This document is an excerpt from the EUR-Lex website
Document 02012R0650-20120705
Regulation (EU) No 650/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012 on jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition and enforcement of decisions and acceptance and enforcement of authentic instruments in matters of succession and on the creation of a European Certificate of Succession
Consolidated text: Regulation (EU) No 650/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012 on jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition and enforcement of decisions and acceptance and enforcement of authentic instruments in matters of succession and on the creation of a European Certificate of Succession
Regulation (EU) No 650/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012 on jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition and enforcement of decisions and acceptance and enforcement of authentic instruments in matters of succession and on the creation of a European Certificate of Succession
02012R0650 — EN — 05.07.2012 — 000.003
This text is meant purely as a documentation tool and has no legal effect. The Union's institutions do not assume any liability for its contents. The authentic versions of the relevant acts, including their preambles, are those published in the Official Journal of the European Union and available in EUR-Lex. Those official texts are directly accessible through the links embedded in this document
REGULATION (EU) No 650/2012 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 4 July 2012 (OJ L 201 27.7.2012, p. 107) |
Corrected by:
REGULATION (EU) No 650/2012 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL
of 4 July 2012
on jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition and enforcement of decisions and acceptance and enforcement of authentic instruments in matters of succession and on the creation of a European Certificate of Succession
CHAPTER I
SCOPE AND DEFINITIONS
Article 1
Scope
The following shall be excluded from the scope of this Regulation:
the status of natural persons, as well as family relationships and relationships deemed by the law applicable to such relationships to have comparable effects;
the legal capacity of natural persons, without prejudice to point (c) of Article 23(2) and to Article 26;
questions relating to the disappearance, absence or presumed death of a natural person;
questions relating to matrimonial property regimes and property regimes of relationships deemed by the law applicable to such relationships to have comparable effects to marriage;
maintenance obligations other than those arising by reason of death;
the formal validity of dispositions of property upon death made orally;
property rights, interests and assets created or transferred otherwise than by succession, for instance by way of gifts, joint ownership with a right of survivorship, pension plans, insurance contracts and arrangements of a similar nature, without prejudice to point (i) of Article 23(2);
questions governed by the law of companies and other bodies, corporate or unincorporated, such as clauses in the memoranda of association and articles of association of companies and other bodies, corporate or unincorporated, which determine what will happen to the shares upon the death of the members;
the dissolution, extinction and merger of companies and other bodies, corporate or unincorporated;
the creation, administration and dissolution of trusts;
the nature of rights in rem; and
any recording in a register of rights in immovable or movable property, including the legal requirements for such recording, and the effects of recording or failing to record such rights in a register.
Article 2
Competence in matters of succession within the Member States
This Regulation shall not affect the competence of the authorities of the Member States to deal with matters of succession.
Article 3
Definitions
For the purposes of this Regulation:
‘succession’ means succession to the estate of a deceased person and covers all forms of transfer of assets, rights and obligations by reason of death, whether by way of a voluntary transfer under a disposition of property upon death or a transfer through intestate succession;
‘agreement as to succession’ means an agreement, including an agreement resulting from mutual wills, which, with or without consideration, creates, modifies or terminates rights to the future estate or estates of one or more persons party to the agreement;
‘joint will’ means a will drawn up in one instrument by two or more persons;
‘disposition of property upon death’ means a will, a joint will or an agreement as to succession;
‘Member State of origin’ means the Member State in which the decision has been given, the court settlement approved or concluded, the authentic instrument established or the European Certificate of Succession issued;
‘Member State of enforcement’ means the Member State in which the declaration of enforceability or the enforcement of the decision, court settlement or authentic instrument is sought;
‘decision’ means any decision in a matter of succession given by a court of a Member State, whatever the decision may be called, including a decision on the determination of costs or expenses by an officer of the court;
‘court settlement’ means a settlement in a matter of succession which has been approved by a court or concluded before a court in the course of proceedings;
‘authentic instrument’ means a document in a matter of succession which has been formally drawn up or registered as an authentic instrument in a Member State and the authenticity of which:
relates to the signature and the content of the authentic instrument; and
has been established by a public authority or other authority empowered for that purpose by the Member State of origin.
