Who Can Be an Executor in NSW? (2026 Guide)

Quick Overview

In New South Wales, almost any adult (18+) with mental capacity can be an Executor of your Will. There are no formal qualifications — you can choose a family member, friend, professional advisor, or a trustee company such as NSW Trustee & Guardian. Your Executor must be willing and able to act, and ideally trustworthy, organised, and reliable.

Most importantly, name at least one Backup Executor. If your first choice can’t act, your Backup steps in — without one, someone has to apply to the Supreme Court of NSW to be appointed instead, which means delay and cost at the worst possible time.

This guide is for people making a Will in New South Wales and deciding who should manage their estate. It covers who can be an Executor in NSW, whether they can also inherit, what Executors are actually paid, how probate and NSW court fees work, and how to add Executors using Will Hero.

What is an Executor?

An Executor is the person you appoint in your Will to manage your estate after you die. In New South Wales, your Executor is legally responsible for:

• Locating and securing your Will — finding your original signed document
• Collecting and protecting your assets — identifying property, money, and belongings
• Paying debts and taxes — settling bills, loans, and tax obligations
• Applying for probate (if required) — obtaining a grant from the Supreme Court of NSW, which confirms the Will and gives them authority to act
• Distributing your estate — giving assets to your beneficiaries according to your Will

Whether your Will is valid in the first place is governed by the Succession Act 2006 (NSW), while the Executor’s authority and the probate process sit under the Probate and Administration Act 1898 (NSW).

It’s an important administrative role, but it doesn’t require legal or financial qualifications. Most people in NSW choose a trusted family member or friend who is organised, reliable, and willing to act.

For deeper guidance on the role and how to choose well, see our national guide: How to Choose the Right Executor for Your Will. Ready to start? Create your Will online in NSW with Will Hero.

Who Can Be an Executor in NSW?

Under New South Wales law, almost any adult can be an Executor. There are very few restrictions.

Basic Requirements

• Age: Must be 18 or older to take a grant of probate (a minor cannot act until they come of age)
• Capacity: Must have the mental capacity to understand and carry out the role
• Willingness: Must be willing to accept the role — an Executor can renounce (decline) before acting
• Suitability: A criminal record does not automatically disqualify someone, but the Supreme Court of NSW can decline to appoint, or later remove, a person whose conduct makes them unsuitable

Who Can Be an Executor?

You can choose almost anyone as your Executor in NSW:

✅ Family members — spouse or partner, adult children, siblings, parents
✅ Friends — close friends you trust completely
✅ Professional advisors — solicitors, accountants
✅ Trustee companies — NSW Trustee & Guardian or private trustee companies
✅ Co-Executors — two or more people sharing the role
✅ Beneficiaries — an Executor can also inherit (extremely common)

Who Cannot Be an Executor?

Very few people are ruled out:

❌ Minors (under 18) — cannot take a grant until they turn 18
❌ People who lack mental capacity — must be able to understand the role
❌ People who renounce — an Executor can decline the role

Important: even if someone is technically eligible, choose a person you trust completely who is organised, reliable, and genuinely willing to act. Learn more about choosing the right Executor.

Does My Executor Need to Live in NSW?

No — your Executor does not need to live in New South Wales, or even in Australia. But location has practical consequences.

Local Executors (recommended)

✅ Easier probate — closer to the Supreme Court of NSW and the Sydney Probate Registry
✅ Faster communication — can deal with banks, Land Registry Services, and agencies in person
✅ Lower cost — no international travel, documents, or delays
✅ Familiarity — used to NSW institutions and processes

Overseas Executors

⚠️ Can complicate probate — the court may need extra documentation, and an overseas Executor sometimes appoints an attorney to act for them locally
⚠️ Higher cost and delay — international post, time zones, and signing formalities add friction
✅ Still allowed — an overseas Executor is legal in NSW

Best practice: if your preferred Executor lives overseas, also name a NSW-based Backup Executor who can step in. That keeps your first choice while giving the estate a local safety net.

Can My Executor Also Be a Beneficiary in NSW?

Yes — absolutely. In New South Wales it is extremely common and completely legal for an Executor to also be a beneficiary. Naming your spouse or your adult children as both Executor and beneficiary is one of the most common arrangements in NSW Wills.

