A Spanish asset deserves a Spanish will. Without one, your family faces a cross-border inheritance process at the worst possible time. The good news: fixing this takes one notary appointment.
What happens to your Spanish property if you die without a Spanish will?
Your foreign will (or your country’s intestacy rules) still determines who inherits — but executing it in Spain becomes a documentary obstacle course: obtaining certificates abroad, sworn translations, apostilles, probate coordination between two legal systems, and months of delay while Spanish inheritance deadlines keep running. Spanish inheritance tax must generally be settled within six months of death. Families navigating two jurisdictions without a Spanish will frequently end up paying for extensions — or surcharges.
How does a Spanish testament solve this?
A Spanish testament is signed before a notary and registered centrally in the Registry of Last Wills. It covers only your Spanish assets and is drafted to sit alongside your existing will at home, not replace it. Under the EU Succession Regulation (Brussels IV), you can — and normally should — expressly choose the law of your nationality to govern your succession. This keeps your familiar inheritance rules (including freedom to choose your heirs) while gaining Spanish-speed execution. For our Danish, British, and other international clients, this combination is the standard recommendation.
With vs without a Spanish will
| With Spanish testament | Without | |
| Process starts | Immediately with Spanish notary | After foreign probate documents are gathered |
| Translations & apostilles | Minimal | Extensive |
| Typical extra delay | – | Several months |
| Risk of missing 6-month tax deadline | Low | Real |
| Stress on your family | Low | High |
What does it cost and when should you do it?
Mojo’s Legal Department prepares your Spanish testament, advises on the choice-oflaw clause, and accompanies you at the notary signing:
- 240 € per person (excluding 21% IVA) — a competitive rate available to clients at the time of purchasing a property with Mojo
- Done in a single short appointment, often the same day as completion or POA signing
- Drafted later, separately from a purchase, a Spanish will costs 600 € per person (excl. 21% IVA) — so doing it at the time of buying, at 240 €, is the most costeffective moment.
Buying is precisely the right moment: identities, NIEs and notary logistics are already in motion, and the asset the will protects is being created.
What about Spanish inheritance tax for your heirs?
Inheritance tax in Spain is regional. Andalucía applies generous reliefs: spouses, children and parents (Groups I–II) benefit from a 1.000.000 € allowance per heir and a 99% bonification on the remaining tax in most cases — meaning close family typically inherits Costa del Sol property with little or no Spanish inheritance tax today, subject to the applicable regulations in force at the time of death and the specific circumstances of the heirs. Rules differ for non-relatives and can change with regional politics — which is one more reason to have the structure reviewed when you buy, and revisited if you later become Spanish tax resident.
Related Guides
- What Happens After Completion?
- Should You Buy Spanish Property Through a Company?
- Legal Department