The pandemic increased inheritance acceptances as a result of the exceptional mortality resulting from covid-19. However, it also meant a considerable increase in inheritance renunciations: in the first half of 2021 alone, 15 out of 100 were refused.
According to data from the General Council of Notaries, inheritance acceptances achieved a historical record in the first six months of 2021, reaching 365,649, 22.2% more than in 2020. The rate of inheritance renunciation also marked another milestone: it was 56,557 resignation operations were recorded and the highest figure in the historical series since 2007 was reached.
The pandemic began in 2020, but during the state of alarm, inheritance procedures were not considered urgent. The procedures for accepting an inheritance can be carried out over a very long window of time, which is why the inheritance management data does not reflect the evolution of mortality, and it is the year 2021 in which the increase in formalization is observed of operations, despite the fact that mortality in 2020 was higher due to the impact of covid-19.
The high number of resignations have their main origin in the economic crisis derived from covid. But there are other reasons among which we can highlight:
Once an inheritance is renounced there is no turning back. That is why it is advisable to seek advice from specialist lawyers and assess all the options before rejecting a legacy. There are two types of renunciation of inheritance:
This is a little-known inheritance acceptance procedure that has been carried out before a notary public since 2015, when the Voluntary Jurisdiction Law came into force. It is a solution to consider in the current economic uncertainty.
Until then, it was a judicial competition procedure, which required hiring a lawyer and a solicitor, in addition to being a long process. The acceptance of inheritance for the benefit of the inventory allows you to request information from the deceased's inventory before accepting or renouncing the inheritance. In this way it is possible to calculate the patrimony to inherit and what percentage the heirs must allocate to pay off the debts contracted by the deceased person.
When it is unknown whether the value of the assets may exceed that of the debts, this inheritance acceptance option allows the heir to pay possible debts contracted only with the assets that are framed in the inheritance, to the extent these reach. If there is a remainder, it will pass to the estate of the heir. In no case will he put his previous personal assets at risk.
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