For the purposes of this Regulation, the term ‘court’ means any judicial authority and all other authorities and legal professionals with competence in matters of succession which exercise judicial functions or act pursuant to a delegation of power by a judicial authority or act under the control of a judicial authority, provided that such other authorities and legal professionals offer guarantees with regard to impartiality and the right of all parties to be heard and provided that their decisions under the law of the Member State in which they operate:
may be made the subject of an appeal to or review by a judicial authority; and
have a similar force and effect as a decision of a judicial authority on the same matter.
The Member States shall notify the Commission of the other authorities and legal professionals referred to in the first subparagraph in accordance with Article 79.
CHAPTER II
JURISDICTION
Article 4
General jurisdiction
The courts of the Member State in which the deceased had his habitual residence at the time of death shall have jurisdiction to rule on the succession as a whole.
Article 5
Choice-of-court agreement
Article 6
Declining of jurisdiction in the event of a choice of law
Where the law chosen by the deceased to govern his succession pursuant to Article 22 is the law of a Member State, the court seised pursuant to Article 4 or Article 10:
may, at the request of one of the parties to the proceedings, decline jurisdiction if it considers that the courts of the Member State of the chosen law are better placed to rule on the succession, taking into account the practical circumstances of the succession, such as the habitual residence of the parties and the location of the assets; or
shall decline jurisdiction if the parties to the proceedings have agreed, in accordance with Article 5, to confer jurisdiction on a court or the courts of the Member State of the chosen law.
Article 7
Jurisdiction in the event of a choice of law
The courts of a Member State whose law had been chosen by the deceased pursuant to Article 22 shall have jurisdiction to rule on the succession if:
a court previously seised has declined jurisdiction in the same case pursuant to Article 6;
the parties to the proceedings have agreed, in accordance with Article 5, to confer jurisdiction on a court or the courts of that Member State; or
the parties to the proceedings have expressly accepted the jurisdiction of the court seised.
Article 8
Closing of own-motion proceedings in the event of a choice of law
A court which has opened succession proceedings of its own motion under Article 4 or Article 10 shall close the proceedings if the parties to the proceedings have agreed to settle the succession amicably out of court in the Member State whose law had been chosen by the deceased pursuant to Article 22.
Article 9
Jurisdiction based on appearance
In that event, jurisdiction to rule on the succession shall lie with the courts having jurisdiction pursuant to Article 4 or Article 10.
Article 10
Subsidiary jurisdiction
Where the habitual residence of the deceased at the time of death is not located in a Member State, the courts of a Member State in which assets of the estate are located shall nevertheless have jurisdiction to rule on the succession as a whole in so far as:
the deceased had the nationality of that Member State at the time of death; or, failing that,
the deceased had his previous habitual residence in that Member State, provided that, at the time the court is seised, a period of not more than five years has elapsed since that habitual residence changed.
Article 11
Forum necessitatis
Where no court of a Member State has jurisdiction pursuant to other provisions of this Regulation, the courts of a Member State may, on an exceptional basis, rule on the succession if proceedings cannot reasonably be brought or conducted or would be impossible in a third State with which the case is closely connected.
The case must have a sufficient connection with the Member State of the court seised.
Article 12
Limitation of proceedings
Article 13
Acceptance or waiver of the succession, of a legacy or of a reserved share
In addition to the court having jurisdiction to rule on the succession pursuant to this Regulation, the courts of the Member State of the habitual residence of any person who, under the law applicable to the succession, may make, before a court, a declaration concerning the acceptance or waiver of the succession, of a legacy or of a reserved share, or a declaration designed to limit the liability of the person concerned in respect of the liabilities under the succession, shall have jurisdiction to receive such declarations where, under the law of that Member State, such declarations may be made before a court.
