South Australia Probate: Step-by-Step Process Guide

When a real estate agent tells you that your late parent's home cannot be listed for sale until the title is transferred out of their name, you've just discovered why probate exists. A grant of probate is the Supreme Court of South Australia's formal recognition that the will is valid and that you, as executor, have legal authority to deal with the estate's assets. Without it, banks freeze accounts above certain limits, Land Services SA won't register a property transfer, and beneficiaries are left waiting.

South Australia's probate landscape changed dramatically on 1 January 2025 when the Succession Act 2023 (SA) came into force, replacing three statutes that had governed estates for over a century. At the same time, the Courts Administration Authority moved all applications to the mandatory CourtSA digital portal. If you're applying now, you're working within an entirely new framework.

When is probate actually required?

Not every deceased estate needs a formal court grant. Before you start preparing a CourtSA application, you need to check whether the estate qualifies for a simpler route.

Joint tenancy: If real property was held as joint tenants — which is how most couples hold their home — the property passes automatically to the surviving owner by survivorship. No probate needed. The survivor simply lodges an "Application to Register Death by Survivor" (Form DOC) with Land Services SA accompanied by the death certificate.

Solely owned or tenants-in-common real estate: If the deceased owned real property in their sole name, or as a tenant in common (each person owns a distinct share), probate is mandatory. The title cannot move without it.

Bank accounts: Financial institutions set their own internal thresholds for releasing funds without a grant. BankSA requires probate if the deceased held $50,000 or more. The Commonwealth Bank and ANZ typically require a grant if solely held accounts exceed $100,000. If bank balances are small, informal release via a deceased estate declaration may be available — but the bank will tell you their policy.

Small estates: Under Section 73 of the Succession Act 2023, an estate worth $100,000 or less with no real property can be administered by the Public Trustee without a Supreme Court application at all. Under Section 100, any institution holding $15,000 or less in cash or personal property belonging to the deceased may transfer it directly to a surviving spouse, domestic partner, or child without requiring a grant.

If the estate contains real property in the deceased's sole name or as a tenant in common, skip straight to the probate application. There is no workaround.

The CourtSA probate application, step by step

The application is filed entirely through the CourtSA online portal, governed by Chapter 25 of the Uniform Civil Rules 2020. Here is the sequence.

Step 1: Obtain the death certificate

Register the death with Consumer and Business Services (CBS) — Births, Deaths and Marriages to get the official death certificate. This document is required for every subsequent step: the CourtSA application, bank dealings, and property transfers. Once you have it, consider using the Australian Death Notification Service to notify multiple financial institutions simultaneously.

Step 2: Locate the original will

You must produce the original, physically signed will. A photocopy is insufficient unless you make a separate costly application to the court to prove a copy. Under Section 48 of the Succession Act 2023, beneficiaries and family members have a legal right to inspect the will — be proactive about sharing it to prevent early disputes.

One critical warning: never remove the staple or binding from the original will to scan it. Even a single staple hole implies pages may have been removed or added, which triggers an automatic requisition from the Probate Registry and a requirement for costly explanatory affidavits.

Step 3: Value the estate assets

You must prepare a Statement of Assets and Liabilities reflecting all asset values as of the exact date of death — not the date of application. For real property, the value must come from the Valuer General (shown on a council rates notice) or a licensed property valuer. A personal estimate will be rejected. Bank accounts, superannuation held in the estate, and other assets must also be itemised. Post-death funeral expenses are excluded from this inventory.

Step 4: Verify your identity (100-point check)

Personal applicants must complete a 100-point identity check with an authorised witness — a Justice of the Peace, non-probationary police officer, notary public, or Commissioner for taking affidavits. You need Category A documents (passport or birth certificate) plus supporting Category B documents (driver's licence, rates notice). All documents must show the same legal name and residential address. The witness must sign a Certificate of Identity, and certified copies of your ID are stapled to it.

Step 5: Mark the will

Rule 356.5 of the Uniform Civil Rules 2020 requires the original will to be "marked" — you and your authorised witness must sign the reverse side of the last page. Do this at the same time as the identity check.

Step 6: File digitally through CourtSA, then post the original will

Log in to your CourtSA account and complete the step-by-step questionnaire. Upload PDF scans of the death certificate, the marked original will (scanned as a single continuous document without removing staples), the Certificate of Identity, and the asset and liability inventory. Pay the filing fee by credit card.

Here is the part that catches many executors off guard: paying the online fee does not start the court's review. CourtSA generates a unique PROB file number and an "Original Will Coversheet." You print that coversheet, attach it to the outside of an A4 envelope, and place the original will and Certificate of Identity inside — unfolded and flat. That envelope must be physically delivered to the Probate Registry at the Sir Samuel Way Building, 241–259 Victoria Square, Adelaide, either in person or by registered post. The registry will not evaluate your application until the physical documents arrive and are matched to the digital file.

Step 7: Wait for the grant or respond to requisitions

The earliest an application can be lodged is 28 days after death. Once the physical documents reach the registry, a probate examiner reviews the file. If there are errors or omissions, they issue a "requisition" by email — a formal demand for correction. Requisitions are the most common cause of delay. Common triggers include name discrepancies between the death certificate and the will, unaddressed co-executors, and asset valuation issues. Responding correctly requires careful attention to the specific rule cited.

After the grant is issued

Once the Supreme Court issues the grant, it arrives as a digital document. You can obtain sealed copies for use with banks and other institutions.

With real property, the next step is lodging a Transmission Application (Form TA) with Land Services SA alongside the grant and payment of the registration fee. This transfers title from the deceased into the executor's name. Land Services SA requires Verification of Identity (VOI) and Verification of Authority (VOA) documentation — certified copies of your driver's licence and utility bills showing your address.

Before distributing the estate to beneficiaries, pay all debts and liabilities in priority order. Section 81 of the Succession Act 2023 requires distribution "as soon as practicable," and Section 91 creates personal liability for executors who cause financial loss through delay.

For estates involving superannuation, note that super generally sits outside the estate and is paid directly by the fund trustee to nominated beneficiaries — it doesn't pass through probate at all unless directed to the estate.

Getting this right without paying a lawyer $3,000+

With Adelaide's median property prices, most home-owning estates exceed the $500,000 threshold, meaning the court fee alone is $2,628. Add a fixed-fee legal service starting at $1,999 on top of that, and you're depleting the estate by more than $4,600 for paperwork that an organised executor can handle themselves.

The South Australia Probate Process Guide at /au/south-australia/probate/ walks through every step in the sequence above — including CourtSA-specific checklists, the statement of assets and liabilities template, bank release scripts for each major institution, and the Land Services SA transmission application walkthrough. It's built around the current Succession Act 2023 and Uniform Civil Rules 2020, so you're not working from outdated information.

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