Nobody likes to think about making a will, but if you own property, hold a bank account, or have family in Spain, dying without one can turn an already difficult moment into a costly cross-border legal ordeal for the people you leave behind. A Spanish will (testamento) is a relatively simple and inexpensive document that can save your heirs months of probate and significant legal expense.
Do You Need a Spanish Will?
You are not legally required to make a will in Spain, and your foreign will is generally recognised under Spanish law — particularly where EU Regulation 650/2012 (the Brussels IV succession regulation) applies. However, a standalone Spanish will covering your Spanish assets makes probate dramatically simpler. With only a foreign will, your heirs must obtain a notarised, apostilled and sworn translation of it, then have it recognised by a Spanish notary — a process that adds cost, delay, and the risk that the Spanish notary interprets it differently from your home-country lawyer.
A Spanish will avoids that. Your Spanish assets pass under a document drafted in Spanish legal terms, before a Spanish notary, immediately recorded in the Registro Central de Últimas Voluntades (the central registry of wills).
How It Works
To make a Spanish will you visit a notary (notarÃa) and declare your wishes orally; the notary drafts the document and you sign in their presence. You do not need a lawyer to make a will in Spain — the notary is the legal guarantor. The standard fee for a simple will is typically between €80 and €150. You can make more than one will (for example, one in your home country for assets there and one in Spain for Spanish assets), provided they do not contradict each other. Wills in Spain are fully revocable — you can update or replace your Spanish will at any time, and the most recent one always prevails.
Choosing the Governing Law
Under Brussels IV, you can explicitly choose the law of your nationality to govern your entire succession. This is an important option for British and other non-EU nationals who, without such a clause, might see forced heirship rules (legÃtimas) applied to their Spanish estate. Your notary and a specialist advisor can help you structure this correctly.
Inheritance Tax in Spain
Spain's inheritance tax (Impuesto de Sucesiones) is levied on the heir, not the estate, and is modulated heavily by the autonomous region where the deceased resided — regions such as Madrid, Catalonia and Andalusia have substantial reductions for close relatives, while others apply far higher effective rates. Exemptions and reductions vary by relationship and region, and the filing window is six months from death (extendable). A gestor or tax advisor calculates the liability and files the return.
How a Gestor Can Help
A gestor coordinates the practical side: advising whether a Spanish will is worthwhile in your situation, preparing the draft so the notary appointment is quick, accompanying you to the notary if you are not confident in Spanish, registering the will, and — crucially for your heirs — later handling the inheritance tax filing and asset transfer (the declaración de herederos and liquidación de impuesto de sucesiones). Pairing a gestor with your notary is the standard Spanish approach to estate planning. Find an inheritance-experienced gestor at findgestor.com.