Article 14
Seising of a court
For the purposes of this Chapter, a court shall be deemed to be seised:
at the time when the document instituting the proceedings or an equivalent document is lodged with the court, provided that the applicant has not subsequently failed to take the steps he was required to take to have service effected on the defendant;
if the document has to be served before being lodged with the court, at the time when it is received by the authority responsible for service, provided that the applicant has not subsequently failed to take the steps he was required to take to have the document lodged with the court; or
if the proceedings are opened of the court’s own motion, at the time when the decision to open the proceedings is taken by the court, or, where such a decision is not required, at the time when the case is registered by the court.
Article 15
Examination as to jurisdiction
Where a court of a Member State is seised of a succession matter over which it has no jurisdiction under this Regulation, it shall declare of its own motion that it has no jurisdiction.
Article 16
Examination as to admissibility
Article 17
Lis pendens
Article 18
Related actions
Article 19
Provisional, including protective, measures
Application may be made to the courts of a Member State for such provisional, including protective, measures as may be available under the law of that State, even if, under this Regulation, the courts of another Member State have jurisdiction as to the substance of the matter.
CHAPTER III
APPLICABLE LAW
Article 20
Universal application
Any law specified by this Regulation shall be applied whether or not it is the law of a Member State.
Article 21
General rule
Article 22
Choice of law
A person possessing multiple nationalities may choose the law of any of the States whose nationality he possesses at the time of making the choice or at the time of death.
Article 23
The scope of the applicable law
That law shall govern in particular:
the causes, time and place of the opening of the succession;
the determination of the beneficiaries, of their respective shares and of the obligations which may be imposed on them by the deceased, and the determination of other succession rights, including the succession rights of the surviving spouse or partner;
the capacity to inherit;
disinheritance and disqualification by conduct;
the transfer to the heirs and, as the case may be, to the legatees of the assets, rights and obligations forming part of the estate, including the conditions and effects of the acceptance or waiver of the succession or of a legacy;
the powers of the heirs, the executors of the wills and other administrators of the estate, in particular as regards the sale of property and the payment of creditors, without prejudice to the powers referred to in Article 29(2) and (3);
liability for the debts under the succession;
the disposable part of the estate, the reserved shares and other restrictions on the disposal of property upon death as well as claims which persons close to the deceased may have against the estate or the heirs;
any obligation to restore or account for gifts, advancements or legacies when determining the shares of the different beneficiaries; and
the sharing-out of the estate.
Article 24
Dispositions of property upon death other than agreements as to succession
Article 25
Agreements as to succession
An agreement as to succession which is admissible pursuant to the first subparagraph shall be governed, as regards its substantive validity and its binding effects between the parties, including the conditions for its dissolution, by the law, from among those referred to in the first subparagraph, with which it has the closest connection.
Article 26
Substantive validity of dispositions of property upon death
For the purposes of Articles 24 and 25 the following elements shall pertain to substantive validity:
the capacity of the person making the disposition of property upon death to make such a disposition;
the particular causes which bar the person making the disposition from disposing in favour of certain persons or which bar a person from receiving succession property from the person making the disposition;
the admissibility of representation for the purposes of making a disposition of property upon death;
the interpretation of the disposition;
fraud, duress, mistake and any other questions relating to the consent or intention of the person making the disposition.
Article 27
Formal validity of dispositions of property upon death made in writing
A disposition of property upon death made in writing shall be valid as regards form if its form complies with the law:
of the State in which the disposition was made or the agreement as to succession concluded;
of a State whose nationality the testator or at least one of the persons whose succession is concerned by an agreement as to succession possessed, either at the time when the disposition was made or the agreement concluded, or at the time of death;
of a State in which the testator or at least one of the persons whose succession is concerned by an agreement as to succession had his domicile, either at the time when the disposition was made or the agreement concluded, or at the time of death;
of the State in which the testator or at least one of the persons whose succession is concerned by an agreement as to succession had his habitual residence, either at the time when the disposition was made or the agreement concluded, or at the time of death; or
in so far as immovable property is concerned, of the State in which that property is located.
