Domestic Law

The divorce in Spain can be processed by mutual agreement or contentious, both by means of a lawsuit before the Courts and the intervention of lawyers.

In order to be able to process it, the marriage certificate and the birth certificates of the children, if there are any, are very important documents.

A-.When it is a divorce by mutual agreement, the spouses must sign a regulatory agreement in which they agree: who will keep custody of the children, who will keep the property or stay at home, if alimony will be paid for the children, compensations, and the liquidation of the matrimonial economic regime.

In addition to this Regulatory Agreement, it will have to present the marriage certificate and the birth certificates of the children, if there are any.

B- If the spouses have not been able to reach an agreement, it will be necessary to file a lawsuit proposing who will have custody of the children, who will keep the assets or stay at home, if there will be alimony for the children, compensations, and the liquidation of the matrimonial property regime. It will be a judge who will decide on each section through a sentence.

Javaloyes & Suárez specializes in these types of matters and we can help you resolve your situation. We are especially careful with divorce cases and we will always protect your interests.

SPANISH WILL

If you have a house or bank accounts or any property in Spain, we advise you to have a Spanish Will.

Your heirs will also have to obtain a NIE number in order to inherit.

The main reason to have a Spanish Will is that it will be much easier, faster and cheaper for your heirs to process the inheritance.

In Spain it is mandatory to sign the will in front of a Notary. You will not need to bring witnesses. Once you sign your will, it will be registered at the Notary’s office and the central registry of wills will be informed that your will is at that particular Notary’s office. Therefore, any heir will be able to find the will.

At Javaloyes & Suárez we have been drafting wills for more than 20 years. Trust us to draft yours

Inheritance in Spain

The purpose of this information is to explain in a simple way the basic rules and to clarify how an inheritance process works in Spain.

The fundamental point is that in Spanish inheritance law the correct national law of the deceased is always used.

Procedure for preparing a declaration of succession in Spain.

As a first step, you must request a certificate of the so-called Last Will and Testament of the deceased – Ultimas Voluntades – from the Ministry of Justice. This Last Will and Testament certificate shows all wills drafted by the deceased in Spain. The application for such a certificate is mandatory, even in cases where the deceased has not made a will in Spain.

When requesting the Last Will and Testament certificate, an original copy of the death certificate, issued by the Civil Registry, must be attached.

If the death occurred abroad, the death certificate, issued by the authorized foreign authority, must be legalized and translated into Spanish by an authorized translator.

Once the Certificate of Last Will and Testament has been obtained, one of the heirs, or a person designated by them by power of attorney, must pick up an authentic copy of the deceased’s will at the Spanish Notary Public before whom the last will was drawn up. In cases where there is no will granted in Spain, a certificate of law from the country of origin must be requested, legalized and translated by an authorized translator.

Javaloyes & Suárez specializes in handling foreign inheritance in Spain. Trust us to make this process as easy as possible for you and your heirs.