How Does a Deceased Estate Work in South Africa?

A deceased estate in South Africa is the collection of everything a person owned and owed at the moment of death, and it must be reported to the Master of the High Court within 14 days of the death under the Administration of Estates Act 66 of 1965. The Master then appoints someone to wind it up: Letters of Executorship are issued to an executor for larger estates, while smaller estates at or below the section 18(3) threshold are handled by a Master’s representative under a simpler procedure. That appointed person collects the assets, advertises for creditors, pays the estate’s debts and taxes, prepares a liquidation and distribution account that lies open for public inspection for 21 days, and only then distributes what is left to the heirs named in the will or, where there is no valid will, to the beneficiaries determined by the Intestate Succession Act 81 of 1987. Most estates take between six and eighteen months from reporting to final distribution, with delays usually caused by the statutory advertising periods, SARS clearances, or missing documents rather than by the attorney handling the file.

What a Deceased Estate Actually Is

Plainly, the estate is everything the deceased owned and everything they owed at the date of death: immovable property, vehicles, bank accounts, investments, policies payable to the estate, business interests and personal effects on the one side; bonds, credit agreements, tax, and municipal accounts on the other. For administration purposes, the estate becomes a separate legal entity. It opens its own bank account, and for tax it registers as its own taxpayer once the pre-death period has been finalised with SARS.

Three categories of asset fall outside the estate and routinely confuse families about who actually receives them:

• Retirement fund benefits — distributed under section 37C of the Pension Funds Act 24 of 1956. The fund’s trustees decide on allocation based on dependency, not the executor and not the terms of the will.
• Life policies with a nominated beneficiary — paid directly to that nominated beneficiary and never form part of the estate.
• Assets already held in a trust — owned by the trust from inception and not the deceased personally.

Step by Step: How a Deceased Estate Is Wound Up

The sequence below is set out in the Administration of Estates Act and the Master’s practice directives. Each step depends on what was done in the previous one, so skipping ahead creates rework.

1. Register the death and obtain the death certificate. The death is registered with the Department of Home Affairs, usually via the funeral undertaker or a Home Affairs office, and the abridged or unabridged death certificate is issued. Nothing else in the process can start without it.
2. Report the estate to the Master of the High Court within 14 days of death. The reporting documents are lodged with the Master’s office that has jurisdiction — the office serving the area where the deceased was ordinarily resident in the 12 months before death. The set typically includes the death notice, a certified copy of the death certificate, the original will if there is one, an inventory of assets, the deceased’s identity document, the marriage certificate or proof of marital regime, the nominated executor’s acceptance of trust, and a next-of-kin affidavit where there is no will. Small estates additionally lodge the section 18(3) documentation.
3. The Master issues the appointment. Above the section 18(3) threshold the Master issues Letters of Executorship to the executor nominated in the will, or where there is no valid nomination, to a person nominated by the heirs and accepted by the Master. At or below the threshold the Master issues a letter of authority appointing a Master’s representative, who winds the estate up without the full account process. The current section 18(3) monetary threshold (R250,000 as at the date of writing) is set by ministerial determination and should be confirmed with the Master before any family relies on it.
4. Open an estate bank account and take control of the assets. The executor opens a bank account in the name of “the estate of the late …”, freezes or closes the deceased’s own accounts, notifies banks, insurers, medical schemes, employers and the municipality, and takes an inventory and valuation of the assets. Immovable property is valued, and where it must be sold the sale runs through the executor.
5. Advertise for creditors and debtors. A notice calling on creditors and debtors to lodge claims is published in the Government Gazette and in a local newspaper circulating in the district where the deceased lived, giving them a set period (customarily 30 days from publication) to come forward. Late claims complicate the account and are one of the most common causes of delay.
6. Deal with SARS. The deceased’s income tax affairs up to the date of death are finalised, the estate is registered for its post-death tax obligations, any outstanding returns are filed, and capital gains tax consequences of the deemed disposal at death are calculated. Estate duty is assessed under the Estate Duty Act 45 of 1955 where the dutiable estate exceeds the abatement.
7. Pay the estate’s debts and administration costs. Creditors are paid in the order the Act requires. Where the estate does not have enough cash, assets may need to be sold or heirs may agree to contribute rather than see a particular asset sold.
8. Prepare and lodge the liquidation and distribution account. This is the central document of the whole process. It lists every asset, every liability, the administration costs, and exactly what each heir receives. It is lodged with the Master, who examines and queries it.
9. Advertise the account for inspection. Once the Master approves it, the account lies open for public inspection for 21 days at the relevant Master’s office and at the magistrate’s court for the district, advertised in the Gazette and a local newspaper, so that any interested party can object.
10. Distribute the estate. If no objection is lodged, or once objections are resolved by the Master, the executor transfers cash legacies, arranges transfer of immovable property through a conveyancer, and hands over remaining assets to the heirs.
11. File the final documents and close the estate. Proof of distribution and payment is filed with the Master, who then discharges the executor and closes the file.

