International Estate Planning Lawyer: Passing On and Inheriting Across Borders
Alphard Law advises families whose estate has a cross-border element: a deceased or heirs resident outside France, assets located abroad, foreign wills or structures, trusts. A cross-border estate follows two distinct logics that must be handled separately: the applicable civil law, which determines who inherits and in what proportions, and tax law, which determines which state levies duties and on which assets. These two questions are governed by different rules and frequently point to different countries, which makes anticipation decisive and improvisation expensive.
Two questions never to be confused
Who inherits: civil law. Under the European Succession Regulation, the law governing devolution is in principle that of the deceased's habitual residence at the time of death, with the option of choosing the law of one's nationality by testamentary disposition. This rule has considerable effects: it may subject the estate of a French national living abroad to a law that knows no forced heirship, or conversely bring assets held outside France within the scope of French inheritance rules. Where it is available, the choice of law is one of the very few genuinely structuring levers in succession planning.
Who taxes: tax law. Tax law follows its own logic, indifferent to the applicable civil law. In France, Article 750 ter of the French Tax Code sets out three connecting factors: the residence of the deceased, the location of the assets, and, since 1999, the residence of the heir where they have been domiciled in France for six of the last ten years. This last criterion regularly surprises families: an heir who has moved back to France may be taxed on foreign assets received from a deceased person who never had any French connection. Inheritance tax treaties, far rarer than income tax treaties, cover only a minority of situations.
Planning ahead: international estate planning
The firm acts upstream, while every option remains open: choice of applicable law by will, articulation between French and foreign dispositions, gifts and split-ownership arrangements, Dutreil arrangements for business transfers, life insurance policies taken out in France or abroad, and verification that the whole is consistent with the matrimonial property regime, often the primary source of disorder in international families. We quantify the expected tax charge in each relevant jurisdiction before any decision is taken, because a transfer is only optimised once it has been calculated.
Administering an estate that has opened
Where the death has occurred, we assist heirs with the French inheritance tax return, the determination of the taxable base in the presence of foreign assets, the credit for duties paid outside France, the treatment of trusts (Article 792-0 bis of the French Tax Code) and foreign structures, and coordination with the French notary and local counsel. The firm also handles estates including assets the deceased had not reported, a frequent situation calling for specific treatment, set out on our voluntary disclosure of foreign assets page.
Defending: inheritance tax litigation
French inheritance tax reassessments fall within the judicial court system, not the administrative one: a preliminary claim, then the tribunal judiciaire, the court of appeal and the commercial chamber of the Cour de cassation. The most frequent grounds are the valuation of assets and unlisted shares, challenges to Dutreil arrangements, territoriality under Article 750 ter and the treatment of foreign structures. Our practice in these disputes is set out on our tax litigation page.
Our method
We work systematically with the family's notary, whose role is central to the civil administration of the estate, and with vetted local counsel in the jurisdictions concerned, while retaining responsibility for the coherence of the whole. Every matter produces a written, sourced analysis delivered to the family, documenting the choices made and their rationale, a document whose value often appears years later, on administration of the estate or during an audit.
Frequently asked questions
Which law applies to my estate if I live abroad?
In principle the law of your habitual residence at the time of death, under the European Succession Regulation, with the option of designating the law of your nationality by will. That choice matters: depending on the law retained, forced heirship applies or does not, and the division between your heirs may differ profoundly. The choice of law does not, however, settle anything on the tax side, which follows entirely separate criteria.
Will my heirs pay French inheritance tax if I no longer live in France?
It depends on the three criteria of Article 750 ter of the French Tax Code: your own tax domicile, the location of the assets transferred, and the tax domicile of each heir. French duties may be due even if you no longer reside in France, in particular on your French-situs assets, or where an heir has been domiciled in France for at least six of the ten years preceding the transfer. Each heir must be analysed separately.
Is there double taxation on cross-border estates?
Yes, and it is frequent, because inheritance tax treaties are far less numerous than income tax treaties. Absent a treaty, French domestic law provides for a credit for duties paid abroad on assets located outside France, but that credit is capped and does not always neutralise the double charge. Reducing this exposure is precisely what advance planning achieves.
How is a trust treated in a French estate?
Transfers made through a trust fall under a specific regime (Article 792-0 bis of the French Tax Code), which distinguishes according to whether the share attributable to the beneficiary is determined, with rates reaching the highest levels where the distribution is global or the trust is administered from a non-cooperative state. The reporting obligations of Article 1649 AB apply in addition. A common law trust that is perfectly regular in its home jurisdiction may therefore produce French consequences its drafters never contemplated.
Do I need a lawyer in addition to the notary?
The French notary is indispensable to the civil administration of the estate, that is their office. A tax lawyer addresses a different dimension: international tax strategy, the articulation of several legal systems, the treatment of foreign structures and, where needed, defence in the event of an audit. For purely French estates the notary generally suffices; as soon as a border is involved, the two professions complement each other, and we work routinely with our clients' notaries.
Does your estate have an international dimension? Contact Alphard Law for a confidential initial discussion.