A deceased estate must be reported to the Master’s Office within 14 days from the date of death or so soon thereafter. It is reported to the Master’s Office that has jurisdiction in the area that the deceased lived. It is usually reported by a family member or the deceased’s next of Kin. Please take your identity document, the deceased’s identity document and death certificate with you.

• A death certificate.
• A certified copy of the deceased’s Identity Document
• A Death Notice
• An inventory
• Next of Kin Affidavit
• Acceptance of Trust
• Acceptance of Master’s directives
• A Letter of Nomination (if there is no Will)
• Declaration of Marriages
• Original Will
• Identity Documents of all beneficiaries / heirs
• Birth certificates if any of the beneficiaries are minor children.
• Certified copy of the deceased’s marriage certificate or divorce order if any.

If there is a Will, the Will specifies who the executor is. When the documents are submitted to the Master for lodgement, provide a letter to the Master together with the Original Will confirming that you are the nominated Executor in terms of the Will and that you require the Letter of Executorship. Once the Master has approved this, you will receive an issued Letter of Executorship giving you all rights and powers bestowed upon an Executor.

If you fail to appoint an executor or if you die without a valid will, the Master will appoint a person competent in law to fulfil the role. This person is known as the executor dative. In the absence of a nominated executor, the Master may ask your family to appoint a family member or professional person to perform the role. If any conflict arises amongst your beneficiaries regarding who should be appointed as executor, keep in mind that your surviving spouse or their representative has first preference.

If the deceased has passed on without leaving a Will in place, the heirs of the estate must collectively nominate an Executor by signing a Nomination Form and providing their signatures to the name they have chosen as executor. If you wish to be the executor, you must obtain a Nomination form and request each heir to provide their signature to the nomination confirming their approval of you being the executor of the estate.  If you fail to obtain the signature of any one of the heirs, you will not be allowed to be appointed as the Executor.

If you are nominated by the heirs as the Executor but one of the heirs has refused to provide you with his/her signature, you must inform the Master of their refusal and the reasons for same. The Master may intervene to establish whether or not the heir has a valid reason for his refusal to consent to your appointment. The Master has a discretion whether or not to uphold the heir’s refusal of consent.

If you are an heir to an estate and you want to object to the nomination of the Executor, you must inform the Master of the High Court by a Letter and Affidavit clearly stipulating the reasons you have taken an objection with the appointment of the executor. Your reasons must be valid and compelling.

• To take control of the deceased’s property
• Deal with objections
• To administer the estate according to the Will of the deceased
• To make administrative decisions that ensure the estate is wound up properly.
• To pay beneficiaries and settle liabilities of the estate.

A Letter of Authority is issued when the value of the estate is less than R 250 000. A Letter of Executorship is issued when the value of the estate is worth R 250 000 or more.

If you do not know the exact value of the estate, you are allowed to estimate the value. You have an opportunity to estimate the value when you complete an inventory for the Master. If the deceased has immovable property – it is more than likely that the value of the estate is already worth more than R 250 000. Policies and pension funds will also have their current values available to you. You may adjust the value of the estate as you discover what assets the deceased has left behind. If you have assumed the value was less than R 250 000.00 and later found assets that increase the value of the estate to more than R 250 000, you can always inform the Master of this and motivate for them to change your letter of Authority to a letter of Executorship.

It is a Notice to Creditors. This advertisement must take place within three months of receipt of the Letter of Executorship. It must be published in the Government Gazette and one local newspaper, on the same day. Its purpose is to notify creditors of the estate and to Inform them that they have 30 days from the date of publication to submit any claims they may have against the estate.

It is the Advertisement of the Liquidation and Distribution Account. Once the Master has approved the Liquidation and Distribution Account, notice of it must be published in the Government Gazette and one local newspaper on the same date. The Notice must inform all interested parties that the Liquidation and Distribution account is available for inspection at the local Magistrate’s Court and the Master’s Office for a period of 21 days. Interested parties have 21 days to submit any objections to the Liquidation and Distribution account if any.

Any property that belongs to the deceased must be transferred to the rightful owner. If the deceased bequeathed the immovable property to a beneficiary, it must be transferred to the beneficiaries’ name. If there is no beneficiary, the property must be sold and transferred. It may not remain in the name of the deceased because it is immovable property that someone must take control of.

An estate late bank account must be opened as soon as there are assets / income in the estate of more than R 1000.00 in the estate.

There could be several reasons for delay when an estate is being wound up. The estate could incur unexpected challenges when dealing with institutes and other beneficiaries. There could be a backlog at the Master’s Office which may also result in delays. Every beneficiary must be understanding of the process and the possibilities they may encounter. However, if a beneficiary is of the belief that there is a delay that is unfounded, prejudicial and /or deliberate by any one of the parties involved in the administration of the estate, the beneficiary must approach the executor. If the executor fails to provide substantial answers and solutions to the problem, the beneficiary has a right to report this conduct to the Master together with the conduct of the executor. The Master must be requested to investigate what the reason for the delay is and order direction in the matter.

Note that an executor may be removed by the Master if he or she administers an estate to the prejudice of any one of the heirs / beneficiaries.

On average an estate may take anything from 6 months up to 18 months to administer and conclude. In some cases, estates may take years to be wound up.

If your loved one’s estate is worth less than R 250 000, it is not necessary for an attorney wind up the estate. It is always advisable to seek legal counsel and assistance, but it is not a requirement. However, if your loved one’s estate is worth R 250 000 or more, the Master will insist that you approach an attorney, your banker, broker or any professional that is qualified to administer an estate.

