Family & Estate Administration
Named as Executor? Probate Support, Handled with Care
Fixed, transparent fees and patient support through the Family Justice Courts process — working alongside the law practice that prepares your court papers, so the person the deceased trusted with the will is not holding all of it alone.
Being named executor in a will is a duty that arrives at the worst possible time, and it comes with a practical shock. Your appointment comes from the will itself — the court is confirming the deceased's choice, not making it. But until the Family Justice Courts issue a Grant of Probate confirming the will and confirming you, a bank, an insurance officer, CDP or a land authority will generally not deal with you. A bank may release a limited sum towards funeral expenses at its own discretion; beyond that, most executors first hear the words "grant of probate" from a counter staff member who cannot help them any further.
A probate application turns on documents: the death certificate, a certified true copy of the will certified on every page, and a schedule listing the estate's assets and how each one is held. Those are legal papers, and WeCare is not a law firm — they are drafted, certified and filed by the law practice you instruct. What WeCare does is everything around them: gathering what you already have, chasing the banks, the insurers and CDP for the figures the schedule needs, explaining in plain language what each document is for before you sign it, and keeping your side and the law practice's side moving together. Where a matter is contested, or where a legal question about the will itself arises, we say so at the assessment rather than partway through.
Which court order does your situation need?
Both orders do the same job — they give one named person the legal standing to deal with an estate. Which of the two the court issues depends on whether the deceased left a valid will, and on whether the executor it names is able and willing to act.
Grant of Probate
The route on this page. The executor named in the will asks the Family Justice Courts to confirm the will, and to confirm their authority to carry out what it says.
- The deceased chose you — the court is confirming that choice, not making it
- The estate is distributed as the will directs
- Usually the shorter route, because the will has already settled who inherits
Letters of Administration
Where there is no valid will, or the will names no executor who can and will act, the court appoints an administrator instead — chosen by law rather than by the deceased.
- Who may apply is fixed by an order of entitlement, starting with the surviving spouse and children
- Relatives with an equal right to apply must consent or renounce
- A beneficiary under 21 usually means a second administrator, plus sureties for the administration bond or an application to dispense with them
And some estates need neither. Where the estate is worth $50,000 or less and it meets the Public Trustee's criteria, the Public Trustee may be able to administer it without a grant. Assets that pass outside the estate do not wait on a grant either: CPF savings go to the nominees where a CPF nomination was made and to the Public Trustee's Office where it was not, a nominated insurance policy goes to the nominee, and property held in joint tenancy passes to the surviving owner. We check all of that first, at the free assessment, before anyone talks about fees.
Why clients choose WeCare for this
A fixed fee quoted before you commit, with the court's filing fees and the law practice's own fee listed separately so nothing arrives as a surprise later.
The chasing done for you — a bank confirming a balance, an insurer confirming a policy, a co-executor overseas returning a signed document — which is where most of the waiting sits.
Plain language for every document you are asked to sign, so you know what you are swearing to before you swear to it.
An honest read on complexity up front: WeCare is not a law firm and employs no lawyers, so the court papers are drafted and certified by the law practice you instruct, and we tell you at the assessment what your matter is likely to need.
Who this is for
If none of these sound like your situation, say so — a different route probably fits better.
For the person the deceased appointed in their will, who now needs the court to confirm that appointment before any bank, insurer or land authority will deal with them.
For a single named executor of an uncontested estate — the situation the Family Justice Courts built their own probate eService around. That route is open where the deceased was a Singapore citizen or permanent resident, was domiciled here, died here, was not of the Muslim faith, and the estate is estimated at not more than $2 million.
For co-executors, often siblings, who have to apply as a group and keep the documents, consents and signatures aligned between them — frequently across time zones.
For anyone quoted more than they can pay while the very estate that would pay for it is still frozen. Ask about instalments at the assessment before deciding anything.
How it works
Four stages, from first conversation to resolution.
We confirm that there is a will, that it names you, and whether the estate needs a court grant at all — some do not — before any fee is discussed.
We collect the death certificate and the will, gather the asset details the schedule has to carry — including how each asset is held — and make sure the optional search of the court's records of caveats and probate applications is run before anything is filed, so an earlier application or a dispute surfaces early rather than late. The certified true copies the court requires are certified by a lawyer.
