Imagine this - you've just lost a loved one who owned property in Spain. While dealing with grief, you're suddenly thrown into a bureaucratic nightmare where your carefully prepared UK will means nothing. Spanish authorities ignore your English documentation and inheritance taxes tick up by the day. Sounds familiar? You're not alone.
Having guided hundreds of foreign nationals through Spanish inheritance laws when someone dies in Spain, I've seen families face expensive delays, frozen bank accounts and shocking tax bills they never saw coming. The good news? With proper preparation you can avoid all this.
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1. Time Is Not on Your Side
Spanish law moves fast when death occurs. Fast for common law countries. You have exactly 24 hours for death registration at the local Spanish civil registry and funeral arrangements usually happen within 48 hours. Miss these deadlines and you're looking at legal complications that compound daily.
Here's what catches most people out: Spanish bank accounts freeze immediately upon a person's death. No withdrawals for funeral expenses. No access to funds for bills. Nothing moves until you produce notarised probate documentation in Spanish.
I had a client whose father passed away in Alicante. Despite having power of attorney and a British will naming them as executor, they couldn't access a single euro from their father's Spanish bank accounts for three months. The funeral company demanded payment within days so they had to pay personally while waiting for Spanish bureaucracy to catch up.
2. When Death Occurs: The Critical First Hours
When someone dies in Spain the clock starts ticking. Under normal circumstances you must first get a doctor's medical death certificate. This document proves the cause of death and allows you to proceed with legal requirements.
The local funeral director becomes your best friend - they'll help manage funeral arrangements and guide you through the initial bureaucracy. Most funeral directors in tourist areas speak English and understand the extra challenges facing British nationals and other foreign residents.
Within 24 hours you must get the civil registry death certificate from the local Spanish civil registry. This official document, also known as the local death certificate, is different from the doctor's medical death certificate and is required for all subsequent legal processes. Without the death certificate issued by civil registry, you can't access the deceased's estate, transfer property or even repatriate.
3. The Forced Heirship Trap
Spanish inheritance laws operate on forced heirship - a concept that baffles common law nationals. Two thirds of any Spanish estate goes to children and spouse, regardless of what your last will and testament says. Only one third can be distributed according to your wishes.
This causes surprises. Take my colleague's recent case: a British client left everything to his second wife in his UK will, thinking it covered his Costa del Sol villa. Spanish law had other ideas. His children from his first marriage claimed their forced heir portions and the widow got far less than intended.
Spanish succession law doesn't recognise your freedom to distribute assets as you wish. The surviving spouse, civil partner and children all have protected rights. Even if you've drafted a last will and testament in your home country, Spanish inheritance laws apply to any assets in Spain unless you've taken specific legal steps.
4. No Will - Intestacy
For anyone not domiciled in Spain, then the laws of succession of the country where they are nationals shall be applied. If a valid will has not been written that means that the rules of intestacy of that country shall apply. Below is a brief summary of some of the more important rules of intestacy in the UK, Ireland and Spain.
5. Rules of Intestacy - England and Wales
Married couples or civil partners can inherit under the rules of intestacy in England and Wales. So if a couple has divorced, the ex-spouse will not inherit although informal separations do not prohibit from inheriting. Where an estate is valued at more than £250,000, and the deceased has left no valid will evidencing how the assets should be distributed, any spouse or civil partner inherits:
- All the personal property and belongings of the person who has died, and
- The first £250,000 of the estate, and
- A life interest in half of the remaining estate (the spouse or partner can benefit from that half but not sell or spend it).
A distinction should be made where any property or bank accounts were owned 'jointly' by the couple as in those cases the assets belonging to the deceased would automatically pass to the surviving spouse. The couple's children will inherit one-half of an estate over £250,000. If there is more than one child that half is shared equally.
6. Rules of Intestacy - Scotland
The rules of intestacy in Scotland are rather different to those in England & Wales and are found in the Succession (Scotland) Act 1964 as amended. Firstly, any debts owed by the deceased must be dealt with. The surviving spouse is the primary beneficiary under Scottish intestacy rules. In Scotland the surviving spouse is entitled to what is known as 'prior' which means a right to any:
- House (up to a value of £300,000)
- Furniture (up to a value of £24,000)
- Cash (up to a value of £42,000 if children, or £75,000 if no children)
7. 'Moveable and 'Heritable' Estates
After this it should be noted that Scottish rules of intestacy distinguish between a 'moveable' and a 'heritable' estate. The former relates to cash, jewelry, car, shares etc. The latter relates to property and land. Once the prior rights have been distributed to the surviving spouse, the moveable estate is distributed as follows:
- One-third to the surviving spouse or one-half if no children,
- One-third to the children or one-half if no surviving spouse,
- One-third to the free estate
The 'free' estate refers to that which is left after debts, prior rights and legal rights. The free estate should be distributed equally among the children or if no children then jointly to brothers and sisters and parents followed by brothers and sisters solely then parents solely...and so on down the line of succession until the Crown.
