Country guides
EU cross-border inheritance: what the official guidance can and cannot tell you
A plain-English starting point for EU succession questions, national differences and the limits of general guidance.
Vaultence / Fieldnotes
Make room for a more informed plan.
Practical questions about wills, important documents and life across borders. Carefully sourced starting points, never personal legal advice.
Country guides
75 published guides
Country guides
Making a will in the UK: first check which nation's guidance applies
Why England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland should not be treated as one will-writing checklist.
Country guides
Singapore probate: where families can start
What Singapore Courts say about probate, letters of administration and locating an existing will.
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A British family dealing with a death in Thailand: which records to find
A document-focused guide using UK government guidance about deaths in Thailand, with clear limits on legal advice.
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Philippine succession questions: begin with the official Civil Code
Where to find the Philippines' official succession text and what to prepare before asking for local advice.
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Malaysia estate records: what to gather before asking about the process
A document-first checklist for families preparing to ask which Malaysian estate-administration route may apply.
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Vietnam land records: clarify the right before naming property in a will
A practical file-building guide for families checking land-use and home records with qualified Vietnamese counsel.
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Indonesia inheritance questions: clarify the issue before dividing assets
A fact-first guide to preparing for local advice when an Indonesian estate raises questions about parties, assets, or forum.
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A death connected to Laos: build a careful estate record file
A practical way to organise asset, family and document records before asking qualified Lao counsel about an estate.
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Cambodia estate records: trace how property was acquired
A document-first guide to recording marriage, acquisition and ownership history before asking Cambodian counsel about property.
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New York probate: questions to ask before contacting the court
A New York State starting point for locating the relevant Surrogate’s Court and preparing to ask about its current requirements.
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Canada estate questions: separate local process from federal tax
A practical way to distinguish federal tax administration from provincial and territorial estate procedures, with Ontario and Québec examples.
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Ireland and cross-border succession: check where the EU framework stops
A source-led orientation to Ireland’s non-participation in the EU Succession Regulation and the questions that still need local advice.
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New South Wales wills and probate: identify the task before acting
A NSW-only guide to the official starting points for making a will or asking about a grant after a death.
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Austria and cross-border succession: start with residence, nationality and scope
An Austria-focused route into official guidance on habitual residence, possible choice of law and the questions that need local advice.
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Belgium succession: separate the inheritance decision from regional tax questions
Belgium.be’s starting points on accepting, renouncing or accepting under inventory—and why succession-duty questions need regional context.
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Croatia wills: make the document findable without confusing storage with validity
What Croatia’s official guidance says about keeping a will, court or notary safekeeping, the register and separate inheritance proceedings.
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Cyprus succession: separate the will, estate process and cross-border questions
A cautious route through the Cyprus Supreme Court’s listed succession laws and the questions to take to local counsel.
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Czechia and an international estate: questions raised by the official conflict-of-laws Act
How the Czech Ministry of Justice’s English translation frames jurisdiction, applicable law and will-form questions—without deciding a case.
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Making a will in Denmark: questions to take to the official court guidance
A Denmark-focused starting point on the Danish Courts’ explanation of wills, witnessing and the limits of testamentary choices.
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Estonian succession proceedings: what a notarial certificate does and does not show
A practical starting point from Estonia’s Chamber of Notaries on succession proceedings, proof of heirship and the later division of an estate.
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Finland’s estate inventory deed: a first records question after a death
What Finland’s Tax Administration says the estate inventory deed records, why it is used and what to ask before preparing one.
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France succession paperwork: first ask how heirs prove their status
A French government starting point on the difference between a signed heir attestation and a notarial act of notoriety.
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German assets after a UK-connected death: questions about proof of inheritance
A Germany-focused, cross-border starting point from the German Foreign Office on when institutions may ask for proof of heirship.
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Greek inheritance tax: start by mapping the property and family connection
A cautious starting point from Gov.gr on the factors its inheritance-tax page identifies, and why those facts need current local review.
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Hungarian probate: which authority and records are the first questions?
A Hungary-focused starting point on the official probate statute’s notary-led process and the facts that affect where a case begins.
