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How to prove his status as heir (certificate, deed of notoriety)?

Verified 12 February 2020 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

Succession of less than 5000 €

In case of succession less than €5,000, you can prove your quality of heir by a certificate signed by all the heirs.

The certificate, signed by all heirsdialog box, allows you to justify that you are the heir of an estate.

This allows you to:

  • Withdraw sums from the deceased's bank accounts, up to €5,000, to adjust provisional documents (you must provide proof to the financial institution that: invoices, funeral purchase orders or tax notices)
  • If the total amount of money held by the banking institution is less than €5,000, obtain the closure of the deceased's accounts and the payment of the sums shown therein.

The heir who makes the request to the bank institution must provide the following documents:

  • The certificate signed by all heirs
  • His birth certificate
  • An extract of the birth certificate of the deceased and a complete copy of his death certificate
  • A marriage certificate extract of the deceased, if he was married at the time of death
  • Excerpts of birth certificates of each person entitled to the certificate
  • A certificate of absence of registration of dispositions of last will. You can obtain this document from the central bank of dispositions of last will (FCDDV) or from the association for the development of the notarial service (ADSN).

Querying the wills file

Who shall I contact

  • For more information and to request to consult the Central Willingness Provisions File (FCDDV), commonly called wills file..

    In particular, you can request a certificate of non-registration of dispositions of last will.

    By phone

    0 800 306 212

    Free service and call

    By Email

    fcddvpublic@notaires.fr

    By mail

    95, avenue des Logissons

    13107 VENELLES CEDEX

The heirs must indicate the following information in the attestation:

  • There is no will or other heirs of the deceased
  • There is no marriage contract
  • The holder of the document shall be authorized to collect, on behalf of the heirs, the sums shown in the accounts of the deceased or to close the latter
  • There are no ongoing trials or challenges regarding the status of heir or the composition of the estate
  • There is no succession real estate

All heirs must sign the certificate.

You must pay for the production of the certificate of absence of registration of dispositions of last will. You can pay

  • by check
  • or by credit card in case of online application.
From France (mainland)

CDPF polling costs €18..

From a Dom

CDPF polling costs €16.28..

From abroad

CDPF polling costs €15..

Succession of 5 000 € or more

In case of succession exceeding €5,000, you must ask the notary to establish a deed of reputation to prove that you are an heir.

The notoriety feature allows you to:

  • Steps where you have to justify that you are good heir (e.g. to change the gray card holder of a vehicle)
  • Release the amounts in the deceased's bank accounts, which exceed €5,000..

The act of recognition shall contain the following information:

  • Identity of the deceased
  • Existence or non-existence of specific provisions concerning inheritance (e.g. will or gift between spouses)
  • Relationship and degree of kinship of each heir to the deceased
  • Share of each heirs
  • Agreement signed by the heirs to collect the estate of the deceased

You must speak to a notary.

Who shall I contact

The establishment of an act shall €57.69 (€69.23 TTC).

Other charges may apply, including emoluments formalities and/or registration fees. You can ask the notary for a detailed written estimate of the amount of fees to be paid or a statement of the cost of the transaction.

FAQ