Dying with a property in Spain doesn't mean Spanish law gets to decide who inherits it — unless you let it
Most of what British owners assume about inheriting Spanish property is only half right. The tax is narrower than people expect. The succession rules are wider — and they can reach further than the property itself.
Pedro Torres6 min read
Owning a property in Spain raises a question most buyers put off: what happens to it when you die. The usual assumption is that Spain taxes the whole thing harshly, and that your will back home still decides who gets what. Neither half of that is quite right.
The tax question turns out to be narrower than most people fear. The succession question turns out to be wider — because, left to the default rule, it isn't limited to the Spanish property at all.
You're only taxed on what's actually in Spain — and you can claim a resident's allowances
As a non-resident, Spanish inheritance tax only reaches assets actually situated in Spain — the property, a Spanish bank account, that kind of thing. It doesn't reach into your UK estate.
Since 2021, non-residents also have the right to apply the tax rules of the Spanish region where the property sits — not just the stricter general state scale. Regional rules often carry far larger reductions.
That right has to be claimed on the tax return. It isn't applied automatically just because the law allows it — whoever files has to actually ask for the regional rules, by region, not the default state ones.
Spanish law can take over your whole estate by default — not just the Spanish property
This is the part that actually matters more than the tax bill. Under EU succession rules that Spain applies, the law that governs your entire estate — everything you own, anywhere, not just the Spanish property — defaults to the law of the country where you were habitually living when you died. For a British owner who has settled in Spain, that default can mean Spanish succession law decides who inherits, including assets back in the UK.
Spanish law reserves a fixed share of the estate for children by law, regardless of what the will says. English and Welsh law doesn't work that way — a will there can leave the estate to whoever the person chooses. If the default rule applies to you, your will can stop reflecting what you actually wanted.
| Left to the default rule | Chosen deliberately, in the will |
|---|---|
| Law of your habitual residence at death governs everything | Law of your own nationality governs everything, if you choose it |
| Can mean forced shares for children override your wishes | Full testamentary freedom, if that’s the law you choose |
| Decided after you die, by where you happened to be living | Decided now, in writing, while you still can |
Reglamento (UE) 650/2012, arts. 21 y 22.
The choice has to be made explicitly in a will, in your lifetime. There's no way to fix this after the fact — if you die without that clause and Spanish law applies by default, the forced-share rules apply too.
Why this is worth settling with a will now, not leaving to be sorted later
A single clause, written into a will while everyone is healthy and thinking clearly, settles a question that otherwise gets fought over later — by people who are grieving, in a legal system that isn't their own, about an estate that spans two countries.
Do I pay Spanish inheritance tax on my UK assets if I own property in Spain?
No. As a non-resident, Spanish inheritance tax only applies to assets actually situated in Spain, not your worldwide estate.
Can I choose English law to govern who inherits my Spanish property?
Yes, by making that choice explicit in your will. Without it, the default rule applies the law of wherever you were habitually living when you died, which can mean Spanish forced-heirship rules.
Does Spain's forced inheritance rule (legítima) apply to British owners?
It can, if Spanish law ends up governing your succession by default — which happens if you're habitually resident in Spain and haven't chosen another law in your will.