Inheritance lawyer in Marbella (Spain): expat-focused, English-speaking

Marbella concentrates two realities that no other Spanish city does at this scale: ultra-premium real estate (La Zagaleta, Sierra Blanca, Puerto Banús, Guadalmina, Nueva Andalucía) and a deeply international owner base — British, Irish, Dutch, German, Scandinavian, Russian, Saudi. When a Marbella owner passes away, the inheritance is rarely simple: foreign wills, multiple jurisdictions, properties at €1M+, complex tax planning.

Our office is in Fuengirola, 30 minutes from central Marbella. We handle Marbella inheritances for expat families on a daily basis: 60% of our Marbella caseload involves at least one non-resident heir.

Why Marbella inheritances are different

• Premium property values. A villa in La Zagaleta or Sierra Blanca routinely exceeds €3M. The Andalusian kinship reduction of €1,000,000 per heir for the spouse, children and parents (Law 5/2021, art. 28), the 99 % reduction for the deceased’s main home (art. 27) and the 99 % bonification (art. 39) leave little to pay in most family inheritances, but they must be applied correctly in the return. Errors here are five- or six-figure mistakes.
• Andalucía’s 99% bonification applies to the spouse, descendants and ascendants (Groups I and II) — non-residents included, whether they live in the EU, the UK or anywhere else (Second Additional Provision of Law 29/1987, as amended by Law 11/2021). Siblings, nephews and nieces and unrelated heirs have no bonification and pay the full Andalusian scale with coefficients of 1.5 and 1.9.
• Plusvalía Marbella. Marbella town hall has its own tax ordinance. Since Royal Decree-Law 26/2021 the tax is calculated on the cadastral land value with the coefficient for the years of ownership, but if the real increase in value is lower that is taxed instead (arts. 104.5 and 107 of the Local Finance Act). For premium properties with a high cadastral land value the difference between the two methods can run to tens of thousands of euros.
• Cross-border wills. Many Marbella owners have parallel wills in two countries (e.g. UK + Spain). We harmonize them under EU Regulation 650/2012 and avoid invalidation conflicts.
• Companies, trusts and offshore structures. Some Marbella properties are owned through Gibraltar companies, BVI trusts or similar structures. We coordinate with the foreign legal team on the unwinding for inheritance purposes.

Marbella inheritance services

Acceptance and partition

Certificate of last wills, death certificate, drafting of partition document, signing the inheritance deed before a notary in Marbella, San Pedro de Alcántara, Estepona or Fuengirola. Registration at the competent Marbella Land Registry (there are several, depending on the zone).

Spanish Inheritance Tax (Modelo 650)

Filed within 6 months: with the State Tax Agency (AEAT) for non-resident heirs, or with the Agencia Tributaria de Andalucía for residents. We apply the Andalusian reduction of €1,000,000 per heir (Groups I and II), the 99 % reduction for the deceased’s main home, the 99 % reduction for qualifying family-business shareholdings (arts. 30 and 31 of Law 5/2021) and the 99 % bonification, and we act as the representative in Spain that heirs resident outside the EU must appoint (art. 18.4 of the Regulations).

Plusvalía Municipal (Marbella town hall)

We calculate both the objective and real methods and file under the lower. We handle prórroga requests for complex estates and challenge errors in the town hall’s calculation when needed.

Premium property due diligence

For high-value villas we audit: cadastral data vs. registered data, undeclared works (very common: pools, garages, additions, garden buildings), planning compliance, debts, liens, community fees. We regularize before the inheritance to avoid problems on later sale.

Property held through companies / trusts

Where the property is held by a Spanish SL, a Gibraltar company, or a foreign trust, we coordinate with the corporate lawyer and tax advisor on the dissolution or transfer plan.

Multi-jurisdiction wills

EU Regulation 650/2012 + UK probate + sometimes a third country. We obtain the European Certificate of Succession when assets span EU countries and coordinate with notaries and solicitors in each jurisdiction.

UK probate post-Brexit

UK residents apply Andalucía’s rules like any other non-resident (Second Additional Provision of Law 29/1987, extended to all third countries by Law 11/2021). We obtain the Grant of Probate, apostille it, arrange a sworn translation, and present everything to the Spanish notary.

Worked example — Marbella villa inheritance

A British retiree passes away owning a €1.8M villa in Sierra Blanca, a €120,000 apartment for his daughter in Nueva Andalucía, and €280,000 in a Spanish bank account. Total estate in Spain: €2.2M. He had a UK will leaving everything equally to his two adult sons (UK residents).

