Making a Spanish will
A frequently
asked question is whether a foreign owner of property in Spain
should make a Spanish will. As a
foreigner you are able, unlike a Spaniard, to decide who
inherits your property.
The law of
inheritance in Spain establishes a clear division of the
inheritance. A parent must leave two-thirds
of the inheritance to his offspring. However,
the surviving spouse is entitled to keep all assets that they
acquired prior to the marriage as well as
any gifts or inheritances bequeathed directly to them. Only half
of the assets jointly acquired during the marriage
can be disposed of.
Upon death
half of the assets acquired during the marriage remain with the
survivor. As assets are normally mainly
property, and because property has usually been bought in joint
names, the surviving partner will still own their share of the
property.
Of the
remaining, only one-third
can be disposed of as you wish. The inheritance is dealt with
under the law of obligatory heirs. This law dictates that the
estate most be divided in three equal parts. One-third
must be left in equal parts to the
surviving issue. One-third must
also be left to the surviving issue, but divided in a way
decided by the deceased. However, the
surviving spouse has a life interest in this one-third
share and the inheritor cannot dispose of it until the
death of the surviving spouse. One-third
can be left to whomever the deceased wishes.
A foreign
resident dying in Spain intestate will have his estate divided
according to the above. Dying without a will causes unnecessary
and often expensive delays for the inheritors as well as being a
little unfortunate for the deceased!
Making a
Spanish will is quick and easy to do and avoids problems in the
future. The Spanish civil code enables a
foreign property owner (even if resident) to leave his assets as
governed by the law of the country of his birth and not Spanish
law. They will still be subject to Spanish inheritance tax. This
applies only if a will exists, if they die intestate
then Spanish law will apply to all assets
held in Spain.
However,
English law says that property owned in a foreign land should be
disposed of in accordance with the law of that land. A direct
contradiction of the Spanish law.
This is
the theory. In practice,
the Spanish registrar of wills accepts that a foreigner can
bequeath his estate to whomever he chooses. It must
be demonstrated that the deceased's
country of birth also permits such bequests.
Spanish law
states that inheritance is payable in Spain on worldwide assets.
Again, in theory. In practice authorities
ask only for inheritance tax to be paid on property disposed of
in Spain.
It is for
the above that it is advisable to have a Spanish will made for
assets held in Spain and an English will for assets held in the
UK.
It should be
noted that Spain chooses to interpret the law as described above
- but an heir could contest this. When there is a doubt
over whether it will be contested you should consider
transferring the title of a property to your chosen heir.
It should be
also noted that we are estate agents and not
international lawyers. If in doubt take legal advise over any
matters of concern. You
should also make a will in each country where you hold assets to
settle inheritance in those countries.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
For more information on Valencia and our range of property
go to:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
For more news and views on Valencia property visit:
|
