Spanish Succession Law · Planning Ahead
A complete guide to making a Spanish will — why you need one, the three types available, the six key provisions to include, how professio iuris works for EU nationals, how trusts interact with Spanish wills, and how to sign a Spanish will without travelling to Spain.
Why it matters
Many international owners of Spanish property believe their home-country will is sufficient to deal with their Spanish assets. This is one of the most expensive misconceptions in international estate planning. Without a dedicated Spanish will, your heirs face:
The solution
There are three main types of will valid in Spain. For international clients, we almost always recommend the open notarial will:
Executed before a Spanish notary. The notary reads the will aloud, verifies the testator's capacity and wishes, and signs it. The original is retained in the notarial protocol indefinitely; the testator receives a certified copy. The will is registered at the Spanish Will Registry (Registro de Actos de Última Voluntad). Safe, professionally drafted and impossible to lose. This is the only type we recommend for international clients.
The testator presents a sealed document to the notary, who records the presentation without knowing the content. Rarely used in practice. Creates the risk of loss and cannot be updated without re-execution. Not recommended.
Entirely handwritten and signed by the testator with no notarial involvement. Easy to challenge, easy to lose, not registered at the Will Registry. Must be protocolised after death by a notary before it can be used. High risk of invalidity. Not recommended for international clients with Spanish assets.
The key clause
Under EU Succession Regulation 650/2012, the law of the country where the deceased was habitually resident at the time of death governs the entire succession — including Spanish assets. For an EU national living in Spain, this means Spanish succession law governs by default, including the Spanish legítima.
A professio iuris clause allows an EU national to choose the law of their nationality instead. This choice must be made explicitly in a will — it cannot be made after death, by the heirs, or retrospectively.
Examples of who can benefit from professio iuris:
It is important to understand the limits of the professio iuris clause:
We draft professio iuris clauses for all eligible EU national clients who own Spanish property, after modelling the succession and tax outcome under both the habitual residence law and the nationality law.
UK nationals
Since 31 December 2020, British nationals are no longer covered by EU Regulation 650/2012. There is no option to make a professio iuris election for the law of the UK. The Spanish private international law lex situs rule applies: Spanish law governs Spanish immovable property (real estate) regardless of the British owner's UK will, domicile or wishes.
The Spanish legítima therefore applies. A British will that leaves the entire estate to the surviving spouse — bypassing the children — is partially invalid for Spanish property. The children's legítima estricta (one third) cannot be excluded. The mejora (second third) can be allocated to the spouse only if the children are not to be entirely disinherited — which is rarely the case.
However, British nationals can still benefit significantly from a well-drafted Spanish will by:
The Spanish usufructo (usufruct) is a legal institution that allows the testator to separate the right to use and enjoy an asset from ownership of that asset. In a typical arrangement for a married couple with children:
This structure has three advantages: it protects the surviving spouse's right to remain in the Spanish home; it complies with the legítima (the children receive their mandatory share as bare owners); and it reduces the total inheritance tax burden (the usufruct's value is calculated by reference to the spouse's age — a 70-year-old spouse's usufruct is valued at 19% of the property; the children's bare ownership at 81%).
We draft usufruct arrangements for British couples across the Costa del Sol, Costa Blanca, Mallorca and all regions of Spain.
Six key provisions
The choice of nationality law, explicitly stated. The most important planning decision for EU nationals who own Spanish property. Must be in the will — cannot be elected posthumously. We always advise EU national clients on whether their nationality law is more beneficial than Spanish law before drafting this clause.
Full legal names, dates of birth, nationalities and NIE numbers (or instruction to obtain them) of all heirs. For complex family structures — children from multiple relationships, step-children, partners — the identification must be legally precise to avoid disputes and intestate claims.
Sustitución vulgar clauses specifying who inherits if a primary heir predeceases the testator, renounces or is incapacitated. Without substitution clauses, the default intestate rules apply — potentially passing the property to someone the testator would not have chosen.
For married couples: creating a usufruct for the surviving spouse while leaving bare ownership to children. This protects the spouse, complies with the legítima, reduces overall inheritance tax and provides a clear succession structure without requiring a second full inheritance procedure.
Appointing an executor (albacea) — ideally the lawyer who will manage the Spanish estate — gives continuity and efficiency. The executor has authority to manage the estate, pay debts, file tax returns and deliver assets to heirs. Without an appointed executor, every step requires all heirs to agree and act jointly.
A Spanish will that explicitly states it covers only Spanish assets (and does not revoke the UK or other foreign will) is essential when the testator has assets in multiple countries. Without this coordination clause, a later Spanish will may inadvertently revoke an earlier UK will or vice versa, creating uncertainty about the distribution of all assets.
