India’s inheritance laws have undergone a landmark reform, and as a result, probate of a will is no longer a necessity, even in the cities of Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata. The Repealing and Amending Act, 2025, which received presidential approval on December 20, abolishes Section 213 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925, thus putting an end to the court validation requirement that has existed for centuries and causing families to seek court validation before acting on a will.

Probate, which was mandatory for some communities in colonial-era presidency towns, had been a form of court scrutiny that ensured the authenticity of wills before they were distributed. Courts examined the will for its signature, witnesses, and the soundness of mind of the testator before giving executors legal authority. Consequently, this process usually took long to distribute property which made inheritance more difficult compared to intestate succession under the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, where property is automatically transferred to legal heirs.

The previous legislation was not uniform but rather applied selectively: in the three cities, Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, and Jains had to get probate, while Muslims and Christians were free from it, later Parsis were also included only in the same cities. Such a practice led to an unjust system where the will’s enforceability was determined by religion and location.

Union Minister of Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal commented that the repeal of Section 213 is a step toward modernizing succession laws, ending a provision that was discriminatory and limited to specific locations. Valid wills will now be able to be relied upon without mandatory court approval, which will save time, money, and procedural bottlenecks in non-disputed cases.

Nonetheless, probate is still not a mandatory process. Banks, registrars, and housing societies among others may ask for a probated will as a precautionary measure in case of a future dispute. Although the law does away with the requirement to take out a lawful probate, practical reasons might also play a role in deciding whether to take out a probate or not.

This change in the law is a remarkable movement towards the convergence of the various inheritance laws in India and it will not only make succession easy but also ensure legal certainty.