Accepting or renouncing an inheritance in Spain

Key rules

• Debts: Only acceptance with inventory or renunciation keeps your own assets safe from the deceased's debts.
• Silence: If you do nothing after a formal call to decide, it counts as plain acceptance.
• Renunciation: A renunciation is final and must be made in a public deed before a notary.
• Inheritance tax: Inheritance tax is due within 6 months of the death, whatever route you choose.

The three routes

There are three routes: simple acceptance, acceptance with inventory, and renunciation. They differ mainly in who pays the deceased's debts. If debts may exist, choose before you touch anything in the estate.

• Simple acceptance: you inherit everything, and you answer for the debts with the inherited assets and your own.
• Acceptance with inventory: you inherit, but you only answer for debts up to the value of what you inherit. Your own assets are safe.
• Renunciation: you inherit nothing and owe nothing.

How long you have

No fixed deadline forces you to decide. The right to accept lasts 30 years under common civil law. Some regional laws set shorter periods, so ask a notary which law applies to the estate.

That changes once someone with an interest, such as a creditor or a co-heir, formally calls on you to decide. A notary notifies you. From then you have 30 days to accept or renounce, and silence counts as plain acceptance. You are then liable with your own assets too.

Inheritance tax is a separate matter. It is due within 6 months of the death, whatever you decide.

Accepting with inventory

Choose this if debts may exceed the assets.

1. Tell a notary you want to accept with inventory. If you hold estate assets, or have been called on to decide, start within 30 days.
2. The notary notifies known creditors and legatees (people left specific items in the will).
3. The inventory is made within 60 days of the notice. It can be extended up to 90 days. The notary or an expert must be present.
4. The inventory is closed in a deed.
5. Debts are paid from the estate: known creditors first, then legatees.

When the estate runs out, you owe nothing more. If you start but do not finish within the time limits, you lose the protection. Confirm the exact limits and any regional rules with the notary.

Renouncing

Renunciation must be express. You sign a public deed before a notary, or give a written statement to the court.

• It is final. You can only undo it for fraud, duress, or if a later will turns up.
• Your share goes to others. It passes to substitutes named in the will. In an estate without a will, it can pass to your descendants. Otherwise it goes to the co-heirs. Ask who takes your share before you sign.
• Tax depends on how you renounce. Renouncing in favour of all the heirs without payment is not taxed as a gift. Naming specific people, or asking for a price, is treated as accepting and then giving or selling, and is taxed.
• Creditors can challenge it. They can go to court if the renunciation harms them.

Acts that count as accepting

Acting like an owner can count as accepting, even if you never said so. Selling, renting out or spending estate assets are examples. Hold off until you have decided.

Use the decision, timeline and checklist below to choose and plan your steps.

Accept, accept with inventory or renounce: which route fits?

Which route should you choose: simple acceptance, acceptance with inventory or renunciation?

• Simple acceptance: Choose this when the assets clearly exceed the debts. It is the simplest and cheapest route. Selling assets or withdrawing money as an heir can already count as accepting this way.

• Acceptance with inventory: Choose this when debts are uncertain or could be larger than the assets. It protects your personal assets from the deceased's debts.

• Renunciation: Choose this when debts clearly exceed the assets, or you do not want the inheritance. You lose everything from the estate, and your share passes to the next in line, so make sure they know. If you are a parent, it also affects your children's share.

First find out what the deceased owed: ask the banks, request the Banco de España debt report, and check with the tax agency, Social Security and the Land Registry. Then compare assets and debts, and think about who else inherits. Life insurance and pensions paid to a named beneficiary usually fall outside the estate. If you live abroad, also weigh the costs, the taxes and the risk of debts in other countries.

Timeline and deadlines

• Decide whether to accept or renounce at your own pace if nobody has called on you: any time within 30 years of the death

• Respond to a formal call to decide: accept, accept with inventory or renounce: within 30 days of being notified

• Start acceptance with inventory before a notary if you want limited liability: within 30 days after being called, or from learning of the inheritance if you hold the assets

• Make the inventory with the notary or an expert present: within 60 days of the notice to creditors and legatees, extendable up to 90 days

• Close the inventory in a deed and pay debts from the estate, known creditors first, then legatees: after the inventory is finished

• File inheritance tax, which is separate from your decision: within 6 months of death, with a possible extension of a further 6 months if you ask within the first 5 months

Checklist

• Avoid selling, renting out or spending estate assets until you have decided.

• Ask a notary which law applies to the estate, since regional laws can differ.

• Tell the notary you want acceptance with inventory if debts may exceed assets.

• Attend the inventory with the notary or expert and keep to the deadlines.

• Sign the renunciation as a public deed before a notary if you decide to renounce.

• Ask whether any substitute or co-heir takes your share before you sign the renunciation.

• Avoid naming specific people or asking for payment if you renounce, because that is taxed as a gift or sale.

What to watch out for

• Simple acceptance puts your own assets at risk: With simple acceptance you answer for the deceased's debts with the inherited assets and your own savings and property. If debts may exist, choose acceptance with inventory so your liability stops at the value of the estate.

• Acting on the estate can count as accepting: Selling or using inherited assets can be treated as accepting, even without signing anything. Leave the assets untouched until you have decided.

• An unfinished inventory loses its protection: If you begin the inventory and do not finish within the legal limits, you lose the limit on your liability. Keep to the notary's dates and ask for an extension in time.

• A renunciation cannot be undone: Once signed, a renunciation is final except for fraud, duress or a later will being found. Your share also passes to others. Speak to a notary and confirm who receives your share before you sign.

• Creditors can challenge a renunciation: A renunciation made to harm creditors can be challenged by them, and a renunciation in favour of named people or for a price is taxed. Renounce for everyone, without payment, and with a notary's advice.

Frequently asked questions

Can I take as long as I like to decide whether to accept?

Yes, in most of Spain there is no fixed deadline to decide, and your right to accept lasts 30 years. The catch is that anyone with an interest, such as a creditor or co-heir, can formally call on you to decide. Regions such as Catalonia have shorter periods, so ask a notary if the estate is under regional law.

What happens if I start the inventory but do not finish it?

If you start the inventory procedure and do not finish it within the legal time limits, you lose the protection it gives. The notary notifies known creditors and legatees, and the inventory must be made within 60 days of that notice, extendable up to 90 days. After that, you could be liable with your own assets.

Can I change my mind after I renounce an inheritance?

No, a renunciation is irrevocable once it is signed, except for fraud, duress or if a later will is found. You are then treated as if you never inherited. Your share passes to substitutes named in the will, to your descendants in an intestate estate, or to the co-heirs.

Can I renounce in favour of one relative?

No, naming a specific person or taking a price turns the renunciation into an acceptance followed by a gift or sale, and that is taxed. Only a pure renunciation, without payment and benefiting all heirs, avoids being treated as a taxable gift.

Can acting on the estate count as accepting it?

Yes, selling inherited assets or similar acts can count as tacit acceptance even if you never signed anything. If you are still deciding, do not sell, rent out or spend anything from the estate.