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Deceased Estate administration in South Africa 2025

Deceased estates can be tracked online these days; the Master’s Office has a case management system which allows public access through a portal. You can use the online system to determine which Master's Office is administering the deceased estate. The system allows a "Deceased Search" using one or more of the following details: Deceased's Surname, Deceased's First Names, ID number, date of birth, a range for Date of Death, the Master's Office and Place of Death, Estate File Number and Estate Status. The system returns same and Estate Type and a URN code (Unique Reference Number).

Lawyer at desk with board saying Tracking deceased estates by CapeTownLawyer

Contact Estate Lawyer

Presentation on Deceased Estate Administrators in Cape Town, by CapeTownLawyer

Email lawyer@capetownlawyer.co.za for guidance with the administration of a deceased estate in Cape Town.

Deceased estate administration

When a loved one dies the Executor nominated in the Deceased’s last will and testament should be contacted. The process of administering a deceased estate (managing and winding) is prescribed by the Administration of Estates Act of 1965. It is a complex process and therefore best to ensure that an attorney experienced in Estates is nominated as executor in terms of your Will.

Estate attorney near mext - capetownlawyer - text on screen as couple holds hands while sun sets

If an inexperienced person is appointed as executor, they will often appoint specialists (agents) to assist them, e.g.:

To practically effect this, the executor would sign a special power of attorney authorising the specialist lawyers (agents) to do the work on his/her behalf.

 

Deceased estate quote being shown by an estate lawyer, with a cost quoted of 2% of the gross assets

The type of appointments the executor makes and documents required to report an estate depends on the value of the Estate:

  • If the value of the Estate is less than R250 000; the Master does not appoint an Executor but rather a Master’s Representative is appointed in terms of Section 18(3) of the Administration of Estates Act of 1965. The Master’s Representative administers the estate without following the full procedure set out in the Act. It is a simpler, quicker process.
  • If the value of the Estate is greater than R250 000 the Master will appoint Letters of Executorship, an Executor is appointed who will follows the full process of winding up of the Estate as set out in the Administration of Estates Act of 1965.

Assets & Liabilities

The Executor needs to gather information about the deceased’s assets and debts; which may include:

Car with number plate DECEASED ESTATES WP, indicating it is owned by a Deceased Estates Attorney residing in the Western Cape Province of South Africa

Who winds up the estate?

The Master supervises the winding up of an estate. There are different Masters covering different areas of South Africa. The physical address where the deceased lived over the 12 months prior to his/her death determines which Master has jurisdiction. Masters' offices in South Africa:
  • Eastern Cape (Bisho, Grahamstown, Mthatha, Port Elizabeth)
  • Free State (Bloemfontein)Northern Cape (Kimberley)
  • Gauteng (Johannesburg, Pretoria)
  • KwaZulu-Natal (Durban, Pietermaritzburg)
  • Limpopo (Polokwane, Thohoyandou)
  • Mpumalanga(Mafikeng, Nelspruit)
  • North-West (Mmabatho)
  • Western Cape (Cape Town)

The executor or executors will wind up the estate under the supervision of the Master of the High Court. The Executor may appoint an agent/administrator to assist (by power of attorney). If there is property in the estate a conveyancing attorney will need to be appointed who will engage with the Registrar of Deeds to transfer the property to its new owner. SARS will also be involved; as will the relatives of the deceased, the spouse of the deceased (if there is one), the heirs and beneficiaries (legatees).

Attorney working on property transfer costs for inheritance

Master's Office in Cape Town

The Master's Office in Cape Town is situated in the Dullah Omar Building at 45 Castle Street, Cape Town's city centre. Office Hours are 8am to 1pm ( the Master’s Office does not normally close in December; but is closed on weekends and public holidays)..

You can email The Master at MasterCapeTown@justice.gov.za or phone +27-21-832-3000. The Master of the Cape Town High Court is Zureena Agulhas. You can send post to the Cape Town Master's at Box X9018, Cape Town, 8000

Note that the Cape Town Master's Office is understaffed, and things can take longer than you would expect.