The determination of the question whether or not the testator or any person whose succession is concerned by the agreement as to succession had his domicile in a particular State shall be governed by the law of that State.
Article 28
Validity as to form of a declaration concerning acceptance or waiver
A declaration concerning the acceptance or waiver of the succession, of a legacy or of a reserved share, or a declaration designed to limit the liability of the person making the declaration, shall be valid as to form where it meets the requirements of:
the law applicable to the succession pursuant to Article 21 or Article 22; or
the law of the State in which the person making the declaration has his habitual residence.
Article 29
Special rules on the appointment and powers of an administrator of the estate in certain situations
The administrator(s) appointed pursuant to this paragraph shall be the person(s) entitled to execute the will of the deceased and/or to administer the estate under the law applicable to the succession. Where that law does not provide for the administration of the estate by a person who is not a beneficiary, the courts of the Member State in which the administrator is to be appointed may appoint a third-party administrator under their own law if that law so requires and there is a serious conflict of interests between the beneficiaries or between the beneficiaries and the creditors or other persons having guaranteed the debts of the deceased, a disagreement amongst the beneficiaries on the administration of the estate or a complex estate to administer due to the nature of the assets.
The administrator(s) appointed pursuant to this paragraph shall be the only person(s) entitled to exercise the powers referred to in paragraph 2 or 3.
Where the law applicable to the succession does not provide for sufficient powers to preserve the assets of the estate or to protect the rights of the creditors or of other persons having guaranteed the debts of the deceased, the appointing court may decide to allow the administrator(s) to exercise, on a residual basis, the powers provided for to that end by its own law and may, in its decision, lay down specific conditions for the exercise of such powers in accordance with that law.
When exercising such residual powers, however, the administrator(s) shall respect the law applicable to the succession as regards the transfer of ownership of succession property, liability for the debts under the succession, the rights of the beneficiaries, including, where applicable, the right to accept or to waive the succession, and, where applicable, the powers of the executor of the will of the deceased.
When exercising such powers, however, the administrators shall respect, in particular, the determination of the beneficiaries and their succession rights, including their rights to a reserved share or claim against the estate or the heirs under the law applicable to the succession.
Article 30
Special rules imposing restrictions concerning or affecting the succession in respect of certain assets
Where the law of the State in which certain immovable property, certain enterprises or other special categories of assets are located contains special rules which, for economic, family or social considerations, impose restrictions concerning or affecting the succession in respect of those assets, those special rules shall apply to the succession in so far as, under the law of that State, they are applicable irrespective of the law applicable to the succession.
Article 31
Adaptation of rights in rem
Where a person invokes a right in rem to which he is entitled under the law applicable to the succession and the law of the Member State in which the right is invoked does not know the right in rem in question, that right shall, if necessary and to the extent possible, be adapted to the closest equivalent right in rem under the law of that State, taking into account the aims and the interests pursued by the specific right in rem and the effects attached to it.
Article 32
Commorientes
Where two or more persons whose successions are governed by different laws die in circumstances in which it is uncertain in what order their deaths occurred, and where those laws provide differently for that situation or make no provision for it at all, none of the deceased persons shall have any rights to the succession of the other or others.
Article 33
Estate without a claimant
To the extent that, under the law applicable to the succession pursuant to this Regulation, there is no heir or legatee for any assets under a disposition of property upon death and no natural person is an heir by operation of law, the application of the law so determined shall not preclude the right of a Member State or of an entity appointed for that purpose by that Member State to appropriate under its own law the assets of the estate located on its territory, provided that the creditors are entitled to seek satisfaction of their claims out of the assets of the estate as a whole.
Article 34
Renvoi
The application of the law of any third State specified by this Regulation shall mean the application of the rules of law in force in that State, including its rules of private international law in so far as those rules make a renvoi:
to the law of a Member State; or
to the law of another third State which would apply its own law.