Two-will strategy
For most international property owners — British, Irish, American, German, Dutch — the answer is yes. A Spanish will covering only your Spanish situs assets, coordinated with your home-country will covering everything else, gives your heirs the fastest and cheapest succession process in both jurisdictions.
The critical drafting point: the Spanish will must include a geographic scope limitation and a non-revocation clause so it does not accidentally cancel your home-country will. A standard Spanish notarial will revokes all previous wills by default — without these clauses it can undo your entire estate plan.
Full guide: Two Wills for Spain →Complex structures
UK and US estate planners sometimes suggest using a trust to hold Spanish property as a way of avoiding the need for a Spanish will or Spanish probate. This approach has significant limitations in practice:
A dedicated Spanish will, by contrast, provides a clear, legally recognised framework for the inheritance of Spanish property, drafted in coordination with the trust and UK will to cover all assets comprehensively.
Spain does not have common law trusts, but some autonomous communities (most notably Aragón, the Basque Country and Navarra) have traditional institutions that have some functional similarity:
These regional institutions are rarely relevant for international clients, but we advise on them when the deceased was resident in one of these autonomous communities.
For clients whose UK or US estate plan includes a trust that holds (or will hold) Spanish property, we advise on the interaction between the trust and any Spanish will. The key trust types and their Spanish implications:
When a client has both a UK discretionary trust and direct ownership of Spanish property, we recommend:
The answer: now. The Spanish will should be made as soon as you acquire Spanish property — ideally at the same time as the purchase, coordinated with the conveyancing notary. Spanish notaries routinely offer to execute a will immediately after the purchase deed. The costs are modest (€150–400 for a straightforward will) and the benefit to your heirs — in time saved, distress avoided and tax minimised — is immeasurable. We draft Spanish wills for international clients across all provinces of Spain and all autonomous communities.
Signing options
Most Spanish consulates worldwide have the authority to execute wills in their consular capacity — acting as a notary for Spanish nationals and, in many jurisdictions, for non-Spanish nationals in relation to their Spanish assets. We provide the draft will text; you attend the consulate appointment; the consulate executes and registers the will. No travel to Spain required. Waiting times at consulates vary by country — book early.
For clients who visit Spain regularly, the simplest option is to execute the will during a visit — at any notary in Spain, in the province of your choice. The appointment takes approximately 30–45 minutes. We prepare the will in advance; you review and sign in person. Many clients combine this with a visit to their property. We recommend a dedicated will-signing visit rather than trying to combine it with a property purchase, which has its own complexity.
In some jurisdictions, a will executed before a foreign notary — if it meets the formal requirements of the applicable succession law — can be recognised in Spain without a Spanish notarial act. This option is more complex and carries more risk of non-recognition in Spain. We do not generally recommend it for international clients with Spanish assets. The consulate option is more straightforward and legally certain.
Questions answered
Yes, for all practical purposes. While a UK will can be recognised in Spain if properly apostilled and translated, it does not contain the specific provisions that make a Spanish inheritance most efficient — professio iuris, Spanish substitution clauses, usufruct arrangements, Spanish executor appointment. More importantly, it may not comply with Spanish forced heirship rules, creating the risk of family disputes. A dedicated Spanish will costs €150–400 and saves your heirs far more than that in time, complexity and potential tax.
Not if the Spanish will is correctly drafted. A Spanish will should contain an explicit provision limiting its scope to Spanish assets and confirming it does not revoke any previous will concerning non-Spanish assets. We include this coordination clause in every Spanish will we draft for international clients.
You have full freedom over the freely disposable third of the estate. The first third (legítima estricta) must go to direct descendants (children/grandchildren) in equal shares. The second third (mejora) can go to any descendant in any proportion you choose. The final third is completely free. This means you cannot entirely disinherit a child — but you can significantly favour one child or your spouse over others using the mejora and the freely disposable third.
A straightforward Spanish will costs approximately €150–300 in notary fees. For a will that includes professio iuris, usufruct arrangements and multiple heirs in complex family structures, the cost may be €300–500. Our professional fee for drafting the will and coordinating the notarial appointment is separate and is quoted on a fixed-fee basis. The total cost is typically €400–800 — one of the best investments any international property owner can make.
Review your Spanish will whenever: you acquire or dispose of Spanish property; a named heir dies, divorces or has children; your family situation changes (marriage, divorce, new children); your country of habitual residence changes; or the applicable succession law changes significantly. We recommend an annual review for clients with complex international estates, and as a minimum a review after any major life event.
All locations
Select your location for specific information about local notaries, applicable regional succession law and will drafting services in your area.
Tell us about your situation and we will explain exactly what applies to you.