• Each son inherits €1.1M (household goods and debts left aside).
• Andalusian kinship reduction (Group II, adult children): €1,000,000 each. Net taxable base: €100,000 each.
• Andalusian scale on €100,000: €12,620; coefficient 1.0; 99 % bonification: about €126 in tax per heir.
• If the Sierra Blanca villa was the deceased’s main home and the sons keep it for three years, the 99 % main-home reduction (art. 27 of Law 5/2021) brings the tax to €0.
• Plusvalía Marbella for both properties: calculated on the cadastral land value and the years of ownership; for premium villas it is often a five-figure sum, reduced only if the Marbella ordinance grants a bonification for the family home.
• Notary, registry, professional fees: ~€7,000-€10,000 total.

Under the state rules alone, each son would pay about €297,000 (state scale of art. 21.2 of Law 29/1987 on a base of €1,084,043): some €593,000 in total. The difference is entirely in applying the Andalusian rules correctly.

Languages and presence

English, Spanish (native), French. We coordinate with sworn translators for Dutch, German, Russian, Swedish, Norwegian and Arabic when needed. Office in Fuengirola, presence at notaries in Marbella, Estepona, Benahavís and Sotogrande.

Areas covered around Marbella

Marbella centre, Casco Antiguo, Marbella East (Las Chapas, Elviria, Cabopino, Calahonda), Marbella West (Puerto Banús, Nueva Andalucía, San Pedro de Alcántara, Guadalmina, Sierra Blanca, La Zagaleta), Estepona (centre, Selwo, El Paraíso, Atalaya, Bahía Dorada), Benahavís (La Zagaleta, El Madroñal, Marbella Club Golf), Manilva, Casares, Sotogrande, Mijas, Fuengirola, Benalmádena, Torremolinos, Málaga.

Frequently asked questions

I’m a UK resident inheriting a villa in La Zagaleta worth €4M, what tax do I pay?

Applying Andalucía’s rules (available to UK residents under the Second Additional Provision of Law 29/1987): kinship reduction of €1,000,000, Andalusian scale on the remaining €3,000,000 (€743,620), coefficient 1.0 and 99 % bonification: about €7,400. If the villa was your parent’s main home and you keep it for three years, the 99 % main-home reduction brings the tax to €0. Under the state rules alone the tax would be about €1,280,000.

The villa is owned by a Gibraltar company. How does that affect inheritance?

What is inherited is the shares in the company, not the villa. How Spanish tax applies to shares in a foreign company depends on the heir’s residence and on the structure: for Wealth Tax, for example, non-residents are taxed on shares in unlisted foreign entities whose assets consist mainly of Spanish real estate (art. 5 of the Wealth Tax Act, as amended by Law 38/2022). Each case needs a specific analysis. We coordinate with the corporate lawyer in Gibraltar (or wherever the company is registered) for the transfer of shares and the unwinding plan.

My father had wills in both UK and Spain. Which one applies?

Under EU Regulation 650/2012, the law of habitual residence applies by default, unless a will chose the law of the deceased’s nationality (professio iuris, art. 22). A later will revokes an earlier one unless it says otherwise (art. 739 of the Civil Code), so the order and wording of the two wills matter: we review both, identify any conflicts, and apply whichever combination is legally valid. In practice this is one of the most common situations in Marbella.

What if there are undeclared works on the villa?

We regularize before the inheritance is registered, using a notarial declaration of new construction by antiquity (declaración de obra nueva por antigüedad) when the town hall can no longer order the work to be demolished or restored: in Andalucía that is six years after the work was completed (art. 153 of Law 7/2021, LISTA), with exceptions for protected land, the public domain and the coastal zone. This avoids problems and price reductions on later sale.

Do I need to fly to Marbella?

No. Power of attorney signed in your country (apostilled) lets us handle every step. We send video updates of notary signings if you want to “be there” remotely.

How much does it cost in total for a €1M villa inheritance?

For a single property of €1M with one heir, Group II, applying all reductions: total cost (taxes + notary + registry + our professional fees) typically €5,000-€10,000. We provide a fixed-fee quote upfront.

Free consultation in English

Call +34 900 525 939 or fill our contact form. First consultation free, no obligation. Same-day reply in English. Office in Fuengirola — we travel to Marbella for in-person meetings when needed.

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