Anyone had a relative die in Spain?

Simon0001 · 22 Jul 2021 at 15:21

Hi me again. Hello. As you know my girlfriends father died in Spain after living there for 20 years.

We have got in touch with his solicitor who handled the draft of his will and accounts etc.

They have told us to get a passport for the Spanish authorities to prove she's the air etc. Got replacement birth certificate and applying for passport when funds permit.

After that they want us to sign over power of attorney to her to deal with probate/sale of house. Does that sound correct?

inogen · 22 Jul 2021 at 15:24

I have. I didn't deal with any of it though. What I do know is that despite it being quite an unusual death, it was done and dusted and he was buried within about 3/4 days. They don't hang about.

Simon0001 · 22 Jul 2021 at 15:39

inogen said:
I have. I didn't deal with any of it though. What I do know is that despite it being quite an unusual death, it was done and dusted and he was buried within about 3/4 days. They don't hang about.

Yeah they said that. But due to know Id to confirm cremation it hasn't happened

robfosters · 22 Jul 2021 at 15:42

Consular directorate of the FCO might be worth a call if the solicitor is in Spain.

dirtychinchilla · 22 Jul 2021 at 16:09

It's heir FYI. Might confuse any emails to Spain.

Chris Wilson · 22 Jul 2021 at 17:20

Who is "us"? Who is "her"? Is "her" the solicitor? If so be very wary of giving over power of attorney from (I presume) your girlfriend, to the Spanish solicitor. In doing so you effectively give the Spanish solicitor a blank cheque and she MIGHT run up some hefty bills knowing if your girlfriend can't or won't pay they can be paid straight out of the estate. It would be easy for a solicitor in Spain to create complications and be very heavy on the pen.

mattyfez · 22 Jul 2021 at 20:17

As per my reply to your previous thread about this, I appointed a spanish 'gestor' to deal with it all.
They are more like accountants /tax advisors than solicitors and are cheaper. I think mine charged about 2.5k euros.

I gave them a very specific power of attorney to deal with getting everything signed over to me.
You really don't want to be dealing with all the documents and notary offices and tax due if you don't speak fluent Spanish.
Maybe get the the late father's solicitor to give a fixed quote and see what they want to charge.
If I recall your in Andalusia so there's no tax to pay unless the estate is over 1 million euros.

Did the deceased have British and Spanish wills? How these are worded may change things.
My late father had a British will that exclusively covered British estate and a spanish will exclusively covering Spanish estate.