Deceased estate administration in Victoria

Begin with what can be protected: find and secure any original will or codicil, arrange the death certificate, lock and insure vacant property, safeguard valuables, and make an initial list of accounts and obligations. Keep dated notes about who holds keys, records or funds. Do not use an estate account as a personal account or assume authority to sell simply because you are a relative.

Read the will to identify the executor; check whether a later document exists. If there is no will capable of admission, the proposed administrator's entitlement must be established. The probate guide and administration guide distinguish the three grant pathways. Ask each asset holder what evidence it requires. The Supreme Court explains that not every estate needs a grant, although Victorian land held solely or as tenant in common does.

Protective work, such as maintaining insurance and identifying liabilities, need not be postponed until the Court issues a grant. Collecting or transferring an asset is a different question: the holder or transaction may require formal authority. Where competing people claim to represent the estate, obtain advice before disposing of property.

Build an inventory that distinguishes assets held by the deceased alone, shares held as tenant in common, jointly held assets, nominated benefits and possible trust assets. Ask banks, share registries, insurers, employers and aged-care providers for statements and their deceased-estate requirements. Record values at the relevant date, later receipts, and which assets actually become part of the estate. A list of personal effects should include items whose ownership or intended recipient might be disputed.

• Assets: bank accounts, shares, land, vehicles, refunds, business interests, personal property and debts owed to the deceased.
• Liabilities: mortgages, credit cards, personal loans, utilities, tax, funeral and administration expenses, and disputed claims.
• Practical protections: renew insurance, maintain essential property, secure digital records, prevent unauthorised access and record every estate payment.
• Authority: check the grant requirement separately for each institution and each dealing; keep copies of correspondence and receipts.

Once the grant is available where required, send the evidence requested by each holder, reconcile the funds received, and decide whether an asset should be retained, sold or transferred under the will or intestacy rules. Realisation decisions should consider costs, tax, market risk, beneficiary interests and any conflict. A person with an interest in buying an estate asset should not quietly set their own price.

First inspect the title. If joint proprietors held land as joint tenants, the surviving proprietor's application records the survivorship; it is not an application by the executor to transmit the deceased's separate interest. If the deceased owned the land solely or as a tenant in common, the legal personal representative normally needs a grant and lodges a transmission or application by legal personal representative before a sale or transfer can be completed. Land Use Victoria's lodgement guidance explains the registry process and recommends professional assistance with land dealings.

Then decide whether the land is to be sold to fund debts or distribution, transferred to a person entitled, or retained pending a decision. Consider insurance, rates, mortgage payments, occupancy and a fair valuation in the meantime. A joint proprietor's survivorship is not itself a testamentary gift; an executor should not include the whole jointly held property in the distributable estate without examining title and ownership.

Duty is not automatically waived

The State Revenue Office's deceased-estate guidance explains that a transfer made strictly in accordance with a will may qualify for an exemption under section 42 of the Duties Act 2000 (Vic). Intestacy, family provision orders, life interests, testamentary trusts and deviations from entitlement can require complex assessment and evidence. Check the specific transfer before declaring it exempt; a sale to a third party is a different transaction again.

Land tax is a separate issue from transfer duty. Notify the SRO about ownership and estate circumstances as required and check whether any existing exemption or concession continues or changes while the estate holds the land. The SRO's deceased-estate land-tax guidance addresses this; do not assume a permanent principal-residence exemption merely because the deceased lived there.

Australia has no general inheritance tax. That does not remove income tax, capital gains tax or other obligations. The deceased person's own position to the date of death is separate from income and gains arising while the estate is administered. The ATO explains final individual returns, and its estate trust-return guidance covers post-death estate income.

A final return is required only where the deceased's circumstances meet the ATO's rules; earlier years may also need attention. An estate trust return may be needed where the estate earns income, depending on the income year and circumstances. A property or share sale may raise CGT questions, including acquisition dates, main-residence conditions and the identity of the recipient. Do not distribute all cash on the assumption that death extinguished tax liabilities.

Maintain bank records, invoices, valuations, distribution records and evidence supporting tax positions. There is no blanket rule that every executor must retain every estate record for seven years: retention depends on tax, legal, professional and risk circumstances. Seek accounting or tax advice where the estate has business assets, trusts, investment income, property sales or uncertain historical records. The ATO's completion guidance should be considered before final distribution.

List known creditors, ask for statements, verify disputed liabilities and make provision for tax and administration expenses. The existence of a bill does not automatically mean the estate owes the amount asserted. Equally, a family member should not receive their share ahead of a valid creditor merely because they ask. If liabilities may exceed assets, obtain advice on an insolvent estate before preferring anyone or distributing to beneficiaries.

Keep an account of assets at the start, money received, expenses paid, assets realised or transferred, and the proposed balance. Section 28 of the Administration and Probate Act 1958 addresses inventories and accounts when lawfully required. What information a particular beneficiary may demand depends on their interest and circumstances; clear factual updates nevertheless help explain what has happened and what remains unresolved.

A caveat, disputed debt, will challenge or family provision claim may alter the plan. Under section 99 of the Act, a family provision application must generally be brought within six months after the grant, subject to the Court's extension power; an extension application must precede final distribution. This is not an automatic safe-to-distribute date. Consider known or foreshadowed claims, taxes, creditor risk and adequate reserves before making even an interim distribution.

Before an interim payment, check that the recipient's entitlement is clear and enough remains to meet known and reasonably foreseeable liabilities. Record the basis of any reserve, payments already made and the information given to beneficiaries. Do not use a distribution as an informal way to settle a conflict or change a will's terms without proper authority and advice.

For final distribution, reconcile bank balances and asset sales with the inventory, settle or provide for tax and creditors, account for earlier advances and determine the correct shares under the will or intestacy rules. Provide appropriate accounts and retain records for applicable tax, legal, professional and risk needs. A completed estate should have an intelligible trail from opening assets to final payments.

The executor guide explains personal risk, conflicts and communication. If land is still held, consider the conveyancing and SRO position before calling the administration complete.

• Protection and enquiry: locate the will, secure assets, identify representatives and ask holders what authority they need.
• Authority and collection: seek the appropriate grant if required, deal with requisitions and obtain institution statements and estate funds.
• Administration: address property, tax, claims, liabilities, valuation and beneficiary communication; make an interim payment only if safe.
• Completion: finalise returns and debts, prepare accounts, distribute lawfully and close the estate with appropriate records.

These phases often overlap. A simple release by one institution and a property sale involving a claim will not move at the same pace. Court processing, asset-holder requirements, tax, disputes and beneficiaries can all change the order. Give stakeholders a status update based on completed and outstanding tasks rather than an invented completion date.

Assistance can be limited to a grant decision, a land or duty question, beneficiary accounts, tax coordination or an unresolved claim, or extend across administration where appropriate. You do not need to wait until the grant is issued to ask how to protect assets. The enquiry page lets you describe the current stage and the question that needs an answer.