# Spanish Inheritance Laws



## davjan (Nov 26, 2008)

Good afternoon everyone - has anyone come across this situation? My husband and I have been together for 27 years, married for 20, and each have a child from previous marriages. There has been no contact between my husband and his son ( son's choice, albeit under family pressure) for over 20 years and we have no idea where he even lives. My daughter has taken my husband's surname, but he never formally adopted her, and they are very close. 
Our problem is that we are looking to move to Andalucia in about two years time and will be buying a property, which we want eventually to leave to our (my) daughter only. When my husband and his first wife divorced, he gave her everything ( she had enough financial settlement to be mortgage free) - apart from his own personal possessions, like clothes, so, apart from the total lack of contact, he feels his son will inherit from him in that way. Everything we have and own has been gained either through the financial settlement from my divorce, or what we have both worked hard for since we have been together.
Is there any legal way we can ensure that we leave everything to our daughter, especially bearing in mind that, should I die first, there is no legal tie between my husband and my daughter when he eventually dies.
Any advise would be really appreciated - thankyou for your help


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## SteveHall (Oct 17, 2008)

You NEED a Spanish will. Out of preference I would get it drawn up BEFORE you purcahse a property. This is a very specialised field and although I have (too) Much experience of it I will say no more. My experience has been that every case is different and you need a Spanish solicitor who is competent in this field ...and NOT just conveyancing. 

Do you know the issues re joint bank accounts, BTW? If not, that's another thing to think through in advance.


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## Guest (Mar 7, 2010)

SteveHall said:


> You NEED a Spanish will. Out of preference I would get it drawn up BEFORE you purcahse a property. This is a very specialised field and although I have (too) Much experience of it I will say no more. My experience has been that every case is different and you need a Spanish solicitor who is competent in this field ...and NOT just conveyancing.
> 
> Do you know the issues re joint bank accounts, BTW? If not, that's another thing to think through in advance.


Steve, 

What's this about joint bank accounts? Are you referring to something special in Spain, or...?

Thanks!


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

halydia said:


> Steve,
> 
> What's this about joint bank accounts? Are you referring to something special in Spain, or...?
> 
> Thanks!



Steve can be so damn cryptic sometimes  !!!! I think if you have a joint bank account, and one of you passes away they automatically freeze the account so that the remaining spouse is unable to access it - STEVE?????? 


Jo xxx


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## SteveHall (Oct 17, 2008)

Hole in one, Jojo.


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## davjan (Nov 26, 2008)

Thanks for the info so far - it's a bit of a minefield ain't it ?? We have thought about just buying the property in my name, leaving it to our daughter, with a life interest for my husband ( with all the safeguards legally in place) or buying it in the name of a UK limited company which we and our daughter would "own" - DH is an accountant, so he could do all the necessary HMRC returns etc. Any thoughts??


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## SteveHall (Oct 17, 2008)

Yes, you will get crucified by the Spanish tax authorities IF they believe you are trying to evade death duties. I went through this about 12 months ago. VERY messy and I "think" that the Irish couple were lucky that the Hacienda were sloppy on follow-ups.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

davjan said:


> Thanks for the info so far - it's a bit of a minefield ain't it ?? We have thought about just buying the property in my name, leaving it to our daughter, with a life interest for my husband ( with all the safeguards legally in place) or buying it in the name of a UK limited company which we and our daughter would "own" - DH is an accountant, so he could do all the necessary HMRC returns etc. Any thoughts??


I dont know enough about the inheritance laws here other than they're strange! Something about property only being left to the children and inheritance tax having to be paid prior to the property being sold..........??????????

Jo xxx


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## SteveHall (Oct 17, 2008)

Hole in one again, Jojo. I'd take up golf...you are having a blinder!! 

Seriously, Davjan. You NEED professional advice and now I find that your husband is a professional I am surprised you are asking here. Good Luck


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

SteveHall said:


> Hole in one again, Jojo. I'd take up golf...you are having a blinder!!
> 
> Seriously, Davjan. You NEED professional advice and now I find that your husband is a professional I am surprised you are asking here. Good Luck



Stevie, you are being too cryptic tonight!!!! Its annoying LOL 

Jo xxx


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## davjan (Nov 26, 2008)

Please don't think we're trying to evade death duties, or do anything underhand, just that we're trying to find a way so that ONLY our daughter will inherit, and not my husband's son, who, as I said before, we've neither seen nor heard from in over twenty years.


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## SteveHall (Oct 17, 2008)

A "hole in one" also means "the right answer" and that's two on the row today! 