Common examples

• Spouse or partner as Executor and main beneficiary
• Adult children as Co-Executors who also inherit equally
• A sibling as Executor who also receives a share

The important distinction: Executors vs witnesses

Being an Executor-beneficiary is fine. Being a witness-beneficiary is not. Under section 10 of the Succession Act 2006 (NSW), a gift to a person who witnesses your Will (or to their spouse) can be void unless a strict exception applies. So your Executor can inherit, but your two witnesses should be independent people who don’t benefit. Learn more in Who Can Witness a Will in NSW?

Co-Executors in NSW

You can appoint two or more Executors (Co-Executors) in New South Wales. They share the role and, in general, must act jointly.

How Co-Executors work

• Joint decisions — Co-Executors must agree on key steps
• Shared responsibility — each is legally responsible for the administration
• Both sign — grant applications and distributions usually need both signatures

When Co-Executors make sense

✅ You want shared decision-making and accountability
✅ The estate is larger or more complex and benefits from different skills
✅ You want to spread the workload across two trusted people

Potential downsides

⚠️ Slower if they disagree — everything needs consensus
⚠️ Coordination — both must be available to sign documents
⚠️ Distance — harder if Co-Executors live far apart

Best practice: for most NSW estates a single Executor plus a Backup is simpler and faster. Co-Executors suit complex estates or where you specifically want two people to keep each other accountable. Either way, name a Backup.

Backup Executors in NSW

A Backup Executor is not legally required, but it is one of the most important protections you can build into your Will.

Why a Backup matters

If your primary Executor can’t act and there’s no Backup:

❌ Court appointment — someone (usually a beneficiary or next of kin) must apply to the Supreme Court of NSW for letters of administration with the Will annexed
❌ Delay — that application takes time, during which assets stay frozen
❌ Cost — legal fees for the application come out of the estate
❌ Uncertainty — the person appointed may not be who you’d have chosen

When a Backup steps in

Your Backup Executor acts if your primary Executor:

• Has died before you, or before finishing the administration
• Is too unwell or lacks capacity to act
• Renounces the role when the time comes
• Cannot be located or is otherwise unavailable

Multiple levels of Backup

Will Hero lets you add multiple layers of Backup Executors:

• Primary Executor — your first choice
• Backup Executor 1 — steps in if the primary can’t act
• Backup Executor 2+ — further layers of protection

Learn more about what happens if your Executor dies before you.

Executor Duties in NSW

At a glance: an Executor locates the Will, secures the assets, pays debts, publishes the required notice, obtains probate if needed, distributes the estate, and keeps accounts.

Core responsibilities

1. Locate and secure the Will — find the original signed document
2. Identify and protect assets — property, bank accounts, shares, personal items
3. Pay debts and taxes — settle liabilities before distributing
4. Publish the Notice of Intended Application — on the NSW Online Registry (see below)
5. Apply for probate (if required) — obtain the grant from the Supreme Court of NSW
6. Distribute the estate — to beneficiaries, exactly as the Will directs
7. Keep proper accounts — record every receipt and payment

Legal responsibility

Executors in NSW must follow the Will, comply with the Probate and Administration Act 1898 (NSW), and act honestly in the beneficiaries’ interests. They can be personally liable for losses caused by getting it wrong, so it’s sensible to take legal or accounting advice (paid from the estate) when anything is unclear. For most straightforward estates the role is administrative rather than legally complex.

Do Executors Get Paid in NSW?

This is a genuinely NSW-specific point that catches people out.

Reimbursement of expenses. An Executor — whether a family member or a friend — can always be reimbursed from the estate for reasonable out-of-pocket costs (court fees, postage, valuations, travel, professional advice). That’s not a fee; it’s paying them back.

Executor’s commission. Beyond expenses, an Executor in NSW can apply for a commission for their “pains and trouble” (the time, effort, and responsibility involved in administering the estate) under section 86 of the Probate and Administration Act 1898 (NSW). Key points:

• It is not automatic. The Executor must either obtain the informed consent of all beneficiaries, or apply to the Supreme Court of NSW, which sets a “just and reasonable” amount — usually when the estate accounts are passed.
• The court looks at the actual work done and the responsibility carried, not a fixed rate. Percentage ranges cited in practice (for example, a fraction of a percent up to a few percent on capital and income) are only a guide, not an entitlement.
• An Executor who, without good reason, fails to pass the accounts may be refused commission.

