Auckland Regional Office
Fact Sheet 9
Death Duty Registers
Succession, Legacy, and Residuary Duty Registers
Under the Stamp Duties Act of 1866, the estates of dead persons for which probate had been granted had to bear three types of duty: succession duty, legacy duty and residuary duty. This act required that the District Commissioners of Stamp Duties keep a record of duties payable, and those paid. In practice, a register was kept for each type of duty at the district level and a person’s name was entered in all three volumes even if they only paid one type of duty.
After an enquiry in 1875 (Appendix to the Journal of the House of Representatives H-16), new legislation reduced to one the number of duties payable on the estate of a deceased person. Therefore, the registers begun in 1867 to record the three different duties payable, were superseded in 1876 by district testamentary registers. Unfortunately, only the Legacy Duty Register contains an index of names. To access the Succession Duty Register, use the index in the Legacy Duty Register. Find the year and number within that year which identifies the person you are seeking. This reference (year plus number) applies to both surviving registers. The Residuary Duty Register is not held.
Record description Dates Auckland Legacy duty register 1867-76 BBCB 4209/1 Auckland Residuary duty register 1867-76 None held Auckland Succession duty register 1867-76 BBCB 4210/1
Auckland Succession Duty Register (Series 4210)
BBCB 4210/1 Auckland Succession Duty Register 1867-1876
The succession duty register has headings for the following entries:
Date Number Name of predecessor Date of death Name of successor What relation to deceased When succession took place When account of succession took place Description and nature of property succeeded to/total value/annual value/percent Amount of percentage and penalty (if any) When paid
Although legacy, residuary and succession duties were superseded in 1976, entries still appear in the registers until 1910. These are all for people who had died before 1876, but whose estates for some reason were not administered until many years later.
July 2009 1/5 Auckland Legacy Duty Register (Series 4209)
BBCB 4209/1 Auckland Legacy Duty Register (indexed) 1867-1876
Legacy duty registers have headings for the following entries:
Date Number Name of testator or intestate Date of will Date of death Date of probate or administration Name of executor or administrator Amount sworn under Name of legatee or next of kin Rate per cent Amount of duty and penalty (if any) Name of annuitant (this section often contains a brief resume of the will) Amount of annuity How payable Value of annuity Rate per cent Amount of duty and penalty (if any) When paid
The indexes in the legacy duty registers provide access to entries in the succession duty register BBCB 4210/1, and residuary duty registers, (not held), which do not have their own indexes. All three entries in the registers have the same yearly consecutive number.
Testamentary Registers (Series 4208)
Archives New Zealand’s Auckland Regional Office holds Testamentary Registers created after 1875 by the Stamp Duty Office and its successor, the Inland Revenue Department, to record the duty payable on the estates of all deceased persons and when they were paid. Duty was payable on all estates for which probate was granted.
These registers are a valuable source for family research, as they can be easily used and they contain detailed information about deceased persons’ estates. They also contain the probate file number and initials of the relevant court (where applicable). This can be found at the bottom left of the death duty entry.
Under the Stamp Act of 1875, every administrator of a will was required to file a statement with the District Commissioner or Deputy Commissioner of Stamp Duties, giving the particulars of all the personal property which belonged to the deceased at the time of his or her death. This included debts due and the value of all real property. This statement was used to assess the amount of duty to be paid by their heirs, which was recorded in the Stamp Office district register and marked off as having been paid. After the duty had been paid, the commissioner would issue the grant of administration, which had been forwarded by the Registrar of the District Supreme Court, to whoever was entitled to receive it.
Like the succession, legacy and residuary duty registers, testamentary registers were kept at two levels – an original, at the district office level, and a duplicate copy for each district at head office.
Each register contains its own alphabetical index, and covers a number of years.
