Which law applies
Which law decides the inheritance: where the deceased lived, or the law they chose
For deaths on or after 17 August 2015, Spain and almost all of the European Union apply the same rule: the inheritance is governed by the law of the country where the deceased had their habitual residence when they died, wherever the assets are. Not the law of their nationality, unless they chose it in their will. That law decides who inherits, what the children and the spouse receive and how the estate is divided.
Saúl Rosell Manglano · Inheritance in Spain · Madrid · ICAM 83.198
17 Aug 2015
For deaths from this date, the law of the last habitual residence governs the inheritance in Spain and in the EU countries that apply the European Succession Regulation.
1 choice
In a will, anyone can choose the law of their nationality for their whole estate. No other law can be chosen.
6 months
Validity of each certified copy of the European Certificate of Succession, which proves who the heirs are in the other EU countries.
The law of another country, always with a lawyer from there
I am a Spanish lawyer and I advise on Spanish law, including the European rules that Spain applies to inheritances. When part of the case depends on the law of another country, for example because the deceased chose it in their will, or because there are assets or taxes there, I do not advise on that law on my own: I work together with a lawyer from that country, yours if you already have one. Before we start, I tell you who that lawyer is and what each of us will do.
The country where the deceased lived
Habitual residence does not depend on the town hall register (padrón): it is the place where the person really had their life. Authorities look at how long and how regularly they lived there, where their family and home were, and why they were there.
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Someone who spends part of the year in their home country, as many British, Scandinavian or German residents on the coast do, still has a single habitual residence: the country with which they kept the most stable connection. Owning a house in Marbella or Alicante is not enough if life went on in England or Belgium.
Only exceptionally, if everything shows a much closer connection with another country, does the law of that other country apply. This can happen, for example, when the person had moved shortly before dying.
The law that applies governs the whole inheritance: who inherits, the shares of the children and the spouse, how debts are paid and how the estate is divided. It applies even if it is the law of a country outside the EU.
If the deceased died before 17 August 2015, Spain applied, in principle, the law of their nationality.
Choosing the law of their nationality
Anyone, from the EU or not, can choose in their will that the law of their nationality applies instead of the law of the country where they live. With two nationalities, either of them.
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No other law can be chosen, and not a different law for each asset: the chosen law governs everything.
The choice can be express or result clearly from the terms of the will, for example if it refers to specific rules of that law. A generic sentence, such as leaving the children what their national law gives them, is not enough: in a case like that, the law of the country where the person lived was applied.
Wills made before 17 August 2015 can also count as a choice of the law of nationality, if it is clear from the will itself that it was made under that law. This has been accepted for wills of British nationals made before a Spanish notary, and refused when nothing in the text pointed to it.
A foreigner who lived in Spain
Unless they chose the law of their country, or had a will made under it before 17 August 2015, Spanish law applies to the whole estate, including what they had in their own country.
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Spain has several inheritance laws: the Civil Code and the laws of six regions. For a foreigner, the law of the place in Spain where they lived applies: the Civil Code in Madrid, Andalusia or the Valencia region, Catalan law in Catalonia, and the law of their island in the Balearics.
Their country may not see it the same way. If they had assets in a country that does not apply the European rules, the authorities there may apply another law to those assets.
When the applicable law is foreign, Spain sets aside a specific rule of it only when its result is manifestly contrary to the basic principles of Spanish law.
Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera
If a foreigner who lived in the Balearics did not choose the law of their country, the Balearic law of their island applies, not the Civil Code: that of Mallorca, which also applies in Menorca, or that of Ibiza and Formentera. That was decided in 2019 for a German who lived in Formentera: his daughter, whom his will did not mention, could claim her reserved share under the law of Ibiza and Formentera.
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In Mallorca and Menorca the children are entitled to one third of the estate, or half if there are more than four, and the surviving spouse to a life interest. In Ibiza and Formentera the children have the same share, but the spouse has no reserved share.
Since 2023, foreigners living on the islands who have not chosen the law of their country can also use the Balearic succession agreements, by which a child receives something during the parent's life in exchange for giving up their reserved share.
In the tax, since July 2023 the spouse, children, grandchildren, parents and grandparents have a 100% allowance, although the tax must still be filed. For heirs who live abroad, it applies to deaths since 25 July 2025.
If the deceased lived outside the EU
If the deceased lived in a country outside the EU, the law of that country applies, also to the home in Spain. But the rules of that country may refer some assets, such as property in Spain, back to Spanish law, and then Spanish law applies to them.
