What is the best way to divide my French estate?

Question: I live alone in France with French friends, but my family are all in the UK. I am making a French will, which I will lodge with a notaire. What else could I do to make it easy for family in the UK, most of whom have only limited French?

I suppose I should translate the will and make sure I leave a copy in an obvious place with details of the notaire, who should preferably speak fluent English? I suppose they vary in how helpful they are in taking families through the steps with which they may be unfamiliar. Should I take out some kind of funeral insurance plan and possibly arrange for potential repatriation to the UK?

Answer: Regrettably, many people do not give sufficient thought to how their estates are to be administered on their death, so this question is very sensible.

In general, most enquiries we receive about inheritance matters tend to concentrate on the ability to divert from France’s fixed inheritance rights that tend to prefer a person’s children or surviving spouse; or the implications of the EU Succession Regulation under which it is now possible to elect the law of one’s nationality to the estate in France. In this case, those points are probably not of major importance: in the absence of a surviving spouse or children, the reserved rights and choice of law issues will probably not have much relevance.

The issue here is much broader and yet still probably relevant in most cases. When writing a Will, should we tell anyone else apart from the lawyer advising on the drafting, and should plans be set up now to ease the administration?

It is generally wise to tell executors or potential beneficiaries about the Will, and where the original is stored. If it is in French, it is prudent to provide a translation for information. However, it may not be so important to name a notaire purely because they speak English: that notaire may have retired by the time the Will comes to be proved.

Also of importance is understanding the tax consequences. Note that leaving anything to unrelated friends in France will attract inheritance tax at 60%. It might be possible to shield some of your assets against this, although that may require careful planning and investigation.

If you have specific wishes in relation to your funeral, including repatriation to the UK, then you should investigate these matters first.

On the face of it, this enquiry may appear a relatively ‘standard’: there are probably no concerns about French fixed inheritance law, and it is unlikely to be necessary to elect for English law to apply to the estate. Yet even in this ‘simple’ situation, we can see the importance of careful planning of the administration of your estate after death. As ever, there is every interest in seeking detailed advice from solicitors with cross-border estate expertise.

This article was first published on the Connexion Website.

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If you have any questions or would like advice on Frech assets and the administration of estates, please get in touch with our specialist French Legal Services team through this website or by calling 0330 404 0768.