When a person passes away, everything they owned becomes what is known as their estate. In many cases, the deceased will have left a will directing how they want their estate to be treated and distributed. Depending on the value of the estate, an order from the High Court may be required to confirm the will as the last will and appoint executors to deal with the estate.
The process by which the High Court declares a will to be the last will of the deceased person and gives authority to the executors, is called probate.
When is probate required?
Not every estate requires a grant of probate. Until September 2025, if the estate was under $15,000 and did not involve land, probate was not required, so as to not burden the estate with costs.
The threshold of $15,000 was established in 2009, when the median weekly income from all sources in New Zealand was $538 and KiwiSaver had not been established. Nowadays, the median weekly income from all sources has increased by 78.25% to $959 and most New Zealanders hold a KiwiSaver account, so the threshold was well overdue a revisit.
After September 2025, probate is only required where an estate is worth more than $40,000 or includes land assets owned other than jointly (which passes by survivorship). The threshold applies to assets within one financial institution. The change reflects a general increase in asset values across New Zealand, particularly in an average KiwiSaver value of $37,079.
What does this mean
It is hoped that raising the threshold will enable estates to be administered more quickly and cost effectively.
The change in probate threshold will also apply where there is no will. If there is no will the estate does not pass to the government, or Pubic Trust, which are common myths.
If someone dies without a will and there are assets in any one institution over $40,000 or the deceased person owned land other than jointly (which passes by survivorship) there is a hierarchy as to who can apply for Letters of Administration to enable administration of the estate. It is the same hierarchy, which starts with the deceased person’s spouse or partner, children followed by parents and siblings that sets out who receives the estate assets.
Richard Allen and Shiree Mackay each have over 30 years’ experience in estate law and welcome enquiries to see if we can help families at a difficult time.