Hope all is well, a long time since I scrounged a cortado. Too long.


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

davjan said:


> Please don't think we're trying to evade death duties, or do anything underhand, just that we're trying to find a way so that ONLY our daughter will inherit, and not my husband's son, who, as I said before, we've neither seen nor heard from in over twenty years.



We dont think that at all, but it is a minefield. So I think what Steve says is right tho, you do need to get professional assistance. The inheritance laws in Spain are very different to the UK and I've gotta feeling that you could find that your husbands son may well be able to overrule the will unless careful and knowledgeable help is given

Jo xxx


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## davjan (Nov 26, 2008)

Thankyou for all your help - you've confirmed our thoughts that we will need to sort this out with a legal bod, sooner rather than later. Although my husband is an accountant, he is not familiar with Spanish law, unfortunately, hence the post on the forum to see if anyone had any thoughts or had heard of anyone else who had faced the same problem.


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## dunmovin (Dec 19, 2008)

one possible way to do this is to transfer everything to your name or your daughter's name now, but do it in way that both of you have access to the assets for as long as you are both alive. (such as a trust fund)

I'm not sure about Spanish law, but UK law says that any offspring can only claim a portionof 1/3 of the moveable estate if the will if contested. (e.g. 5sons or daughters can only claim one fifth of one third of the moveable estate and they have no claim on fixed assets such as property)


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## Guest (Mar 7, 2010)

jojo said:


> Steve can be so damn cryptic sometimes  !!!! I think if you have a joint bank account, and one of you passes away they automatically freeze the account so that the remaining spouse is unable to access it - STEVE??????
> 
> 
> Jo xxx


Ah! Thank you!


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## VFR (Dec 23, 2009)

Steve is that a fact ! re-joint bank account, as I asked a Gestor and he looked puzzled and said of course "not" (they do not frezze it)


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## SteveHall (Oct 17, 2008)

Get a gestor who knows what he is doing then. 

I have confirmed this with banks and gestors who I do trust. (Incidentally in the CV)


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## gus-lopez (Jan 4, 2010)

There is an example of the situation you have in the book 'you & the law in spain', which A ) suggests you get expert advice & B ) transfer the property into the chosen heirs name whist maintaining an 'usufructo' over the property which gives you the right to use it whilst you are both still living. You'd just have to pay all the usual taxes ( or your daughter would !  ) & unless your over 65 possibly CGT on the imputed gain.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

davjan said:


> Please don't think we're trying to evade death duties, or do anything underhand, just that we're trying to find a way so that ONLY our daughter will inherit, and not my husband's son, who, as I said before, we've neither seen nor heard from in over twenty years.


Be careful with this. It isn't always possible to do precisely what you want to with inheritances over here "on the continent."

You need to take expert advice, and/or do some research on your own (means you need to be able to work your way through legal Spanish) to find out what the local laws are. Not sure about Spain (since I'm a bit north of you, in France) but in some countries it is impossible (in theory) to disinherit a son or daughter, no matter how long it has been since last contact or what sorts of abuse they have committed against their parent(s). OTOH, if the prodigal son is unreachable or doesn't know about his "rights" or might be willing to give them up, there might be some other alternatives.

Still, be ready to remain real flexible in how you set up your affairs - and do your planning _before_ you buy property.
Cheers,
Bev


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## Rofa (Dec 3, 2009)

SteveHall said:


> Yes, you will get crucified by the Spanish tax authorities IF they believe you are trying to evade death duties. I went through this about 12 months ago. VERY messy and I "think" that the Irish couple were lucky that the Hacienda were sloppy on follow-ups.


Can you point me to the thread if there was one please Steve. Do you know if a five year statute of limitations applies to the collection of IHT? Had a look at the Agencia Tributaria web site and can't find anything that covers this.


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## SteveHall (Oct 17, 2008)

It's not a thread - it was with a member of the Newcomers Club in Torrevieja. Two gestors that she had used gave completely conflicting advice and whilst messing around with them may have confused the Hacienda she eventually had to get to a quality Spanish lawyer to save her soul. The authorities were heavy that this was evasion. Fortunately, a few changes of address in Spain and the ROI and a few different advisers in Spain put the Hacienda off the scent. 

If in doubt get PROFESSIONAL advice.


