Receiving an inheritance in Spain is a simple process, which comprises certain rights and obligations transmitted to the direct beneficiaries. That is to say, after the death of a person, there is a procedure to ensure that his or her assets are not extinguished and that ownership passes to another person. But many times the heirs cannot afford the taxes required to grant the change of ownership, and choose to sell the inheritance rights. For this reason, it is important that the heirs document themselves and get information about Everything you need to know to process an inheritance in Spain y How to find the best lawyer to handle your inheritance?. So that they can make accurate decisions at the time of death of a loved one.
What is an inheritance and what rights do I get when I inherit it?
An inheritance is a set of assets, rights and obligations transferred from a deceased person to one or more heirs, by level of kinship and other special cases. Previously, we have talked about how the succession planning can help us avoid the costs of the legal procedures and taxes of an inheritance. But the truth is that in many cases people do not plan their estate with time, and the heirs are the ones who must deal with these large tax amounts.
Before the granting of an inheritance, many times we are involved in real estate law where the heirs must accept each other as a community of heirs in proindiviso. For some people, this situation is not favorable because they do not want to wait until the property to be inherited is sold, among other reasons. Therefore, the Spanish Civil Code establishes, in its article 1067, that the heirs are entitled to sell their inheritance rights before the partition and the buyer will begin to share the assets with them. by means of a "co-heirs' withdrawal"..
It must be remembered that at the moment of receiving an inheritance, not only the property rights of the deceased's assets are received. It also includes the transfer of debts and commitments acquired by the person in life.
What is the procedure to be followed when receiving an inheritance?
When the death of the deceased occurs, there are 4 options at the time of granting an inheritance:
- Waive the inheritance.
- Acceptance of inheritance.
- Accept it with benefit of inventory.
- Sell the inheritance rights.
This means that if you do not have the money to pay the inheritance taxes, you have alternatives that you can apply in order not to lose the patrimony by rejecting it. This case is beneficial if the property is located in a commercial area with easy access, or even better when the land and warehouses are suitable for large buildings.
Most large real estate and construction companies acquire small buildings, very large houses or lots of land that the heirs cannot afford to pay taxes on. Likewise, this type of inheritance process is only profitable if there are more assets than liabilities within the inheritance.
How can I sell the rights to an inheritance in Spain?
In order to sell your family inheritance rights, you must legally transfer all the assets to which you are legally entitledThe third party, as part of the community of heirs, to another person. Once the rights are sold, that third party will appear and accept everything that by will or law corresponds to you. Y its legality will be verified by the "retraction of co-heirs" or the "retraction of co-proprietors".which is granted when the sale of the inheritance takes place after the acceptance and partition, according to article 1522 of the Civil Code.
Similarly, the rights can only be sold after the death of the deceased. And the heir is the one who must pay the inheritance tax. In any case, if the sale is higher than the price declared in the tax, this surplus becomes a capital gain that must be taxed in the IRPF. And the buyer of the rights will have to pay the ITPAJD for the amount corresponding to the agreed sale price.
What do I need to sell the rights to an inheritance in Spain?
To sell the rights to an inheritance in Spain, you must meet two of the following requirements:
- That the causal person is deceased.
- Go to a notary to transfer the rights to the interested party.
- Cost the corresponding tax payments.
Once the sale of these inheritance rights is legalized, the heir does not lose the status, but does not have a fundamental role in the act of distribution. This means that after the sale, the representation of that heir and the actions with respect to the inheritance are carried out by the buyer.
On the other hand, if the other heirs want to recover the sold part of the inheritance, they must resort to the right of preferential acquisition. So one or more of the heirs have the possibility to reimburse the amount produced by the sale. At the same time they can cancel the purchase, because the other heirs have preference in that sale, before an external buyer.
If you would like more information or need advice on this and other issues of criminal and commercial law, do not hesitate to contact us at contact us at through our form. In addition, we share with you our social networks so that you can keep updated on the legal topics that are in trend: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter y Linkedin.
