The short version. If the will is for someone in England or Wales, depositing it with HM Courts and Tribunals Service is the cheapest durable option there is: £24 once, nothing annual, and free to withdraw. What it does not do is check that the will was signed and witnessed properly — and that is the part that most often goes wrong.
Why where you keep a will matters at all
A will only does its job if two things are true when the person dies: it is valid, and somebody can find it. A perfectly drafted will in a drawer nobody knows about has the same practical effect as no will at all — the estate is distributed under the intestacy rules instead, which is frequently not what the person wanted.
So the storage question is really two questions. Where is it physically safe? And how will the executor know it exists?
The four options, honestly compared
1. Keep it at home
Cost: nothing. It is also the option that goes wrong most often. Wills kept at home are lost in house moves, damaged by water, thrown out during a clear-out, or simply never found because the executor did not know to look. Some are found and quietly destroyed by someone who does not like what it says.
If you do keep it at home, tell your executor exactly where it is, in writing, and give them a copy of the front page so they know what they are looking for.
2. Leave it with the firm that wrote it
Cost: usually free, sometimes an annual fee. Convenient, and the firm knows the document. The risk is time: a will might sit for thirty years, and a lot can happen to a business in thirty years. Firms close, merge, retire or are sold, and files move with them. When that happens the will is usually still findable, but it can take an executor weeks of phone calls to work out where it went.
If you take this route, ask the firm what happens to stored wills if they cease trading, and get the answer in writing.
3. A commercial will storage company
Cost: typically several hundred pounds, sometimes around £750 for lifetime storage. These services hold the will securely and register it so it can be found. Terms differ between providers, so check what is actually covered and what happens to the will if the company stops trading.
Whether that is good value depends entirely on what you compare it with. Set against the option below, it is a large multiple of the price for the same core outcome — a will held safely somewhere findable.
4. Deposit it with HM Courts and Tribunals Service
Cost: £24, once. No annual fee. Free to withdraw.
HM Courts and Tribunals Service operates a will deposit service for England and Wales. You send the will in, pay the one-off fee, and it is held by the court service. You get a certificate of deposit with a reference number, which is what your executor uses to have the will released after your death.
Three things worth knowing before you choose it:
- Payment is by cheque or postal order. There is no card payment option, which surprises most people.
- It covers England and Wales only. Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate arrangements.
- Withdrawal is free but not instant. You apply on form PA7A and it takes around four weeks. Plan for that if you are replacing the will.
What the deposit service does not do
This is the part that catches people out. HM Courts and Tribunals Service stores the will. It does not read it.
Nobody at the court service confirms the will was signed in the right place, that two witnesses were present at the same time, or that neither witness was a beneficiary. If the will was executed incorrectly, depositing it does not repair that — it simply stores an invalid document very securely for thirty years, until the day it matters and it fails.
The most common and most expensive error is a beneficiary, or a beneficiary's spouse, acting as a witness. The will remains valid; the gift to that person does not. Families discover this at the worst possible moment.
That is the argument for having the execution checked before the will goes anywhere.
Cost comparison
| Option | Typical cost | Ongoing fee | Execution checked? |
|---|---|---|---|
| At home | £0 | None | No |
| With the firm that wrote it | £0 – annual fee | Sometimes | Varies |
| Commercial storage company | Often several hundred, up to ~£750 | Varies | Varies |
| HMCTS deposit, done yourself | £24 one-off | None | No |
| HMCTS deposit via Custodian | Your planner's price | None on the base product | Yes |
Third-party prices are indicative and change. Always check the current figure with the provider, and the current HMCTS fee on GOV.UK.
How to deposit a will yourself
- Check the will has been signed and witnessed correctly. Here is what that means in practice.
- Complete the HMCTS will deposit paperwork, including the envelope label the service requires.
- Send the will with a cheque or postal order for £24. Use a tracked postal service — you are posting an original that cannot be replaced.
- Keep the certificate of deposit somewhere safe, and give a copy to your executor with a note of where the will is.
- If you later make a new will, withdraw the old one first so that only one will is ever in deposit.
That last point is the one people miss. Two wills of the same person sitting in storage is the situation that turns an ordinary estate into a contested one.
Where Custodian fits
Custodian is our service for estate planners, and it exists because of the gap described above. Before a will is lodged, we check that it has been signed, dated and witnessed correctly. Then we record it, pay the £24 HMCTS deposit fee, lodge it, and send the client the certificate along with an executor card and a one-page sheet explaining how to withdraw it before making a new will.
It is charged to the estate planner at a one-off £79 for that will — of which £24 is the HMCTS fee — and the planner sets their own price to the client. There is no monthly deduction and nothing recurs on the base product.
If you are a client rather than a planner, and the £24 route is right for you, that is a genuinely fine answer and you should take it. What you should not do is deposit a will nobody has checked.
Common questions
How much does it cost to store a will with the probate service?
A one-off £24. There is no annual charge, no renewal, and no ongoing cost. The fee covers the will for as long as it remains deposited.
Can I get my will back?
Yes. The person who made the will can withdraw it at any time using form PA7A. It is free and takes around four weeks. Always withdraw an old will before depositing a new one.
Where is the safest place to keep a will in the UK?
For England and Wales, HMCTS deposit is the most durable: one-off £24, held by the court service rather than a private company, and it cannot be lost in a house move or a business closure. Whatever you choose, tell your executor the will exists and where it is.
Does the probate service check my will is valid?
No. It stores the will; it does not review it. If the will was signed or witnessed incorrectly, depositing it does not fix that.
What about Scotland and Northern Ireland?
The HMCTS will deposit service covers England and Wales only. Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate arrangements.
What happens when the person dies?
The executor applies to HM Courts and Tribunals Service for the will to be released, quoting the deposit reference from the certificate. This is why the certificate needs to be somewhere the executor will actually find it.
Last reviewed 6 September 2026. Fees and forms change — check the current position on GOV.UK. This guide is general information, not legal advice. Project Will Ltd is not a law firm.