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## Rofa (Dec 3, 2009)

SteveHall said:


> It's not a thread - it was with a member of the Newcomers Club in Torrevieja. Two gestors that she had used gave completely conflicting advice and whilst messing around with them may have confused the Hacienda she eventually had to get to a quality Spanish lawyer to save her soul. The authorities were heavy that this was evasion. Fortunately, a few changes of address in Spain and the ROI and a few different advisers in Spain put the Hacienda off the scent.
> 
> If in doubt get PROFESSIONAL advice.


Many thanks. Managed to find an answer and am posting the web page just in case it helps anyone - no affiliation etc:


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## SteveHall (Oct 17, 2008)

I REALLY wish you had not posted that link. I have seen sooooo much complete xxxxx on there! 

That said, on this particular thread I have no reason to take issue but I LOVED this "The reason is because Spain is divided into 17 different regions and each pass their own laws, besides the national ones, on IHT. So it´s a fairly complex and technical matter."


I would take it further 
"Spain is divided into 17 different regions and each pass their own laws, besides the national ones, on whatever they feel like."

By coincidence I used GV&A last year in Marbella and was VERY impressed with their team. The lawyer I had offered the work to admitted that it was not his speciality and as we were looking for a court hearing within 24 hours he suggested going to "the top guys". They were .....and so was their xxxxx invoice! Impressed, though.


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## SteveHall (Oct 17, 2008)

"It's not a thread - it was with a member of the Newcomers Club in Torrevieja. Two gestors that she had used gave completely conflicting advice and whilst messing around with them may have confused the Hacienda she eventually had to get to a quality Spanish lawyer to save her soul. The authorities were heavy that this was evasion. Fortunately, a few changes of address in Spain and the ROI and a few different advisers in Spain put the Hacienda off the scent" 

Part of the "fun" was that the house was in San Pedro del Pinatar which is just inside the Murcia community but the gestors she was using were in Alicante (Torrevieja and Pilar de la Horadada). She eventually used a Torrevieja solicitor to sort it out but what with change of addresses, different tax authorities etc when Pedro pleaded her case he had her as a woman more sinned against than sinning and was adamant that she would LOVE to pay whatever was correct if somebody could give her FACTS. These guys should be on the stage!


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## Rofa (Dec 3, 2009)

SteveHall said:


> These guys should be on the stage!


Shouldn't they just! I once had to appear as a witness and enjoyed the performance immensely. Actually I do have a quality lawyer - one of the most successful in my area. Every visit costs €800 which he likes as cash and puts into a wastepaper basket under his desk.


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## Rostra (Jan 23, 2013)

halydia said:


> Steve,
> 
> What's this about joint bank accounts? Are you referring to something special in Spain, or...?
> 
> Thanks!


Joint bank accounts - if the bank is informed that one party has died they should freeze 50% of the account, except for paying funeral expenses out of the 50%. Usually the surviving partner moves the funds before telling the bank - not quite the right thing to do but I have heard Bank Managers say "Don't tell me he's died just yet" !


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## Rostra (Jan 23, 2013)

Rofa said:


> Can you point me to the thread if there was one please Steve. Do you know if a five year statute of limitations applies to the collection of IHT? Had a look at the Agencia Tributaria web site and can't find anything that covers this.


Yes it does, and IHT is also not covered by the Double Taxation Treaty - it's a messy area.


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## Rostra (Jan 23, 2013)

davjan said:


> Please don't think we're trying to evade death duties, or do anything underhand, just that we're trying to find a way so that ONLY our daughter will inherit, and not my husband's son, who, as I said before, we've neither seen nor heard from in over twenty years.



See my post elsewhere about the EU directive insisting that EU countries allow Testators to choose whether the Law of the country wher they make their Will or the Law of their nationality when making the will applies to its disposition - deadline for coming into operation in Spain August 2015. Means you can leave your estate to whomsoever you like, as long as you get the wording right.

"Manifiesta que el importe de la herencia instituida en las cláusulas anteriores, se encuentra dentro de los límites disponibles, según determina su Ley Personal, y manifiesta que desea que su sucesión se rija por el derecho de su país de nacionalidad."


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

Rostra said:


> See my post elsewhere about the EU directive insisting that EU countries allow Testators to choose whether the Law of the country wher they make their Will or the Law of their nationality when making the will applies to its disposition - deadline for coming into operation in Spain August 2015. Means you can leave your estate to whomsoever you like, as long as you get the wording right.
> 
> "Manifiesta que el importe de la herencia instituida en las cláusulas anteriores, se encuentra dentro de los límites disponibles, según determina su Ley Personal, y manifiesta que desea que su sucesión se rija por el derecho de su país de nacionalidad."


Please dont drag up 3 year old threads, many of the posters have long gone


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