Having a good Spanish will is extremely important: It should preferably be simple, protect your loved one from possible claims, allow for probate to take place withoght any delay, and be as tax efficient as possible.
After 20 years dealing with estate planing and probate we know how important it is for you and your family to be aware of the inheritance tax to expect, to make sure that probate will not be a problem, and that you will pay no more tax than strictly necessary.
- Do you wonder if your will prepared many years ago when you purchased your property is in fact in good order and will enable probate to go through smoothly.
- Have you heard about a friend that had problems with probate in Spain when their spouse or parents deceased because he/she did not have a Spanish will, or a badly written will ?
- Have you got concerns about your will being contested by children from another marriage when you are not around ?
- Have you heard on the grapevine that some people are updating there will because of a new law referred to as Directive 650/2012 or Brussels IV and you are concerned about how it affects you?
- Have you got concerns about your will being sensible from the point of view of inheritance tax?
- Do you know if your heirs will have to pay tax and how much?
- Are you aware of the changes to Inheritance and Inheritance tax that have taken place during the last five years that make taking a look at your will a good idea in case changes need to be made ?
- Do you know the consequences of Directive 650/2012 that came into force on the 17th of August of 2015?
- Do yo know about the benefits of Sentence of European Court of Justice of 3rd of September of 2014 ?
- Have you heard about the increased exemptions for Inheritance tax in Andalucía in 2017?
- Are you aware that if the beneficiary is RESIDENT OF SPAIN he/she will need to declare worldwide assets to the inheritance tax office in Spain.
- Do you understand the consequences that the 720 form (declaration of assets abroad) has on future inheritance tax declaration.
- Have you looked into the benefits of signing enduring powers of attorney in Spain.
We can help you with all the questions above and put your mind at rest.
Facing the facts will help you determine if anything can be changed to reduce the cost and to make things easier for your heirs.
On some occasions when faced with probate we come across heirs :
- Paying a lot more inheritance tax than necessary.
- Often the wills where presented to them by the conveyancer at the notary when they purchased and even though sometimes those wills will be correct for them , this is not always the case. Sometimes a simple change to the wording of the will can make a tremendous difference.
We can be of a lot of help in making sure that everything is well organized , that your will and other circumstances will allow for probate to take place without delay and that tax to be paid (if any) will not be more than strictly necessary. We can also discuss the option of reciprocal powers of attorney for the healthy spouse to be able to take care of dealing with financial affairs (selling property etc) if the other falls ill.
A meeting will allow us to:
Have a look at your present will and circumstances and make an exact calculation of your inheritance tax for you and your heirs.
- Discuss different aspects that can affect inheritance tax like resident/non resident status, the effect of different distributions to the total tax to be paid , gifts, exemptions depending on where you live, the posibilites of life possessions, the practical affect of the 720 form on inheritance tax declarations etc. , moving back to the u.k., moving to another part of Spain etc.
- Discus the new possibility of exemptions introduced by Sentence of the ECJ of 3/9/2014 and how it may be convinient to change your will to maximize the benefit.
- Discuss the increased exemptions for spouses and descendants that have come in to force this year for Andalucía.
- We will make sure your Spanish and English will are compatible and that there is no doubts regarding the legislation applicable to your Spanish will in virtue of “Brussels IV” also known as European Directive 650/2012
- We will provide you with tax planning for you in the fields of inheritance tax and gift tax.
- We will provide you with a written report in English on your situation including the inheritance tax calculation and our recommendations for improvements in view of your circumstances.
- We would take the opportunity to discuss other related matters like powers of attorney and explain the difference that the resident/non resident status makes.
If this is of interest please e-mail me today for more information or to book an appointment:
michaeldavies@daviessolicitors.com