PORTUGUESE WILL ( TESTAMONIO )

[BONDI]

Having just looked into the costs involved in making a Portuguese WILL. I found that Notary charges are now around 200 euros, and lawyer has quoted me 150 euros for his services. Anybody out there had their will done recently?

Bondi

[Bruce Wallis]

Yes...and that seems about right pricewise.

You need a will, in fact you both need a Portuguese will as a property owner.

[Algarve Eagle]

We had our wills done in April 2008 and the costs were as you have been advised - 300 Euros lawyer fees and 383 Euros notary fees for two wills.

[Rampage]

We had our (2) wills prepared in October for worldwide assets. Lawyers fees totalled 624 Euros (including VAT at 20%) and notary fees were 381.68.

[Prices in Algarve]

Hi
we had our wills made in June 08 - cost us exactly 1000.00 the lot - that is two wills - husband and wife - it involved solicitor, 2 witness.s who could speak english and portugese and Notary - the notary read out both wills in portugese and our lawyer translated them into english and also gave us english copies.

It was all very professional

But way over the top price wise - it would cost you about 1/3 of that elsewhere

happy days are on the way

pre boom, boom boom !
pre booma booma boom !

[widge]

I have received conflicting advice about the necessity for a Portuguese will if you own property.

Doesn't an English will apply to assets owned in Portugal?
What might happen to those assets if no Portuguese will exists but an English one does?

Givn the very high costs of writing English & Portuguese wills some definitive advice would be most welcome for all property owners in Portugal!

[widge]

Here is the case for only needing a carefully drafted English will (assuming husband & wife are UK Nationals and domiciled for tax purposes in the UK)- can anyone advise to the contrary?


"Usually a local will is not necessary, since Portuguese law provides that inheritance issues are governed by the deceased’s national law. A will made in the deceased’s country should generally suffice; however when Portuguese courts have jurisdiction over the inheritance, then problems may arise if the deceased’s will is not clear (e.g. due to problems of interpretation, or if it has not been updated). In such cases, the courts will strictly apply the law, even if that precludes the constitution of certain people as heirs, which was the deceased’s initial intention. It is advisable, therefore, to ensure that the will is drafted clearly and precisely, and regularly updated to avoid raising doubts in the judge’s mind."

[Bruce Wallis]

We were advised that all of that may be true....and that a Portuguese will cuts through masses of Portuguese red tape, and will expedite a speedy execution of the estate.
I was also advised that as a registered Portuguese fiscal holder, I required a Portuguese in law.

[wolfie]

We were advised by both our UK and Portuguese lawyers that really a Portuguese will is essential if you own property in Portugal . Otherwise your assets may be difficult to pass on easily and can get bogged down in paperwork .Sensible thing to do is get the will drawn up -its just yet another cost !

[Farol]

Can anybody say what the differences, if any, would be in the legal wording and content between a will drawn up in England and one drawn up in Portugal?

I can see that having one testified before a notary in Portugal might help to speed up settlement of an estate but could you achieve the same just by having your will that was written in England translated into Portuguese and going to the notary to have it testified? If you want to have one testfied in Portugal you need a translation and notary fees regardless but why do you need to pay 2 lots of solicitors? To make sure that your intentions are clear you can make specific reference to your Portuguese assets in a will written in England.

Isn't there also an added risk of 2 wills not being identical and therefore a greater risk of a will being contested?

[sanreen]

When we asked our lawyer if a will was necessary he said that if our property was being passed on to our children there was no need, as this was the standard practice in Portugal. It was only if we wanted to leave it to someone else then we would need a will.

[widge]

I found this from law firm Osborne Clarke. Sounds like one well written will in the UK might be safer than one in Portugal & one in UK particularly as circumstances change and you need to ensure one doesn't revoke the other!


http://www.osborneclarke.com/publicatio ... al.pdf[url][/url]


You pays your money and takes your choice!