First steps in handling an inheritance
A person’s death brings not only the loss itself but also the start of countless tedious and often very complex formalities. At Arias Advocats we summarise some of the most common steps in handling the estate of the deceased.
1. The death certificate
To start handling an inheritance, the first thing you need is a certificate proving that the deceased has died. You must request the full death certificate from the Civil Registry, giving the deceased’s full name and the date and place of death. The request can be made from 15 days after the death, in person, by post or online.
2. Last wills and life insurance
Once you have the death certificate, you need to apply to the regional office of the Ministry of Justice to find out whether the deceased made a will and before which notary. You also need to know whether the deceased was covered by any insurance policy, either a life insurance policy covering death or accident insurance covering the death of the insured person. This is done by requesting the Certificate of Last Wills and the Certificate of Life Insurance Policies, both using Form 790, always once the first 15 days after the death have passed.
What you do next depends on the information obtained. If the Certificate of Last Wills shows that the deceased made a will, it will also show which notary drew it up, so you can go to that notary’s office and find out who the appointed heirs are. If, on the other hand, the certificate shows that there is no will, the rules on intestate succession will apply.
3. Accepting or renouncing the inheritance
If the will names us as heirs, we need to see what share we have been allocated and assess the assets and liabilities of the estate before deciding whether to accept or renounce it. This decision must be taken carefully, because it is irrevocable: there is no going back. That is why heirs should get proper advice beforehand, since renouncing the inheritance can sometimes be more beneficial than accepting it.
3.1 Accepting the inheritance
If the heir decides to accept the inheritance, they can do so expressly — through a document, public or private, usually a public deed — or tacitly, through acts that clearly show their intention to accept it.
When you accept an inheritance, you also accept the deceased’s debts and obligations. The law allows you to accept it outright or with the benefit of inventory.
Outright acceptance merges the assets the heir receives with their own. As a result, the heir must meet the debts and obligations out of this combined wealth, which may mean their own assets are affected when paying those liabilities.
To protect the heir’s assets, the law offers an alternative: acceptance with the benefit of inventory. The heir must formalise, before a notary or a court, an inventory of all the deceased’s assets together with the debts and charges of the estate, and then liquidate the estate. The heir must first pay the estate’s creditors and then the legatees, using only the deceased’s assets.
3.2 Renouncing the inheritance
It is often more beneficial for the heir to renounce the inheritance. This must be done by public deed or, depending on the case, by a written statement to the competent court. Renouncing the inheritance does not mean giving up other rights and benefits from the deceased, such as a legacy, but only the inheritance itself.
If the inheritance is renounced, the substitute heir named in the will (if any) takes the renouncing heir’s place; failing that, the share goes to the other heirs (right of accretion); and if neither applies, intestate succession opens.
The interrogatio in iure
Finally, where an heir neither accepts nor renounces the inheritance, the law offers a very useful procedural mechanism to avoid further delay: the interrogatio in iure. Article 461-12.2 of the Civil Code of Catalonia allows interested parties to ask the court to call on the heir to accept or renounce the inheritance. If the heir remains silent, the inheritance is deemed to have been renounced.
