Probate Registry South Australia: How to File via CourtSA

South Australia's Probate Registry is not a building you walk into with a stack of paperwork. Since the introduction of mandatory electronic lodgement, every probate application in South Australia must begin online through the CourtSA digital portal — and the Uniform Civil Rules 2020 govern exactly how every document must be prepared, marked, and physically lodged before a Grant of Probate will issue.

Most executors underestimate the procedural precision required. A single error — a staple removed for scanning, a will that is folded, an identity check that uses the wrong document category — generates a formal requisition from the court that delays the grant by weeks. Here is the complete picture of how the system works.

When Probate Is Actually Required

Before filing anything, an executor must determine whether probate is needed at all. Not every estate requires a formal court application.

Assets that pass by survivorship — such as a jointly owned home held as joint tenants — transfer automatically to the surviving owner and fall entirely outside the probate process. Bank accounts with nominated beneficiaries, superannuation paid to a binding death benefit nomination, and life insurance policies with named beneficiaries are also excluded.

The Succession Act 2023 (SA), which came into force on 1 January 2025, provides a statutory carve-out that allows banks and institutions holding $15,000 or less in cash to release funds directly to a surviving spouse, domestic partner, or child without any grant of probate. Many banks also maintain higher internal discretionary thresholds — sometimes $50,000 to over $100,000 — where they will release funds on production of the death certificate, the will, and a signed indemnity.

However, if the estate includes real property held solely in the deceased's name, or financial assets exceeding institutional thresholds, a Grant of Probate (where there is a will) or Letters of Administration (where there is not) is legally mandatory. The South Australian Land Registry will not register a transfer of title without it.

Navigating the CourtSA Electronic Filing Process

The starting point for any probate application is the CourtSA portal. The executor must create an account, then open a new matter under the probate jurisdiction. CourtSA requires every document to be uploaded as a separate PDF — a single combined file will not be accepted.

The core documents required under Chapter 25 of the Uniform Civil Rules 2020 are:

• The original will (or certified copy with explanation if the original cannot be located)
• Any codicils that have not been superseded
• The original death certificate
• A Statement of Assets and Liabilities, with all assets valued at date of death

The Statement of Assets and Liabilities is the document that causes the most difficulty. Every South Australian asset — real estate, bank accounts, shares, vehicles, personal property — must be described precisely with its date-of-death value. Jointly held assets must be explicitly excluded from the statement. Liabilities must be listed separately (mortgages, credit cards, tax obligations). An estimate is not acceptable; you need actual valuations and bank balances.

After uploading everything and paying the scaled court filing fee online by credit card, CourtSA generates a printed Original Will Coversheet. This coversheet must be affixed to the outside of the envelope used for physical lodgement.

The Physical Lodgement Requirements Under the Uniform Civil Rules 2020

Here is where electronic filing meets physical reality — and where self-represented applicants most often go wrong.

Despite the electronic filing, the original will and the original death certificate must be physically lodged at the Probate Registry by appointment. The rules for how the original will is handled are rigid:

Marking the Will (Rule 356.5): Before physical lodgement, the applicant and an authorised witness must sign on the reverse side of the last page of the original will to "mark" it. The authorised witness is the same class of person who would authorise an identity check: a Justice of the Peace, lawyer, or police officer. This marking connects the physical document to the electronic application.

Handling the Will: The original will must be placed in an A4 envelope with the CourtSA coversheet affixed to the outside. Crucially:

• The will cannot be folded
• The original staples must not be removed
• Do not punch holes in the will for any reason

These requirements exist because the Probate Registry needs to confirm the physical document matches the digital copy. Any alteration to the original — including removing staples to scan individual pages — raises questions about authenticity that can delay or derail the application.

Identity Verification (Rule 351.8): The executor must attend the registry and present 100 points of identification. The identification must be verified before an authorised person — a Justice of the Peace, notary public, or police officer (not a probationary constable). The verified Certificate of Identity must also be physically lodged.

The 100-point check cannot be done with just a driver's licence. You need to combine Category A documents (birth certificate, passport) and Category B documents (driver's licence, Medicare card, utility bills) to reach 100 points, and all documents must reflect the same name.

Current Probate Fees

Court filing fees for probate in South Australia scale by estate value (2024/2025 rates, verify current amount via the Supreme Court website):

These are court filing fees only. Solicitor costs for straightforward probate applications run from $2,500 to $8,000 depending on complexity. For complex estates, that is often money well spent — a requisition caused by procedural error can add weeks to the process and require an executor to return to the court multiple times.

What Happens When the Registry Sends a Requisition

A requisition is a formal notice from the Probate Registry stating that your application contains errors or omissions and must be corrected before the grant issues. Common causes include:

• Statement of Assets and Liabilities with missing or insufficiently precise values
• Documents uploaded in the wrong format or combined into a single file
• Certificate of Identity using the wrong document categories
• Original will that has been stapled, folded, or otherwise altered from its original state
• Marking of the will performed by a witness who does not qualify under Rule 356.5

Responding to a requisition requires amending the application, potentially re-executing documents, and resubmitting — sometimes with another physical appointment. The grant processing time from an error-free application is typically around four weeks. Requisitions can extend this by months.

Public Trustee as an Alternative

If the estate is simple and valued at $100,000 or less with no real property, the Public Trustee of South Australia has the power to administer the estate without any Supreme Court application at all. The Public Trustee can act simply by publishing a notice in the Government Gazette. This route avoids CourtSA entirely, but comes with the Public Trustee's commission structure — 4.4% on the first $200,000 of estate value — which on a $100,000 estate represents $4,400 before other charges.

For some families, particularly where the executor lacks the time or technical confidence to navigate CourtSA, that cost is worth paying. For others, the DIY route is manageable with the right preparation.

The Succession Act 2023 Changed the Rules

Any guide, website, or forum post about South Australian probate that predates 1 January 2025 is based on repealed legislation. The Administration and Probate Act 1919, the Inheritance (Family Provision) Act 1972, and the Wills Act 1936 were all consolidated into the Succession Act 2023 (SA). Significant changes include new executor liability provisions, updated intestacy distributions, and expanded rights to inspect a will before probate is granted.

Executors relying on pre-2025 sources risk making distribution decisions based on rules that no longer apply — particularly around who can challenge a will and the timing of the six-month family provision window.

The South Australia Estate Settlement Guide covers the full estate administration process under the Succession Act 2023, including the CourtSA workflow, institutional bank thresholds, and the estate distribution sequence that protects executors from personal liability.

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