cyrian

A french friend of mine died at the beginning of February with no Will.
He did not make provision for his partner of 20 years.
He hadn't seen his daughter for 40 years and she phoned the partner and demanded the keys to the house. He had usufruit use of the house.
The partner has been left destitute and with low pension income.
French inheritance laws can work very well at times but they can also be a nightmare in some circumstances.
As advised - get advice from the notaire.

EuroTrash

Not sure that he could have changed things by making a will.
Citizens of other countries living in France now have the option to decide who will inherit what as permitted by the laws of their home country, although still subject to French succession tax. But as a French citizen you have to comply with French inheritance law, and French law doesn't allow you to leave your estate to a non relative in preference to a son or daughter, unless the son or daughter has formally renounced their inheritance.
But you would think they would have seen it coming and got married or PACS'd. With respect, it was a bit stupid not to, unless one or the other was not in a position.

dmu

Sorry that it's too late for your friend's partner, but one way of providing for any one with no blood or legal ties, is to take out an Assurance-Vie with their name as beneficiary. Not only they're provided for financially, but an A-V isn't normally included in the "Succession", = no Tax. On the other hand, members of the deceased's family might make trouble. A lot depends on how long ago the A-V was taken out (and the attitude of the other family members....)

cyrian

He was an artist of some repute and he previously had exhibitions in Paris; London and New York to mention just a few.
But as with many other artists, he wasn't flush with cash.
The reason I posted this was to warn others of the potential problems for non-spouses in France.
I know we keep warning new expats but if you don't get it right in France then you can leave your partner in the merde.
I only heard about some details of his life after his death.
You don't ask people about their personal situations.

dmu

Couldn't have put it better! Not forgetting that the male partner might equally well be left high and dry - the potential problems connected with property aren't limited to female partners....
For couples who intend to rent, both partners must provide all the necessary paperwork as individuals "en colocation" (flat-sharing).

Dordogne Roofer

Ah yes the marriage thing!

Cat and I have talked about this. We're not getting married yet, we'll take our chances and wait till we're ready.

We'll chat with the notaire on Friday and see what she says.

We're paying our deposit for the land on Friday (subject to planning) so we'll have a good old drink that night as it happens to be Paddy's Day (Cat's Irish).

Thanks for the replies you lot

Tweedpipe

I hope your Irish cat purrs as nicely as my French cat when you pet her.......