Article 35
Public policy (ordre public)
The application of a provision of the law of any State specified by this Regulation may be refused only if such application is manifestly incompatible with the public policy (ordre public) of the forum.
Article 36
States with more than one legal system – territorial conflicts of laws
In the absence of such internal conflict-of-laws rules:
any reference to the law of the State referred to in paragraph 1 shall, for the purposes of determining the law applicable pursuant to provisions referring to the habitual residence of the deceased, be construed as referring to the law of the territorial unit in which the deceased had his habitual residence at the time of death;
any reference to the law of the State referred to in paragraph 1 shall, for the purposes of determining the law applicable pursuant to provisions referring to the nationality of the deceased, be construed as referring to the law of the territorial unit with which the deceased had the closest connection;
any reference to the law of the State referred to in paragraph 1 shall, for the purposes of determining the law applicable pursuant to any other provisions referring to other elements as connecting factors, be construed as referring to the law of the territorial unit in which the relevant element is located.
Article 37
States with more than one legal system – inter-personal conflicts of laws
In relation to a State which has two or more systems of law or sets of rules applicable to different categories of persons in respect of succession, any reference to the law of that State shall be construed as referring to the system of law or set of rules determined by the rules in force in that State. In the absence of such rules, the system of law or the set of rules with which the deceased had the closest connection shall apply.
Article 38
Non-application of this Regulation to internal conflicts of laws
A Member State which comprises several territorial units each of which has its own rules of law in respect of succession shall not be required to apply this Regulation to conflicts of laws arising between such units only.
CHAPTER IV
RECOGNITION, ENFORCEABILITY AND ENFORCEMENT OF DECISIONS
Article 39
Recognition
Article 40
Grounds of non-recognition
A decision shall not be recognised:
if such recognition is manifestly contrary to public policy (ordre public) in the Member State in which recognition is sought;
where it was given in default of appearance, if the defendant was not served with the document which instituted the proceedings or with an equivalent document in sufficient time and in such a way as to enable him to arrange for his defence, unless the defendant failed to commence proceedings to challenge the decision when it was possible for him to do so;
if it is irreconcilable with a decision given in proceedings between the same parties in the Member State in which recognition is sought;
if it is irreconcilable with an earlier decision given in another Member State or in a third State in proceedings involving the same cause of action and between the same parties, provided that the earlier decision fulfils the conditions necessary for its recognition in the Member State in which recognition is sought.
Article 41
No review as to the substance
Under no circumstances may a decision given in a Member State be reviewed as to its substance.
Article 42
Staying of recognition proceedings
A court of a Member State in which recognition is sought of a decision given in another Member State may stay the proceedings if an ordinary appeal against the decision has been lodged in the Member State of origin.
Article 43
Enforceability
Decisions given in a Member State and enforceable in that State shall be enforceable in another Member State when, on the application of any interested party, they have been declared enforceable there in accordance with the procedure provided for in Articles 45 to 58.
Article 44
Determination of domicile
To determine whether, for the purposes of the procedure provided for in Articles 45 to 58, a party is domiciled in the Member State of enforcement, the court seised shall apply the internal law of that Member State.
Article 45
Jurisdiction of local courts
Article 46
Procedure
The application shall be accompanied by the following documents:
a copy of the decision which satisfies the conditions necessary to establish its authenticity;
the attestation issued by the court or competent authority of the Member State of origin using the form established in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in Article 81(2), without prejudice to Article 47.
Article 47
Non-production of the attestation
Article 48
Declaration of enforceability
The decision shall be declared enforceable immediately on completion of the formalities in Article 46 without any review under Article 40. The party against whom enforcement is sought shall not at this stage of the proceedings be entitled to make any submissions on the application.
Article 49
Notice of the decision on the application for a declaration of enforceability
Article 50
Appeal against the decision on the application for a declaration of enforceability
Article 51
Procedure to contest the decision given on appeal
The decision given on the appeal may be contested only by the procedure communicated by the Member State concerned to the Commission in accordance with Article 78.