Professional Executors. Solicitors, private trustee companies, and NSW Trustee & Guardian charge their own fees for acting. Those are separate from s 86 commission and can be significant on larger estates — always check current rates before appointing a professional.

Probate in NSW

Probate is the Supreme Court of NSW confirming your Will is valid and your Executor has authority to administer the estate.

When is probate required in NSW?

Probate is usually required when:

• ✅ The estate includes real estate held solely in the deceased’s name
• ✅ Banks or share registries require it before releasing larger balances
• ✅ Aged-care or other institutions require it to release funds or bonds

Probate may not be needed for small or simple estates — for example, where assets are only held as joint tenants and pass automatically to the survivor. Each asset holder sets its own threshold, so the Executor should ask. For the full picture, see Probate in Australia: What It Is and How It Works.

The 14-day Notice of Intended Application

New South Wales has a step some other states don’t emphasise. Before filing, the Executor must publish a Notice of Intended Application on the NSW Online Registry and wait at least 14 days before lodging the summons for probate. This is required by sections 42 and 109 of the Probate and Administration Act 1898 (NSW). In the current online system the notice is generally published automatically when the application is submitted, and the wait gives creditors and other interested people a chance to come forward.

NSW probate filing fees

The Supreme Court of NSW charges a filing fee based on the gross value of the deceased’s assets in NSW. As at 1 July 2026, the tiers are:

How long does probate take in NSW?

For a straightforward, uncontested estate, the Sydney Probate Registry often issues a grant within a few weeks of a correct application — but the full administration (gathering assets, paying debts, and distributing) commonly takes several months. Anything contested or complex takes longer.

The “executor’s year.” Executors in NSW are generally expected to wind up and distribute a straightforward estate within 12 months of the date of death — a long-standing guideline known as the executor’s year. It’s a rule of convenience rather than a strict deadline, but it has teeth: beneficiaries generally can’t demand their share before the 12 months are up, and if a pecuniary legacy (a fixed cash gift) is still unpaid after the first anniversary of death, the beneficiary can claim interest on it under section 84A of the Probate and Administration Act 1898 (NSW) — currently set at 2% above the Reserve Bank cash rate. A well-organised Executor aims to finish within the year wherever the estate allows.

While an estate is being administered:

❌ Sole-name accounts are usually frozen until the grant issues (joint accounts typically remain accessible to the survivor)
❌ Property held solely can’t be sold or transferred until probate is granted
✅ A modest release for the funeral is often possible from a frozen account

This is exactly why an organised, reliable Executor matters — delays fall hardest on the beneficiaries who are waiting.

NSW Trustee & Guardian as Executor

You can appoint NSW Trustee & Guardian — the state’s public trustee — as your Executor, either as your main choice or as a final Backup if none of your personal Executors can act.

✅ Professional administration — experienced staff handle the whole process
✅ A neutral choice — useful where family conflict is likely, or where you have no one suitable to ask
⚠️ Fees apply — their charges are regulated and largely fee-for-service and percentage-based, which can be material on larger estates

Many people in NSW name a trusted person as their primary Executor and list NSW Trustee & Guardian (or a private trustee company) only as a last-resort Backup. Compare your options and check current fees before deciding.

Choosing the Right Executor for Your NSW Will

Essential qualities

✅ Trustworthy — you’d trust them with everything you own
✅ Organised — comfortable with paperwork and deadlines
✅ Reliable — will see the job through
✅ Willing — has agreed to act and understands what’s involved
✅ Available — likely to be around and well when needed (consider age and health)
✅ Level-headed — can stay calm if family tensions arise

Common choices in NSW

1. Spouse or partner — the most common choice
2. Adult children — often as Co-Executors when they inherit equally
3. A sibling or trusted friend — organised and impartial
4. A solicitor or accountant — professional, charges fees
5. NSW Trustee & Guardian or a private trustee company — professional, charges fees

Ask before you name them

✅ Are they willing to act?
✅ Do they understand the role and the time it takes?
✅ Are they likely to be available and well when needed?
✅ Do they live somewhere that makes administration practical?

Always name a Backup Executor — even a perfect first choice can be unavailable when the time comes.