Should a husband and wife or civil partners die together in circumstances where it is not possible to determine who predeceased who, then for the purposes of intestacy in Scotland both are said to have predeceased the other when considering the rights of beneficiaries to their mutual estates. As a result each is ignored when considering the legitimate heirs to each others' estate.
Should there have been a judicial separation then the husband is barred from inheriting the wife's estate but the reverse does not hold and a wife would not be so barred. Divorced partners do not benefit from each others estate.
It is important to note that under Scottish inheritance law, a testator does not have 100% freedom of disposition of personal assets and a beneficiary may choose to inherit under the laws of succession or under the will (if named as a beneficiary). However, the beneficiary must renounce one or the other.
8. Rules of Intestacy - Northern Ireland
The rules of intestacy in Northern Ireland may be summarised as follows - If there are no children (or other relatives):
- The surviving spouse or registered civil partner inherits all of the estate
If there are children:
- The surviving spouse or registered civil partner inherits personal assets such as car, jewelry, art collection, household goods
- Equity in the estate (inc. property etc) up to £250,000
- A life interest in one-half of any remainder if one child or one-third if more than one child
If there are no children/grandchildren but parents alive:
- The surviving spouse inherits personal assets, the estate up to a value of £450,000 and one-half of the remainder (not a life interest)
- Parents inherit the remaining half
- If parents no longer alive then brothers and sisters share the remaining half equally
In Northern Ireland as in other jurisdictions in the UK, a divorced spouse receives no interest in the estate but a merely separated spouse would.
9. Rules of Intestacy - Republic of Ireland
In the Republic of Ireland it should be understood that whether or not a will has been created there are minimum guarantees for surviving spouses that ensure that they will inherit a minimum portion of the estate. So even where a will has been made, the following applies:
- Where there are no children of the marriage a spouse is entitled to one-half of the estate
- Where there are children a spouse is entitled to a minimum of one-third of the estate
- If there is a surviving spouse, no children but there are surviving grandchildren then the spouse is entitled to one-half of the estate
In general, where there is no valid will, the following rules of intestacy apply:
- Where there are no children, the spouse inherits the entire estate
- Where there are children and a surviving spouse, the spouse inherits two-thirds of the estate
10. Rules of Intestacy - Spain
Spanish Law when someone dies - Spanish succession law operates a system of ‘forced heirs’ and only a minor portion of any estate may be freely distributed by the testator.
Should a person die intestate in Spain and the Spanish rules of intestacy apply then the first matter than needs to be defined is the size of the estate. If the deceased was married and the marriage was classified as a 'sociedad de gananciales' (the most typical in Spain) then under Spanish law, assets obtained during the life-time of a marriage are shared.
Accordingly, the deceased spouse may transmit only one-half of those assets upon death. Other assets accumulated outside of the marriage - for example before the marriage or a personal inheritance from a parent - are added to this one-half to form the inheritance.
11. Rules for the Distribution of Assets
Spanish Law when someone dies stipulates that in the absence of a valid will assets should be distributed as follows:
- Equally to any children of the marriage (or if any child has predeceased the parent then to their children per stirpes),
- If no children, equally to surviving parents,
- If no surviving parents then to the closest of other surviving ascendants (uncles, aunts, grandparents),
- In the absence of surviving ascendants, to the surviving spouse,
- If no surviving spouse then to brothers and sisters
The outcome described above may be completely at odds with the preferred outcome and so it is important to make a will that covers Spanish assets to prevent this occurring.
12. Making Foreign Wills Work
To get a foreign will recognised in Spain you need to jump through specific hoops:
- Get a Grant of Probate from your home country
- Get the Hague Apostille stamp from a Notary Public
- Translate everything through an official translator
- Present documents to a Spanish notary
- Navigate local civil registry requirements
This takes 3-6 months and costs thousands in legal fees and translations. Meanwhile inheritance tax deadlines don't pause - Spain gives you six months from death to file and pay, with surcharges starting at 5% for late payment.
13. Managing Bank Accounts and Insurance
Spanish bank accounts present particular challenges. Joint accounts don't automatically transfer to the survivor as in other countries. The deceased's portion becomes part of the estate, subject to inheritance rules and taxes.
Life insurance policies require special attention. Spanish insurance companies need the death certificate issued by Spanish authorities, not just foreign documentation. Check policy contact details and notify them immediately - some policies have strict notification deadlines.
