France · Inheritance · Fixed-fee law firm
Administering an estate in France
Losing someone is hard enough without a foreign legal system to navigate. We take care of the French side for you — your own lawyer, in plain English, alongside the notaire — for a clear fixed fee agreed before we start.
Colin comes from a family of lawyers going back to 1888, and today we are a law firm dedicated to cross-border inheritance. We act for international and expatriate families — people who have built their lives across borders and now face a death that touches France, Portugal, Spain or Italy. We work in English and several other European languages, wherever you are. Your matter is handled and signed off personally by Colin Carroll — a dual-qualified solicitor, admitted in both England and Ireland, who has lived and worked on the European continent for twenty-five years. Today he is the registered, insured lawyer with the Barreau de Nice (the French Bar) and the bars of Portugal, Spain and Italy, under EU Directive 98/5/EC, with professional-indemnity insurance in each country of practice.
You don’t have to become an expert in French law overnight — that’s our job. We carry the process, and keep you informed at every step.
France does not have “probate” in the English sense, and no executor — and one structural difference from our other countries: a French estate with real property must pass through a French notaire, a public officer whose involvement is not optional. The notaire is impartial — he is not your advocate. Our role is what it always is: the lawyer for the family, giving independent cross-border legal control of the succession while the notaire performs the public-officer acts — the acte de notoriété proving the heirs, the succession tax return, and the attestation immobilière putting the property into the heirs’ names. We drive the file, prepare the cross-border analysis and certificates the notaire needs, review and explain every draft deed before you sign, and handle it all remotely under a power of attorney, so you do not need to travel.
All fees are fixed and agreed in writing before work begins. The notaire’s state-regulated tariff and all other third-party costs are separate and paid by you directly — and we obtain and explain the notaire’s cost estimate at the outset, so you see the expected total professional cost early. (+ VAT.)
The four services, at a glance
Transfer a property after a death
they lived abroad — our fixed legal fee, alongside the notaire
€5,000 + VAT
See the full service
Settle a French estate
they lived in France — the whole estate, alongside the notaire
€6,000 + VAT
See the full service
Cross-border administration
assets in two countries — the heart of what we do
€9,500–€12,000 + VAT
See the full service
Complex estates
trusts, businesses, several properties — bespoke
from €20,000 + VAT
See the full service
Every fee is fixed and agreed in writing before work begins; the notaire’s regulated tariff and all third-party costs are always separate. Once your fixed fee is quoted in writing, the price does not change unless the facts of the estate turn out to be different — and if they do, we tell you and agree a revised scope before any further work.
Transfer a French property after a death when they lived abroad
€5,000 + VATFor families where the person who died lived in their home country abroad and owned one property in France (perhaps with one French bank account). Your home-country lawyer deals with the estate at home; we handle only the French leg — alongside the notaire — and keep them updated.
John lived in Manchester and left a valid English will; his solicitor at home is handling the English estate. In France he owned one apartment near Nice and one bank account, leaving two children who agree on everything. We handle the French leg alongside John’s solicitor: we prepare our Certificate of English Law in French, instruct and drive the notaire, take the heirs through the acte de notoriété and the succession tax return, review the attestation immobilière before signature, and see the apartment registered to the children. John’s family also asked us to release his one French bank account alongside — a €400 add-on.
What our fee includes:
- Confirming, under EU Regulation 650/2012 (“Brussels IV”), which country’s law governs the property — including, where a choice of English law is in play, the current position on France’s 2021 compensatory-levy rule.
- Preparing and signing, in French, our Certificate of English Law (certificat de coutume) for the notaire (drafted in-house).
- Instructing and driving the notaire — within six months of the death, the clock that matters — and obtaining and explaining the notaire’s cost estimate at the outset.
- The powers of attorney for the heirs, drawn to French standards, so no one needs to travel.
- Reviewing and explaining the acte de notoriété, the succession tax return (déclaration de succession) and the attestation immobilière before anything is signed.