If you visit the Cape Town Master of the High Court in person, here is a photo of what it looks like:

Waiting area inside the offices of the Master of the High Court in Cape Town

Chief Master in South Africa

You can email the chief master at chiefmaster@justice.gov.za or phone +27-124064805

Dullah Omar Building in Cape Town, offices of the Master of the High Court

The Process of winding up the estate

  1. If the deceased left a Will it would usually nominate an executor who will manage the winding up of the estate. If there is no Will or executor nominated one should be nominated by the heirs (an executor note proposed in a will is known as an executor dative) by completing the "Nomination to Act as Executor" form. A list of the particulars of the next-of-kin also needs to be provided, by submitting a form J192 affidavit to the Master of the High Court.

  2. Cape Town Lawyer presenting on J192 Form: next-of-kin affidavit
    Presenting on Nomination to Act as Executor, by CapeTownLawyer
  3. The Executor should gather as much information relating to assets; debts and possessions of the deceased.
  4. The Executor must apply to the Master of the High Court for Letters of Executorship to be issued. The letters of executor confirm the appointment of the executor/s by the Master to administer the deceased estate. The process of applying for letters fo executorship involves, inter alia, submitting to the Master:
    1. The Death Certificate and Notice.
    2. Original Will.
    3. An Inventory.
    4. Acceptance of Trust as Executor.
  5. Once the Letters of Executorship is issued, a notice for debtors and creditors to lodge claims against the estate must be published in the Government Gazette and in a newspaper.
  6. The Executor then drafts a Liquidation and Distribution Account on the basis of claims received. The account sets out assets, liabilities and administration costs and how assets are divided.
    1. The Liquidation Account is submitted to the Master for examination. There are fourteen Masters' Offices in South Africa. The examination takes approximately 2 months. The Master will issue a query sheet setting out any further requirements prior to advertising the Liquidation and Distribution.
    2. The Account is advertised in the Governement Gazettee and newspaper. The Account lies open for 21 days for any objections to be made thereto.
    3. If there are no objections the executor can finalise the estate; pay creditors; handover inheritance to heirs and transfer fixed property to heirs.
    4. The Executor then provides proof to the Master that all creditors have been paid and heirs have received their inheritances.
Deceased estate administration consultation meeting in a legal library

Deceased estate administration costs

A brief overview of costs :

  1. The Executors remuneration is up to 3,5% plus VAT on the gross estate value; and 6% plus VAT on the income accrued after death. The remuneration can be negotiated.
  2. Estate Duty is payable to SARS. Currently Estate Duty is payable if the estate value is over R3,5 Million Rand; 20% on the first R30 Million; and 25% for any value over R30 Million.
  3. Advertising costs are dependent on the newspaper used and are estimated at R1200.
  4. Master’s Fees are calculated according to a tariff. The amount levied depends on the value of the Estate.
  5. Other costs :

Insolvent deceased estate

If an Estate is found to be insolvent the Estate is administered in terms of Section 34 of the Administration of Estates Act.

Administration Systems for Deceased Estates

The Lexis® Deceased Estates administration system is widely used to transparently and speedily wind up estates; as is the LegalEase Deceased Estates Software (phone +27-31-9407215 for more info).

Newspaper headline - Deceased Estate Lawyer - Cape Town

Masters' Office inefficiencies

There is a Chief Masters Office and local masters offices spread out around South Africa; with service levels differing per office. As sketched out above, the Executor must engage with the Masters' office (of the High Court) on numerous issues. Delays caused by inefficiences in the Masters' office result in beneficiaries of deceased estates experiencing delays in receiving their beneits.

Home Affairs link with Masters' Office

There is a (sometimes tricky) interlink between the masters' office, home Affairs and the Justice Department. For example, the Masters' office needs to confirm the status of a person who is deceased with Home Affairs; as well as when establishing the next of kin if the deceased did not leave a valid will.

Systems often offline

The below SABC News video contains an interview with somebody who, as she is over 18, needs to claim directly from the Guardian's Fund. The first time she went there were network issues, the second time there was an issue with the GEPF letter she had, after changing it the third and fourth times she went there was no network again.

