Applying for Confirmation in Scotland

Banks, pension providers and the Registers of Scotland will not release larger sums or deal with a house until they see Confirmation. Getting it right first time matters, because an application that is returned by the court goes back into the queue. We apply for Confirmation for families every week, and we know what each sheriff court expects.

What we do

• Write to every bank, pension provider, insurer and investment company for date of death values
• Obtain a market valuation of any house and the formal description from the title
• Check whether the estate is an excepted estate, or whether a full inheritance tax account is needed
• Prepare the inventory, form C1, and the declaration for you to sign
• Arrange payment of any inheritance tax, including through HMRC's Direct Payment Scheme
• Lodge the application with the sheriff court for the area where the person lived
• Order enough certificates of Confirmation to deal with every asset at once

How it works

1. Free first appointment. We talk through the estate, the will and your role as executor, and give you a written estimate before any work starts.
2. We gather the information. You pass us the papers you have, and we chase everything else.
3. You check and sign. We explain the inventory line by line before you sign it.
4. We lodge and follow up. We deal with the court and HMRC until Confirmation is granted.

If there is no will

Where there is no will, someone first has to be appointed executor-dative by the sheriff court, and a bond of caution is usually needed. We handle the petition and the bond as part of the same service. See our page on estates with no will.

Confirmation only, or the whole executry

Some executors want us to obtain Confirmation and then collect in and pay out the estate themselves. Others prefer us to deal with everything. Both are fine. If you want the full service, see estate administration. If the estate is worth £36,000 or less, the small estate procedure is usually quicker and cheaper.