Spain: Last will and Testament Certificate

The last will certificate is the document that certifies whether a person has made a will/s and, if so, before which Notary/ies. In this way the heirs can contact the Notary who authorised the last will and testament and obtain a copy (authorised) of it. This document is required for any succession procedures.

Documentation and necessary requirements

NOTE: The information in this section only applies if you are going to make your application in person or by post. If you have a user’s electronic certificate you can choose to process your application electronically, for which you will need to go to the The Ministry of Justice Web Site

APPLICATION-This must be done using Model 790, which can be downloaded from this page or is available, free-of-charge, at the following places:

• The Regional Offices of the Ministry of Justice.
• Madrid, in the Central Office of Citizen Services.

The request cannot be presented until 15 working days have elapsed from the date of death.

DOCUMENTATION.-

• Death Certificate, which must be the original or a certified photocopy, issued by the Civil Registry in the region where the individual died, and which must state the names of the deceased person’s parents.

IMPORTANT: IF THE DATE OF DEATH IS AFTER 2 APRIL 2009 AND THE DEATH HAS NOT BEEN REGISTERED WITH A JUSTICE OF THE PEACE.THE DEATH CERTIFICATE DOES NOT HAVE TO BE PRESENTED. In this case, the deceased’s National Identification Number/Foreigner Identification Number (if there is no Foreigner Identification Number then use the passport number or, if this does not exist, the number of another identification document from the person’s country of origin) must be recorded.

PAYMENT OF THE FEE.– Proof of payment of the fee, which may be accredited in any of the following ways:

• Payment via electronic bankingIf you have an account open and a digital signature allowing you to use the services provided by any of the financial entities collaborating with the Tax Agency, you can make the payment through their online banking services.To do so, first download Form 790 from this website and fill in your Número de Justificante (Receipt Number) in the “Tasas Administrativas 790” field of your online banking system. If there is an option called “Código 006 Tasas Administrativas Ministerio de Justicia”, fill it in there as well.

  To have the certificate issued you must submit a Comprobante de Pago (proof of payment ) along with the sheet from Form 790 called “Ejemplar para la Administración” (Administration’s Copy) to the Tax Office at the window, or else send them by post. To be valid, your Comprobante de Pago (proof of payment) must include the Número de Referencia Completo (full reference number or ‘NRC’) provided to you by the online banking system.

• Other means of payment:
  • In Spain.You may fill in Form 790 and bring it to a financial entity collaborating with the Tax Agency (nearly all of them do) to make payment. Payment will be accredited through machine validation or an authorised signature from the financial entity on the sheet from Form 790 called “Ejemplar para la Administración” (Administration’s Copy), which will have to be submitted at the Tax Office window or sent by post for the certificate to be issued.
  • From abroad.You may sign Form 790 and bring it to the local branch of a Spanish financial entity collaborating with the Tax Office and present in the country where the application for the certificate is being filed. Payment will be accredited through machine validation or an authorised signature from the financial entity on the sheet from Form 790 called “Ejemplar para la Administración” (Administration’s Copy), which will have to be forwarded.You may also pay the fee via bank transfer, so long as the transfer is being sent from accounts open in banks located outside of Spanish territory. To send the transfer, use the IBAN or International Code for the Ministry of Justice’s restricted deposit account, the details of which are provided below. Send the original copy of the proof of payment along with the sheet from Form 790 called “Ejemplar para la Administración”.
    • BANK: BBVA
    • ACCOUNT HOLDER: Ministerio de Justicia – Cuenta Restringida Recaudación Tasas Extranjero (Ministry of Justice – Blocked Account for the Collection of Fees from Abroad)
    • TAX IDENTIFICATION NUMBER OF THE ACCOUNT HOLDER: S-2813610-I
    • IBAN or International Bank Account number: IBAN ES62 0182 2370 4202 0800 0060
    • BBVA Bank Identification Code (BIC): BBVAESMMXXX

FEE PRICE:  3,78 € (By the date of this present article)

IMPORTANT: Special care should be taken that the correct amount of the fee is paid, as the financial entity is not able to refund mistaken amounts paid; requests for reimbursement will require that the interested party initiates a procedure for the refund of undue payment.

Anyone can apply for it provided that they present the required documents or, in the cases of an electronic application, if the necessary death data is available electronically.

The period for the issuance of these certificates is 10 business days when requested by post; and half of that when requested online. In situations of heightened demand, the issuance of certificates might suffer occasional delays.

IMPORTANT: THE LAST WILL CERTIFICATE MUST BE LEGALISED IF IT IS TO HAVE VALIDITY OUTSIDE OF SPAIN. DO NOT FORGET TO MENTION THIS FACT WHEN MAKING AN APPLICATION WHEREVER CERTIFICATES ARE ISSUED. (Universal legalisation or The Hague Apostille)