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Italy’s declaration of estate: separate the tax filing from the will
What Italy’s Revenue Agency says about the declaration of estate, how its filing routes differ, and what the filing does not decide.
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Latvian inheritance law: what the Civil Law’s cross-border text leaves open
A cautious reading guide to Latvia’s Civil Law provisions on inheritance located in Latvia and property distributed abroad.
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Lithuania estate planning: distinguish a spouse’s property from inheritance
A Lithuanian notarial starting point on why marital-property records and succession questions should be prepared separately.
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Luxembourg inheritance paperwork: identify the right declaration first
A Luxembourg government starting point on inheritance declarations, the deceased’s last domicile and locally owned buildings.
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Malta property after a death: a notary is a records starting point
What Malta’s Tax and Customs Administration says about documenting and registering a transfer of locally owned immovable property.
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Netherlands estate paperwork: separate proof of succession from settling debts
A Netherlands-focused starting point on what a notarial certificate of succession does, and when the courts say an estate needs more careful handling.
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Polish inheritance from abroad: what a consulate can—and cannot—do
A limited guide to official Polish consular information about inheritance declarations, time-sensitive questions and the role of local counsel.
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Portugal’s inheritance counter: distinguish identifying heirs from dividing property
What Portugal’s Justice portal says its inheritance service can do, who may use it and which questions remain for local advice.
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Slovenia inherited a car? Start with the final court decision
A narrow guide to Slovenia’s eUprava vehicle checklist after inheritance, from a final succession decision to insurance and registration.
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Spain’s last-will certificate: check the Ministry’s online route first
A Spain-focused guide to the Ministry of Justice’s certificate-request conditions and why civil-law territory still needs local review.
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Sweden’s estate inventory: map the household before preparing the records
What Sweden’s Government Offices say an estate inventory records, its usual timetable and why marriage or cohabitation can change the information needed.
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India succession planning: identify the statute before using a checklist
A source-led starting point for seeing why Indian succession texts have different personal scopes, without deciding which law governs an individual estate.
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India: the Hindu Succession Act’s will provision points to other law
How section 30 of the Hindu Succession Act connects a testamentary question to the Indian Succession Act and other applicable law.
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Pakistan succession questions: check which legal text you are reading
A limited starting point on the personal-law references in Pakistan Code statutes and the questions to take to local counsel.
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Pakistan succession certificates: a separate question about debts and securities
What the Pakistan Code’s Succession Act says about Part X certificates, and which details to prepare before asking about the local process.
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A foreign will not yet probated abroad: a Philippine Supreme Court starting point
What the Supreme Court said in one case about a foreign-executed will and the difference between probate and reprobate.
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Antigua and Barbuda wills: what the official signing text says—and what it does not
A narrow reading of the Wills Act’s execution provision, with a separate route to the Eastern Caribbean probate rules.
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The Bahamas probate starting point: identify the grant question first
How the Bahamian Probate and Administration of Estates Act separates grants, will deposits, and foreign-grant questions.
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Barbados probate caveats: what the Supreme Court Registry explains
A Barbados court-registry starting point for understanding how a caveat can affect a non-contentious grant application.
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Belize estate applications: use the Judiciary’s forms list as a map, not a checklist
What Belize’s official court forms catalogue distinguishes between probate, intestacy, and administration with a will annexed.
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Dominica small-estate grants: check the local threshold before using the shortcut
A focused reading of Dominica’s 2019 probate rules, which tie a small-estate grant to the applicable local statute.
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Grenada probate: what the court-rule search certificate is meant to check
A Grenada-specific look at the 2021 probate rules’ search certificate and the limits of a document checklist.
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Jamaica probate applications: the Supreme Court’s common-error list
A Jamaica-only preparation guide drawn from the Supreme Court’s own reminders about estate application documents.
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Saint Kitts and Nevis estate administration: notice when applicants share priority
What the local 2017 probate rules say about notifying equally entitled people when letters of administration are sought.
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Saint Lucia notarial wills: the probate rules identify a separate filing route
A focused guide to Rule 11 of Saint Lucia’s 2017 probate instrument and the special documents it names for a notarial will.
