What is a heredity certificate?
Heredity certificate: definition
The heredity certificate is an official document that attest to the quality of heir of a deceased person and makes it possible to facilitate certain approaches related to the succession. The heredity certificate is issued when the succession does not include real estate and the heirs are in accordance with the sharing of the deceased’s property.
Utility of a heredity certificate
The heredity certificate allows Continue the person of the deceasedthat is to say to carry out procedures in order to collect receivables and unlock funds.
- The heirs (s) can thus unlock the sums registered on the bank accounts of their author, to set up the debts of the latter, and to share the remaining capital.
- It allows the surviving spouse to receive a survivor’s pension, part of the retirement pension enjoyed his deceased husband.
- This same surviving spouse can also claim widowhood allowance for two years, when the deceased was affiliated with an old age insurance fund.
- Finally, the beneficiaries of the deceased have, thanks to the heredity certificate, the possibility of obtaining the payment of a death capital.
Limits and conditions
Since the law of February 16, 2015, for small successions (less than 5,910 euros and without real estate), a simple certificate or a Certificate on the honor of heirs May be enough to unlock the funds and carry out certain steps, even without an official certificate issued by the town hall.
Succession: what difference between an act of notoriety and a heredity certificate?
The act of notoriety and the heredity certificate are two documents which attest to the quality of heir to a deceased person. However, the main difference lies in the fact that the act of notoriety is Directed by a notarywhich can give it greater convincing value. The heredity certificate is often used for simpler and faster procedures.
How to get a notary -free heredity certificate?
The town hall is no longer legally obliged to issue a certificate of inheritance, but certain municipalities continue to do so for simple successions in order to serve the inhabitants. There is no exhaustive official listthe practice being variable.
Heredity certificate: for successions of less than 5,910 euros
The use of a notary at the time of a person’s death is not systematic or compulsory. Indeed, the heredity certificate is enough for anyone who wants to prove their quality as heir:
- If the succession does not have a property;
- in the absence of donation or will;
- If the amount of heritage is less than 5 910 euros.
Heredity certificate request form
The town hall is no longer legally obliged to issue a certificate For each succession. In practice, it does it for simple cases, but heirs can now be satisfied with a certificate on honor. To establish the certificate, the following documents must be provided:
- The deceased act of the deceased (full copy).
- An identity document of the applicant.
- Proof of family bond with the deceased (family book, birth certificate, etc.).
- A Proof of the applicant’s domicile.
- The list of known heirs, with their contact details.
Once the request was examined, the town hall issues the heredity certificate. It is valid to carry out all the administrative or banking procedures which do not require the intervention of a notary.
How to get an online inheritance certificate?
The use of the town hall has become Optional for simple successionsbut compulsory for certain specific steps, or impossible for complex successions. In recent years, certain approaches around the heredity certificate can be simplified via online services, especially for simple successions.
A digital version sometimes available
The online heredity certificate is a digital version of the official document attests to the quality of heir to a deceased person. It allows, as the traditional certificate Delivered by the town hall, to unlock bank accounts, to collect reversion pensions or claim death capital. This digital version is adapted to simple successions.
Available platforms and services
Some municipalities and town halls allow Fill in a form and download online the documents required to obtain the certificate. Likewise, some banking establishments offer online service to unlock the deceased accounts, often by directly issuing a digital heredity certificate.
Steps to follow
To obtain the online certificate, the applicant must create a secure account on the town hall, bank or social organization concerned, then fill in a detailed form mentioning the information on the deceased and the heirs, before submitting the request and waiting for the verification of information.
Reception and use
Once the request has been validated, the certificate is issued under Official PDF formatoften signed electronically. It can be printed and used for all administrative procedures compatible with a simple heredity certificate, such as the release of accounts, the collection of allowances or the payment of a death capital.
What period to obtain a heredity certificate?
The deadline to obtain a heredity certificate depends on the request method and the complexity of the succession. For a simple succession, without to real estate or dispute in progress between heirs, the certificate can be issued rapidly, often in a few days to a few weeks. Deliverance can take Between two and four weeks.
What to do in the event of refusal of the town hall to issue a heredity certificate?
Refusal of deliverance by the town hall
The mayor is In the right to refuse to deliver a certificate of inheritance, in particular in the event of a complex succession. He can send the heirs (s) to a notary. This may concern:
- the presence of real estate;
- the existence of testing, donations or inheritance pacts;
- Disagreements between heirs on the sharing of goods.
In these situations, the town hall guides the heirs to a notarywhich can establish an act of notoriety to formalize the succession.
Urgent steps despite the refusal
Certain approaches must be completed after death, such as the settlement of invoices, rents or current expenses of the deceased. The law of February 16, 2015 and article L312-1-4 of the Monetary and Financial Code provide that the heirs can perform conservatory acts Using the balance of the deceased bank accounts, up to 5,910 euros.
Certificate of heirs to unlock funds
In this case, it is not necessary to have an official heredity certificate. A Certificate signed by all heirsauthorizing one of them to collect the funds on behalf of everyone, is enough to pay urgent expenses of the deceased, unlock bank accounts within the legal limit and avoid the complete frost of financial resources during inheritance procedures.
Which document (s) replaces the heredity certificate?
Notoriety
As mentioned above, the act of notoriety is the most common document to replace a heredity certificate, especially in complex successions or involving real estate. It is established by a notary after verifying all the heirs and their rights. It makes it possible to prove the quality of heir and to unlock all types of goods.
Banking certificate or certificate of heirs
For certain financial or banking procedures, it is possible to do without the heredity certificate thanks to a Certificate signed by all heirsauthorizing one of them to perceive the funds of the deceased on behalf of everyone.
A certificate issued directly by the banksometimes called banking certificate or unlocking certificate, also provides access to accounts within the legal limit fixed by article L312-1-4 of the Monetary and Financial Code.
Sharing
In some specific cases, an act of sharing, established After agreement between the heirs, can be used to formalize the distribution of goods and replace the heredity certificate for the management of goods. It makes it possible to distribute movable and immovable property, but also to put an end to any dispute between heirs concerning sharing.
Declarative judgment of inheritance
Rendered by a court When the succession is disputed Or that no notary has been appointed, the declarative judgment of inheritance attests to the quality of heir and makes it possible to carry out all the inheritance approaches. It constitutes official proof of the quality of heir, recognized by all financial and administrations.
How much does a heredity certificate cost?
Free deliverance to town hall
THE heredity certificate issued directly by the town hall is completely free. Free is applied, whatever the succession, provided that it remains simple, without real estate, and that the heirs are in accordance with sharing. The town hall only takes care of verifying the identity of the heirs and their link with the deceased before putting the certificate.
Heredity certificate: price through a notary
When the succession is more complex, it is necessary to use a notary. In this case, the document equivalent to the heredity certificate generates costs. In general, it is necessary to count Between 70 and 100 eurosthis rate that can vary according to the notary and the complexity of the succession. These costs cover the verification of the heirs, the drafting of the act and its official signature.
The specific case of the European heredity certificate
The European heredity certificate allows an heir to prove his quality as a successor to the deceased abroad, and to exercise rights in another Member State. He informs about the law of the country in which the deceased had his residence, unless the latter has written a will in which he requires that the applicable law is that of his country of origin.
This certificate is requested for the settlement of successions of people who have died since August 17, 2015.
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