The law practice you instruct drafts and files the originating application, with the supporting affidavit following within the time the court's rules allow. We keep your side of it moving — the statement a bank has not sent, the signature still overseas, the query nobody has answered — because that is where applications usually stall.
Once the grant is issued and extracted we help you present it to the banks, CDP, the insurers and HDB or the Singapore Land Authority, and we tell you plainly what each of them tends to ask for on top of the grant.
Is your case simple or complex?
Based on objective facts about your situation, not on what you are charged. Read both and see which describes you.
Straightforward
A single named executor, the original will available and undisputed, adult beneficiaries who agree, CPF savings already covered by a nomination, and an estate of Singapore bank accounts and at most one property.
Needs closer handling
A caveat already lodged against the estate, an original will that cannot be found or whose validity is questioned, a co-executor who will not act, assets held outside Singapore, a business interest in the estate, or beneficiaries who disagree about what the will means.
Do you need a lawyer?
No — legal representation is not required. No — the Family Justice Courts state that you do not need a lawyer to represent you when filing for a Grant of Probate, and an executor may apply in person. That is not the whole picture, though, and we would rather you had it now. Singapore law reserves the drawing and preparing of the papers on which a grant is founded to authorised persons, so those papers, and the certified true copies the court requires, are prepared by the law practice you instruct — not by WeCare, which is not a law firm and employs no lawyers. WeCare's fixed fee covers the support around them: the assessment, gathering the asset information, the liaison with banks, insurers and CDP, and keeping everything moving. A contested estate, or a genuine question about the will, means the legal side grows, and we say so at the assessment rather than partway through.
Why families choose WeCare
Accessible care. Unbeatable value.
Losing someone is draining enough without a legal bill you cannot see the bottom of. Our fees for estate matters are fixed, quoted up front, and covered by the same three commitments as everything else we do.
Competitive, Transparent Pricing
We offer competitive, transparent rates across all our service pillars. If you receive a comparable quote from another advisory firm in Singapore, we will do our best to offer you a competitive rate.
Flexible Instalment Plans
Managing cash flow is critical during financial recovery. We offer customizable, interest-free instalment plans, allowing you to pay over time without added financial stress or worry.
Fully Negotiable Fees
Every individual and corporate situation is unique. We are open to discussing and tailoring our service fees directly based on the specific complexity of your case and your current financial capacity.
Had a wonderful experience with Donny. A person with knowledge who helped me step by step with patience. Going through my tough time, his help made the process smooth. Will definitely recommend Donny to anyone who needs his help. Thanks a million bro.
Senior Consultant Donny is very very kind, knowledgeable and sincere — he is like the light in the tunnel. He provides very genuine advice, thinking in your shoes. Someone who truly cares for you.
Questions people ask us
This is the question almost every executor arrives with, and the frustration behind it is fair. Your appointment does come from the will; the court is confirming the deceased's choice, not making it. What the Grant of Probate adds is proof that third parties can rely on. The Probate and Administration Act 1934 governs grants in Singapore, and until the court has confirmed the will and confirmed you, a bank, CDP, an insurer or a land authority will generally not deal with you — they are protecting themselves against releasing an estate to the wrong person, not being obstructive. Once the grant is issued, the same institutions that turned you away can act on it, though most will still have their own forms and checks on top of it.
Fewer than you probably fear, and we will tell you exactly which ones at the assessment so you are not hunting through a house in grief for things nobody needs. Part 24 of the Family Justice Courts Practice Directions 2024 sets out what a non-contentious probate application carries: the death certificate, in the digital form where that is available and a certified true copy where it is not; a certified true copy of the will, certified on every page; and a schedule of assets listing the property in the estate, how each asset is held and what it is worth, which is required for deaths on or after 15 February 2008. A supporting affidavit follows the originating application within 14 days. The certified true copies are prepared by a lawyer, and the original will still has to be presented physically at the Probate Counter for verification shortly after filing. What you bring us is the will and what you know; the gathering and the chasing are ours.
