Key Takeaways
- Every expat owning property in Spain needs a Spanish will. Without one, your heirs face Spanish intestacy rules — forced heirship can override your UK/US will and distribute assets according to Spanish law.
- A Spanish will costs €60–€180 at a notary. The process takes about 30 minutes once documents are prepared. Most Costa del Sol notaries handle English-speaking clients regularly.
- EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 lets you choose. British and American expats can elect their home country’s inheritance law to apply to Spanish assets — but only if explicitly stated in the will.
- Registro de Últimas Voluntades tracks all Spanish wills. Your heirs will need a certificate from this registry (€3.86) before probate can proceed.
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Key Takeaways
- A testamento abierto covering Spanish assets costs EUR 60–180 at the notary, or EUR 400–900 with a lawyer and sworn translator — re-verified August 2026 against the regulated tariff
- In Andalucía, the EUR 1,000,000 per-beneficiary allowance plus 99% bonification means a EUR 500,000 estate can result in zero succession tax for a surviving spouse or adult children
- The inheritance process takes 3–6 months with a Spanish will in place; without one, add 2–4 months, all running against a hard 6-month tax deadline
- Spain does not allow joint wills; each spouse makes a separate document, ideally in back-to-back appointments at the same notary on the same day
- The single most critical sentence in any British expat’s Spanish will: the Article 22 EU Regulation 650/2012 choice-of-law clause electing UK law
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How Much a Spanish Will Costs in 2026
The cost structure is transparent:
| Item | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Notary fee (simple will) | EUR 60-90 | Basic testamento abierto, one beneficiary |
| Notary fee (complex will) | EUR 100-180 | Multiple beneficiaries, specific asset allocation |
| Lawyer drafting fee | EUR 200-500 | Optional but useful for coordination with UK will |
| Sworn translator at appointment | EUR 100-200 | Required if you don’t speak Spanish fluently |
| Total (direct to notary, no lawyer) | EUR 60-180 | |
| Total (with lawyer) | EUR 400-900 |
(Re-verified August 2026 against the regulated notarial tariff, Real Decreto 1426/1989. Rates above are indicative; complex or multi-page wills sit at the top of the range.)
Each time you update your will, you make a new testamento abierto at the same cost. There is no “amendment” option — the new will automatically revokes the previous Spanish will only.
For a full cost breakdown and comparison with what NOT having a will costs your heirs, see Cost of Making a Spanish Will in 2026.
How Long Does the Process Take
Making the will: From first contact with a notary or lawyer to signed will, expect 1-4 weeks. If you go directly to a notary with your documents in hand, some offices can accommodate you within a week. Rush situations are possible. The appointment itself is 30-60 minutes.
After someone dies: The full inheritance process usually takes 3–6 months with a Spanish will in place. Without one, it’s common to add 2–4 months for UK probate and document prep. Either way, the hard constraint is the 6‑month inheritance tax clock (you can sometimes extend it, but you don’t want to rely on that).
For the complete timeline breakdown, see How Long Does a Spanish Will Take?.
Inheritance Tax in Spain: What Your Heirs Will Actually Pay
In Andalucía, many expat families pay little inheritance tax — and some cases come out effectively at zero once the regional reliefs are applied.
The Andalusian allowances for direct heirs (spouse, children, parents):
- EUR 1,000,000 tax-free per beneficiary
- 99% reduction on any calculated tax above that threshold
Example: A couple with a EUR 400,000 property and EUR 100,000 in bank accounts. Total estate EUR 500,000. Deceased’s share EUR 250,000. Surviving spouse inherits. Tax owed: zero.
Even higher-value estates can end up with surprisingly low bills in Andalucía (especially for spouse/children/parents). For example, a EUR 3,000,000 estate going to one child can come out at around EUR 1,000–2,000 of ISD in some common scenarios once reductions and the 99% bonification are applied.
The exceptions are Group III and IV heirs — siblings, cousins, and unrelated beneficiaries — who receive only a EUR 10,000 reduction and face the full rate scale.
For the full tax breakdown including worked examples, regional comparisons, and the 6-month deadline, see Inheritance Tax in Spain: What Your Heirs Need to Know.
UK Citizens After Brexit: What Changed and What Didn’t
EU Regulation 650/2012 still applies to British nationals living in EU member states. The choice-of-law election under Article 22 remains available.
What changed: UK no longer participates in EU mutual recognition systems for some administrative purposes, meaning UK probate may require additional steps in some EU countries. Spain continues to accept apostilled UK probate for inheritance processing.
What didn’t change: the choice-of-law clause works exactly as before Brexit. If you already have a Spanish will with the election clause, nothing needs to be updated purely because of Brexit.
For the full post-Brexit picture, see Spanish Will for UK Citizens After Brexit.
Specific Situations
Married couples: Spain does not allow joint wills. Each spouse must make a separate will. Most couples make mirror wills — each leaves everything to the other, then to children — in two appointments, often scheduled the same day. See Spanish Wills for Married Couples: Property and Inheritance.
Multiple properties: One testamento abierto covers all Spanish-situated assets. You don’t need separate wills per property or per region. See Can I Write One Spanish Will for Multiple Properties?.
When to update: After buying or selling Spanish property, after divorce or remarriage, or if a named beneficiary dies. The update process is the same as making the original will (EUR 60-180). See When to Update Your Spanish Will.