- The French central wills-register search, run as a matter of course.
Timescale: typically 4 to 8 months for the French leg once we have the home-country grant and full documents — the notaire’s office sets much of the pace.
Add-ons (each at a fixed price agreed in advance): releasing a French bank account alongside €400 per account; discharging a mortgage €350; each additional property €1,000; four heirs included, then €450 per additional heir; selling the property afterwards (fixed-fee assistance, priced separately by value from €2,900, with a lower fee for families we’ve already acted for).
Our fee assumes the person lived in their home country (not France); a valid will or agreed intestacy; one property; heirs in agreement; no trust, dispute, or foreign assets beyond the French leg. As a routine part of getting it right, we confirm which country’s law applies. If anything turns out differently, we’ll tell you and agree any extra fee before doing the work.
Working with a solicitor or lawyer at home? They are welcome to bring us in to handle the French side — see our For advisers page.
Settle a French estate when they lived in France — alongside the notaire
€6,000 + VATFor families where the person who died lived in France, with one home and one French bank account, direct heirs in agreement, and no assets outside France.
Margaret had lived near Nice for twenty years. She left her home and one local account to her two children, with nothing outside France. We coordinate the whole French estate for them — instructing and driving the notaire on the acte de notoriété and the attestation immobilière for the home, computing, preparing and lodging the succession tax return ourselves on the six-month clock, obtaining the release of the account, and every deed reviewed and explained in plain English before signature.
What our fee includes: everything needed to see the whole French estate settled — confirming entitlement under the will or the French rules of succession (including the réserve héréditaire, the reserved shares of the children); the wills-register search; instructing and driving the notaire through the acte de notoriété, the déclaration de succession and the attestation immobilière; the matrimonial-property analysis that determines what is actually in the estate; any assurance-vie policies flagged and their separate regime explained; releasing the bank account; and accounting to the heirs.
Timescale: on average 6 to 12 months — the notaire’s office and the tax clearance set much of the pace.
Add-ons (each at a fixed price agreed in advance): each additional bank account €400 (one account is included); four heirs included, then €450 per additional heir; discharging a mortgage €350; each additional property €1,000.
Our fee assumes a valid will or agreed intestacy; one property; one account; direct adult heirs in agreement; no foreign assets, trust or dispute; a solvent estate. Genuinely contentious or partage-heavy matters are quoted individually. If anything changes, we’ll give you a revised scope, timetable and fee before continuing.
Cross-border estate administration the heart of what we do
€9,500 → €12,000 + VATFor estates that span two legal systems — typically someone who lived in France but kept assets in their home country, or who owned French assets alongside assets abroad. This is the specialist work we are built for. €9,500 for a clean two-system estate; €12,000 where the estate is multi-asset (for example a portfolio, a pension, a life policy, or three or more accounts).
Brian had made France his home and left an English will, a house near Nice, one French account and one UK account, and two children — two clean legal systems, for €9,500.
Diane, also resident here, left an English will electing English law, her home near Antibes, two French accounts, a UK account, a UK investment portfolio, a UK pension (SIPP), a French assurance-vie and three children — everything Brian’s estate needed, plus the pension notification, the assurance-vie claim under its own regime, the portfolio and deeper tax coordination across both countries, for €12,000.
What our fee includes: the entire French side, start to finish — the same work, in full, as Settle a French estate above — plus the cross-border layer: the Brussels IV / renvoi / réserve héréditaire analysis across both systems (including the current position on the 2021 compensatory-levy rule where a choice of English law is in play); certificates of foreign law in both directions; coordination with your home-country lawyer and institutions; the SIPP/pension notification and any assurance-vie or life-policy claim; relief under the 1963 UK–France estate double-taxation convention where UK inheritance tax also arises; and tax coordination across both countries.
Timescale: typically 9 to 15 months, depending on the foreign institutions, the notaire’s office and any property sale.
