Is a handwritten will valid in Catalonia?

Question

José Manuel Alburquerque · Accepted Answer

Yes, provided it meets certain requirements. It is called a holograph will and must be written and signed by hand by the testator personally, stating the place and date. It can be made by an adult or an emancipated minor. For it to be effective, it must be taken to a notary within four years of the death. Requirements for validity In Catalonia a handwritten will is valid if it meets these requirements: It is made by an adult or an emancipated minor. It is written entirely by hand and signed by the testator personally. It is not valid if it is typed on a computer or written by someone else, even if the testator signs it. It states the place and date of writing. If it has words crossed out, corrected or added between the lines, the testator must confirm them with his or her signature. No notary or witnesses are needed to write it. This applies if the estate is governed by Catalan law. Under the Spanish Civil Code (“Código Civil”), only persons of full age can make one, and stating the date is enough. What has to be done after the death A handwritten will is not effective on its own. Whoever has it must take it to a notary, usually one in the place where the deceased lived, who checks that the handwriting and signature are the deceased's. To do so, the notary summons the closest relatives and questions witnesses who know the deceased's handwriting or, if necessary, consults a handwriting expert. If everything is in order, the notary carries out the notarial recording (“protocolización”), that is, incorporates the will into his or her records. From then on it is valid like any other will. Whether or not the notary accepts it, anyone who disagrees can go to court. In Catalonia there are four years from the death in which to take it to the notary, one year less than in the rest of Spain. If nobody does so, it ceases to be valid. And if the person keeping it does not produce it, any interested party can ask the notary, once ten days have passed since the death, to demand it from that person. Two words of caution The “impuesto de sucesiones”, the Spanish inheritance tax, does not wait for the notary. The six months for paying it run from the death, as the “Tribunal Supremo”, Spain's Supreme Court, confirmed in 2026. Only a court case over the will or the estate brought within those six months makes the period start again when the case ends. In the first five months an extension of a further six months can be requested, with interest. Waiting for the notary without requesting it leads to surcharges. Although writing it costs nothing, it is not usually the best option. It may be lost or never come to light, its authenticity is more likely to be disputed and the procedure before the notary involves time and expense. A will made before a notary, by contrast, is entered in the “Registro General de Actos de Última Voluntad”, Spain's central register of wills, so the heirs can find out that it exists by requesting the certificate of last wills.