US citizens: EU Regulation 650/2012 allows a nationality election, but US law is state-level rather than federal. Electing “US law” requires specifying which state, and different states have different succession rules. See Spanish Will for US Citizens Living in Spain.
Executor role: Spain’s albacea (executor) role is optional and limited compared to the UK. Most expat estates don’t need one. See Executor in a Spanish Will: Roles and Risks.
Digital assets: What to include in your will, what to keep separate (private keys should never appear in a public document), and how to handle the practical access problem. See Digital Assets and Spanish Wills.
Finding Professional Help on the Costa del Sol
English-speaking notaries: Not all notaries on the Costa del Sol have English-speaking staff. The Colegio Notarial de Malaga maintains a directory of registered notaries — your abogado can recommend one based on availability and English-language capacity. (Please verify current English-speaking availability with any notary before booking.) For those that don’t have English-speaking staff, you arrange a sworn translator (traductor jurado) independently. See English-Speaking Notary on the Costa del Sol: Practical Guide. For what the notario actually is, why wills and property both route through one, and why the fixed fees barely vary between offices, see Why Everything in Spain Goes Through a Notary (and Why That Protects You).
Hiring a lawyer:
- In Malaga: See Spanish Will Lawyer in Malaga: What to Ask Before Hiring — includes 10 interview questions
- In Marbella: See Spanish Will Lawyer in Marbella: Hiring Checklist — 12-15 item checklist for international law firms
- In Fuengirola: See Spanish Will Lawyer in Fuengirola: Hiring Checklist — adapted for the established British retiree community
Verifying Your Will Is Actually Registered (and Who Holds Power Over Your Estate)
In June 2026 the Guardia Civil’s Operación Donova detained three practising lawyers in Nerja over an alleged scheme that used forged holographic wills and powers of attorney to take more than €1 million from the estates of deceased foreign residents in the Axarquía. Nobody has been convicted and the case remains open, but the alleged mechanics are a checklist of everything this section exists to prevent: the victims had delegated everything and verified nothing.
Three checks close the gap. All three are boring, cheap, and doable in a week.
1. Confirm your will actually reached the registry
Every notarial will in Spain is automatically communicated by the authorising notary to the Registro General de Actos de Última Voluntad (RGAUV), the central registry recording that a will exists, its date, and which notary holds it. The content stays private, and while you are alive only you (or someone you specifically empower) can ask about your own entry.
The check: contact the notary who authorised your will and request a copia simple plus written confirmation that the will was communicated to the registry. If a professional “handles all that” and you have never seen either document, make the request yourself. If you cannot name the notary or the date, treat that as the finding: book a new testamento abierto (€60–180, see costs above). The new will supersedes the old one and registers automatically.
If your will is holographic (handwritten, no notary, no witnesses): replace it. The holographic form is legal in Spain precisely because it needs no witnesses, which is also what makes it the easiest form to forge.
2. Know the heir’s verification sequence
For whoever will administer your estate, the sequence is: literal death certificate from the Registro Civil; then, from the 15th business day after death, the certificado de últimas voluntades, requested with Modelo 790 (código 006), fee €3.86, online at sede.mjusticia.gob.es (Cl@ve or digital certificate), by post, or in person, with roughly 10 business days’ turnaround. That certificate states which will is the last one and which notary holds it. A family that shows up holding it is very hard to run a forged “later will” past.
3. Audit the standing powers
Under Article 1732 of the Código Civil, a power of attorney extinguishes at the grantor’s death, but a poder plus forged identity documents can keep an account operational regardless, which is what Donova investigators allege happened. Two audits:
- Old powers of attorney: if you signed a broad poder general for a purchase years ago and never cancelled it, it is still alive. Revoke it with an escritura de revocación at any notary (roughly €60–100), notify the attorney-in-fact in writing, and give a copy of the revocation to any bank holding the poder on file.
- Bank authorisations: ask your bank for the current list of autorizados and apoderados on every account, and remove anyone you no longer actively need.
Registry fee (€3.86), waiting period, and revocation mechanics confirmed July 2026.
The Short Version
If you own property in Spain:
- Make a testamento abierto covering your Spanish assets. EUR 60-180. One appointment.
- Include a choice-of-law clause electing UK law (unless you want Spanish forced heirship to apply).
- Limit the revocation clause in your Spanish will to Spanish-situated assets.
- Tell your UK solicitor the Spanish will exists. Ask them to limit their revocation clause too.
- Update whenever you buy or sell Spanish property, or after major life changes.
The paperwork is manageable. The cost is low. The alternative is leaving your family to navigate a system that wasn’t designed for them, on a deadline, in a second language.
Will-cost figures re-verified August 2026 against the regulated notarial tariff; other costs confirmed February 2026; registry verification section and €3.86 registry fee confirmed July 2026. Verify specific notary and legal fees before engaging any professional. EU Regulation 650/2012 applicability to British nationals confirmed as of February 2026; review if UK-EU legal arrangements change.
Related Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
Where can I find more guides on this topic?
See our Complete Spanish Wills Guide for the full picture, or browse all guides at guides.waypointsur.com.
More on Spanish wills
- How to make a Spanish will, step by step
- What a Spanish will costs
- Do you need a Spanish will if you have a UK will?
- How long a Spanish will takes
- Choosing a Spanish will lawyer
