CheckPoint Relocations would like to draw your attention to a new Regulation of the European Union that will have a significant impact on expats dealing with the issue of succession in wills and inheritance.

EU member states had three years to incorporate into their local law Regulation No 650/2012, issued in July 2012, on the jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition and enforcement of decisions and acceptance and enforcement of authentic instruments in matters of succession and on the creation of a European Certificate of Succession.

In the Czech Republic, wills and testaments are governed by the Civil Code which newly went into effect on 1 January 2014. So for anyone who dies in any EU country after August 2015 the regulation shall be applicable.

 

1/ The regulation creates a new concept for legal succession, known as the European certificate of succession.

This serves as a public document that enables people to prove their status as an heir across the entire EU, without any other additional formalities. The certificate will be issued for a limited period of six months.

2/ This regulation uses the term “habitual residence at the time of death” as the key criteria.

Originally the term “nationality” was used as the main criteria deciding the course of the inheritance process (succession). Under the new regulation, the key criteria is the habitual residence at the time of death.

The general rule of the regulation regarding inheritance is that the courts of EU member states in which the deceased had his habitual residence at the time of death have jurisdiction to decide on the whole inheritance. The governing law is generally the law of the country in which the deceased had his habitual residence at the time of death.

The regulation introduces the option of choosing the law of the state whose nationality the person possesses at the time of making the choice or at the time of death as the governing law for his succession.

The term habitual residence at the time of death also applies to EU member states that are not bound by the EU regulation as well as non EU member states. So the habitual residence at the time of death of an EU citizen and also of a non-EU citizen is valid ifthe personhabitually resides in an EU member state at the time of death. The whole succession is then guided by the law of the statewhere the person has his habitual residence at the time of death or based on his choice of law.

The habitual residence at the time of death is determined as a place where you stay for more than 183 days (6 months) in a year.

CheckPoint Relocations recommends that you familiarize yourself with this topic, as the determination and overall assessment of habitual residence by any authority dealing with succession might be a lengthy procedure.