Hello,

I was not sure how to word the title so my apologies if it sounds off.

How long do you have to wait in order for a will to be read .

A relative past away toward the back end of November last year , so it has been 4 and a half months.

I do not trust his wife , all she say´s is the will is not read yet.

My uncle told my father ( who has also past away ) that he had amended his will to include use.

We have practically no contact with them. How do i know they are on the level.

I really would appreciate someone that understands this.

Thanks.

Hi, just to be clear, do you mean a French "Testament" concerning French Property?

Contrary to popular belief, there is no formal or legal requirement for a (public) "reading of the will", unless the defunct specified such in the will, or in instructions to the Notaire. This applies to both the UK & France, btw; & other countries too.

If the will was made in France, it will be handled by a notaire, who is obliged to contact & notify beneficiaries by law, and who is required to do so in a timely fashion.
https://www.service-public.fr/partic...osdroits/F3167

If it's a UK will, you might be able to get a copy here:
https://www.gov.uk/search-will-probate

Hello Shirtback,

The will was made in France (i think) but am not sure . My uncle has lived in France for the past 40 years but was born in Italy with businesses in Africa ( not sure on this either).

I do not speak any of these languages and my uncles family are either French or Italian speaking.

- How would we know that he gave ( or not ) instructions for a will reading by the Notaire ?

- I do not know if the notaire has contacted my aunt or has !

I take it the that the (depository) is the person who made the will but the depository has past away ? or am i missing something ?

What about ( in case of refusal ) , i.e. my aunt does not want the will to be disclosed , read out ?

How could we get a copy of this supposed will ?

Please excuse my extreme ignorance of legalities here.

Many thanks for helping.

Where does that quote come from?

No, the depository is not the defunct. In your case it's probably/possibly the notaire.

Your aunt can not refuse the terms of the will being disclosed to a *beneficiary* (you, if your uncle named you - I.e. Left you something in his will).

Quick questions:
-were your aunt & uncle legally married?
-do they, or does (did) your uncle, have children?
-do you have your uncle's address?
-did your uncle/does your aunt have your address?

To be honest, if you haven't already heard from the notaire concerning your uncle's will, it's probable you were not mentioned (a beneficiary).

Your aunt can not refuse disclosure of the will to you, *if* you are a named beneficiary.

If you are not a beneficiary, then you would have to spend some money & apply to the courts, with no guarantee of success, to see the will.

Is it worth it? Other than what your father may have mentioned to you, do you have any reason why you think you might/should inherit something from your uncle?

Sorry if that sounds harsh, but French inheritance laws are quite strict, & it would be difficult for your aunt to circumvent them.

Hello again Shirtback,

The (quote) is from the link you posted :

https://www.service-public.fr/partic...osdroits/F3167

Translated by Google.

Answers to your questions :

My father told me one day that my uncle would amend his will to include us.

My aunt emailed me a few weeks back , this is a segment of it (in Italian) . Actually, she´s Portuguese but living in France for a long time :

Google translate :

From this i think she´s saying that the will has not been opened ( read ) yet ?

Thanks again for your help.

Hi, from my limited Italian, "fata" simply means "done".
Since your uncle had a "recomposed" family, I'm not surprised that the Succession hasn't been completed yet. Several months is usual in France, even for a "normal" family....
If your aunt-by-marriage is coy on the subject and you're on good terms with your blood cousins, they should be able to give you the Notaire's name and address, and you can enquire directly. As stated, French Property and Succession Laws are very different from the UK and a recomposed family complicates matters.....

It doesn't matter whether you are in contact with your relatives or whether or not you trust them, because everything will be dealt with by a notaire. Relatives have no control over distributing the estate, it's a complex matter and it has to be handled by somebody who is qualified to do it. Inheritance in France is largely determined by law, not by the deceased's wishes. Individuals have limited discretion on who they can name as their heirs. The notaire will do everything in accordance with French law and will respect the provisions of the will as long as is no conflict between the will and the law; if there is any conflict, the law will take precedence. As long as the deceased left a will with the notaire, all any of the heirs - you, your aunt, anybody else named in the will - can do, is sit back and wait until the notaire has completed his work and contacted each of you. Either way, que sera, sera. Your aunt can't change anything and you can't change anything, the wheels of French succession law are slow but mighty and unstoppable.
I suggest you ask your aunt for the contact details of the notaire who's dealing with it - she will know - and get in touch with him/her to see if they'll tell you anything. If they refuse it may mean you are not named in the will or it may simply mean they expect you to wait to be formally notified.
Be aware that as a nephew you will have to pay 55% inheritance tax to the French government on any French legacy over approx 8000€ that has been left to you.

EuroTrash -

to both Dmu & Eurotrash. They said more or less what I was coming back to say.

I'll add/emphasise that if you are a named beneficiary, you'll be contacted. Whether auntie agrees or not.

Using my (very) limited reading of Italian, I'd say that the text you posted says something on the lines of "the succession is not done (complete/resolved)"; I don't see how it could be read that "the will has not been read".

Don't worry TreeSurgery, French law takes it for granted that relatives will automatically try to rob each other blind when it comes to inheritance, given half a chance - so the law is designed to make sure that they don't get half a chance. If you're named in the will, your rights will be protected.

Many thanks for the information here.

Does this mean that should i receive 10000 euros ( would this sum already have been taxed by the French ) or not ?

Thanks again.

If you receive 10,000€, as a nephew you'll pay probably just over 1,000 tax, so you'll end up with nearly 9k.
The estate as a whole is not taxed before it's distributed. Each beneficiary pays their own tax on the amount they inherit. The closer the relationship to the deceased, the less tax you pay. It's all very different to how it works in the UK.
The notaire will probably need to see copies of your's and your father's birth certificates to prove the kinship.

I live in another European country, so would the estate be taxed according to the law of the residing country ?

What if i was left property in France, would that also be taxed ( if it were to be sold ) ?

Thanks again , and please excuse the curiosity (questions).