Making a Will in Cyprus
As soon as you have signed a contract to buy a home in Cyprus,
I strongly recommend that you get an independent lawyer to draw up a Will in Cyprus covering those assets
you hold
on the island. The consequence of passing away without a making a will covering
your property and other possessions can be extremely serious.
Many home buyers assume that if their property is held in joint names then on the death of one party the property passes automatically to the other joint owner; this is not the case in Cyprus.
Some people write a Will themselves, using information that is freely available on the Internet. This people are, in my opinion, extremely foolish! Wills for expatriates and the Inheritance Tax implications for UK domiciled or ex-domiciled individuals is a complex area of law and I recommend you seek advice from an independent lawyer with detailed knowledge of both jurisdictions.
If you have bought property in Cyprus or are considering moving to the island, it is vital that you review the provisions of your existing Will (if you have one) and take legal advice to ensure you have the correct measures in place to deal with your Cyprus property and other assets on your death.
If you have a Will in your existing country of residence, do not rely on that Will to deal with your Cyprus assets without having sought expert legal advice from a lawyers experienced in dealing with the administration of cross border estates. Generally, it is advisable to have a separate Cyprus Will that deals with your assets held in Cyprus.
Under Cyprus law, the share of the property owned by the deceased does not pass automatically to the surviving joint owner. The estate has to be administered and the property passes in accordance with the terms of their Cyprus Will or the Cyprus intestacy provisions. It is most important to make a Will in Cyprus to cover the distribution of your home and other assets owned on the island. This will avoid the complications that would arise from the conflict of two different legal systems and the risk of the estate being divided under local rules.
If you have assets in the UK (or any other country) then you generally need to have one will covering those assets held in the UK and a second Will covering those assets held in Cyprus. However, it is most important that if one of these Wills is made at a later date it does not unintentionally revoke the first Will. Great care has to be taken in the review and wording of the two Wills.
Under Cyprus Law there is a system of forced heirship. E.g. If a person dies leaving a spouse and a child then ¾ of the estate passes to the spouse and child in equal shares and the testator (the person making the Will) has the freedom to dispose of the remaining quarter share as they wish. However, currently under Cyprus law, there is a concession for persons who/or whose fathers were born in the UK or in a Commonwealth country. Providing they have made a Will, such persons are allowed to leave their Cyprus assets to whom they wish on their death. If this concession does not apply to you then you must seek legal advice.
Executors
Although you are free to appoint whoever you wish to act as the executors of your Will, there are a number of points to bear in mind:
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If you appoint an executor who is non-resident of Cyprus, the Court may require them to assign their duties to a Cypriot executor appointed by the Court.
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The difficulties your executors will face by not being on-island cannot be overstated.
If you feel strongly about appointing a non-resident as executor then there is nothing to prevent you from doing so. However, there is the risk that in the future the Court will insist on their replacement with a Cypriot executor.
An alternative approach would be to appoint close friends who are resident in Cyprus as your executors. They will then be able to 'shop' around for a lawyer to deal with probate.
To prevent 'overenthusiastic' charging by your executor(s), I suggest that you incorporate the following clause into your Will that will limit their remuneration to the minimum level prescribed by the Law.
"The said executors shall be remunerated according to the Rules on the Minimum Fees of Advocates (Out of Court Cases) 1984 pursuant to the Advocates’ Law Cap. 2, or any other relevant rules that may replace the existing ones, and that shall be in force at the time of proving this Will."