With a Will vs Without a Will

The presence or absence of a valid will changes who inherits, who administers, and how quickly the estate moves. The table below summarises the practical differences.

Factor	Valid will (testate)	No valid will (intestate)
Who inherits	The heirs named in the will, subject to the surviving spouse’s and dependants’ maintenance claims	Determined by the Intestate Succession Act 81 of 1987 — spouse and children first, then parents, then siblings and wider family
Who administers	The executor nominated in the will, confirmed by the Master	A person nominated by the heirs and accepted by the Master
Spouse’s position	Inherits as the will provides	Inherits a child’s share or the statutory minimum (“child’s share” formula), whichever is greater
Typical friction	Ambiguous drafting, an outdated will, assets no longer owned, or a will that fails formal validity requirements	Disputes over who the lawful heirs are, unmarried life partners, customary marriages, and tracing missing beneficiaries
Practical effect on timeline	Usually faster where the will is clear and the nominated executor accepts	Usually slower — the Master needs the family to agree on a nominee and the heirs must be proved

A will must comply with the formalities in the Wills Act 7 of 1953: it must be in writing and signed by the testator in the presence of two competent witnesses, who must also sign in the presence of the testator and each other. Minor deviations can render a will invalid, and the Master will reject it. Marital regime also matters: an estate married in community of property is a joint estate, so the surviving spouse’s half is dealt with in the same administration — a point that often surprises families because it materially changes the account.

Small Estates: The Section 18(3) Route

Where the gross value of the estate falls at or below the threshold set for section 18(3) of the Administration of Estates Act — R250,000 as at the date of writing — the Master may dispense with Letters of Executorship and appoint a Master’s representative by letter of authority instead. The simplified route skips the full liquidation and distribution account and the creditor and inspection advertisements, which is why these estates can often be finalised in a few months rather than a year or more.

The Master retains a discretion, however: a small estate with a disputed will, minor heirs, or immovable property may still be directed down the full route. The threshold figure is periodically increased by ministerial determination, so families should confirm the current figure with the Master’s office rather than rely on a number quoted in a guide.

How Long It Takes, and What Actually Causes Delays

Realistic expectation is six to eighteen months for a straightforward estate. Complex estates (business interests, offshore assets, disputed wills, litigation, or a farm) run considerably longer.

Structural delays are built into the process and cannot be compressed:

• The 14-day reporting window.
• The creditors’ advertising period after reporting.
• The 21-day inspection period once the liquidation and distribution account is approved.
• The Master’s own examination queues.

Avoidable delays, by contrast, come from gaps on the file:

• Missing or uncertified reporting documents.
• An original will that cannot be found.
• Unresolved SARS returns from before the death.
• Heirs who cannot be traced or who will not sign.
• Property with unresolved municipal or bond arrears.

The practical consequence for the family is that heirs are not entitled to be paid before the account has lain open and been confirmed. The executor may, in appropriate cases and with the Master, make interim provision for the maintenance of the surviving spouse and dependent children out of the estate — but that is a discretion exercised with the Master, not an entitlement on demand.

What It Costs to Wind Up an Estate

Cost depends on the size and complexity of the estate, the fees actually charged, and the time the process takes. The major cost lines are set out below.

Cost item	Basis
Executor’s remuneration	Prescribed tariff — 3.5% (plus VAT where applicable) on the gross value of the estate’s assets, plus 6% (plus VAT where applicable) on income collected after the date of death. The tariff may be varied by agreement or by the will; a professional executor’s fee can be negotiated up front.
Master’s fees	Sliding-scale fee payable to the Master on estates above a minimum value.
Advertising costs	Government Gazette and local newspaper notices, twice (creditors and account inspection).
Conveyancing costs	Where immovable property is transferred to an heir or sold, the usual transfer and Deeds Office costs apply.
Estate duty	Assessed on the dutiable estate above the abatement under the Estate Duty Act 45 of 1955. The current abatement is R3.5 million; 20% applies on the first R30 million of the dutiable amount and 25% above that. These figures should be confirmed on sars.gov.za before any estate is calculated against them.
Bank, valuation, and tax practitioner charges	Where applicable, charged separately.