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Whether that happens depends on the law of that country. It is one of the points I review together with a lawyer from there.
Wills made abroad, and two wills
A will made abroad is valid in Spain as to its form if it follows the law of the place where it was made, or the law of the nationality, domicile or habitual residence of the person who made it, or, for land and buildings, the law of the place where they are.
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To use it here you need an official copy with an apostille, unless an exception applies, and a translation. If a foreign law applies, its content must also be proven, for example with a report from a notary or consul of that country. Before the notary and the land registry, if it is not proven, the inheritance is not registered: Spanish law is not applied instead.
Be careful with wills in two countries: a later will can revoke an earlier one, even if it was made in another country. If you want one for each country, they must be coordinated and say that they do not revoke each other.
A joint will of two spouses, common in some countries, is prohibited for Spaniards but can be valid for a foreigner if their law allows it.
British wills, probate and English law
If a British national made a will before a Spanish notary, a grant of probate, the court document confirming who administers the estate under English law, is normally not needed to register the Spanish assets.
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If the will was made in the United Kingdom, the Spanish land registry may ask for it. For a will made in London that did not name an executor, the Marbella registry required the grant of probate and a statement in the deed of the law that applied, and in 2024 the Directorate General that decides appeals against registrars agreed with it.
The United Kingdom has no official register of wills like Spain's. When the Spanish registry needs to know that the will used is the last one, that is stated and shown in other ways.
The law of England and Wales, for example, starts from freedom of testation: it does not reserve a fixed share for the children, although if the deceased died domiciled there, the family can ask an English court for reasonable financial provision. I review what that means in your case together with a lawyer from there.
The European Certificate of Succession
It proves who the heirs are, in what share and which assets they receive, or who administers the estate, in the other EU countries that apply these rules, with no recognition procedure. It is not compulsory.
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It is used, for example, to collect an account in another country or register a house there. A bank that pays the person named in the certificate is protected, unless it knew the certificate was not accurate.
In Spain it is issued by the notary or the court dealing with the estate, but only if Spain has jurisdiction over it, for example because the deceased lived here. If they lived in another EU country, the authorities of that country issue it, and the Spanish land registry accepts it as a title for registration, provided the certified copy is still valid.
Each certified copy is valid for six months. It does not work in Denmark or Ireland, or outside the EU, including the United Kingdom.
How we will understand each other
I work in Spanish. With clients abroad I use translation tools to read and answer messages, and we manage well that way. The documents Spain needs from your country go with a sworn translation where required, and I tell you which ones before you ask for them. If you write to me in English, I will answer you.
Common questions
My father was British and lived in Spain. Which law applies to his estate?
If he died on or after 17 August 2015, Spanish law, unless his will chose the law of his nationality or he had a will made under it before 17 August 2015. Within Spanish law, the law of the region where he lived: the Civil Code if he lived in Madrid, Andalusia or the Valencia region, and the law of his island if he lived in the Balearics. If he chose the law of his country, for example that of England and Wales, I review what that law says about his estate together with a lawyer from there. If his will was made before a Spanish notary, a grant of probate will normally not be needed for the Spanish assets. If he died before 17 August 2015, Spain applied, in principle, the law of his nationality.
My parents lived in England and had a villa in Spain. Which law applies to the villa?
As a rule, the law of the country where they lived, also for the villa. But the United Kingdom does not apply the European rules, and the law of a country outside the EU may refer property in Spain back to Spanish law; if it does, Spanish law applies to the villa. Whether English law does that in your case I check with a lawyer from England.
What is the proof of foreign law, and when is it needed?
When a foreign law applies, the Spanish notary and the land registry need proof of what it says about who inherits and how much, and that the will is valid. It is usually a report from a notary or consul of that country, or a statement by the Spanish notary that he knows that law. Without it, the inheritance is not registered: Spanish law is not applied instead.
What is the European Certificate of Succession?
A document that proves who the heirs are and what they receive, in the EU countries other than Denmark and Ireland, without any recognition procedure. It is issued by the authorities of the country with jurisdiction over the estate, usually that of the last residence: in Spain, the notary or the court dealing with it. Each certified copy is valid for six months. It does not work in the United Kingdom.
I live in Spain. Should I make a Spanish will?
If you live here or own property here, yes. It is easier for your family to use, it is registered, and in it you can choose the law of your country. If you already have a will at home, the two must be coordinated so that one does not revoke the other.
An inheritance with something in Spain?
Tell me where the deceased lived, their nationality and what they owned in Spain. I will tell you which law applies and what has to be done here, and send you a written quote, free of charge.
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