How Is the Certificate of Heirship Taken?

In short

The certificate of heirship is the official document that shows the capacity of heir and the share. It does not register a beneficiary under a will by itself. Refusal and the reserved share are in separate writings.

The population record, and if there is one the document of the opening of the will, are added.

The contract of division stands separate.

The path of the civil court of peace in Ankara, or of the notary, is looked at according to the concrete fact.

Related writings: refusal of the inheritance.

The certificate of heirship (veraset ilamı) is the official document that shows who the heirs are after the death. It is taken through a notary or through a court. The papers that are needed change according to the structure of the inheritance. The document is a prior condition of the transactions of title and of the bank. The division itself is a separate process. This text is for general information. It does not contain a promise of a definite result.

What does the certificate of heirship mean?

When the deceased dies, the heirs have the right of inheritance according to the statutory order. The certificate of heirship shows this capacity officially. Without the document, most official institutions do not transact in the name of the share of the inheritance. The land-registry directorate, the banks, the traffic registration and the insurance establishments generally ask for the certificate of heirship.

Within the frame of inheritance law, taking the document should be thought of together with subjects such as refusal of the inheritance or the reserved share. If there is an heir who refused, or an heir with a reserved share, the process differs.

Whom does it concern?

• The statutory heirs of the person who died (the spouse, the child, the mother and father, the sibling, and the like)
• The relatives of a person who left the inheritance and who left a will
• Heirs who want to make a transfer of title, of a bank or of a vehicle
• Parties who look for an agreement for the division of the inheritance
• Heirs who think of refusing the inheritance, or who have refused
• Heirs who live abroad (processes of apostille and of translation)

As the number of heirs increases, the process of the document and the later division may become more complex.

The paths of application: the notary and the court

The notary path

If there is no dispute among the heirs, when the necessary documents are completed the notary may draw up the certificate of heirship. The appointment, the presentation of identity, the death certificate and the population records are prepared. The notary determines the order of heirship according to the legislation. If there is a will, or foreign elements, the notary path may not be suitable.

The court path

In disputed positions such as a disagreement, a claim of annulment of a will, adoption or recognition, the certificate of heirship may be asked for from the civil court of peace. The petition of the action, the evidence and the list of the heirs are presented. The decision of the court carries the nature of an official document. The period may be long compared with the notary path.

The necessary documents and the preparation

A typical set of papers may include these:

• The death certificate of the deceased
• A photocopy of the population card or of the identity of the heirs
• A full copy of the population record that shows the link of heirship
• If there is one, the document of marriage or of divorce
• If there is a will, the relevant document
• If there is an heir of foreign nationality, documents with an apostille and a translation

A missing paper delays the application. The notary or the court in Ankara may be called in order to confirm the current list of papers.

How does the legal process progress?

1. Gathering information after the death. The death certificate, the list of the heirs and a search for a will are made.
2. The choice of the path. The heirs assess together whether the notary or the court is suitable.
3. The application for the document. Delivery of the papers, an appointment, or the opening of an action.
4. The drawing up of the document. The heirs and the ratios of the shares are shown on the document.
5. Presentation to the institutions. The document is used for the title, the bank, the social-security institution and the other transactions.
6. Division or partition. If there is no agreement, an action for partition, or settlement talks, come onto the agenda.

Each step carries its own period. A will, or a claim of refusal, may lengthen the process.

The relation with refusal of the inheritance and with the reserved share

If the inheritance was refused, the person who made the refusal may be in a different position when the certificate of heirship is drawn up. If the period of refusal was missed, the capacity of heirship may continue. Heirs with a reserved share, even if they take a place on the document, may ask for protection in the division. Taking the document does not mean that a breach of the reserved share was disregarded.

Reading the subjects refusal of the inheritance and the reserved share before the division makes the planning easier.

Practical notes in the practice in Ankara

In Ankara the notary appointments may be dense. It may be necessary for the heirs to be ready together on the same day. On the court path, the workload of the civil courts of peace affects the period. The deceased having died in Ankara, or in another province, may bring the subject of competence onto the agenda.

Heirs abroad should assess the options of a power of attorney or of applying in person. The content of the power of attorney should be suitable to the type of the transaction.

The debts of the estate and the responsibility of the heir

Taking the certificate of heirship should not make one forget that the estate contains not only receivables but also debts. The debts of the deceased may pass to the heirs. Refusal of the inheritance is used in order to limit this risk. After the document, before money is drawn from the bank, the position of the debt and of the pledge should be searched. The creditors may make a claim against the heirs. The ratio of the share is shown on the document.

Joint inheritance and partition

If there is more than one heir, the immovables are generally transferred as co-ownership in shares. For a sale or a partition, the agreement of all the heirs, or a court decision, may be needed. The certificate of heirship shows the ratio of the share. The actual use, and the division of the rental income, should be arranged separately. If an agreement is not written, an action for partition may be opened later.

The will and reduction

A will may provide that the person who left the inheritance leaves particular property to particular persons. If the rights of the heirs with a reserved share are breached, an action for reduction comes onto the agenda. When the certificate of heirship is drawn up, the provisions of the will are reflected as well. The calculation of the reduction is made separately. If there is a claim of annulment of the will, the process of the document may stop, or the court path may become obligatory.

