Executor Fees and Duties in South Africa: Questions to Ask

Key takeaways

• A nomination in a will is not an appointment; authority follows the Master’s letters and their terms.
• The will controls executor remuneration if it fixes a fee; otherwise the prescribed tariff is the starting point.
• The 3.5% component applies to gross estate assets, not automatically to the net inheritance received by beneficiaries.
• The 6% component concerns income accrued and collected after death, not every amount paid into the estate account.

1. Confirm the role before discussing the fee

Start by identifying the legal role. A person named as executor in a will is a nominee. The person becomes the executor only when the Master grants letters of executorship. A lower-value estate may instead be administered by a representative appointed under section 18(3) and the directions in the letters of authority.

The Master’s current public guidance uses R250,000 to distinguish the simplified section 18(3) process from the full executor process, while also explaining that an insolvent estate follows the executor route. Treat the inventory value and the Master’s actual appointment as controlling facts rather than assuming the route from a family estimate.

The executor glossary explains the office. The deceased-estate glossary explains the estate that must be administered. Neither a family agreement nor an attorney mandate replaces the Master’s appointment.

Record these roles separately:

Ask for a copy of the appointment document and the page of the will dealing with executor nomination, security and remuneration. Do not rely on a proposal that calls every role “the executor” or every charge “the executor fee”.

2. Check whether the will fixes executor remuneration

Section 51(1) creates an order of enquiry:

1. determine whether the deceased fixed remuneration in the will; and
2. if not, assess remuneration according to the prescribed tariff and have it taxed by the Master.

The wording matters. A will may state a percentage, a fixed amount, the prescribed tariff, no remuneration, or another formula. It may address the executor’s remuneration without pricing separate legal, conveyancing, tax or asset-realisation work. It may also nominate more than one executor without explaining how remuneration should be divided between them.

Ask the estate lawyer to identify:

• the exact clause relied on;
• whether it fixes remuneration or merely appoints the executor;
• whether the clause covers one executor or co-executors;
• how VAT is treated;
• whether any separate professional service is included or excluded; and
• what will be shown in the liquidation and distribution account.

Do not assume that a private engagement letter can silently replace a fee fixed by the deceased. If a proposed concession, waiver, sharing arrangement or departure is intended, have its legal and accounting treatment recorded and reviewed for the actual estate.

3. Understand the prescribed tariff

Where the will does not fix remuneration, regulation 8 prescribes:

• 3.5% on the gross value of assets in the estate;
• 6% on income accrued and collected after the deceased’s death; and
• minimum remuneration of R350 for a deceased estate.

The Master’s current FAQ also states that VAT may be charged on the fee where the executor, or an assisting agent as described there, is registered. Ask who is supplying the taxable service, who will issue the invoice, which amount is VAT-exclusive and which is VAT-inclusive, and how it will appear in the account.

Gross assets are not the residue

The 3.5% tariff uses the gross value of estate assets. It is not automatically calculated on the amount left after debts, taxes, administration charges and legacies. It is also not a percentage of the cash an heir eventually receives.

Request an asset schedule that shows:

• each asset included in the estate;
• the source of its value;
• the valuation date and method;
• whether it is jointly held or affected by a matrimonial-property regime;
• whether it is realised or transferred in specie;
• whether a policy, retirement benefit, trust asset or other item is inside or outside the estate for this calculation; and
• the tariff amount attributed to the schedule.

The classification of a disputed asset can affect both the account and remuneration. Do not accept a single gross figure without the underlying list.

Post-death income needs its own schedule

The 6% component concerns income accrued and collected after death. The liquidation and distribution account regulations separately require an income and expenditure account. Ask for a schedule showing the payer, date, source, gross receipt, related expense and classification.

Rent, interest, trading receipts, dividends, refunds, asset-sale proceeds and amounts that belonged to the deceased before death do not all share the same legal or tax character. The estate lawyer, executor and tax adviser should reconcile the classification rather than applying 6% to every credit in the bank account.

4. The prescribed percentage is not the end of the enquiry

The tariff is not a private invoice that escapes supervision. Under section 51:

• the Master taxes remuneration assessed under the prescribed tariff;
• the Master may reduce or increase remuneration where special reasons exist;
• the Master may disallow it wholly or partly if the executor failed to discharge duties or did so unsatisfactorily; and
• remuneration is generally not payable before the estate has been distributed under the applicable statutory process unless the Master approves earlier payment in writing.

This means neither the executor nor a beneficiary should describe 3.5% as an untouchable outcome in every estate. It is the prescribed asset tariff where the will does not fix remuneration, subject to the Act’s supervisory provisions.

If an adjustment is proposed, ask for:

• the statutory basis;
• the special reasons relied on;
• the work and complexity said to justify the request;
• any prior agreement or will clause;
• the amount before and after the adjustment;
• the Master’s decision or required process; and
• the route and deadline for any objection or review.

Do not deduct remuneration early from estate funds merely because a calculation has been prepared. Ask to see the authority for the timing of payment.