If a creditor has lodged a claim against the estate that you do not agree with, you must inform the creditor that you reject his / her claim and supply reasons for doing so. You must notify the creditor in writing and via registered post. If the creditor disagrees with you, he or she can institute legal action against the estate.

If a creditor has instituted his claim against the estate after the 30-day Notice period, you may identify whether it is a valid claim or not and whether you accept it. If you do not accept it, you must refer it to the Master who will decide whether the creditor has a valid reason for the delay in their submission and whether or not their claim is valid.

If the Master agrees that the claim is valid and must be included, you must account for the claim accordingly. If you have already drafted your Liquidation and Distribution account but no distribution has taken place, you will have to redraft the L&D account. The costs of redrafting are for the creditor’s account.

If the claim is submitted after a distribution of assets has taken place, the creditor’s claim will be subject to what is left in the estate as he or she may not demand this restitution from any other creditor that has been paid.

The creditor may claim what is owing from the heirs and beneficiaries. It is deemed a valid claim that the heirs have been unjustly enriched with and will have to pay the amount to the creditor. Note that this claim prescribes within three years from the date the heirs and beneficiaries received their inheritance.

If you die without leaving a valid Will in place, your estate will devolve according to the laws of intestate succession. It will be divided equally amongst those that are your natural heirs

If your estate is going to devolve according to the laws of intestate succession, it will first be determined whether you are married and what your marital regime is.

If you are married in community of property, your estate will be divided in half to accommodate for your spouse’s share of 50%. Your half of the estate will then be divided amongst all your natural heirs including your spouse, in equal shares. A spouse however is entitled to R 250 000.00 or a child share (the amount of inheritance), whichever is greater. This means that if your estate is divided by all your heirs in equal portions and the amount to be inherited is R 200 000, your spouse must inherit R 250 000.00 and the remainder will be divided by the rest of the heirs. If the amount to be inherited is R 300 000, your spouse will inherit R 300 000 because it is larger than R 250 000.

If you are married out of community of property, according to any customary laws and have more than one wife, your estate will devolve by dividing the inheritance amongst all the natural heirs in equal portions. If the amount to be inherited is greater than R 250 000.00, your wife / wives will inherit that amount. But if the amount to be inherited is less than R 250 000, your wife/wives must each inherit R 250 000.00 and the remainder will be distributed equally amongst the remaining heirs.

If the estate cannot accommodate for R250 000.00 per wife/wives, they will inherit an equal share together with all the heirs.

A Will can be drafted by anyone who is 16 years and older and who is competent to give evidence in a court of law.

A valid Will must be signed at the end of each page and properly dated.

It must be witnessed by two competent witnesses who are 14 years or older and are independent. Independent means that they are not listed as a beneficiary, heir, or executor in terms of the Will.

The Will must be signed by the testator in the presence of the two witnesses, and witnesses must sign in the presence of the testator confirming that he/she is indeed the signatory of the Will.

The general rule is that anyone who signs a Will as a witness must be independent. If you have signed a Will as a witness and are a beneficiary to the Will, this is grounds for invalidating the Will. However, the Master may use his discretion to allow you to receive your inheritance if you would have inherited irrespective of the Will or not. Meaning, if you are the deceased’s natural heir and would have inherited if there was no Will place.

Yes and No. one of the requirements for a valid Will is that the Will must be properly dated. It is very important that a Will is dated because it indicates when you made the Will and how recent it was. If you have made any other Will during your lifetime, it will be hard to determine which Will precedes the other and which one is valid.

However, if the Master can determine that there was no other Will in place, there are no objections and it is believed to be your true intention, the Master can give effect to the Will. An application must be made to the High Court to declare the Will valid, and the court must be satisfied that the Will was indeed drafted by the testator, who has since died and that it was his true intention that the document be made his Will.

In the event of your passing, your estate must be reported to the Master of the High Court within 14 days of your death. Your estate can be reported by your spouse or, if you have no surviving spouse, it can be reported by your nearest relative or any person who has control of any property belonging to you, or any person who is in possession of your will or a document they believe is your will.

The estate administration process is generally a lengthy and administratively intense process which can take anywhere between six to eight months to several years to complete depending on the complexity of the estate and the state of your affairs upon your passing. Having a clear, concise and valid will which is not open to interpretation will also help to ensure that the winding-up process functions smoothly. Ideally, make sure that your will remains updated and that your loved ones know where the original is held. In addition, keep a filing system of all documentation and information that your executor would need in order to wind up your estate.

A deceased person is liable for tax until the date of death. An income received from the date of death until the finalisation of the estate is tax that must be paid from the estate. It is the duty of the executor to file the tax returns with SARS. It is important that it is filed because SARS must provide a formal deceased Estate Compliance Letter once they are satisfied with that the estate has fulfilled its tax obligations. An executor will not be able to finalise the estate without this.

Yes, you can appoint a member of your family as your executor provided they are over the age of 18 and did not sign as a witness to your will. However, keep in mind that you cannot nominate someone who is insolvent or who is mentally unstable.

Certain assets fall outside of your deceased estate and should therefore not be dealt with in terms of your will. For instance, approved retirement funds do not form part of your deceased estate as they are distributed by the retirement fund trustees in terms of Section 37C of the Pension Funds Act. Further, living annuities where you have nominated a beneficiary will not form part of your estate to the extent that the contributions to the retirement fund qualified as a tax deduction. In addition, if correctly structured, the proceeds of a business assurance and/or key person policy will not form part of your deceased estate.