Succession Certificate Through Court and NADRA's Decline Certificate

In short

NADRA first, in most places: section 10 of the Islamabad, Sindh and Balochistan succession Acts bars every court until NADRA declines the application. Section 10 of Punjab's 2021 Act did the same; whether a 2025 amendment removed it is not confirmed. Decline certificate fee (NADRA, November 2026): Rs 15,000 for assets of Rs 100,000 or more, Rs 5,000 below that, same day. A decline on an application NADRA already processed is Rs 15,000. The court: a petition to the District Judge under section 372 of the Succession Act 1925, decided "in a summary manner" after a public notice. It covers debts and securities, not land. Court fee in Punjab: 2% of the debts and securities in the certificate, per the Court Fees Act on the Board of Revenue's site. No set time for a decision in Part X of the Succession Act.

Heirs go to court for a succession certificate when NADRA will not issue one, for example when they disagree. In most provinces that route starts with NADRA's decline certificate. This guide to the succession certificate court route explains procedure; it is not legal advice, and a dispute between heirs needs a lawyer.

When you need the court

NADRA declines where there is a "factual controversy". The Punjab and Islamabad Acts define it to include "an objection by legal heirs or by any claimant of legal heirship", a dispute over who the heirs are "which is not resolvable by the Authority", and "any situation, matter or event requiring adjudication or recording of evidence or where at least one of the legal heirs is a minor". Balochistan's Act defines "Controversy" in nearly the same words, and so does Sindh's, which dropped the minor clause in 2025 (see Sindh, below).

NADRA's Punjab FAQ lists a minor in the family, a dispute among heirs, evidence to be recorded and a mentally disabled heir. Where the heirs are not all willing, it says one heir applies in writing for a decline certificate, and after a decline "one can approach any civil court through his/her attorney". For NADRA's own process, see our NADRA succession certificate guide.

The NADRA decline certificate

NADRA's FAQ explains why it is needed: to apply through the court, "under section 10 of respective Succession laws, issuance of decline certificate from NADRA has become a mandatory requirement by law."

Documents. The decline needs the same six documents as a NADRA certificate (listed in the NADRA guide); the Punjab FAQ adds an application to the in-charge of the Succession Facilitation Unit "with a valid reason".

Who applies. NADRA's succession page says one of the legal heirs must visit in person, "Through legal counsel in Sindh and Balochistan only". Sindh's 2025 amendment lets the heirs apply through their "[Power of Attorney]", while NADRA's Punjab FAQ says a power of attorney is not accepted. Ask the office.

Fee. NADRA names two:

The Punjab FAQ gives the decline fee as "Yes, 15,000/-", and where a processed case is declined after an objection, "Only Rs. 5000/- will be refunded." NADRA does not say how that refund fits the fee table; ask the office.

Fees as of November 2026.

Does the decline come first? Province by province

Punjab. The Assembly's page shows Bill No. 34 of 2025 "Passed" on 22 July 2025. As introduced, it inserts "or a civil court" after "Authority" in section 3 and says "section 10 shall be omitted". The Peshawar High Court's judgment, as Dawn quoted it on 8 May 2026, says that by the 2025 Amendment Act "after the word 'authority' the words 'or a civil court' has been inserted". We could not read the enacted Act, so whether section 10 is gone is not confirmed, and NADRA's FAQ still calls the decline mandatory. Ask a lawyer.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Dawn reported on 8 May 2026 that the Peshawar High Court upheld the 2021 Act and directed the chief secretary and law secretary "to place before the provincial cabinet to consider an amendment" like Punjab's.

Sindh. Since the 2025 amendment, a minor heir is no longer listed as a controversy. Instead, the certificate for a minor or mentally disabled heir's share "shall take effect and shall be executed after issuance of guardianship certificate" under the Guardians and Wards Act 1890. See our guide to the guardianship certificate for minor heirs.

The court petition under the Succession Act 1925

A court succession certificate covers only debts and securities (s.370, s.372, s.374): money owed to the deceased, such as bank balances, and shares, debentures and government securities. It does not cover land or a house.

• Which court (s.371): the District Judge where the deceased "ordinarily resided" at death; only if they had "no fixed place of residence", where any part of the property is. Under s.388 the Provincial Government may notify lower civil courts too; we did not read the notifications.
• The petition (s.372): signed and verified like a plaint, stating the time of death, the deceased's residence, the family and near relatives, your right, that nothing bars the grant, and the debts and securities to be covered. A false statement is an offence under section 198 of the Pakistan Penal Code.
• Notice and hearing (s.373): notice is served and posted at the court-house, then the judge decides "in a summary manner", or, if the questions are too intricate, may grant to the person with "prima facie the best title".
• The certificate (s.374, s.375): it lists the debts and securities and may let you receive interest or transfer them. The judge may require a bond with surety, and must in the intricate or competing cases above.
• Effect (s.380, s.381): valid throughout Pakistan and "conclusive" against those who owe the debts, such as banks.
• Afterwards: revocation for fraud, concealment or defective proceedings (s.383); appeal to the High Court within the Civil Procedure Code's time (s.384), or to the District Judge from a lower court (s.388). The decision does not bar a later suit (s.387).

