3. On receipt of the death certificate, verification of the last will of the deceased is needed from the REGISTRO GENERAL DE ACTOS DE ULTIMAS VOLUNTADES, which is the central register of wills. We have to bear in mind that a person can make many wills during their lifetime but that only the last will is legally binding.
4. Once the ultimate will has been verified and at which Notary it is filed, application has to be made to that Notary for the authorised copy of the will of the deceased.
5. When we have all these documents it will be necessary to go to the Notary and sign the "ESCRITURA DE  ADJUDICACION DE HERENCIA", which is the document giving legal vadility to the distribution of the assets of the deceased. This document will have to be accepted and signed by all the beneficiaries of the will as acceptance of the distribution of the estate of the deceased.
6. All the beneficiaries of the will must be present at the signing of this document and they must all express their acceptance of the will.
7. After payment of the taxes, these documents will then be taken to the office of the Land Register, corresponding to the location of the property stated in the will, and ownership of the property will be changed from the name of the deceased to those of the beneficiaries of the will.
8. As a consequence of this process, any person interested in purchasing the property can go to the Land Register and get a Simple Note, where he will see that ownership has changed from the name of the deceased to that of the beneficiaries of the will.

Firstly it is crucial that you make a Spanish will which is the best way of avoiding major problems for the beneficiaries of your will. Providing there is a will your requests stated in that will can be resolved in approximately four weeks, whereas if there is no will it could take up to three years and in some cases it may not be possible to find a solution.

Providing there is a will the following legal procedure needs to be followed:-

1. The resident card and passport of the deceased are required.

2. With the resident card a death certificate can be obtained.

Execution of a will

We were introduced to Jose Maria two years ago by friends, when we needed some advice on paying our taxes here in Spain
We have always found him to be extremely helpful and very genuine in the advice he gives as he has a vast knowledge of all aspects of the law relating to ex-pats living here, in respect of buying and selling houses, paying taxes and our rights
One of the things we find very helpful is his command of the English language - he is so easy to talk to and to understand which is a great help when dealing with such matters.

We would thoroughly recommend his services to anyone looking for a Spanish Lawyer who needs trustworthy and helpful advice.

Mark and Jenny Russell, (Montefrio Granada)