If the person who died lived in Johannesburg, Sandton, Randburg, Roodepoort, Soweto or anywhere in the greater Joburg area, their deceased estate must be reported to the Master of the High Court, Johannesburg (often called the Master of the South Gauteng High Court).
Here's everything you need before you go: the address, contact details, documents to bring, and what the queues are really like.
Local Master's Office guide
Before you visit the Johannesburg office, get the address, documents, and follow-up plan clear
A complete lodgement pack and written follow-up trail matter more than repeated trips to the counter.
- Confirm jurisdiction: the office depends on where the deceased ordinarily lived.
- Bring the estate pack: death notice, death certificate, will, inventory, and ID documents.
- Use the estate number: quote it on every follow-up.
- Keep proof: written queries and responses move files faster than verbal promises.
Contact details
Johannesburg Master's Office contact details
- Physical address: Hollard Building, 66 Marshall Street (corner Pixley ka Isaka Seme Street, formerly Sauer Street, and Marshall Street), Marshalltown, Johannesburg
- Postal address: Private Bag X5, Marshalltown, 2107
- Telephone: 011 429 8000 / 011 429 1001
- Public hours: mornings are your best bet, offices assist the public from early morning, and several sections wind down public service after 13h00
Details as published by the Department of Justice; always confirm before travelling.
Jurisdiction and services
What this office handles
The Johannesburg office deals with:
- Deceased estates of people who ordinarily lived in the Johannesburg area
- Letters of Executorship and Letters of Authority (which one do you need?)
- Trust registrations for the area (how trust registration works)
- Guardian's Fund matters for minors and untraced heirs
Lived in Pretoria or Centurion instead? You want the Pretoria office. Jurisdiction follows where the deceased lived, not where they died.
Document pack
Documents to bring when reporting an estate
Bring the complete pack, or you'll be back next week:
- Death notice (J294)
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- The original will (if there is one)
- Inventory of assets (J243)
- Acceptance of trust as executor (J190), two signed copies
- Certified copy of the executor's ID
- Marriage certificate / antenuptial contract details
- Next-of-kin affidavit (J192) if there's no will
Full explanation of each document: our complete Master of the High Court guide
What to expect
What to expect at the Johannesburg office
The Johannesburg Master's office is one of the busiest in the country. Expect:
- Queues that start before the doors open. Arrive early, genuinely early.
- Load shedding and "system offline" days. They happen. Budget a spare morning.
- Queries instead of conversations. If your pack is incomplete, you won't be told how to fix it over a counter chat, you'll get a query sheet and a new wait.
None of this is meant to scare you. It's meant to explain why families who lodge complete, correct packs, and then follow up persistently, finish months ahead of families who don't.
Handled for you
Or let us handle the Johannesburg estate process
Wills & Trust deals with the Johannesburg Master's office every day. We prepare the complete lodgement, submit it, chase every query, and give your family one phone number and a dedicated case manager, instead of a ticket in a queue on Marshall Street.
Quick answers
Questions about the Johannesburg Master's Office
Where is the Master of the High Court in Johannesburg?
Hollard Building, 66 Marshall Street, corner Pixley ka Isaka Seme (Sauer) Street, Marshalltown, Johannesburg.
What time should I arrive?
Before opening. Public service hours favour mornings, and queues form early.
Can I phone instead of visiting?
You can try 011 429 8000, but be prepared for unanswered lines, written follow-ups and in-person enquiries move files more reliably.
Which areas fall under the Johannesburg Master?
Broadly, the greater Johannesburg area, including Sandton, Randburg, Roodepoort and Soweto. Pretoria-area estates go to the Pretoria office.
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