Do You Need a French Will? Wills and the Notaire Process Explained

• A UK will doesn't automatically fail in France, but France applies its own rules about who administers the process and how — a French will (or at least French-side planning) avoids friction your UK will was never designed to handle
• Under EU Regulation 650/2012, UK nationals can choose to have UK law govern their entire estate instead of French forced heirship — even though the UK itself never joined the regulation
• A PACS partner inherits nothing without a will naming them, unlike a spouse who inherits automatically by law
• Heirs have a real, time-limited choice about whether to accept or refuse (renoncer à) a succession, including its debts

This article explains what that actually involves — what a French will costs, why a UK will alone often isn't enough, and what accepting or refusing a succession actually means for an heir.

Does a UK will work in France?

This is the question that causes the most confusion, and the honest answer is: it depends on what you mean by "work."

The UK never joined EU Regulation 650/2012 (Brussels IV), the framework that harmonises which country's inheritance law applies across the EU. But the regulation is designed to apply universally on the French side — a French court or notaire administering a French estate follows it regardless of whether the deceased was from a participating country. In practice, that means:

• By default, the law of your habitual residence at death governs your estate. If you're a French resident, that's French law — including forced heirship — even if you're a UK national with a UK will.
• You can override this by explicitly electing, in a will, for the law of your nationality to apply instead (Article 22 of the regulation). A UK national resident in France can elect for UK law — which has no forced heirship — to govern their whole estate.

So a UK will isn't invalid in France. But unless it contains an explicit, correctly worded law election, French default rules — forced heirship, the réserve héréditaire covered in our general guide to how inheritance tax works in France — apply regardless of what the UK will says about who gets what. A will drafted by a UK solicitor with no knowledge of this election is a common and avoidable gap.

This is not a DIY decision. Getting the election wording right, and making sure it's valid on both the UK and French sides, is exactly the kind of question to bring to a notaire before finalising a will, not after.

If you're not a French resident yourself but own French property — a holiday home, for example — a different mechanism applies on top of this: UK conflict-of-laws rules already point back to French law for real estate located in France, regardless of Brussels IV. See our guide to inheritance tax on a French holiday home if you're not a French resident for how that works.

The three types of French will

If you do want a French will — either instead of, or alongside, a UK one — there are three recognised forms, each with a different process and cost.

A holographic will costs nothing to write but is the most fragile — it can be lost, contested more easily, or simply never found. It also generates its own costs at death: it must be formally deposited and processed by a notaire before the estate can be administered, which can add several hundred euros in fees at exactly the point your heirs are trying to settle things.

A notarised (authentic) will costs more upfront but is harder to contest and doesn't need the same deposit process at death, since the notaire already holds a copy. For anyone with cross-border assets, a blended family, or a law election to make under Brussels IV, this is generally the more reliable route — worth the modest upfront cost.

PACS partners: the gap a will actually closes

This deserves particular attention because it's easy to miss. As covered in our general inheritance tax guide, a PACS partner pays 0% inheritance tax — but that exemption only applies to what they're actually left. Unlike a spouse, who automatically inherits a share of the estate under French law even with no will at all, a PACS partner has no automatic inheritance entitlement whatsoever. Legally, without a will, they're treated as having no claim on the estate — the same position as a stranger.

If you're PACSed and want your partner to inherit anything, naming them in a will isn't a nice-to-have. It's the only way they inherit at all.

Accepting or refusing a succession

Being named an heir doesn't obligate you to accept. French law gives heirs a genuine choice, because an estate can carry debts as well as assets, and accepting it in full means accepting the debts along with everything else.

The reflection period. For the first four months after the death, no other heir or creditor can force you to decide. After that, if someone formally presses you for an answer, you generally have a further two months to respond.

Refusing (renonciation). This is done via a declaration to the court or through a notaire, and costs relatively little — roughly €60 to €120 for a straightforward refusal. An heir who refuses is treated as if they had never been an heir at all: no assets, but also no responsibility for the estate's debts.

Why this matters practically: for a blended cross-border estate — a UK asset with unclear value, a French property with a mortgage, or simply an estate where the numbers aren't yet clear — refusing outright, or accepting only "up to the value of the assets" (acceptation à concurrence de l'actif net, a middle option that caps your exposure to any debts), can be the right call rather than a default full acceptance. This is a decision worth making with a notaire's guidance rather than under time pressure from other heirs.

Common mistakes

1. Assuming a UK will automatically works the way it's written. Without an explicit Brussels IV law election, French forced heirship rules apply by default to a French resident's estate, regardless of what a UK-drafted will says.

2. Believing PACS is equivalent to marriage for inheritance purposes. The 0% tax rate is real, but a PACS partner inherits nothing without a will naming them — a spouse inherits automatically; a PACS partner does not.

3. Writing a holographic will and never telling anyone where it is. A will that can't be found is, practically speaking, no will at all.

4. Accepting a succession automatically without checking for debts. Heirs have a real window to investigate before deciding, and options short of full acceptance exist if the estate's finances are unclear.

5. Treating the will as a one-off task. A will drafted years ago, before a PACS, marriage, divorce, or a move to France, may no longer reflect your actual situation or intentions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a UK will valid in France?

It isn't invalid, but it doesn't automatically override French forced heirship rules either. Unless it contains an explicit law election under EU Regulation 650/2012 (Brussels IV) for UK law to apply to your whole estate, French default rules apply to a French resident's estate regardless of what a UK will states.

Can a UK national avoid French forced heirship?

Yes, in principle, by explicitly electing for the law of their nationality (UK law) to govern their estate, under Article 22 of EU Regulation 650/2012. This applies even though the UK itself never joined the regulation, because it applies universally on the French administering side. The wording needs to be correct and is worth getting drafted by a notaire.

Does my PACS partner automatically inherit if I die without a will?

No. Unlike a spouse, a PACS partner has no automatic entitlement to any part of your estate under French law. Without a will naming them, they inherit nothing, regardless of the length of the relationship or the 0% tax rate that would apply to whatever they were left.

How much does a French will cost?

A holographic will (handwritten by you) costs nothing to create, though it generates deposit and processing costs at death, sometimes several hundred euros. A notarised (authentic) will costs around €136 to create but is more secure and doesn't require the same processing at death.

Do I have to accept an inheritance in France?

No. You can accept it in full, refuse it entirely (renonciation, costing roughly €60–120), or accept it only up to the value of its assets, capping your exposure to any debts. You generally have at least four months after the death before anyone can force a decision.

For more on this topic, browse our Inheritance & Succession Tax category.

Sources: Article 970, Code civil (holographic will requirements) · Article 971, Code civil (authentic will requirements) · Article 771, Code civil and Article 772, Code civil (succession acceptance/refusal timelines) · Regulation (EU) No 650/2012, Article 22 (professio juris — choice of national law)