Inheritance in Chile from abroad

Estate possession order and special registration of inheritance without coming to Chile, even when the heirs live in different countries or one of them refuses to sign.

An heir living outside Chile can settle the estate without travelling. You grant a power of attorney before the Chilean consulate in your city and from here we apply for the posesión efectiva, the ruling that recognises the heirs, which where there is no will is requested online through the Civil Registry and where there is one goes to court. After that comes the special registration of inheritance at the Real Estate Registry, the step without which the property still cannot be sold.

There are two procedures, not one

The most expensive confusion we come across is believing that the estate possession order settles everything. That ruling recognises who the heirs are, but the property stays registered at the Real Estate Registry in the name of the person who died. Until that changes, the property cannot be sold, mortgaged or divided.

The missing step is the special registration of inheritance, a separate and later procedure. There are families who obtained the estate possession order ten years ago, filed the paper away and only discover the gap when a buyer appears. If you have that document in hand and have never heard of the special registration, the procedure is very probably half done.

Civil Registry or court, depending on whether there is a will

Where there is no will, the estate possession order is applied for online through the Civil Registry, which is what makes it viable to handle the case entirely at a distance. Where there is a will, the matter goes to court and requires a lawyer, which lengthens the timeframe but does not prevent it being handled under a power of attorney.

In both cases there is a declaration before the Internal Revenue Service for inheritance tax, and only after that is the registration made at the Real Estate Registry. We handle the three stages; your only involvement is signing the power of attorney.

The chained estate

This is the typical scenario for someone who emigrated decades ago. The grandfather died, his son never settled anything and has now died as well, so the grandchildren have to resolve two successive estates before they can deal with the property.

It is not a dead end, but it is longer and more expensive than doing it in time: first the estate of the grandfather is settled in favour of his heirs, including the father who has also died, and then the estate of the father. Each year that passes adds heirs, documents and, frequently, one more relative to coordinate with.

Heirs in different countries, and the one who will not sign

Siblings spread between Chile, Argentina, Spain, Sweden and the United States do not complicate the procedure. Each one grants a power of attorney at the Chilean consulate nearest to them, on whatever date they can manage, and those documents are brought together here. They do not need to coincide in anything.

The heir who refuses to sign, or who simply cannot be found, is a different matter. The law obliges nobody to remain in an inheritance community: it is enough for one heir to request the partition for it to proceed. It is resolved by an arbitrating judge, an outside lawyer appointed to act as a private judge, whose ruling divides the estate according to each share even if one of them objects. Before getting to that point it is worth exhausting agreement, which is quicker and considerably cheaper.

The tax and the cost of waiting

Inheritance tax has exempt brackets and reductions according to the degree of kinship, and the calculation depends on the appraised value of the assets. There is no fatal deadline for applying for the estate possession order, but postponing it has a price: interest on the tax runs, the property stays frozen and property taxes keep accruing on a house nobody uses.

That last point is the one that most surprises people living abroad, because the Treasury notices arrive at an address in Chile where nobody lives any more. We deal with it separately in the section on property taxes from abroad.

What we need from you to start

Less than you would imagine. The full name and RUT tax number of the person who died, the date of death, the names of the heirs and, where you have it, the address or tax roll number of the property. With that we request the certificates and review the registry history before you spend a peso.

The assessment produces the concrete route: whether it goes to the Civil Registry or to court, whether there are earlier estates still pending, whether the property also lacks a registered title and whether a partition is advisable. Only with that on the table are there fees and timeframes, in writing.

Frequently asked questions

Can I settle the estate without travelling to Chile?

Yes. You grant a power of attorney before the Chilean consulate in your city and everything else is done from Chile. Where there is no will, the estate possession order is applied for online through the Civil Registry, so no stage requires you to be physically present in the country.

Can I sell the house if I only have the estate possession order?

No. The estate possession ruling recognises the heirs, but the property stays registered in the name of the person who died. To sell you also need the special registration of inheritance at the Real Estate Registry, which is a separate and later procedure.

What happens if my father never settled my grandfather estate?

That produces a chained estate. The estate of the grandfather has to be settled first in favour of his heirs, including your father who has also died, and then the estate of your father. They are two successive procedures, with longer timeframes and more documents, but perfectly workable at a distance.

What if one of the heirs will not sign?

The partition procedure is used. No heir is obliged to remain in the community, so it is enough for one of them to request it. It is resolved by an arbitrating judge whose ruling divides the estate even if another objects, so the signature of the one refusing stops being necessary.

How much does an estate possession order cost?

Through the Civil Registry the official fee depends on the appraised value of the estate: it is free below 15 UTA and rises to 1.6 and 2.5 UTM in the following brackets. To that are added professional fees, which in our case run between CLP 350,000 and CLP 700,000, plus the Real Estate Registry charges.

Is a death certificate issued abroad valid?

Yes, provided it comes with an apostille and an official translation into Spanish if it is in another language. That is the usual situation when the death occurred in the country where the family lives. We tell you exactly which documents you need and where they are obtained.

Other areas from abroad

Civil litigationSuing or defending yourself in Chile under a judicial mandate granted at the consulate, without attending the hearings: evictions, occupations, boundary disputes and debt collection.See this area →Property taxesDebt that grows without warning, inflated appraisals, older instalments that may be time barred and the risk of auction over the property you left in Chile.See this area →Other mattersBuying and selling under a special power of attorney, land regularisation and subdivision, leases and management, and obtaining the powers and certificates that are hard to get from abroad.See this area →

Tell us about your case

With whatever background you have to hand, we can tell you where the matter stands and which procedure applies. The first conversation is free and commits you to nothing.

Message us on WhatsApp