Article 52
Refusal or revocation of a declaration of enforceability
The court with which an appeal is lodged under Article 50 or Article 51 shall refuse or revoke a declaration of enforceability only on one of the grounds specified in Article 40. It shall give its decision without delay.
Article 53
Staying of proceedings
The court with which an appeal is lodged under Article 50 or Article 51 shall, on the application of the party against whom enforcement is sought, stay the proceedings if the enforceability of the decision is suspended in the Member State of origin by reason of an appeal.
Article 54
Provisional, including protective, measures
Article 55
Partial enforceability
Article 56
Legal aid
An applicant who, in the Member State of origin, has benefited from complete or partial legal aid or exemption from costs or expenses shall be entitled, in any proceedings for a declaration of enforceability, to benefit from the most favourable legal aid or the most extensive exemption from costs or expenses provided for by the law of the Member State of enforcement.
Article 57
No security, bond or deposit
No security, bond or deposit, however described, shall be required of a party who in one Member State applies for recognition, enforceability or enforcement of a decision given in another Member State on the ground that he is a foreign national or that he is not domiciled or resident in the Member State of enforcement.
Article 58
No charge, duty or fee
In proceedings for the issue of a declaration of enforceability, no charge, duty or fee calculated by reference to the value of the matter at issue may be levied in the Member State of enforcement.
CHAPTER V
AUTHENTIC INSTRUMENTS AND COURT SETTLEMENTS
Article 59
Acceptance of authentic instruments
A person wishing to use an authentic instrument in another Member State may ask the authority establishing the authentic instrument in the Member State of origin to fill in the form established in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in Article 81(2) describing the evidentiary effects which the authentic instrument produces in the Member State of origin.
Article 60
Enforceability of authentic instruments
Article 61
Enforceability of court settlements
CHAPTER VI
EUROPEAN CERTIFICATE OF SUCCESSION
Article 62
Creation of a European Certificate of Succession
Article 63
Purpose of the Certificate
The Certificate may be used, in particular, to demonstrate one or more of the following:
the status and/or the rights of each heir or, as the case may be, each legatee mentioned in the Certificate and their respective shares of the estate;
the attribution of a specific asset or specific assets forming part of the estate to the heir(s) or, as the case may be, the legatee(s) mentioned in the Certificate;
the powers of the person mentioned in the Certificate to execute the will or administer the estate.
Article 64
Competence to issue the Certificate
The Certificate shall be issued in the Member State whose courts have jurisdiction under Article 4, Article 7, Article 10 or Article 11. The issuing authority shall be:
a court as defined in Article 3(2); or
another authority which, under national law, has competence to deal with matters of succession.
Article 65
Application for a Certificate
The application shall contain the information listed below, to the extent that such information is within the applicant’s knowledge and is necessary in order to enable the issuing authority to certify the elements which the applicant wants certified, and shall be accompanied by all relevant documents either in the original or by way of copies which satisfy the conditions necessary to establish their authenticity, without prejudice to Article 66(2):
details concerning the deceased: surname (if applicable, surname at birth), given name(s), sex, date and place of birth, civil status, nationality, identification number (if applicable), address at the time of death, date and place of death;
details concerning the applicant: surname (if applicable, surname at birth), given name(s), sex, date and place of birth, civil status, nationality, identification number (if applicable), address and relationship to the deceased, if any;
details concerning the representative of the applicant, if any: surname (if applicable, surname at birth), given name(s), address and representative capacity;
details of the spouse or partner of the deceased and, if applicable, ex-spouse(s) or ex-partner(s): surname (if applicable, surname at birth), given name(s), sex, date and place of birth, civil status, nationality, identification number (if applicable) and address;
details of other possible beneficiaries under a disposition of property upon death and/or by operation of law: surname and given name(s) or organisation name, identification number (if applicable) and address;
the intended purpose of the Certificate in accordance with Article 63;
the contact details of the court or other competent authority which is dealing with or has dealt with the succession as such, if applicable;
the elements on which the applicant founds, as appropriate, his claimed right to succession property as a beneficiary and/or his right to execute the will of the deceased and/or to administer the estate of the deceased;
an indication of whether the deceased had made a disposition of property upon death; if neither the original nor a copy is appended, an indication regarding the location of the original;
an indication of whether the deceased had entered into a marriage contract or into a contract regarding a relationship which may have comparable effects to marriage; if neither the original nor a copy of the contract is appended, an indication regarding the location of the original;
an indication of whether any of the beneficiaries has made a declaration concerning acceptance or waiver of the succession;
a declaration stating that, to the applicant’s best knowledge, no dispute is pending relating to the elements to be certified;
any other information which the applicant deems useful for the purposes of the issue of the Certificate.
