Spanish Probate: The Complete 2026 Guide for UK Citizens, Executors & Beneficiaries

Why this guide exists

Every year hundreds of British families discover that a relative who owned a villa, an apartment or a bank account in Spain has passed away — and that the process of unlocking those assets is nothing like English probate. There is no Spanish "probate court", no single grant, and no Executor named on the Land Registry. Instead, the estate must be processed through Spanish notaries, the regional tax office and the Land Registry, usually in parallel with the English Grant of Probate.

This pillar guide brings together — in one place — what we explain every week to UK executors, solicitors and beneficiaries who instruct Bufete Padilla to handle a Spanish probate from our offices in Torrevieja, Elche and Moraira. It covers the legal framework, the documents you will need, the inheritance tax position in the Valencian Community, typical timescales and the most common mistakes we are asked to fix.

> Looking for the service page? Visit our [Spanish Probate Lawyers for UK & Foreign Heirs](/en/services/probate-lawyer-torrevieja-costa-blanca) page to instruct us directly.

1. Spanish probate is not English probate

In England and Wales the executor obtains a Grant of Probate from the Probate Registry and then administers the estate. In Spain there is no equivalent grant. Instead, the heirs themselves (or their attorneys under a Spanish power of attorney) must:

1. Prove who has died (Death Certificate).
2. Prove whether a Spanish will exists (Last Wills Certificate — *Certificado de Últimas Voluntades*).
3. Sign a Deed of Acceptance of Inheritance (*Escritura de Aceptación y Adjudicación de Herencia*) before a Spanish notary.
4. File Spanish inheritance tax (*Impuesto sobre Sucesiones y Donaciones — ISD*) within 6 months of the date of death.
5. Pay Plusvalía Municipal (municipal land-value tax) at the Town Hall where the property is located.
6. Register the change of ownership at the Spanish Land Registry (*Registro de la Propiedad*).

There is no probate judge, no "executor's year" and no statutory advertisement to creditors. The notary acts as the gatekeeper of the deed; the tax office and Land Registry act as the gatekeepers of the title.

2. Do you need both an English Grant of Probate and a Spanish probate?

Almost always, yes. If the deceased was UK-domiciled and held assets both in the UK and in Spain, you will run two parallel processes:

• In England: the executor applies for the Grant of Probate at the Probate Registry. HMRC IHT forms (IHT400 / IHT205 / IHT400 supplemental sheets) are filed where required.
• In Spain: once the Grant of Probate is issued, it must be apostilled (Hague Convention) and sworn-translated into Spanish. The Spanish notary will then incorporate it into the Spanish deed of inheritance.

Where the only assets are in Spain (e.g. a holiday home, a Spanish bank account and a car), an English Grant of Probate is usually still requested by the Spanish notary as evidence of who is entitled to inherit under English law — unless a valid Spanish will with a *professio juris* clause exists (see section 4).