The Master's office is in the process of storing files offsite and digitising its files, and facilitating making online bookings. The issuing of letters of executorship had a backlog as a result of COVID, and the issue was further exacerbated by a ransomware attack.

If an executor dies

If the appointed executor dies his office is terminated automatically. A new Executor is nominated by the heirs and must apply to the Master to be appointed as Executor.

Unclaimed deceased estates

Unclaimed monies in a Deceased Estate are paid to the Guardian’s Fund. Inheritances due to Minors are often paid to the Guardian’s Fund if the Will does not stipulate that the funds will be held in trust for the benefit of a Minor or if the deceased died intestate, without leaving a Will.

Another instance where funds may be paid to the Guardian’s Fund is if an heir cannot be traced. Once the minor turns 18 or an heir comes forward he would need to make application to the Fund for payment. After 30 years of the funds being claimable by an heir the money is forfeited for the State.

Book titled Deceased Estate Administration in Souh Africa by CapeTownLawyer

Books: Meyerowitz on deceased estates

Most executors look to reference the books by Meyerowitz on deceased estates, for best practice; e.g. "Meyerowitz on the Administration of Estates and their Taxaction"

Book: Meyerowitz on the Administration of Estates and their Taxation

UK Law : Probate process

If you are familiar with UK law, you may understand the UK's "probate process"; applying for probate joint executors and the UK's probate court for deceased person. The UK's probate process relates to the process of winding up a Will or Estate in England under the Probate Act. South African Law for winding up estates is similar to the English probate process.

Executors / administrators of deceased estates

Click here to see some options for deceased estate administrators.

Declining nomination as executor

If the estate is too small, corporates sometimes decline their nomination as executor; and send a communication along the lines of the following to the Master of the High Court: "We enclose the original will of the deceased for your attention. As the total value of the assets currently reported to use is below R250,000 and can be administered in terms of Section 18(3) of the Act, we decline our nomination as Executor. Should additional assets be reported and the total value of the estate exceed R250,000, please approach us with a view to administering the estate. Yours faithfully, Nominated Executor."

Suing a deceased estate

Suing a deceased person is possible by suing the estate of the deceased person. We can see that this thought did not escape the City of Cape Town, when they were writing this indemnity for the De Villiers Dam on top of Table Mountain: "This indemnity is effective and binding on all persons, including heirs, next of kin, executors, administrators and assigns."

Deceased estate fraud

A growing risk in the financial services industry is the increased impersonations of executors and beneficiaries of deceased estates. Criminals create fraudulent letters of executorship and attempt to get payments made into their bank accounts; or pretend to be a beneficiary and try to entice the unaware to make EFTs to them.

City of Cape Town indemnity wording for the De Villiers Dam ----------------


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How long does it take to distribute an estate?

Here's an estimate from FISA:

Estimate from FISA on how long it takes to wind up a deceased estate in South Africa.

Here's an estimate from Sanlam:

Estimate from Sanlam on how long it takes to wind up a deceased estate in South Africa.

FAQ on deceased estate administration

  • Who is the ombudsman for deceased estates in South Africa?
    • There isn't a specific ombudsman for deceased estates in SA; however, the Master of the High Court supervises estate administration (as detailed above) and disputes can be directed to the Master's Office (contact details of the Master in Cape Town are email MasterCapeTown@justice.gov.za and phone +27-21-832-3000); . if you are not satisfied with the Cape Town Master's response you can escalate your complaint to South Africa's Chief Master’s office (email Advocate Kanyane Mathibe at KanMathibe@justice.gov.za or phone +27-12-406-4804).
    • If there is a delay in winding up the estate, and a party subject to an Ombudsman is responsible, you can file a complaint with that Ombudsman; for instance if a bank is causing the delay you can file a complaint with the Ombudsman for Banking Services (email info@nfosa.co.za or phone 0860-800-900 or WhatsApp +27-66-473-0157).
Person reading a book called Do It Yourself Executorship; with proteas flowers next to her

Deceased Estate Information

If a relative has died, perhaps without a will, and you are unsure of what do:

Wills

Connect with a Deceased Estate Expert today

Deceased Estate discussion forum

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Presentation on lawyers for deceased estates in Cape Town, by CapeTownLawyer