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Emergency Kit on German Inheritances
Those contents cannot and shall not substitute a qualified legal assistance in Germany.
The following facts will help you with this situation and guide you in taking the necessary actions:
Make use of your own sources in order to learn to know more about the estate
Testamentary dispositions existing or intestate succession?
Contents of last will and testament or other testamentary dispositions
Practical Assistance in certain respects by an attorney-in-fact on site
Applicable inheritance law’s determination and interpretation of last will
Need to prove your position as a sole or a co-heir of the German estate
Acceptance of appointment by a foreign court as an executor or an estate trustee?
Need to prove powers as an executor in Germany for assets in German estate
The language in which German courts correspond, with all regularity is German
Initial consultation with a German attorney-at-law or certified inheritance lawyer
German inheritance tax-aspects are of large relevance for possible heirs
Difficulties with a German inheritance’s settling or administration and with inheritance taxes
Common examples of German assets in a decedent’s estate are German immovable property (real estate), a German bank account or a security deposit, or, in some cases, even shares in a German business company or in a German corporation.
Additional issues of importance are the coordination with the German inheritance tax office, potential applications for German inheritance tax purposes, and, even more important, the proper and timely fulfillment of your inheritance tax duties in Germany.
It might also become necessary to raise claims against other persons who participate in the decedent’s estate or who are in possession of certain assets from the estate, or even to take part in estate litigation procedures in Germany.
The defense against claims, e.g. from persons who believe themselves to have a compulsory portion (Pflichtteil) in the decedent’s estate, or from other creditors of the decedent, might also be of relevance for you. Professional assistance can help to avoid a rather costly law suit in Germany.
Watch our short video:
Orientation Guide for the Settling and Administration of an Estate in Germany
Resumé:
Regardless of whether you can speak and/or read German, you need professional assistance with the various procedures that usually become necessary in Germany: Correspondence with third parties in Germany (e. g. banks) or German authorities, the German probate court and – if necessary – even an application for a German official certification that can prove your position as the decedent’s heir (i. e. an Erbschein) or as the executor. The legal situation for special legacies is slightly different.
About the author and DR. HOSSER Rechtsanwalt:
Dr. Marcus Hosser is a German attorney-at-law, Certified Inheritance Lawyer, Certified Tax Lawyer, and also a full member of the Society of Trust at and Estate Practitioners (STEP Ltd., London). Our law firm is familiar with providing counsel in English (or German) and in international contexts.
Many of our law firm’s clients reside abroad and do not have the opportunity or capacity to come to Germany in a timely manner to take care of the German inheritance and other matters. Our professional assistance can make that unnecessary. For our clients from abroad, we offer conference calls or even video calls (no special technical equipment on your side needed). Those opportunities in combination with email correspondence allow us to stay in close contact with our clients from foreign countries.
Call Dr. Marcus Hosser, TEP
today at +49 721 46 724 255
or send an email to anwalt@dr-hosser.de
DR. HOSSER Rechtsanwalt
Bismarckstrasse 61
D-76133 Karlsruhe
Germany