First ECJ caselaw on Succession Regulation
The EU Regulation on cross-border inheritance and succession no. 650/2012 came into force in August 2015, so not surprisingly only now its provisions are starting to be interpreted by the European Court of Justice. Lawyers who deal with cross-border estates, such as a succession involving assets in more than one country including an EU member state are keen to see how some controversial or ambiguous clauses are going to be defined, for example in the definition of habitual residence – how it will be clear in the case of a person who...
read moreNew rules – declaration of succession in Italy
The death of a person in Italy must be registered within 12 months, by the heirs, an Executor or other interested party, by lodging the form known as the “dichiarazione di successione“, probably the equivalent of the application for Probate in the UK. Up to now this form has been presented at the tax office, the Agenzia delle Entrate, in the area of the last place of residence of the deceased. The form states whether the deceased died intestate, or intestate, In case of a testate succession an authentic copy of the last will must...
read moreDNA and inheritance claims in Italy
DNA profiling is now a widely used method to convict the perpetrator of a crime to a high degree of accuracy. Yet, despite its newfound dramatic appeal, it was originally developed as a means to provide genetic evidence of paternity as early as the mid-1970s; this assessment, known as HLA testing, was a powerful, if problematic, tool to identify biological relationships. The method employed to test DNA has improved dramatically, now boasting a 99.99% accuracy, so providing an attractive tool to quickly and precisely give evidence in cases...
read morePotential Increase in Inheritance Tax in Italy
When it comes to inheritance tax, Italy currently enjoys somewhat of a “tax haven” status. These particular taxes are some of the lowest in Europe, with the maximum amount payable by an heir currently being 8% of the total value inherited. The percentages are calculated based on the relationship the heir has to the deceased; the spouse and children of the deceased are currently only liable for 4%, of any amount inherited over 1,000,000 Euro. This means that, in most succession cases in Italy, the heirs will not pay anything in...
read moreSUCCESSION REGULATION 650/2012 – The UK decision to opt-out
The UK decision to opt-out of the Succession Regulation Three member states, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Denmark, will not adopt the provisions of the Succession Regulation, which came into force on 17th August 2015. The aim of the Succession Regulation was to harmonise the conflict of succession laws between the Member States, and allow citizens of member states of the European Union the ability to plan their succession, under the law of one country, even where they own assets in more than one country. It will now be clear, across the...
read moreSUCCESSION REGULATION 650/2012 – The European Certificate of Succession
The European Certificate of Succession (referred to here as the “ECS”) is a formal certification of the facts of the succession of a deceased person, which has been introduced by the Succession Regulation (EU) 650/2012, which is due to come into force on August 17th 2015, and by Regulation (EU) No 1329/2014 of 9 December 2014 establishing the Forms referred to in the Succession Regulation. The standardised forms will be available to citizens as of 17 August 2015 on the e-justice Portal of the European Commission. The ECS will be...
read moreSUCCESSION REGULATION – Which national law will apply?
This article explores how the Succession Regulation imposes one law to a succession involving an estate in Italy. The death of a person resident in a Member State leaving assets and heirs in more than one country, or with a nationality different from the place of residence, would have caused a headache for the Executors, given the conflict of laws between different states. This is frequently the case where a succession involves assets in the UK and Italy, as Italian and English law are based on completely different principles. Italian...
read moreEU Succession Regulation comes into force in August 2015
The Regulation (EU) 650/2012 on jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition and enforcement of decisions and acceptance and enforcement of authentic instruments in matters of succession and on the creation of a European Certificate of Succession, was published with the aim of harmonising rules of succession law in Europe. The UK, Ireland and Denmark have chosen not to opt-in to the Regulation. The Regulation will come into force in August 2015. In the months leading up to the entry into force of the Regulation we will be providing analysis and...
read more
