Certified Copies of the Grant of Probate in the Northern Territory

When the NT Supreme Court issues a Grant of Probate, the executor receives a single sealed, hard-copy original. This document is the legal foundation of all subsequent estate administration — but it cannot be in two places at once. Banks, share registries, the Land Titles Office, and interstate institutions all want to see it. The practical answer is obtaining certified copies, and understanding how the NT system handles this is worth knowing before you begin distributing the document to third parties.

Why the Original Grant Cannot Simply Be Photocopied

A photocopy of the Grant of Probate is not sufficient for most formal institutions. Banks and registries need to be satisfied that the document they are relying on is genuine and has not been revoked. An unseal photocopied document gives them no assurance of either.

The NT Supreme Court issues certified copies — sealed copies of the grant that carry the court's seal and the registrar's signature, confirming the copy is a true reproduction of the original. These certified copies carry the same formal authority for institutional purposes as the original sealed grant itself.

How to Obtain Certified Copies

Certified copies of the Grant of Probate are ordered directly from the NT Supreme Court Civil Registry in Darwin. At the time of writing, the fee structure is:

• $7.25 for the first page of a certified copy
• $1.45 for each additional page

The grant document itself is typically several pages long. A certified copy of a three-page grant would cost approximately $10.15. These fees are subject to the NT's annual indexation under the Monetary Units Act 2018 (NT) — verify the current amounts at the registry before ordering.

You can request certified copies:

• At collection when you pick up the original sealed grant from the Civil Registry in Darwin
• By subsequent request by contacting the Probate Registry and making payment via the court's Electronic Payment Form

If you are administering the estate remotely from interstate, the registry can mail certified copies once payment is confirmed. Given the NT's geography, remote executors should factor mail delivery times into their administration timeline.

How Many Certified Copies Do You Need?

Order more than you think you need. The main institutions that will want to see the grant include:

• Each bank where the deceased held an account (including term deposits and mortgage accounts)
• Each share registry (for listed shares — ASX securities are often held through multiple registries)
• The NT Land Titles Office (for real property transfers)
• Australian shares managed through a broker or financial planner
• Superannuation funds (though they may accept a standard photocopy depending on their internal procedures)
• Life insurance companies where the estate is the named beneficiary
• The ATO, when applying for the estate's Tax File Number

A typical estate involving a home, a bank account, and modest share holdings might need four to six certified copies. Larger estates with properties in multiple states, multiple financial institutions, or complex asset structures may need eight or more.

It is significantly less disruptive to order eight copies upfront than to wait two weeks for additional copies while a bank has frozen the grant application and a share registry is waiting on you.

When Institutions Refuse Certified Copies and Demand the Original

Most major Australian institutions — the big four banks, major share registries, the NT Land Titles Office — accept certified copies of the grant. However, some smaller or interstate institutions, particularly older share registries or private trustee companies, may insist on inspecting the original sealed document. They typically want to inspect and return it rather than retain it permanently.

If an institution demands the original, arrange a time to present it in person or by insured registered post (never standard post for an irreplaceable legal document). Confirm in writing before sending that the institution will return the original within a specified timeframe.

Do not surrender the original grant to any institution that claims they need to retain it. The original must ultimately be returned to the executor.

Interstate and Overseas Institutions

When the deceased held assets in another Australian state or territory, those institutions typically accept the NT Grant of Probate, including certified copies, without requiring the grant to be resealed in their own jurisdiction. The grant is an Australian court document and recognised across jurisdictions for most practical purposes.

If the deceased held assets in a foreign country, the foreign institution may require the NT grant to be:

• Apostilled — a form of international certification recognised under the Hague Convention, obtained through the NT Department of the Attorney-General and Justice
• Resealed in the foreign jurisdiction's own court system

These requirements vary by country. Seek specific advice from a solicitor or from the institution's international estate team before attempting to act on foreign assets with a domestic grant only.

Collecting the Original Grant

The sealed original Grant of Probate must be collected in person from the Supreme Court Civil Registry in Darwin. It cannot be emailed or posted by the registry to the executor.

For remote executors who cannot travel to Darwin, two options exist:

• Nominating an authorised representative (a solicitor or trusted person in Darwin) to collect the grant on your behalf using a written authority
• Engaging a Darwin-based solicitor to handle the collection and scanning of the grant for your records before mailing it to you

This physical collection requirement is one of the more significant friction points for interstate executors. Factor it into your timeline planning early.

For the complete NT probate workflow — from publishing the Notice of Intended Application to collecting the grant and completing distribution — see the Northern Territory Probate Process Guide.

See more Northern Territory guides →