A digital application and e-Devlet

In some inheritance transactions, preliminary information and an appointment may be taken through e-Devlet. A copy of the population record and the death certificate may be obtained in the digital environment. Even so, there may be steps that require a signature and being ready in person. Digital convenience may not remove completely the procedure of the notary or of the court.

Institutional transactions after the certificate of heirship

The transaction of devolution at the land-registry directorate, the freezing of the account at the bank and a drawing in the name of the heir, and the determination of the holder of the right at the social-security and pension institution, are subject to separate procedures. Each institution asks for the original of the certificate of heirship, or for a certified copy. If the number of heirs is high, the signature or the power of attorney of all the heirs may be needed. A difference of period among the institutions is normal. Incomplete papers should not be presented with impatience.

International elements of the inheritance

If the deceased or the heir is of foreign nationality, an apostille, a translation and a consular approval may come onto the agenda. For an immovable in Turkey, Turkish law is applied. Property abroad may be subject to the law of another country. The certificate of heirship may be enough only for the transactions in Turkey. A transaction abroad requires a separate document.

The ratios of the shares of the inheritance and the statutory order

In the statutory order of heirship, the shares of the spouse, of the descendants, of the mother and father and of the other relatives are determined by statute. On the certificate of heirship the ratio of the share of each heir is shown. The ratio of the share is taken as the basis in the transfer of title and in the division at the bank. In the calculation of the ratio, elements such as an adopted child, recognition and a child from a previous marriage are taken into account. A wrong ratio of the share may lead later to an action for partition.

The notary appointment and the community of heirs

On the notary path, all the heirs being ready at the same time, or a power of attorney in accordance with the procedure being presented, is needed. If one of the heirs does not attend, the notary may not be able to draw up the document. If there is a disagreement, the court path becomes obligatory. Before the appointment, the list of the heirs and the identity documents should be checked.

The action for a certificate of heirship on the court path

In the action for a certificate of heirship opened at the civil court of peace, the heirs prove the death of the deceased and the order of heirship. Claims such as annulment of a will, an action of recognition, or disinheritance may join in the same file. When the decision of the court becomes final, a document in the nature of a certificate of heirship is drawn up. The period of the action is long compared with the notary path. If the disagreement is large, it may be unavoidable.

The certificate of heirship and the tax obligations

In the devolution of an inheritance, obligations such as property tax, tax on valuable papers and income tax may come onto the agenda. After the document is taken, a tax declaration may be needed in the transactions of title and of the bank. The heir should not take taking the document to mean that all the tax transactions were completed. The institutions may ask for different forms. The current tax legislation should be checked.

The heir who is the spouse, and the division with the descendants

The spouse may be an heir together in a particular order of heirship, or may take a share together with the descendants. On the certificate of heirship the ratio of the share of the spouse is shown separately. The children take a place with their own shares as well. Special positions, such as a death while a divorce action continues, are assessed separately. A disagreement of division between the spouse and the child may lead, after the document, to an action for partition.

The period and the cost of the certificate of heirship

On the notary path the document may be drawn up on the same day or in a short time. A fee and a notary charge are paid. On the court path, the fee of the action, the power of attorney and the period of the proceedings bring an additional cost. As the number of heirs increases, the period of coordination lengthens. Taking the document early speeds the transactions of title and of the bank. Without an agreement of division, it does not solve all the problems by itself.

The agreement of division of the inheritance after the document

After the document is taken, the heirs may sign a written protocol of division. In the protocol it should be written concretely which immovable will remain to whom, how the money in the bank account will be divided, and on whom the debts will remain. If there is no agreement, each heir may dispose in the ratio of their own share. On a joint immovable, an additional process is needed for a sale or a partition.

Mistakes that are made often

• Drawing out the list of the heirs incompletely (an early death, adoption, recognition)
• Going to the notary without searching for the existence of a will
• Missing the period of refusal of the inheritance, or taking the document without refusing
• Thinking the document was taken, and postponing the agreement of division
• Transacting in the transfer of title without taking the consent of all the heirs
• Planning the division without taking into account the heir with a reserved share
• A lack of apostille and of translation in foreign documents

Risk of a loss of right: the periods of refusal of the inheritance and of the reserved share may be short. Gathering the papers early after the death is important.

Where the document is read from

The population record, the death certificate and, if there is one, the document of the opening of the will are put side by side. The path of the notary and of the court is separated according to whether there is a dispute. The contract of division is not put in the place of the document. An office in Çankaya does not change the competent authority.

Conclusion

The certificate of heirship is the starting document of the process of the inheritance. The path of the notary or of the court is chosen according to the structure of the inheritance. After the document, the stages of title, of the bank and of the division should be planned separately. This writing is for general information. In a concrete inheritance the result may change.

For the wide frame, you may look at the page inheritance law, and for refusal and the reserved share at the related blog writings.

Counsel in Ankara does not write the capacity of heir without looking at the population record.