If you are a Dutch heir of a Spanish estate, or a Dutch citizen owning property in Spain and planning your succession, the differences between the Spanish and Dutch systems are profound — and the rules that apply depend on more than just nationality. This guide compares Spain and the Netherlands across the seven points that matter most for cross-border heirs and Dutch property owners on the Costa Blanca and in Valencia.
1. Forced Heirship — Spanish legítima vs Dutch legitieme portie
Netherlands: Dutch inheritance law recognises a compulsory share for descendants known as the legitieme portie, regulated in Book 4 of the Burgerlijk Wetboek. The Dutch compulsory share is limited to descendants (not the surviving spouse) and amounts to half of the share the child would receive under intestate succession. A disinherited child can claim the legitieme portie as a monetary claim against the estate within five years of the deceased’s death.
Spain: the Civil Code mandates that two-thirds of the estate must be reserved for protected heirs (descendants first, ascendants next, surviving spouse in part) — the so-called legítima. Dutch owners of Spanish property who wish their home-country freedom of testation to govern their Spanish succession can do so by making an express choice of law in their Spanish will. The mechanism is explained in Section 2 below.
2. EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 (Brussels IV) — fully applies to Dutch citizens
EU Regulation 650/2012, known as Brussels IV, governs cross-border succession within participating EU Member States. The Netherlands is a full participating Member State. The default rule is that the law of the country of habitual residence of the deceased at the time of death applies to the entire estate. A Dutch citizen who has retired to the Costa Blanca and is habitually resident in Spain will, by default, have their succession governed by Spanish law — including the Spanish legítima.
However, the Regulation allows the testator to make a professio iuris — an express choice in their will that the law of their nationality applies instead. We draft Spanish wills for Dutch clients with a properly worded professio iuris clause electing Dutch succession law, so that the Dutch legitieme portie rules and the freedom-of-testation framework of Book 4 BW govern the entire succession of their Spanish estate. The Regulation also creates the European Certificate of Succession (Europese Erfrechtverklaring in Dutch), used to prove heirship across Member States.
3. Recognition of Dutch Wills in Spain
Dutch wills — whether executed before a Dutch notary as testament notariële akte or registered with the Centraal Testamentenregister — are valid in Spain after the document is legalised with the Hague Apostille and translated into Spanish by a sworn translator. The Netherlands is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention of 1961, so the apostille is issued by the competent Dutch court (rechtbank) where the notary is registered.
While a Dutch will is legally usable in Spain, relying on it alone adds cost, time and apostille / translation burden for the heirs. We strongly recommend drafting a separate Spanish will limited to Spanish assets, drafted before a Spanish notary, with an express professio iuris in favour of Dutch law. This makes the Spanish-side inheritance procedure faster and far less expensive for the heirs, and avoids potential conflicts with the Centraal Testamentenregister system.
4. Inheritance Tax — Dutch Erfbelasting vs Modelo 650
Netherlands: Erfbelasting (inheritance tax) under the Successiewet 1956, with progressive rates and tax-free thresholds that vary by relationship (spouse, child, sibling, other) and amount inherited. Dutch tax residents are liable on worldwide assets received from a Dutch-resident deceased.
Spain: Impuesto sobre Sucesiones y Donaciones (Modelo 650), with significant regional variation; the Comunidad Valenciana applies reductions for direct heirs. Spanish-situs assets (such as a Costa Blanca property) are subject to Spanish inheritance tax regardless of the heir’s residence. There is no comprehensive bilateral inheritance tax treaty between Spain and the Netherlands, so Dutch heirs of Spanish property may face overlapping Dutch and Spanish liability — we manage the Spanish-side inheritance process and coordinate with any Dutch-side advisors involved to ensure the dual system is handled efficiently.
5. Probate vs Aceptación de Herencia
Netherlands: there is no court-supervised probate process equivalent to the Anglo-American model. The heirs (or their executeur-testamentair if the will appoints one) obtain a verklaring van erfrecht (Declaration of Inheritance) from a Dutch notary, which evidences who the heirs are, their respective shares and the authority to administer the estate. The Dutch process is notarial and broadly similar in spirit to the Spanish system.
Spain: the heirs (or their attorney acting under power of attorney) sign the Escritura de Aceptación y Adjudicación de Herencia before a Spanish notary, file the Modelo 650 inheritance-tax return, and register the inherited assets at the Spanish Land Registry. Where the deceased had a Dutch will or a Dutch verklaring van erfrecht, the firm coordinates the apostille and sworn translation, accepts the European Certificate of Succession where available, and reconciles the Dutch documentation with the Spanish notary’s requirements.
6. Modelo 211 — 3% Retention When Dutch Heirs Sell Spanish Property
When non-resident Dutch heirs sell the Spanish property they have inherited, Spanish tax law requires the buyer to withhold 3% of the sale price and pay it directly to the Spanish tax authority via Modelo 211, on account of the seller’s capital gains tax. This is a statutory obligation under Spanish tax law that applies regardless of nationality, but it surprises many Dutch heirs who are not used to a withholding mechanism of this kind. Our office handles the Modelo 211 filing and the subsequent refund claim where the seller’s actual capital gains tax liability is lower than the 3% retained.
7. Power of Attorney — Handling Spanish Inheritance from the Netherlands
Most Dutch heirs we represent complete the entire Spanish inheritance remotely. The mechanism is a Power of Attorney signed before a Dutch notary (volmacht / poder notarial) and legalised with the Hague Apostille issued by the competent Dutch rechtbank. Once apostilled and translated, the document gives our office full authority to act on the heir’s behalf in Spain.
What we handle under power of attorney: search of the Spanish Last Will Registry (Registro General de Actos de Última Voluntad), application for the heirs’ NIE (Spanish Foreign Identification Number), signing of the Acceptance of Inheritance before a Spanish notary, filing of Modelo 650, payment of inheritance tax, and registration of the inherited property in the heirs’ names at the Spanish Land Registry. We also coordinate with Dutch notaries and Dutch belastingadviseurs where required.
See our full Spanish inheritance and wills service and our dedicated page in Dutch Advocaat Costa Blanca for Dutch and international heirs.
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