Pre-lodgement checklist for Irish probate

Irish probate has six pre-lodgement steps that have to be complete, in roughly this order, before the papers can be submitted to the Dublin Probate Office or to one of the 14 District Probate Registries. Skipping or parallelising some steps is possible; skipping others will simply cause the application to be rejected at lodgement and returned, costing weeks. This page sets out the sequence most personal applicants should follow and the realistic turnaround for each step.

1. Order certified copies of the death certificate

Order at least five certified copies of the death certificate from the General Register Office or the relevant Superintendent Registrar. Each certified copy costs €20. You need certified copies because institutions will generally not accept a photocopy, and they typically retain their copy rather than returning it.

Five copies is the working minimum. Four goes to the major financial institutions the deceased dealt with (bank, pension provider, life-insurance provider, An Post or other savings), one stays with the estate papers, and any additional copies are ordered if further institutions come to light during asset gathering. Ordering more than the minimum at the outset is cheaper than ordering them one at a time later.

Turnaround from the General Register Office is typically 5 to 10 working days for posted copies.

2. Locate the original will

The original will, if one exists, must be found and physically held by whoever is going to apply for probate. A photocopy is not acceptable to the Probate Office except in specific cases where the original is proven lost and a solicitor has handled the substitute-admission procedure.

The original will is typically in one of four places: with the deceased's solicitor (most common), in the deceased's own home in a document folder or a fireproof box, in a safe deposit box at a bank (rare now, since most Irish banks stopped offering safe deposit facilities), or occasionally at the Probate Office itself if the deceased had lodged it there for safekeeping.

If no original will can be found after a thorough search, the estate may still be intestate even if the family believe a will existed, and the intestacy rules under the Succession Act 1965 apply. A solicitor is usually essential in that situation.

3. Register for Revenue myAccount (or check it works)

The SA2 Statement of Affairs is filed online through Revenue myAccount, so the person who is going to apply for probate needs myAccount access in their own name (not the deceased's name). If the applicant is not already registered, they should register now: the Revenue security code arrives by post within 5 to 10 working days of registering, and the account is not usable until the code is entered.

If the applicant already has myAccount, they should log in and confirm the login still works before starting the SA2. Password resets take 3 to 5 working days, and a locked account discovered mid-SA2 can push the timeline back meaningfully.

4. Notify each Irish institution the deceased dealt with

Every Irish institution the deceased held an account, policy, investment, or obligation with should be notified of the death in writing, with a certified copy of the death certificate enclosed. Standard institutions to notify include the deceased's bank or banks, any credit union, An Post State Savings, any pension provider, any life insurance or investment provider, Revenue (separately from the SA2), the Department of Social Protection if the deceased was receiving a state pension, the RTB if the deceased was a residential landlord, each utility company the deceased was a customer of, and the local Motor Tax Office if the deceased owned a vehicle.

The purpose of this step is twofold: it freezes the accounts (most institutions freeze a sole-name account on notification of death, which protects the estate), and it triggers the date-of-death balance confirmation letter that each institution will send back. That letter is the document you use to populate the SA2, not the current balance shown on any statement.

The ProbatePack €229 Preparation Pack generates personalised letters for 25 common Irish institutions in one go. The Preparation Pack additionally includes an Asset Tracker that records which institution responded and when.

5. Collect the written date-of-death balance confirmations

Each institution responds in writing, typically 2 to 4 weeks after the notification letter is received, with a confirmation of the balance, value, or amount held at the date of death. This is the figure that goes on the SA2: not the balance today, not the balance at probate, but specifically the date-of-death figure.

Where an institution takes longer than 4 weeks, a follow-up letter usually prompts a response within another 10 to 14 days. Phone-call follow-ups are generally less effective than a written follow-up; the institution's bereavement team often handles correspondence in a queued-paper process rather than a call-handler process.

6. Commission property valuations

Any property in the estate needs a formal valuation as at the date of death, signed by an estate agent or a chartered surveyor. Cost is typically €200 to €400 per property for a standard residential valuation, and more for agricultural land, stud-farm property, commercial premises, or property with complicated title or development potential.

The valuation should come from an agent familiar with the specific local market: a Dublin 4 agent's valuation of a Sligo property is not defensible. For counties with distinct sub-markets (West Cork vs. Cork City, Greystones vs. west Wicklow), matching the agent to the sub-market matters for the valuation's defensibility against any later Revenue query.

After the checklist

With all six steps complete, the SA2 can be filed on Revenue myAccount. Once Revenue returns the Notice of Acknowledgement (Probate), the probate application itself can be lodged with the Dublin Probate Office or the relevant District Probate Registry.

The SA2 form explained page covers what goes on the Revenue return in detail. The Dublin Probate Office and District Probate Registries pages cover the lodgement step itself.

Personal applicants who want the full preparation kit (the pre-filled SA2 form, the affidavit template, the Beneficiary List, the asset valuation tracker, and the step-by-step walkthrough) can get it in the Preparation Pack at €229. The Readiness Check at €79 is the lighter starting point: a 10-minute questionnaire that tells you honestly whether the estate is a realistic personal application or whether a solicitor is the right call from the start.