Part X sets no time limit for the decision.

Court fee in Punjab

Under section 379 the petition comes with a deposit equal to the court fee, refunded if unspent. The copy of the Court Fees Act 1870 on the Board of Revenue Punjab's site (a 2020 file) sets the fee for a certificate under the Succession Act 1925 at "Two per centum" of the debts and securities in it, and "Three per centum" on any it is later extended to. So Rs 2,000,000 in bank balances would mean Rs 40,000. We did not check later Punjab Finance Acts, or the fee in other provinces.

Rates as of November 2026.

Letters of administration for a Muslim's estate

Section 212(1) says no right to an intestate's property can be established in court "unless letters of administration have first been granted". Section 212(2) says this "shall not apply in the case of the intestacy of a" Muslim, among others. Whether a court grant suits your case is a question for your lawyer.

Land and the next steps

Land and houses don't pass through this certificate. In Punjab they pass by the inheritance mutation: see inheritance mutation in Punjab and land record offices. NADRA's letter of administration for immovable property is in the NADRA guide. The inheritance calculator works out each heir's share.

Frequently asked questions

Succession certificate court se kaise banwayen?

Get NADRA's decline certificate first where section 10 applies, then petition the District Judge (or a notified civil court) where the deceased lived, with the court-fee deposit.

What is the NADRA decline certificate fee?

Rs 15,000, or Rs 5,000 for assets under Rs 100,000; Rs 15,000 on an already processed application (NADRA, November 2026).

What is the succession certificate court fee?

In Punjab, 2% of the debts and securities the certificate covers, per the Court Fees Act on the Board of Revenue's site. We could not confirm the other provinces' fees.

Can I go straight to the civil court without NADRA?

Not in Islamabad, Sindh or Balochistan, whose Acts bar a court until NADRA declines, nor in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where Dawn (8 May 2026) reported the Peshawar High Court upheld the bar. Punjab's Assembly passed a bill in 2025 to allow it; we could not confirm the enacted text.

Sources

1. NADRA: Succession Certificate, New Decline Certificate tab (requirements, fee and processing time), checked in a browser on 2 November 2026 nadra.gov.pk
2. NADRA: Fee Structure, processing fee for issuance of succession certificate and decline on processed application (checked in a browser on 2 November 2026) nadra.gov.pk
3. NADRA Punjab succession site: FAQs, Decline Certificate tab (checked in a browser on 2 November 2026) punjabsuccession.nadra.gov.pk
4. Succession Act, 1925 (XXXIX of 1925), Part X, sections 370 to 389, and sections 212 and 213, Pakistan Code pakistancode.gov.pk
5. Board of Revenue Punjab: The Court Fees Act, 1870, as applied in Punjab, Schedule I, No. 10 (the copy on its site, a 2020 file) bor.punjab.gov.pk
6. Ministry of Law and Justice: Letters of Administration and Succession Certificates Act, 2020 (Act No. VI of 2020, Islamabad Capital Territory), Gazette of Pakistan, 14 February 2020, sections 2(b) and 10 molaw.gov.pk
7. NADRA Punjab succession site: Punjab Letters of Administration and Succession Certificates Act 2021 (Act IX of 2021), Punjab Gazette, 17 May 2021, sections 2(b) and 10 (checked in a browser on 2 November 2026) punjabsuccession.nadra.gov.pk
8. Provincial Assembly of the Punjab: The Punjab Letter of Administration and Succession Certificate (Amendment) Bill 2024 (Bill No. 34 of 2025), passed 22 July 2025, with its text as introduced pap.gov.pk
9. Sindh Code (sindhlaws.gov.pk): Sindh Letters of Administration and Succession Certificates Act, 2021 (Sindh Act No. VII of 2021), as amended by Sindh Act No. XXVII of 2025, sections 2, 5, 6, 7 and 10 sindhlaws.gov.pk
10. Provincial Assembly of Balochistan: Balochistan Letters of Administration and Succession Certificates Act, 2022 (Act No. I of 2022), sections 2(b) and 10 pabalochistan.gov.pk
11. Dawn: PHC upholds law allowing Nadra to issue succession certificate (8 May 2026) dawn.com