Foreign Domicile and an English Will: How Domicile Affects UK Succession

Updated: 18 May 2026 • Reading time: 8 min

An English will does not automatically apply English succession law. The country whose law governs who inherits your assets — particularly your movable property like bank accounts and shares — depends on your domicile at death, not your nationality, not your tax residence, and not where you live day-to-day. For anyone with connections to multiple countries, understanding domicile is essential to knowing what your will can and cannot achieve.

Domicile: The Key Connecting Factor

Domicile is a legal concept entirely distinct from residence or nationality. Every person has exactly one domicile at any given time — the legal system to which they are most closely connected:

• Domicile of origin: acquired at birth, usually from the father’s domicile (or the mother’s if the parents were unmarried); it is the default position and tenacious — it revives if a domicile of choice is abandoned
• Domicile of choice: acquired by physically residing in a country and forming a settled intention to reside there permanently or indefinitely; both elements must be present simultaneously
• Domicile of dependence: children under 16 take their parent’s domicile automatically; married women no longer automatically acquire their husband’s domicile (Domicile and Matrimonial Proceedings Act 1973)

The intention must be genuine and definitive — not “I might stay here” but “I intend to make this my permanent home.” Courts look at all the circumstances: property ownership, where family ties are strongest, expressed intentions, where one would want to be buried. Long-term residence without the requisite intention does not change domicile.

The Movable / Immovable Distinction

English private international law splits a deceased’s assets into two categories governed by different rules:

The situs rule for immovables is absolute: a testator domiciled in England who owns an apartment in Spain must comply with Spanish succession law for that property. Post-Brexit, UK nationals living in Spain cannot elect English law under Brussels IV to override Spanish forced heirship for Spanish real estate.

Forced Heirship in Foreign-Domicile Cases

Many civil law countries — France, Spain, Germany, Italy, Portugal — have forced heirship rules that reserve a fixed percentage of the estate for children (and sometimes a surviving spouse), regardless of what the will says. These rules apply to:

• Movables: if the deceased was domiciled in a forced-heirship country, English courts will apply that country’s succession law to movables, including the forced heirship reserve
• Immovables in that country: regardless of domicile, property sited in a forced-heirship country is governed by that country’s law — including the forced share

This means an English will that purports to leave everything to a surviving spouse may be partially overridden for French assets if the children assert their réserve héréditaire, or for Spanish assets if children claim their legítima.

EU Succession Regulation 650/2012 (Brussels IV)

Brussels IV applies within EU member states (except Denmark) for deaths on or after 17 August 2015. Its key features:

1. Default rule: the law of the country of habitual residenceat death (not domicile) governs the entire succession — both movables and immovables within the EU
2. Nationality election: a person can elect, in their will, for the law of their nationality to govern their succession instead — useful where a UK national living in France wanted to avoid French forced heirship
3. Post-Brexit position: the UK is no longer bound by Brussels IV. English courts do not apply it. However, EU courts apply it as between member states — so a French court dealing with a UK national’s assets in France will use Brussels IV, potentially treating French law as applicable if the UK national was habitually resident in France

The Renvoi Doctrine

Renvoi (from the French renvoyer, to refer back) is a doctrine that can arise when English conflict of laws rules refer a succession question to a foreign law, and that foreign country’s private international law in turn refers the question back to English law (or to a third country). In In re Ross [1930], an English-domiciled testator who died domiciled in Italy — whose law referred the question of succession to movables back to the law of the testator’s nationality (English) — led the court to apply English law.

Whether English courts accept a renvoi and apply English law instead of the foreign domestic rules is uncertain and depends on the factual circumstances. The doctrine is controversial in academic and judicial circles and has produced inconsistent outcomes. It is primarily relevant where:

• The deceased’s domicile at death is disputed or borderline
• Two countries each treat the deceased as domiciled in the other
• Applying renvoi would save forced heirship rules from overriding the will

Formal Validity: The Wills Act 1963

Under the Wills Act 1963, a will is formally valid in England if it was executed in compliance with the internal law of any one of the following:

• The place where the will was executed
• The testator’s domicile at the time of execution or at death
• The testator’s habitual residence at the time of execution or at death
• A country of which the testator was a national at the time of execution or at death
• For immovables: the law of the place where the property is situated

Formal validity (correct signatures and witnesses) is distinct from essential validity (capacity, freedom from undue influence) and from the applicable succession law (who inherits). A will can be formally valid in England while governed by foreign law as to its effect.

Practical Planning for Cross-Border Estates

If you have assets in more than one country, or if your domicile could be disputed:

• Identify domicile clearly: write down your intention in a “declaration of domicile” document; keep evidence of ties to your chosen country (property, family, voter registration, expressed wishes)
• Separate wills for each country: draft one will limited to UK movable and immovable assets; instruct a local notary for foreign real estate; ensure each will expressly does not revoke the others
• Check forced heirship rules: for each EU country where you own property or might be habitually resident, establish whether a forced share applies and whether any professional election is available
• IHT considerations: English domicile subjects worldwide assets to IHT at 40% above the threshold; non-domicile status (including deemed domicile rules) limits IHT to UK-sited assets
• Update after Brexit: if you elected English law under Brussels IV before December 2020, verify with an EU-qualified specialist whether that election still achieves its intended effect in the relevant EU country

Frequently Asked Questions