or consult with a professional experienced in probate matters for more accurate information based on your specific situation.