How to find a will
Start where people usually keep them: at home, with their solicitor or bank, with a will storage company, or with the Probate Service in Newcastle. Once probate has been granted, the will is a public record, and you can order a copy online for £16.
Checked against gov.uk 13 October 2026 · gov.uk: search probate records
Where to look
gov.uk says people keep their will at home, or store it with:
- their solicitor
- their bank
- a company that stores wills
- the national probate registry in Newcastle
It also tells people to tell their executor, or a close friend or relative, where the will is. So ask the family, and anyone who might be named as executor, before you start searching.
A will stored with the Probate Service
To get a will out of the Probate Service's store after a death, you'll need the death certificate and evidence you're the executor.
After probate: searching the records
When probate is granted, the registry keeps the will and it becomes a public record. You can search probate records on gov.uk to see whether a grant has been issued, which kind, and to order a copy, including the will if there was one.
- Each copy ordered online costs £16.
- A new record appears online about 14 days after the grant is issued.
- The records cover people who died after 1857.
If there's no record, a grant may not have been issued yet, or the estate may not have needed one. See whether an estate needs probate.
More than one will, or a lost original
- If there's more than one will, send the most recent one with the probate application.
- The application needs the original: you can't use a photocopy.
- If the original is lost, you may be able to apply with form PA13.
Keeping your own will safe
You can store your will with HM Courts and Tribunals Service (the Probate Service) for a one-off fee of £24. It rose from £23 on 13 July 2026.
- Make a copy to keep before you send it.
- Put the will in an envelope with the PA7ENV label, and get a witness to sign the label.
- It takes around 2 weeks to be lodged, and you get a certificate when it is.
- You, or your dependants after your death, can withdraw it at any time.
Sources: gov.uk, how to store a will with HMCTS, checked 13 October 2026; the fee in the Non-Contentious Probate Fees Order, as amended in 2026.
Wherever you keep it, tell your executor where it is. See how to make a will for the rules on signing and witnessing.
Scotland and Northern Ireland
The records and storage service on this page are for England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland keep their own.
Common questions
How do I find out if someone left a will?
Ask the family and anyone they named as executor, then check their home, their solicitor, their bank and the Probate Service's will store in Newcastle. Once a grant has been issued, gov.uk's probate records show whether there was a will, and you can order a copy.
Are wills public in England and Wales?
A will becomes a public record once probate has been granted: the probate registry keeps the original. Anyone can then search gov.uk's probate records and order a copy. Until then it isn't on the public record.
How much does it cost to get a copy of a will?
Each copy of a probate record ordered online from gov.uk costs £16, and it includes the will if there is one. New records appear online about 14 days after the grant is issued, and the records cover deaths since 1858.
Where can I keep my will?
At home, or with your solicitor, your bank, a company that stores wills, or the Probate Service, which charges £24 once. Whichever you choose, tell your executor, or a close friend or relative, where it is.
What if the original will can't be found?
Probate needs the original will; a photocopy isn't accepted. If the original is lost, gov.uk says you may be able to apply for probate with form PA13. If there's more than one will, the most recent one is the one to send.
About this page
Where wills are kept, and how to search and store them, comes from gov.uk, checked 13 October 2026. The £24 storage fee is confirmed in the Fees Order on legislation.gov.uk. Compiled by James Burfield. General information, not legal advice.