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Trinidad and Tobago wills and probate: read the statute’s commencement notes
How the official online text flags its unofficial status and a limited commencement note about the Succession Act.
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Fiji probate: identify the grant question before gathering papers
A Fiji High Court starting point for distinguishing an application under a will, without a will, or involving an earlier overseas grant.
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Marshall Islands wills: what the Probate Code makes worth asking
A narrow reading guide to the Republic's Probate Code provisions on wills, customary or prior-law wills, foreign execution, and personal-property estate procedures.
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New Zealand estates: first ask whether the question is probate or administration
A New Zealand Ministry of Justice starting point for distinguishing its High Court probate guidance from a letters-of-administration process.
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Papua New Guinea probate disputes: what the National Court Rules call an action
A narrow court-rules starting point for distinguishing a contentious probate action from non-contentious or common-form probate business.
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Botswana estates: questions to take to the Master’s Office
A Botswana-specific starting point for understanding the Master’s Office role and preparing a factual estate record.
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Ghana wills: what to clarify before relying on the Wills Act
A narrow reading guide to Ghana’s official Wills Act, including the questions its provisions raise for local advice.
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Liberia probate: start with the court’s stated remit
What Liberia’s Judiciary says Monthly and Probate Courts do, and what families should clarify locally.
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Mauritius succession: questions about an inventory and court-appointed notary
A Mauritius-specific guide to the official Succession and Wills Act provisions on applying for a notary to inventory a succession.
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South Africa estate research: check the version before relying on an Act
A South African source-checking guide prompted by the government’s explicit warning that its Administration of Estates Act text omits amendments.
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Tanzania probate research: locate the current official Act before acting
How Tanzania’s Office of the Attorney General identifies its Probate and Administration of Estates Act, and what to verify with counsel.
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Uganda succession: check amendments before using an older checklist
A Uganda-specific source-checking guide based on the Judiciary’s 2024 overview of succession-law amendments.
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Zambia wills: ask whether customary-held property is within the will’s scope
A Zambia-focused starting point to a stated boundary in the Wills and Administration of Testate Estates Act.
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A Bulgarian heirs-certificate checklist: the Sofia Nadezhda district example
A narrow document-preparation starting point based on one Sofia district’s official heirs-certificate service page—not a nationwide Bulgarian procedure guide.
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Slovakia: preparing documents to register inherited property under another EU decision
A limited checklist from Slovakia’s public-administration portal for a foreign heir using a succession decision from another EU Member State.
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England and Wales probate: prepare the right questions before applying
A GOV.UK starting point for distinguishing the probate forms and estate information families may need to organise.
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Scotland confirmation: start with a careful inventory of the estate
What the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service says an executor's inventory records, and what to clarify before seeking confirmation.
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Northern Ireland wills: prepare for a useful first solicitor conversation
A nidirect checklist of the people, property and practical decisions to think through before discussing a will.
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Thailand records: check the official list before arranging an English translation
A narrow Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs starting point for English translations of specified Thai civil and property records.
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Guyana estate records: prepare for the Revenue Authority inventory
A narrow document-gathering starting point based on the Guyana Revenue Authority's list for a deceased person's declaration and inventory.
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Saint Vincent and the Grenadines estate records: which registry to ask
A judiciary-source starting point for distinguishing civil records, estate registrations and High Court registry questions in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
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Vanuatu probate applications: records to locate before seeking advice
A document-preparation starting point drawn from Vanuatu's Supreme Court Probate and Administration Rules and the Judiciary's published forms.
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Kenya succession paperwork: start with the Judiciary’s own document index
A narrow guide to locating Kenya Judiciary succession resources and preparing questions without treating a form catalogue as legal advice.
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Zimbabwe deceased estates: what the Master’s registration forms ask you to gather
A document-focused starting point based on Zimbabwe’s Office of the Master guidance and its current death-notice and inventory forms.
For general educational information only. This is not legal, tax or financial advice, and reading it does not create a professional-client relationship. Laws and procedures vary by jurisdiction and can change. Consult a qualified professional in each place relevant to you and your assets before making decisions.