Our fee assumes the heirs are in agreement; no trust; no dispute; and the asset mix matches the tier quoted. The legal work in the other country — including any home-country grant of probate and the administration of the assets there — is carried out by a lawyer qualified in that country, which we coordinate with but do not undertake ourselves; their fees are separate. Trusts, contested estates, businesses or multiple properties move the matter to Complex (below).
Working with a solicitor or lawyer at home? They are welcome to bring us in to handle the French side — see our For advisers page.
Complex estates bespoke
from €20,000 + VATFor estates involving a trust (French law looks through common-law trusts, with heavy tax and reporting consequences), multiple properties or countries, an SCI or other property company, a business or farm, an insolvent estate, a formal partage between heirs, or a minor or protected heir.
Robert died resident in France, leaving an apartment in Nice and a villa near Grasse (one held through an SCI), a UK family trust holding investments, and a small lettings business — with three children, one still a minor. We lead the whole non-contentious succession: the trust and SCI analysis, the protective steps for the minor heir, both properties, the business, and tax coordination across both countries — driving the notaire throughout.
What our fee includes: because every complex estate is different, the exact scope is set out in your written quote — but it typically covers leading the whole non-contentious succession across both countries: the trust, SCI or structure analysis; any protective steps for a child or vulnerable heir; every property and any mortgage; a business or farm; the partage where the heirs end the joint ownership; and the tax coordination across both countries.
We are a non-contentious firm: where there is an actual dispute between heirs that needs to be litigated, we’ll introduce you to a trusted specialist litigator — and continue to handle the non-contentious administration alongside.
Our price: bespoke, from €20,000 + VAT, agreed in advance — by reference to the work involved and the value and complexity of the estate. Complex estates commonly take 18 months or more.
Working with a solicitor or lawyer at home? They are welcome to bring us in to handle the French side — see our For advisers page.
Only a French bank account to deal with, and no property? You may not need a full estate service — our Bank & Asset Release service handles the account on its own. Tell us what’s happened and we’ll point you the right way.
Third-party costs (disbursements) — never included in our fee
One thing we tell every family before anything is signed: in France, an estate pays two legal professionals — not one. The notaire performs the reserved public acts (the acte de notoriété, the attestation immobilière, the succession filing) and charges for them under a tariff set by the State — the same scale whichever notaire you use. We are the second: your own lawyer, alongside. The two bills are entirely separate, and both deserve to be on the table from day one. As an honest guide, on a typical estate with a home worth a few hundred thousand euros, the notaire’s regulated fees usually come to several thousand euros — commonly in the €4,000–€5,500 region before taxes and disbursements; it varies with the estate’s value, which is exactly why we obtain the notaire’s own written estimate at the outset and explain it to you line by line, next to our fixed fee. No other figure on this page hides it, and no invoice will surprise you with it.
The other official costs work the same way — payable to third parties, never to us, kept separate and transparent:
| Disbursement | What it is | Indicative cost |
|---|---|---|
| The notaire's regulated tariff (émoluments) | The state-set fees for the acte de notoriété, the attestation immobilière and — where a file routes the declaration through the notaire rather than our lodging it direct — the declaration too; on a €400,000-property estate the core tariffed acts alone come to roughly €5,000–€5,500 including VAT | by the estate; estimate obtained and explained at the outset |
| Inheritance tax (droits de succession) | Spouse and PACS partner wholly exempt; each child €100,000 tax-free then a progressive scale to 45%; unrelated beneficiaries up to 60% — the return is due even where no tax is payable (above €50,000 gross) | flagged, never part of our fee |
| Land-registry and formality costs | The publication of the attestation immobilière and the registry contributions on the property | scales with the property |
| Sworn translation (traducteur assermenté) | France requires foreign documents in sworn French translation | quoted in advance |
| Apostille / legalisation | Of the home-country grant, will and death certificate — you arrange this yourself at home (for example the UK FCDO); we don't get involved in it | ~£45 per document |
Two things are never part of our fee, listed separately so there are no surprises: (1) the third-party costs above; and (2) where there are assets in your home country, your home-country lawyer’s own fees.