5. Separate executor remuneration from every other cost

An estate can incur legitimate charges beyond executor remuneration. The problem is not that other costs exist; it is that a proposal may combine them into one number or price the same work twice.

Build a fee-and-cost register with a separate row for each item:

For each row identify the contracting party, invoice issuer, pricing basis, VAT, deposit, approval requirement, cap or estimate, update trigger and document that will support the entry in the estate account.

If the appointed executor is also a legal practitioner or conveyancer, ask which work is covered by executor remuneration and which statutory or separately mandated service produces another fee. Section 39(4), for example, specifically addresses remuneration where an executor who is a practising conveyancer performs qualifying registration or endorsement work. The existence of a separate lawful charge must still be explained, authorised and accounted for.

6. Understand what the executor is being paid to do

Executor remuneration relates to a supervised office with real responsibility. The core work is not limited to completing forms.

Take lawful control

Immediately after letters are granted, section 26 requires the executor to take estate property, books and documents into custody or control, subject to recognised rights of retention or attachment. This includes securing records, identifying assets, protecting property and preventing unauthorised dealing.

Maintain the estate account and payment trail

Section 28 governs estate banking. Current provisions require qualifying estate money to be placed in an estate account unless the Master directs otherwise, and require payments to identify the payee, amount, cause, destination account and estate information. Personal and estate funds should not be mixed.

Identify creditors and assess claims

Section 29 requires the creditor notice after appointment. The statutory claim period stated in the notice must be at least 30 days and no more than three months from the latest publication. The executor must record, investigate and, where necessary, dispute claims through the lawful process rather than favouring a family member or rejecting a creditor without objective assessment.

Prepare a complete liquidation and distribution account

For a full estate, section 35 generally requires the account within six months after letters are granted, unless the Master allows further time. The account must identify assets, liabilities, administration charges, cash reconciliation, the proposed distribution, post-death income and expenditure, fiduciary assets where applicable and estate duty.

Manage inspection, objections and corrections

Once authorised for advertisement, the account lies open for inspection for the statutory period. Interested parties may object. The executor must respond, provide information, make directed amendments and avoid distributing on a version that is not final.

Complete tax and distribution properly

SARS distinguishes the deceased person’s pre-death tax position from the deceased estate’s post-death tax position. The executor or representative taxpayer may need to report the death, submit outstanding returns, register and administer the estate’s tax position, deal with estate duty and obtain the required compliance outcome. Distribution follows the final account and applicable clearances, not an informal family spreadsheet.

The executor duties question checklist can be used to track responsibility without replacing the will, letters, Act or Master’s directions.

7. Treat conflicts as an administration risk, not a personality issue

An executor occupies a fiduciary position and must administer the estate legally, in good faith and objectively. A beneficiary may also be executor, but that does not permit the office-holder to prefer a personal claim, purchase estate property without the required consent, hide a competing interest or use appointment power to create an undisclosed benefit.

In Brimble-Hannath v Hannath, the High Court dealt with the conflict created where an executor was also a creditor and emphasised the executor’s fiduciary relationship to beneficiaries and duty to creditors to assess claims bona fide and objectively. Sections 47, 49 and 54 of the Act also contain controls relevant to sales, purchases and removal.

Ask in writing:

• Is the executor also an heir, creditor, debtor, business partner, trustee, property occupier or buyer?
• Will the executor or a related person supply paid services to the estate?
• Who approves a sale method and conditions?
• Is the executor, spouse, parent, child, partner, employer, employee or agent buying estate property?
• Which consent, confirmation or independent valuation is required?
• Who will assess a claim made by the executor or a related party?
• How will beneficiaries receive the disclosure and supporting documents?
• Is independent legal advice or a different executor required?

Conflict management must be documented before the transaction, not explained only after an objection.

8. Do not confuse the account deadline with estate completion

The six-month period in section 35 concerns lodgement of the liquidation and distribution account after letters of executorship, subject to a Master-approved extension. It is not a universal promise that appointment, asset collection, tax, property transfer, objections and distribution will all be finished within six months of death.

A defensible stage plan should show:

1. reporting and appointment documents;
2. security or exemption, where relevant;
3. letters of executorship or authority;
4. custody, inventory and estate banking;
5. creditor advertisement and claim period;
6. valuations, asset collection and liability assessment;
7. tax registrations, returns, assessments and clearances;
8. preparation and lodgement of the account;
9. Master examination and query resolution;
10. inspection advertisement and objection period;
11. amendment or review if required;
12. distribution, transfers and proof; and
13. final reporting and release.

For every stage record the owner, required input, target date, legal period, dependency, current status and next escalation. Property, a business, foreign assets, maintenance claims, insolvent liabilities, disputed wills, missing records, unlisted interests, tax non-compliance and beneficiary conflict can materially change the plan.

Use the deceased-estate reporting checklist for intake records. The report-an-estate glossary explains the Master reporting step; issues beyond administrative supervision may require legal advice or court proceedings.