Article 66
Examination of the application
Article 67
Issue of the Certificate
The issuing authority shall not issue the Certificate in particular if:
the elements to be certified are being challenged; or
the Certificate would not be in conformity with a decision covering the same elements.
Article 68
Contents of the Certificate
The Certificate shall contain the following information, to the extent required for the purpose for which it is issued:
the name and address of the issuing authority;
the reference number of the file;
the elements on the basis of which the issuing authority considers itself competent to issue the Certificate;
the date of issue;
details concerning the applicant: surname (if applicable, surname at birth), given name(s), sex, date and place of birth, civil status, nationality, identification number (if applicable), address and relationship to the deceased, if any;
details concerning the deceased: surname (if applicable, surname at birth), given name(s), sex, date and place of birth, civil status, nationality, identification number (if applicable), address at the time of death, date and place of death;
details concerning the beneficiaries: surname (if applicable, surname at birth), given name(s) and identification number (if applicable);
information concerning a marriage contract entered into by the deceased or, if applicable, a contract entered into by the deceased in the context of a relationship deemed by the law applicable to such a relationship to have comparable effects to marriage, and information concerning the matrimonial property regime or equivalent property regime;
the law applicable to the succession and the elements on the basis of which that law has been determined;
information as to whether the succession is testate or intestate, including information concerning the elements giving rise to the rights and/or powers of the heirs, legatees, executors of wills or administrators of the estate;
if applicable, information in respect of each beneficiary concerning the nature of the acceptance or waiver of the succession;
the share for each heir and, if applicable, the list of rights and/or assets for any given heir;
the list of rights and/or assets for any given legatee;
the restrictions on the rights of the heir(s) and, as appropriate, legatee(s) under the law applicable to the succession and/or under the disposition of property upon death;
the powers of the executor of the will and/or the administrator of the estate and the restrictions on those powers under the law applicable to the succession and/or under the disposition of property upon death.
Article 69
Effects of the Certificate
Article 70
Certified copies of the Certificate
Article 71
Rectification, modification or withdrawal of the Certificate
Article 72
Redress procedures
Decisions taken by the issuing authority pursuant to Article 71 and point (a) of Article 73(1) may be challenged by any person demonstrating a legitimate interest.
The challenge shall be lodged before a judicial authority in the Member State of the issuing authority in accordance with the law of that State.
If, as a result of a challenge as referred to in paragraph 1, it is established that the refusal to issue the Certificate was unjustified, the competent judicial authority shall issue the Certificate or ensure that the issuing authority re-assesses the case and makes a fresh decision.
Article 73
Suspension of the effects of the Certificate
The effects of the Certificate may be suspended by:
the issuing authority, at the request of any person demonstrating a legitimate interest, pending a modification or withdrawal of the Certificate pursuant to Article 71; or
the judicial authority, at the request of any person entitled to challenge a decision taken by the issuing authority pursuant to Article 72, pending such a challenge.
During the suspension of the effects of the Certificate no further certified copies of the Certificate may be issued.
