Letter of Succession

Documents Required to Apply for Succession Certificate

Is succession certificate required for immovable property?

Documents required for obtaining Succession Certificate

How to apply for a Succession Certificate?

Court having jurisdiction to grant succession certificate.

In the absence of nomination or will, the heirs to a piece of property or financial assets are required to prove their claims to them. In such cases, depending on the asset, an heir might be asked to produce either the succession certificate or the letter of administration.

A succession certificate is issued by a civil court to the legal heirs of a deceased person. If a person dies without leaving a will, a succession certificate can be granted by the court to realise the debts and securities of the deceased. It establishes the authenticity of the heirs and gives them the authority to have securities and other assets transferred in their names as well as inherit debts. It is issued as per the applicable laws of inheritance on an application made by a beneficiary to a court of competent jurisdiction. A succession certificate is necessary, but not always sufficient, to release the assets of the deceased. For these, a death certificate, letter of administration and no-objection certificates will be needed.

For movable property like the provident fund, bank deposits, shares, loans, or other securities, the succession certificate is required. For immovable property like land or jewelry, one has to produce the letter of administration in support of his or her claim.

In the case of bank accounts, the provident fund or shares, there is a provision for the nominee. But if there is a dispute, the court can ask for the succession certificate. Similarly, in case the amount involved is huge or the financial institution has a doubt if the claimant is genuine, it might ask the claimant to produce the succession certificate.

In some cases, the bank or the financial institution might ask for the legal heirship certificate, which is easier to obtain than the succession certificate. The difference is that the legal heirship certificate is issued to identify the living heirs of the deceased whereas the succession certificate is issued to establish the authenticity of the heirs and give them the authority to inherit the assets.

1. Petition:
   1. A duly signed and verified application must be made to the civil court of competent jurisdiction.
   2. b. In the petition, details like petitioner’s name, name of legal heirs of deceased, relationship of the petitioner with deceased, right of petitioner, residences of relatives and family of deceased and details of death along with the death certificate debts and securities for which the succession certificate has to be obtained have to be mentioned.
2. Fee:
   According to Schedule II of The Court Fees Act, 1870, certain amount is levied as court fee for this process. Stamp Duty may vary from state to state.
3. Process:
   A newspaper notice for 45 days is issued by the court. Any person having problem with it can file objections. If the court doesn’t receive any objection, it issues succession certificate. This process takes five to seven months.

Documents required for obtaining Succession Certificate:

Below is the list of documents required for applying for the Succession Certificate:

1. Death certificate
2. Pan Card of all the legal heirs.
3. Address Proof of all the legal heirs.
4. Prescribed application form by affixing a court fee stamp.

How long should it take to obtain the Succession certificate from the court?

Usually it should take about 3-4 months from date of filing to receive your certificate.

Court having jurisdiction to grant certificate.

The District Judge within whose jurisdiction the deceased ordinarily resided at the time of his death, or, if at that time had no fixed place of residence, the District Judge, within whose jurisdiction any part of the property of the deceased may be found, may grant a certificate.

Once you have the certificate, you are authenticated to distribute the assets to the legal heirs as per the succession laws. Most people think that if the succession certificate is obtained then the person is the rightful owner of the deceased person’s properties, which is not true. A succession certificate allows the person to act exactly similar to how a nominee would act. It gives the authority to the holder for distributing the deceased person’s assets.

Looking at the process, it is always better to write a will or appoint a nominee in all your financial accounts like stocks, saving accounts, fixed deposits or mutual funds etc. The nomination may also be filed with your properties ownership.

Nexgen, with our experience of many years and our network of competent lawyers, ensure that our clients get accurate legal advice for obtaining Succession Certificates in a hassle-free manner.

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