I have an English Will covering my assets worldwide. Is there a need to prepare a Spanish Will?

This issue has been covered before but arises almost every other day. Whilst there is no obligation to prepare a Spanish Will, the existence of a Spanish Will is a cost effective means of simplifying the handling of your affairs. I have come across many people who intend to rely upon their English Will (or, even worse, English intestacy rules where there is no Will at all) to deal with their Spanish estate. Unfortunately however, without a Spanish Will no action can be taken in Spain until the probate of your English estate has been finalised. This can take a very long time - irrespective of whether your English Will or affairs are complicated or straightforward. There is also the expense of preparing an official translation of the English Will and its legalisation to bear in mind, which together will cost significantly more than preparing a Spanish Will in the first place.

An English person prepares his or her Spanish Will in accordance with English law. This means that the same provisions as set out in any pre-existing English Will can generally be duplicated in the Spanish Will if required.

English law also states that marriage revokes a Will in most cases so the advice to anyone who has married since making their Will is to have this point checked out.

A closely related topic is inheritance tax. Many people are aware that the Spanish authorities impose tax penalties if matters are not dealt with quickly. You have only 6 months to pay any taxes due on the deceased's Spanish estate following the date of death, failing which a surcharge will be applied and interest will start to accrue. It is rare for the English probate to be dealt with in time to allow this deadline to be met.

Conversely I have more recently seen Spanish Wills which cover a person's worldwide estate. This is far from ideal as the institutions outside Spain, for example an English bank, will not readily accept a Spanish Will and may request an English Grant of probate. Obtaining an English Grant with a Spanish Will is far from straightforward and should be avoided where possible.

I hope the above is useful and please feel free to give either myself or Carlos Baos a call on 966-426-185, or send an email to info@white-baos.com if you wish to discuss this or any other issue.

Marc White LL.B. (English Solicitor) C/Diana 19, 2ºD, 03700 Dénia (located at the Glorieta Square end of Marques de Campo)

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