Spanish Will vs UK Will 2026: Which Applies to Your Estate

If you own assets in Spain and hold a UK will, you face a structural question that touches inheritance tax, probate timeline, and family disputes: should you make a separate Spanish will, rely on the UK will alone, or hold both? Spanish succession follows two distinct paths depending on whether the deceased left a valid will (testate) or not (intestate). The intestate path requires a Declaration of Intestate Heirs (Declaracion de Herederos Abintestato) — a costly, slow step that a Spanish will avoids entirely.

Why a Spanish Will Helps Even When You Have a UK Will

Making a Spanish will is one of the simplest, most protective legal steps a foreign owner of Spanish assets can take. It saves time, reduces costs, prevents family disputes, and ensures your Spanish assets are passed on exactly as you intend. A UK will is legally valid in Spain, but enforcing it requires translation, apostille, and Spanish court recognition — a process that can stretch the inheritance for many months. A Spanish will sits at the Spanish notary registry and is immediately accessible to your Spanish heirs.

EU Regulation 650/2012 — The Choice of Law

Since 2015, EU Regulation 650/2012 (Brussels IV) allows non-Spanish nationals to choose the inheritance law of their nationality to govern their estate, including assets in Spain. A British or Irish national can elect English/Welsh, Scots, or Irish law to apply, overriding Spain’s forced-heirship rules under the Civil Code (which would otherwise reserve fixed shares for children). This election must be expressly stated in the will — it is not automatic. Without an express choice, default rules apply, which for habitual residents in Spain typically means Spanish law.

Forced Heirship — Why It Matters

Spanish Civil Code reserves fixed shares for children (the legitima) — typically two-thirds of the estate must pass to descendants regardless of the will’s terms. UK law has no equivalent constraint; you may leave your assets to anyone. For a UK national whose will leaves everything to a spouse, applying Spanish law would override the UK pattern and give children mandatory shares. The Brussels IV election is what protects the UK testator’s intention. Some Spanish autonomous communities (Catalonia, Aragon, Basque Country, Navarra, Balearics, Galicia) have their own civil law variations on forced heirship — adding another layer to verify.

The Two-Will Strategy

The pragmatic structure for many foreign owners of Spanish assets is two parallel wills: a Spanish will covering only Spanish assets, and a UK (or home-country) will covering everything else. Each will expressly states it covers only assets in its jurisdiction and does not revoke the other. This separation lets each will be probated quickly in its own jurisdiction without waiting for foreign court rulings. Drafting both wills in coordination is essential — a poorly worded Spanish will that revokes the UK will (or vice versa) can leave heirs in legal limbo.

Inheritance Tax — Different from the Will Question

Choosing UK law via Brussels IV affects who inherits, but it does NOT change the inheritance tax owed. Spanish inheritance tax (Impuesto sobre Sucesiones y Donaciones) is paid by heirs based on Spanish situs (location) of the assets and their relationship to the deceased, with significant variations by Spanish autonomous community. Andalusia, Madrid, and other regions offer near-100% bonifications between close relatives; Catalonia and Asturias apply higher rates. Always check the regional position before assuming the tax cost.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where do I sign a Spanish will?

Before any Spanish notary. The notary keeps a copy in the official register, ensuring the will cannot be lost, hidden, or contested for authenticity. The cost is low — typically a small notary fee plus drafting time.

Can my Spanish will be in English?

The official register version is in Spanish. The notary can prepare a bilingual document so you sign understanding the content in your own language. The signed Spanish version is what’s legally enforceable.

Does a Spanish will revoke my UK will?

Only if the Spanish will says so. A correctly drafted Spanish will explicitly limits itself to Spanish assets and does not affect the UK will, which continues to govern UK and rest-of-world assets. This is the standard professional drafting.

Reviewed by: Maria Luisa de Castro, Expert in Off-plan Property Investment, CostaLuz Lawyers. Last updated: May 2026.

A trust is one structure people consider for exactly this reason; our guide to whether a US LLC works for Spanish property covers why it doesn’t shelter the owner the way it might elsewhere. A trust runs into an even more fundamental problem — Spanish civil law simply doesn’t recognise the structure.