CHAPTER VII
GENERAL AND FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 74
Legalisation and other similar formalities
No legalisation or other similar formality shall be required in respect of documents issued in a Member State in the context of this Regulation.
Article 75
Relationship with existing international conventions
In particular, Member States which are Contracting Parties to the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961 on the Conflicts of Laws Relating to the Form of Testamentary Dispositions shall continue to apply the provisions of that Convention instead of Article 27 of this Regulation with regard to the formal validity of wills and joint wills.
This Regulation shall not preclude the application of the Convention of 19 November 1934 between Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden comprising private international law provisions on succession, wills and estate administration, as revised by the intergovernmental agreement between those States of 1 June 2012, by the Member States which are parties thereto, in so far as it provides for:
rules on the procedural aspects of estate administration as defined by the Convention and assistance in that regard by the authorities of the States Contracting Parties to the Convention; and
simplified and more expeditious procedures for the recognition and enforcement of decisions in matters of succession.
Article 76
Relationship with Council Regulation (EC) No 1346/2000
This Regulation shall not affect the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1346/2000 of 29 May 2000 on insolvency proceedings ( 10 ).
Article 77
Information made available to the public
The Member States shall, with a view to making the information available to the public within the framework of the European Judicial Network in civil and commercial matters, provide the Commission with a short summary of their national legislation and procedures relating to succession, including information on the type of authority which has competence in matters of succession and information on the type of authority competent to receive declarations of acceptance or waiver of the succession, of a legacy or of a reserved share.
The Member States shall also provide fact sheets listing all the documents and/or information usually required for the purposes of registration of immovable property located on their territory.
The Member States shall keep the information permanently updated.
Article 78
Information on contact details and procedures
By 16 November 2014, the Member States shall communicate to the Commission:
the names and contact details of the courts or authorities with competence to deal with applications for a declaration of enforceability in accordance with Article 45(1) and with appeals against decisions on such applications in accordance with Article 50(2);
the procedures to contest the decision given on appeal referred to in Article 51;
the relevant information regarding the authorities competent to issue the Certificate pursuant to Article 64; and
the redress procedures referred to in Article 72.
The Member States shall apprise the Commission of any subsequent changes to that information.
Article 79
Establishment and subsequent amendment of the list containing the information referred to in Article 3(2)
Article 80
Establishment and subsequent amendment of the attestations and forms referred to in Articles 46, 59, 60, 61, 65 and 67
The Commission shall adopt implementing acts establishing and subsequently amending the attestations and forms referred to in Articles 46, 59, 60, 61, 65 and 67. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in Article 81(2).
Article 81
Committee procedure
Article 82
Review
By 18 August 2025 the Commission shall submit to the European Parliament, the Council and the European Economic and Social Committee a report on the application of this Regulation, including an evaluation of any practical problems encountered in relation to parallel out-of-court settlements of succession cases in different Member States or an out-of-court settlement in one Member State effected in parallel with a settlement before a court in another Member State. The report shall be accompanied, where appropriate, by proposals for amendments.
Article 83
Transitional provisions
Article 84
Entry into force
This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
It shall apply from 17 August 2015, ►C1 except for Articles 77 and 78, which shall apply from 16 November 2014 ◄ , and Articles 79, 80 and 81, which shall apply from 5 July 2012.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in the Member States in accordance with the Treaties.
( 1 ) OJ C 44, 11.2.2011, p. 148.
( 2 ) Position of the European Parliament of 13 March 2012 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and decision of the Council of 7 June 2012.
( 3 ) OJ C 12, 15.1.2001, p. 1.
( 4 ) OJ C 53, 3.3.2005, p. 1.
( 5 ) OJ C 115, 4.5.2010, p. 1.
( 6 ) OJ L 174, 27.6.2001, p. 25.
( 7 ) OJ L 124, 8.6.1971, p. 1.
( 8 ) OJ L 55, 28.2.2011, p. 13.
( 9 ) OJ L 324, 10.12.2007, p. 79.
( 10 ) OJ L 160, 30.6.2000, p. 1.