July 2009 2/5 Records within Series 4208 include:
BBCB 4208/1 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1876 1882 BBCB 4208/2 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1882 1886 BBCB 4208/16 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1886 1892 BBCB 4208/3 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1892 1896 BBCB 4208/4 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1896 1900 BBCB 4208/14 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1900 1903 BBCB 4208/5 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1903 1906 BBCB 4208/6 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1906 1908 BBCB 4208/7 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1908 1911 BBCB 4208/8 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1911 1913 BBCB 4208/9 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1913 1914 BBCB 4208/10 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1915 1916 BBCB 4208/11 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1917 1918 BBCB 4208/15 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1919 1919 BBCB 4208/12 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1920 1921 BBCB 4208/13 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1922 1923 BBCB 4208/17 17 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1924 1925 BBCB 4208/18 18 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1926 1927 BBCB 4208/19 19 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1928 1929 BBCB 4208/20 20 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1930 1931 BBCB 4208/21 21 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1932 1933 BBCB 4208/22 22 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1934 1935 BBCB 4208/23 23 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1936 1937 BBCB 4208/24 24 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1938 1938 BBCB 4208/25 25 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1939 1939 BBCB 4208/26 26 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1940 1940 BBCB 4208/27 27 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1941 1941 BBCB 4208/28 28 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1942 1942 BBCB 4208/29 29 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1943 1943 BBCB 4208/30 30 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1944 1944 BBCB 4208/31 31 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1945 1945 BBCB 4208/ 32 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1946 1946 BBCB 4208/ 33 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1947 1947 BBCB 4208/ 34 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1948 1948 BBCB 4208/ 35 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1949 1949 BBCB 4208/ 36 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1950 1950 BBCB 4208/ 37 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1951 1951 BBCB 4208/ 38 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1952 1952 BBCB 4208/ 39 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1953 1954 BBCB 4208/ 40 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1955 1955 BBCB 4208/ 41 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1956 1956 BBCB 4208/ 42 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1957 1957 BBCB 4208/ 43 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1958 1958 BBCB 4208/ 44 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1959 1959 BBCB 4208/ 46 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register 1961 1961 BBCB 4208/ 49 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register [no index] 1964 1964 BBCB 4208/ 50 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register [no index] 1965 1965 BBCB 4208/ 51 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register [no index] 1966 1966 BBCB 4208/ 52 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register [no index] 1967 1967 BBCB 4208/ 53 Auckland District [Testamentary] Register [no index] 1968 1968
July 2009 3/5 A register entry will include most, but usually not all, of the following information:
name of testator or intestate person place of residence occupation date of entry exact date of death date of administration, and sometimes name/s of administrator/s when statement was filed net value of property, and other details relating to the estate a brief resume of the will name/s of beneficiaries, and their relation to the deceased amount of share of beneficiary name/s of solicitor payment of duty details probate number and initials of the relevant court, if will probated
Native Succession Order Registers (Series 4243)
Under the Death Duties Act 1909, and successive legislation, a duplicate copy of every succession order made by the Maori (Native) Land Court or Native Appellate Court had to be sent to the Commissioner of Stamps, who would register and assess the duty payable on the property. Only when this duty had been paid was the succession legally allowed to take place.
All the registers are indexed by the name of the deceased. A register entry will include the following information:
number and date of entry name of deceased name/s of successor/s, and usually where the property was situated value of succession duty assessed date of payment Maori Land Court number
Registers of (Maori) Succession Orders
BBCB 4243/1 Register of [Maori] Succession Orders [Indexed] 1887 1904 BBCB 4243/2 Register of [Maori] Succession Orders [Indexed] 1911 1916 BBCB 4243/3 Register of [Maori] Succession Orders [Indexed] 1916 1918 BBCB 4243/4 Register of [Maori] Succession Orders [Indexed] 1918 1920 BBCB 4243/5 Register of [Maori] Succession Orders [Indexed] 1920 1921 BBCB 4243/6 Register of [Maori] Succession Orders [Indexed] 1921 1923 BBCB 4243/7 Register of [Maori] Succession Orders [Indexed] 1923 1926 BBCB 4243/8 Register of [Maori] Succession Orders [Indexed] 1926 1930 BBCB 4243/9 Register of [Maori] Succession Orders [Indexed] 1931 1938 BBCB 4243/10 Register of [Maori] Succession Orders [Indexed] 1938 1944 BBCB 4243/11 Register of [Maori] Succession Orders [Indexed] 1944 1964
New Zealand Estate Index 1921-1973
These indexes cover all estates in New Zealand between 1921 and 1973. The names of deceased persons are listed alphabetically by surname. Information provided is name, district, year and testamentary number, which corresponds to the person’s listing in the relevant testamentary register. The NZ Estates indexes are useful for those people trying to track down the year and court in which a particular estate was administered.
July 2009 4/5 Estate Indexes
BBAE 4283/1a Estate Indexes – A-B 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/1b Estate Indexes – C-D 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/1c Estate Indexes – E-G 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/2a Estate Indexes – H-I 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/2b Estate Indexes – J-L 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/2c Estate Indexes – M-N 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/3a Estate Indexes – O-R 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/3b Estate Indexes – S 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/3c Estate Indexes – T-Z 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/4a Estate Indexes – A-Z 1965 1966 BBAE 4283/4b Estate Indexes – A-Z 1967 1968 BBAE 4283/5a Estate Indexes – A-Z 1972 1973 BBAE 4283/5b Estate Indexes – A-Z 1970 1971 BBAE 4283/6b Estate Indexes – C-D 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/6a Estate Indexes – A-B 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/6c Estate Indexes – E-G 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/7a Estate Indexes – H-I 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/7b Estate Indexes – J-L 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/7c Estate Indexes – M-N 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/8a Estate Indexes – O-R 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/8b Estate Indexes – S 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/8c Estate Indexes – T-Z 1921 1962 BBAE 4283/9a Estate Indexes – A-Z 1963 1964 BBAE 4283/9b Estate Indexes – A-Z 1965 1966 BBAE 4283/9c Estate Indexes – A-Z 1967 1968 BBAE 4283/10a Estate Indexes – A-Z 1970 1971 BBAE 4283/10b Estate Indexes – A-Z 1972 1973
Gift Registers (Series 4244)
BBCB 4244/1a Gift Register 202-1714/54 1954-1954 BBCB 4244/1b Gift Register 1715-1833, 1-1674/55 1954-1955
Details found in the registers include:
Number Donor Donee Particulars of Property Date Value Duty Receipt, Date Paid.
ACCESS
Access to the Testamentary Registers, the Native Succession Order Registers and Gift Registers dated after 1921 is restricted.
Written permission to view registers after 1921 must be obtained from the Inland Revenue Department.
August 2009
July 2009 5/5