Italian inheritance process

Question: I am the beneficiary of an Italian property left by my late British brother. I live in the UK. I would like to know what is the Italian inheritance process to transfer the property into my name.

Answer: You shall complete and file an Italian inheritance claim, aka Italian Estate Return, or declaration of succession  (“dichiarazione di successione”), to record the property transfer into your name.

The inheritance claim can be filed online through the website of the Italian Revenue Office “Agenzia delle Entrate”.

The Italian inheritance process requires you to file, along with the inheritance claim above, several documents as exhibits, e.g., the following ones:

1) affidavit regarding property cadastral value (a/k/a assessment value or rateable value, for inheritance tax purposes;

2) inheritance tax payment automatic bank payment information; you can enter the information of an Italian bank account for the Italian tax office to withdraw automatically the due amount (see below);

3) certified copy of the Will (if there is a Will) and affidavit confirming you are the legitimate beneficiary;

4) if there is no Will (i.e., intestate inheritance by law), an affidavit stating that you are the sole beneficiary by law, along with a legal Italian translation;

5) property tax record information;

6) death certificate copy;

7) appointment of an Italian domicile for tax purposes, i.e., an address in Italy for Italian tax authorities to notify you possible communications after you claim the estate.

Inheritance taxes
Check HERE for updated inheritance tax information

Miscellaneous Taxes
In order to submit the inheritance claim and have the property transferred into your name, you are required to pay some miscellaneous taxes (stamps and property record update fees). Proportional taxes are typically based on the property’s tax value (valore catastale), rather than the market value.

Fines and Interests
Succession tax and property transfer taxes shall be paid within 12 months after the death. The inheritance claim shall be filed within the same time frame. Delays imply fines and interests.

Filing Completion
After the online filing and tax payment, the tax office shall review the paperwork. If everything is in order, the tax office will update the property tax record. The succession review and record update process usually takes approximately four weeks after the online filing.

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