Making a French Will

by Beth Waters Published: 29-Jul-2007

Who should make a will? Property owners: If you own immoveable property in France, ie. a flat, a house or land. French Residents: If you are permanently living in France at the time of your death you will be considered to have been "resident". It is best to prepare a will in France for assets located in France, however there are circumstances when a foreign will may be used but it is likely be slow and costly. Do it yourself wills can cause unnecessary problems and expense. With both foreign and do it yourself wills the opportunity for tax planning may be lost. How to make a will? There are two main types of will: The authentic or notarial will, testament authentique. This is a typewritten will prepared by a notary on the dictated instructions of the person making the will (the testateur) who then signs in the presence of either a notary plus two witnesses or simply two notaries. After signature, the will is registered in the French central register of wills. The holographic will, testament olographe. This is the easiest and most common form of will. It is written in manuscript by the testator and is then simply dated and signed by him. Gifts, legacies and beneficiaries In France there is a system of forced heirship under the law. A defined proportion of the estate, réserve legale, must be given to specified categories of heirs: héritiers réservataires. Firstly, to your children and issue, and if there are no children or issue, then parents or, finally, grandparents. The amount they can claim will take into consideration the value of gifts given to them during your lifetime. The remainder of your estate can be left as you wish, quotité disponible. It is possible to ignore these provisions but it is open to the héritiers réservataires to bring a claim for their entitlement. A spouse is relatively unprotected, though under new laws his/her position has been improved.

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About the Author

Beth Waters is an European property consultant

Other articles by Beth Waters if available

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