This surprises almost every family, so it is worth knowing before you count anything. CPF savings do not form part of the estate and are not dealt with by a Grant of Probate or by the will. Where the deceased made a CPF nomination, the CPF Board pays those savings to the nominees directly. Where there was no nomination, the savings are transferred to the Public Trustee's Office, which distributes them under the intestacy rules — the Intestate Succession Act 1967 for a non-Muslim estate, or the shares set out in a Syariah Court inheritance certificate for a Muslim estate — regardless of what the will says, and it deducts an administrative fee before doing so. An insurance policy with a valid nomination goes to the nominee in the same way, and property held in joint tenancy passes to the surviving owner by survivorship, although the schedule of assets still has to show how jointly held assets were held. None of that waits on the grant. We separate what is inside the estate from what is not at the assessment, so you know what the application is actually for.
The Family Justice Courts say in their own words that you do not need a lawyer to represent you when filing for a Grant of Probate, and they run a probate eService that a sole named executor can use for a straightforward, non-contentious estate meeting its criteria. So no, you are not required to be represented. There is a line worth being precise about, though: section 33(2)(b) of the Legal Profession Act 1966 makes it an offence for an unauthorised person to take instructions for, or to draw or prepare, the papers on which a grant of probate is founded, where that is done for a fee. WeCare is not a law firm and employs no lawyers, so we do not do that part. The court papers and the certified true copies are prepared by the law practice you instruct, which quotes its own fee and is answerable to you. What WeCare charges for is the rest: the assessment, gathering the asset information, liaising with the banks, insurers and CDP, explaining every document before you sign it, and keeping the process moving. We also do not give legal advice — what a clause in the will means, who is entitled to what, or how to answer a challenge to the will are questions for your lawyer.
We would rather explain what drives the timeline than give you a number you would then build plans around. Three things move it, and WeCare controls only one. The first is how complete and accurate the application is when it is filed, because queries from the court add weeks — that is the part careful preparation earns its keep on. The second is other people: a bank confirming a balance, an insurer confirming a policy, a co-executor overseas returning a signed document. The third is the court itself, and whether anything is raised against the application. An uncontested estate with one cooperative executor moves considerably faster than a disputed one, and a disputed one can run far longer than anyone expects. At your assessment we will tell you which of the three is likely to be your bottleneck and what can be started now to shorten it.
Take it seriously, and please do not try to argue it out at a counter. A caveat is a formal notice lodged by someone with an interest in the estate, and its effect is that a grant cannot simply be issued without them having the chance to contest the application first — it exists precisely to hold a grant while a dispute is aired. There are also court processes, called citations, used to compel a named executor either to take up the role or to formally give it up, or to compel someone relying on a will to prove it. Once any of that is in play the matter is contentious, and contentious probate is legal work for a practising Singapore lawyer, not a consultancy. Searching the court's records of caveats and probate applications before filing is optional rather than something the court requires you to file, but it costs little and we make sure it is done, so you learn what you are walking into before you spend rather than after. If something is there, we tell you plainly and step back to a supporting role while a solicitor — or, where the family prefers it, a mediator — handles the dispute.
You have put your finger on the trap, and you are far from the first: the court order that would release the estate costs money, and the money is inside the estate. So we set it out in parts. WeCare's fee for probate support is fixed and quoted before you commit. The court's filing fees and the law practice's own fee are listed separately, so you can see what is ours, what is the court's and what is legal work. Our fee can be spread over interest-free instalments, so the matter is not sitting still while funds are found. And if you are holding a written quote from another firm, bring it to the assessment, so the two can be compared line by line rather than on headline price.
Take the first step
A free, confidential assessment of where you stand — no obligation, and no judgement. We will tell you honestly if this is not the right route for you.
Important: WeCare Consultancy Pte. Ltd. is a consultancy and is not a law firm. The information on this page describes Singapore statutory processes in general terms and is not legal advice, nor a determination of your eligibility for any scheme. WeCare does not draft or file court documents and does not provide legal representation; where drafting, filing or representation is required, this is carried out by an advocate and solicitor. We will say so where a matter requires it and can help you engage an appropriately qualified professional — we receive no referral fee or commission for any introduction, and you remain free to choose your own solicitor. Statutory references and monetary thresholds are current as at August 2026 and may change. Please speak to us about your own circumstances before acting on anything here.