9. Questions to ask before accepting the executor role

A nominee should understand the office before signing an acceptance or professional mandate.

Ask:

• What is the preliminary gross value and which appointment route is expected?
• Does the will nominate me, exempt security or fix remuneration?
• What security might the Master require, and what will it cost the estate?
• Am I expected to act personally, with an agent, or alongside a co-executor?
• Which decisions must I make and which mechanics will the professional perform?
• What records, assets, accounts and properties must I secure immediately after appointment?
• Are there known creditor, heir, spouse, dependant, will-validity or ownership disputes?
• Is the estate potentially insolvent?
• Are there businesses, trusts, foreign assets, digital assets or regulated interests?
• What personal-liability risks arise from early payment, wrong distribution, unpaid tax or misuse of estate property?
• How can I resign or decline before or after appointment, and what approval is required?
• What reporting will I receive before authorising a payment, sale, return or account?

Do not accept on the assumption that the attorney “will be the executor in practice”. Section 52 prevents an executor from substituting another person to act in the executor’s place. An authorised agent can perform work, but the appointed office and accountability remain legally significant.

10. Questions to ask about the written fee proposal

The incoming proposal should answer, without oral qualifications:

1. Who is proposed for appointment, and who is the client under each mandate?
2. What does the will say about executor remuneration?
3. If the tariff applies, what is the current asset base and post-death income base?
4. Which values are provisional, disputed or dependent on an appraisal?
5. What VAT assumption is used, and who will issue the invoice?
6. Will the executor reduce, waive, share or seek an increase in remuneration?
7. Which attorney, accounting, tax, conveyancing, valuation or sale services are separate?
8. What is fixed, estimated, hourly, tariff-based, capped or excluded?
9. Which disbursements require prior approval?
10. How will changes in scope or complexity be approved?
11. When may each fee or cost be paid from the estate?
12. How will every amount appear in the liquidation and distribution account?
13. How can an interested party query or object to the amount?
14. Which records will be delivered if the mandate ends?
15. Who is responsible for the Master, SARS and beneficiary status reports?
16. Which assumptions control the stage plan, and what event will revise it?

Use the deceased-estate checklist to organise the will, appointment record, inventory, valuations, bank records, tax correspondence, quotations and issue log before comparing proposals.

11. Warning signs that need immediate clarification

Pause before signing or paying where:

• the fee is calculated without reading the will;
• the proposal applies 3.5% to an unexplained total;
• every estate receipt is treated as post-death income;
• the executor and agent roles are not identified;
• separate legal work is charged without scope or rate;
• VAT is added without identifying the supplier and registration basis;
• a full executor fee is demanded before distribution without written Master approval;
• estate money is requested into a personal or unrelated business account;
• a sale benefits the executor or a related person without disclosure and required approval;
• beneficiaries are promised a distribution before claims, tax and the account process are complete;
• the estate is promised to finish on a fixed date without dependencies;
• the appointed executor cannot access the file, bank records, vouchers or status register; or
• questions about taxation, objections, conflicts or early payment are dismissed as private arrangements.

These signs do not prove misconduct. They identify the document or authority that must be produced before the estate proceeds.

12. What to prepare for the estate-lawyer meeting

Bring or securely provide:

• the original will or the best available information about it;
• death certificate and deceased’s identity details;
• marriage and matrimonial-property records;
• preliminary inventory with values and sources;
• title deeds, vehicle, business, trust, policy and investment information;
• known debts, guarantees and creditor communications;
• nominations, acceptance forms and any letters already issued;
• prior fee proposals or mandates;
• bank and post-death income records;
• SARS references, returns, assessments and correspondence;
• details of heirs, legatees, dependants, co-executors and possible conflicts;
• urgent property, business, insurance or security risks; and
• a list of disputed, missing or foreign records.

Redact copies used for comparison where appropriate, but preserve the unaltered originals. Use a secure transfer method agreed with the practice. Do not email identity, banking and will records to an unverified address.

When specialist estate administration or a dispute requires legal assistance, use the lawyer directory after verifying the practitioner, role, mandate, fee basis and responsibility for the file.

Final review checklist

Before accepting the role, signing the mandate or approving the account, confirm that:

• the Master appointment route and authority are identified;
• the relevant will clauses have been reviewed;
• executor remuneration and separate professional work are not blended;
• the asset and post-death income schedules reconcile to source records;
• valuation methods and disputed classifications are visible;
• VAT and invoice responsibility are explicit;
• security, advertising, tax, conveyancing and other disbursements are itemised;
• duties remain assigned to the appointed executor even where an agent assists;
• estate banking and payment controls are defined;
• conflicts and related-party transactions are disclosed;
• the account, inspection, objection and distribution stages are shown;
• target dates state dependencies and extensions rather than promising an outcome;
• early remuneration has the required written authority;
• beneficiaries receive an agreed reporting cadence; and
• the file records how a fee, claim, sale or account entry can be questioned.

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