The practical point is that an estate which is cash-poor but asset-rich can be forced to sell an asset the family wanted to keep, which is itself an argument for liquidity planning while the deceased was still alive.

Reporting to the Correct Master’s Office

The Administration of Estates Act applies nationally, but an estate is not reported “to the Master” in the abstract. It is reported to the Master’s office with jurisdiction over the area where the deceased was ordinarily resident in the 12 months before death, and lodging at the wrong office is a common early setback that costs weeks. Families in Gauteng are often uncertain whether their estate belongs to the Master’s office attached to the Gauteng Division’s Johannesburg seat or its Pretoria seat; the answer follows the deceased’s ordinary residence, not where the death occurred or where the family lives now.

A related point of confusion is the role of the magistrate’s court. Many magistrates’ offices operate as designated service points where estate reporting documents may be lodged, and the liquidation and distribution account is also made available for inspection at the magistrate’s court for the district. That does not make the magistrate’s court the decision-maker: appointments, queries on the account, and the discharge of the executor all remain with the Master, and a family that treats the local magistrate’s office as the authority on their estate will usually be sent back to the Master in any event.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does a deceased estate take to be wound up in South Africa?

A straightforward estate generally takes between six and eighteen months from the date it is reported to the Master to final distribution. The statutory advertising periods and the Master’s examination of the liquidation and distribution account account for a large part of that time, and SARS clearances often add further weeks. Estates involving a business, a disputed will, offshore assets, or untraceable heirs routinely run longer.

Can the family access the deceased’s bank account to pay for the funeral?

No. The deceased’s accounts are frozen once the bank is notified of the death, and no one may withdraw from them, including a spouse. Funeral costs are usually paid by the family or a funeral policy in the interim and are then claimed back from the estate as an administration cost once the executor has been appointed and an estate account opened.

What happens if there is no will?

The estate is distributed under the Intestate Succession Act 81 of 1987, which sets a fixed order of beneficiaries beginning with the surviving spouse and children. The heirs nominate a person for the Master to appoint, rather than the deceased choosing an executor. Intestate estates are usually slower and more contentious because the heirs must be identified and proved before anything can be distributed.

Do all deceased estates have to be reported to the Master of the High Court?

Yes. Every estate of a person who dies leaving property or a will in South Africa must be reported to the Master within 14 days of the death, regardless of value. The value only determines how it is administered: smaller estates may be handled by a Master’s representative under section 18(3), while larger estates require Letters of Executorship.

Can an heir be paid before the estate is finalised?

Generally no. Heirs are paid once the liquidation and distribution account has lain open for inspection for 21 days without sustained objection and the Master has confirmed it. The executor may, with the Master, make limited interim provision for the maintenance of a surviving spouse and dependent children where the estate can afford it, but this is a discretion rather than an entitlement.

Does a retirement fund or life policy form part of the deceased estate?

Usually not. Retirement fund death benefits are allocated by the fund’s trustees under section 37C of the Pension Funds Act 24 of 1956 based on dependency, and they are not bound by the will. A life policy with a nominated beneficiary is paid directly to that beneficiary. Both may still have estate duty consequences, so they should be disclosed to the executor even though they bypass the estate.

Can the family remove or replace an executor who is not making progress?

An interested party may lodge a complaint with the Master’s office, which supervises executors and can call for a report, and in serious cases the Master or a court may remove an executor. Before escalating, it is worth establishing whether the delay is structural (an advertising period, a SARS clearance, an outstanding document) or genuine neglect, because most perceived delays are the former.

Working through an estate while the family is still grieving is rarely straightforward, and the paperwork the Master requires is unforgiving of gaps. Burger Huyser Attorneys’ Wills and Estates team reports estates to the Master, takes on the executorship or assists a family-nominated executor, and runs the file through to distribution, with a dedicated Deceased Estate Administrator (Lance Pearson) handling the day-to-day correspondence under the supervision of Director Anna-Mi Nel, who specialises in deceased estates alongside High Court litigation. To talk through an estate — including what it is likely to cost and how long it should realistically take — contact the Linden, Randburg head office on 011 888 0246 or 061 516 6878 (Monday to Friday, 7:30am to 4:30pm), or any of the firm’s Gauteng branches. Clients regularly single the firm out for being straight about costs and prospects rather than selling false hope, which is reflected in a 4.8/5 average across 250+ Google reviews (Trustindex verified).