WILLS IN SPAIN

A Will or testament is a legal document by which a person, the testator, expresses their wishes as to how their assets are to be distributed at their passing.

A Will is legally binding, hence the importance to have one, and ensures your final wishes will be taken care of, if the worst should happen.

In Spain, if you do not have a Will that abides by your nationality and the laws of your nationality, your assets will automatically come under Spanish law, regardless of your wishes.

If you have assets in Spain, it is highly advisable to obtain a legal Will, to avoid any complications and misunderstandings and to ensure your wishes are carried out.

To obtain a Will in Spain, you will have to attend a Notary of your choice and give them all the required details, so they can type the Will out in Spanish. Then you will have to book an appointment with them. You also must take a translator with you that day to make sure all the information is correct and that you fully comprehend what is stated in the Wills. It is important to note that the Will is only in Spanish, unless you get someone to translate it for you and send it to the Notary before the day of the signing. Even so, the Spanish version of the Will always comes first, and the other language is only for information purposes. The Notary charges a fee in order to obtain the Will, ranging from 40€ to 100€ per Will, depending on its complexity. Another important note is that after you pay for the Will, they only give you an official copy, not the original Will. This is kept by the Notary, and if the worst should happen, your heirs or their legal representative must go to that same Notary with the death certificate, for it to be sent off to Madrid with the original Wills. It is therefore very important to let your heirs know of all the relevant information.

With LACS, we do everything for you. First step is to ensure that you, the client, understand the whole process and have provided us with all the necessary information required to obtain the Will successfully. After that, we contact the Notary and give them all the provided information. Once we get a draft copy of the Will, we can translate it into English and send a PDF copy to the client so they can confirm that everything is correct. Once the draft Will has been confirmed an appointment is made at the Notary. You will accompanied on this visit to make sure the process goes smoothly, as well as to translate. After that, we pay the fee for you and acquire the official copy. Within a day or two a PDF copy will be emailed across so you can send it to any relevant party, but a digital copy is always useful, just in case. To get a free quotation or if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact LACS, we will be happy to help!