A note on tax. French succession tax is real money for many families — and two things change the arithmetic that families often miss: the matrimonial-property regime (which determines what is actually in the estate) and any assurance-vie policies (which sit largely outside the succession under their own, gentler tax regime). We flag both on day one. The French declaration is part of our work — we compute the duty, prepare the declaration and file it. Your home-country tax is not ours, and we say early where an adviser at home is needed.
Certificates of foreign law
Because Colin Carroll is both the regulated local lawyer and an English-qualified solicitor, we can produce, in-house, the cross-border law certificates these matters need — in the right language, ready to file. Where a certificate is needed for a succession we’re already handling, it’s included in our fee; the prices below are for a certificate on its own.
- Certificate of English Law (certificat de coutume) for the notaire — explaining your home-country will so the French process can act on it. €1,200 (standard) / €2,200 (complex), + VAT.
- Certificate / opinion of French law for the England & Wales Probate Registry — for UK solicitors and executors. From €1,200 + VAT.
Advisers: full detail on our For advisers page and the France certificate page.
Our promise on fees (the no-surprises clause)
Our fees are based on a standard matter with no unforeseen complications. In the unlikely event something arises that would increase the fee, we will explain it to you in full — the issue, the extra work, and the additional fee — and agree it with you before doing the work. You will always have a written quote before you instruct us.
How you pay
We agree your fixed fee in writing before any work begins — and we keep things clear and predictable on both sides.
- To open your matter, we ask for the first part of our fixed fee — invoiced and receipted immediately.
- As the work reaches its milestones — the acte de notoriété, then the attestation immobilière — further instalments fall due, so only a small final amount remains at the end. There’s never a single large bill.
- Third-party costs are never part of our fee and are never held by us. For each one — the notaire, the taxes, the translations — we prepare the payment for you: who, how much, and the exact reference; you pay it directly and we confirm and file the proof. Small administrative items we simply pay ourselves and re-charge at cost on your next invoice. We never hold client or estate money. Why we never hold your money →
Unlike in the UK, where one executor administers the whole estate, here each heir inherits directly and we act for you personally — so, as is standard in France, Portugal, Spain and Italy, we ask for a payment on account and settle the fee in stages as the work is done.
Common questions
Is there probate in France?
No — France has no probate in the English sense and no executor. A French estate is settled through a notaire: the acte de notoriété proves the heirs, the succession tax return is filed, and for real estate the notaire draws the attestation immobilière putting the property into the heirs' names. We are the family's own lawyer alongside that process — driving the file, preparing the cross-border analysis the notaire needs, and answering to you in plain English.
If France requires a notaire, why do I need you as well?
The notaire is an impartial public officer — not your advocate. We are: your own lawyer, in your own language, giving independent cross-border legal control of the succession while the notaire performs the reserved public acts. We prepare the cross-border analysis, the certificates of foreign law and the powers of attorney; we review every draft deed and explain it before you sign; and we obtain and explain the notaire's cost estimate at the outset.
What does it cost to administer an estate in France?
Our fixed fee, agreed in writing before we start: €5,000 to transfer a French property when the person lived abroad, €6,000 to settle the estate of someone who lived in France, €9,500–€12,000 for a cross-border estate, and from €20,000 for complex estates. The notaire's state-regulated tariff runs in parallel and is separate — we obtain and explain the notaire's estimate at the outset.
Do I have to travel to France?
No. We act for you under a power of attorney and handle everything remotely, in plain English.
Is there inheritance tax in France?
Yes — and unlike in our other countries, it is real money for many families. The surviving spouse (and PACS partner) is wholly exempt; each child has a €100,000 allowance and then pays on a progressive scale rising to 45%; unrelated beneficiaries — stepchildren included — pay up to 60%. The return is due even where the spouse takes everything tax-free. We compute, prepare and file the succession tax return as part of the work; tax back home is not ours, and we say early where an adviser at home is needed. The tax itself is never part of our fee.