A spanish will is not absolutely necesary in Spain although is highly recommendable. The truth of the matter is that many people avoid drawing up such documents since death is not an issue at a certain period of life. However, any asset proprietor in Spain should arrange his post-death affairs properly so their heirs don't need to be involved in time consuming and expensive legal procedures... an experience not recommended by those who have experienced it!

A Will should include:

• A draft in both in English and Spanish of the Will document.
• Assistance before the Notary Public.

If a foreign resident dies in Spain without a will, their estate will be distributed according to the Spanish laws of succession. Those laws are as follows:

Where a person dies leaving children, one third of the estate must be left to surviving issue in equal parts. Another third must be left to the surviving children but may be divided as the testor pleases. A survviving spouse will have a lifetime interest in this third. The remaining third may be willed to whomever the testor pleases.

A foreign will may cover your Spanish assets but the legal procedure to enforce it in Spain can take a long time, is expensive and is subject to the court's discretion.

Without a will your heirs will be involved in time consuming expensive legal procedures. Furthermore if you have definite ideas on how you require your estate to be distributed then you must make a Spanish will.

Upon making a Spanish will, you must ensure that your foreign will excludes Spain and that any subsequent will you make in another country does not supercede the testamentary dispositions under your Spanish will.