How to Add Executors in Your NSW Will

With Will Hero, adding Executors to your New South Wales Will is simple. Create your Will online in NSW and add your Executors, Co-Executors, and Backup Executors in a few minutes:

Step-by-Step Process

1.Choose your Primary Executor — someone you trust completely

2.Add Co-Executors (optional) — if you want two people to act together

3.Add Backup Executors — strongly recommended; add at least one

4.Review your choices — use the Visual Will to see how your estate flows

5.Print and sign — sign your Will with two independent witnesses

The process is straightforward and takes just a few minutes. Starting at just $99, you can create your complete NSW Will with unlimited Backup Executors in as little as 15 minutes.

Will Hero features

✅ Unlimited Backup Executors — add as many layers as you need
✅ Visual Will — see how your Executor choices affect your estate
✅ Review My Will — guidance as you go
✅ NSW-compliant — clauses built for the Succession Act 2006 (NSW)

Learn more about creating your Will online in NSW with Will Hero.

What Happens If You Don’t Name an Executor?

If your Will names no Executor, or your Executor can’t act and you’ve named no Backup, the estate doesn’t manage itself:

1. Someone must apply — usually a main beneficiary or next of kin
2. The Supreme Court of NSW appoints an administrator — granting letters of administration with the Will annexed
3. Delays occur — the application takes time, and assets stay frozen meanwhile
4. Costs rise — legal fees for the application reduce the estate
5. Less control — the person appointed may not be who you would have chosen

The court generally looks to those with the greatest interest in the estate (for example, the main beneficiaries) to take on the role. Naming your own Executor — and a Backup — keeps that choice in your hands and avoids the delay.

Special Situations in NSW

Your Executor dies before you

✅ Backup steps in — your Backup Executor acts as if they were the primary
❌ No Backup? — someone must apply to the Supreme Court of NSW instead

Learn more: what happens if your Executor dies before you.

Your Executor renounces (declines)

✅ Backup steps in — your Backup Executor acts instead
❌ No Backup? — someone must apply to the court

Always discuss the role with your chosen Executor before naming them.

Your Executor loses capacity

✅ Backup steps in — your Backup Executor acts instead
❌ No Backup? — someone must apply to the court

Consider age and health when choosing, and always name a Backup.

Separation or divorce in NSW

Divorce generally revokes gifts to, and an appointment of, a former spouse under your Will in NSW — but separation alone usually does not. If your relationship changes, review your Will and your Executor choice promptly. See How to Make a Will in NSW.

Changing your Executor

✅ Make a new Will — a new Will revokes the old one and names your new Executor
✅ Update with Will Hero — within your 12-month update period, edit and re-sign
✅ Re-sign correctly — the new Will must be signed with two independent witnesses

The bottom line

Choosing an Executor in NSW isn’t about finding someone with legal training — it’s about choosing someone you trust to be organised, reliable, and genuinely willing to act. Almost anyone can take on the role, they can also inherit under your Will, and they’ll be reimbursed for their costs (with a commission for the work itself available only where the beneficiaries agree or the Supreme Court allows it). Behind the scenes there’s real process to navigate — the 14-day notice, probate fees scaled to the size of the estate, and the expectation that the estate is wound up within the executor’s year.

The single most valuable decision you can make is to name a Backup Executor, so your estate is never left without someone you chose to manage it. It isn’t legally required, but it’s the one choice that most reliably protects your wishes.

Related Resources

• How to Choose the Right Executor for Your Will — national guide
• What Happens If My Executor Dies Before Me? — why Backups matter
• How to Make a Will in NSW — step-by-step NSW guide
• Who Can Witness a Will in NSW? — why witnesses must be independent
• What Happens If I Die Without a Will in NSW? — intestacy in New South Wales
• Probate in Australia — how probate works
• Online Wills NSW — create your Will online with Will Hero

Ready to Create Your NSW Will?

Will Hero makes it easy to choose Executors and create your legally valid Will in New South Wales:

✅ NSW-compliant — clauses built for the Succession Act 2006 (NSW)
✅ Unlimited Backup Executors — add as many layers as you need
✅ Visual Will — see how your Executor choices affect your estate
✅ Just $99 — complete your Will in as little as 15 minutes

Create your NSW Will online today →