14. The Spanish Will Solution
Having a Spanish will for Spanish assets cuts through this red tape. It allows you to:
- Bypass forced heirship by using Brussels IV regulation to apply UK law
- Avoid translation and apostille requirements
- Speed up the probate process dramatically
- Access frozen bank accounts faster
- Give clear instructions to Spanish authorities in their language
Whether it's Spanish property, local bank accounts or other assets, a Spanish will simplifies everything. Your next of kin won't face language barriers or struggle with unfamiliar legal terms during their time of grief.
15. Essential First Steps After Death
When a person dies in Spain follow this critical timeline:
Within 24 Hours:
- Contact a doctor for the medical death certificate
- Register death at the local Spanish civil registry
- Engage a local funeral director or funeral parlour
- Get burial licence for local burial or cremation
First 48 Hours:
- Manage funeral arrangements (burial or cremation)
- Get civil registry death certificate
- Notify Spanish bank accounts and insurance companies
- Contact funeral agents if repatriation is planned
Within 6 Months:
- Apply for Spanish probate if no Spanish will exists
- File inheritance tax returns (Form 650/652) at tax office
- Transfer property titles at land registry
- Unfreeze bank accounts with proper documentation
- Pay inheritance tax payable on deceased's estate
16. Funeral Insurance and Arrangements
Many expats have funeral insurance to cover immediate costs. If the deceased had such a policy, the funeral insurance company will deal directly with local funeral directors, taking the financial pressure off the deceased's family during a difficult time.
For those considering local cremation versus repatriation, costs vary greatly. Local burial or cremation costs €2,000-4,000, while repatriation can be €10,000+. The British Consulate can provide lists of approved funeral companies and help with documentation for repatriation.
17. Regional Tax Differences Matter
Spanish inheritance tax varies greatly by region. While Madrid has generous exemptions, other regions can charge up to 34% for distant relatives. Some regions offer 99% discounts for spouses, others don't.
A real example: identical €500,000 estates left to children faced €0 tax in the Canary Islands but €64,000 in Andalusia. Location is key for tax planning.
The tax office requires extensive documentation, including valuations of all Spanish assets and proof of relationship to the deceased. Missing deadlines attracts automatic surcharges and interest charges.
18. Inheritance tax Process: Documentation Required
It is necessary to complete official form 650 or 652 (simple version) when paying inheritance taxes. These can normally be found in any office of Hacienda (Consejería de Economía, Hacienda y Empleo).
Along with the official form it is necessary to include all relevant information regarding the deceased, the beneficiaries and the assets that are the subject of the inheritance. So the following documents will be necessary depending on the assets to be distributed:
- Form 650/652
- Original and copy Passport Deceased
- Original and copy passport Beneficiaries
- List of assets with valuations
- Original and copy of death certificate
- Original and copy of RGAUV certificate
- Original and copy of will
- If no will, original and copy of 'Declaración de Herederos'
- List of costs of funeral and support through final illness of deceased
- If Life Insurance then Certificate of Life Insurance
- Original and copy of property IBI receipt
- Original and copy of Vehicle documentation if any
- Original and copy of Bank Certificate regarding bank accounts, shares etc
- Original and copy of proof of relation with deceased (Birth Certificate)
19. Payment of Inheritance Taxes
A time-limit is established for the payment of inheritance taxes in Spain, being six-months from the date of death. An application may be made during the first five months to have the deadline extended by a further 6 months. Once granted the extended period of six months begins when the first six months has ended.
Note: Interest will be charged at an annual rate of 5% until the date the tax is paid.
The process for applying for delaying payment of Spanish inheritance tax may vary slightly in each region.
Should the application be denied for any reason, the original deadline will be extended by the period of time between application for the extension and notification of the refusal.
20. Get Expert Legal Advice
Spanish estate planning isn't something to do alone. The interplay between Spanish law and your home country's inheritance laws is complex and demands professional guidance. From forced heirs to the probate process, expert legal advice protects your family from costly mistakes.
Local authorities follow Spanish inheritance rules that don't bend for foreign nationals. Having someone who speaks the language and understands both legal systems makes all the difference to your peace of mind.
21. Protect Your Spanish Legacy
Don't let Spanish succession law catch your family off guard. Whether you have a holiday home or have moved permanently, proper estate planning prevents administrative headaches during already difficult times.
Remember: your UK will may be perfect back home, but Spanish law when someone dies is different. A Spanish will is a small price to pay for the peace of mind it will give your family when they need it most.
Spanish inheritance law is complicated. Forced heirs, regional tax rates and more - get expert advice to ensure your wishes are respected and your loved ones protected. Don't wait until it's too late - Spanish law moves fast when death occurs.
