Actions and responsibilities of a notary when opening an inheritance

When the need arises to enter into an inheritance received, which notary to contact is also not the last problem. It is necessary to come to representatives of the notary regardless of whether the property is inherited by law or by virtue of a will.

However, not every notary has the competence to open and subsequently conduct a specific inheritance case.

Therefore, we will look in detail at which notary may be suitable, and what documents will be needed for different types of property. First of all, this material will be of interest to residents of St. Petersburg.

How are notaries distributed in inheritance cases?

Today, theoretically, any notary can open an inheritance case. The legislation in this regard does not put forward any additional requirements for the qualifications of a specialist.

In the first place is the territorial assignment of the notary's office.

In the Russian Federation, until recently, notary offices were assigned according to one of three principles:

1. According to the last place of residence of the deceased citizen.
2. According to the initial letter of the testator's surname.
3. According to the territory where most of the inheritance items are located.

Until 2012, it was possible to register an inheritance in St. Petersburg with a notary located according to one of the above principles. However, now it is possible to apply to any notary to enter into your own rights.

He will open an inheritance case at the request of the first claimant to the property. Subsequent heirs must also contact this notary, regardless of their place of residence.

The above also applies to other regions of the Russian Federation; from January 1, 2020, you can contact any notary at the place where the inheritance was opened.

Let's return to the inheritance formalized before 2012. Over time, other property of the testator, previously unknown, may appear. In this case, you should apply for additional certificate to the same notary.

To avoid mistakes and delays in the process of entering into an inheritance, it is recommended to go to your nearest notary office in advance.

Consultation from its specialists may cost a fee, but in some cases it is worth it. You will also have an idea of ​​what documents will be needed to confirm the status of an heir.

Is a notary required to look for heirs?

To consider this issue in more detail, it is necessary to pay attention to the powers of a notary when opening an inheritance case. They are enshrined in Article 61 of Law No. 4462-1

These are the following responsibilities:

• Having received a message about the death of the testator, the specialist is obliged to notify all applicants for the inheritance known to him;
• the law does not provide for the notary’s obligation to establish the existence of other heirs, and therefore the specialist is not obliged to take action to search for them;
• at his discretion, the notary can search for successors by posting messages in the media and other sources.

To open an inheritance case, the notary must obtain documentary evidence of the death of the testator. In some cases, the process can be initiated based on an oral request from interested parties who were unable to obtain a supporting document from the registry office.

The notary is obliged to notify the successor about the death of the testator only if he has reliable information about his residence address and place of work. A specialist can obtain this information in one of the following ways:

• from citizens who declared the death of the testator (the notary should ask whether the deceased has close and distant relatives and obtain their contact information);
• from the contents of the will, in which the deceased must have indicated heirs;
• as a result of sending requests for a list of assets of the deceased (from the Unified State Register of Real Estate you can find out information about the persons who acquired the object as shared ownership or participated in its privatization).

If the notary has information about the place of residence or work of the heirs, he must send them written notices. The notary's duty to find heirs ends here. However, the fulfillment of this obligation is not controlled in any way. In addition, the regulations do not contain any clarifying information regarding verification of data on the place of work and addresses of potential successors.

Let's say the notary was able to independently determine the circle of heirs and sent them notifications. Further events may develop as follows:

1. Having received notice of the opening of an inheritance case, the interested person can contact the notary's office to obtain a certificate. To do this, he has 6 months from the date of death of the testator.
2. It is possible to change the procedure for entering into inheritance rights. For example, thanks to active actions, the notary was able to identify additional candidates. If they belong to the first priority or are obligatory heirs, then the situation with the distribution of the inheritance mass may change radically.
3. If a citizen received the notice too late and did not have time to issue the certificate within the prescribed period, he can obtain justice through the court. In this case, either a redistribution of the inheritance occurs, or payment of monetary compensation to the newly-minted heir by persons who have already entered into the inheritance.
4. If a person does not want to take part in the division of the deceased’s property, he can issue an official refusal or take no action. After the expiration of the six-month period, he will be automatically excluded from the list of applicants.

Each participant in the inheritance process has the right to familiarize himself with the case materials. We are talking about the number of heirs, the list of objects included in the inheritance mass and the features of the distribution of shares. Thus, each beneficiary will be able to ensure the transparency of the procedure.

Regarding the data obtained, interested parties have the opportunity to go to court. A citizen may have the following reasons for this:

• contesting a will;
• recognition of some heirs as unworthy;
• provide information about new applicants;
• extend the time period for entering into inheritance rights.

You can receive an inheritance only through a notary. The specialist issues a certificate on the basis of which the successor can take over the property of the deceased relative. If the deadline for submitting documents was missed, then you can achieve justice through the court. However, the lack of notification from the notary is not a compelling argument for extending the deadline.

Which notary should I contact to register an inheritance?

The general rules contained in the Civil Code of the Russian Federation indicate that inheritance is opened at the last place of residence of the deceased person.

If a citizen died in St. Petersburg, then you can apply to any city notary office to take over your rights.

It is advisable to find out by phone in advance the days and hours of reception, and also make a preliminary appointment for the visit. It is no secret that in many large cities there are queues at notaries. Therefore, it is important to resolve all organizational issues in advance.

Deadlines

The legislation allocates 6 months, counted from the date of death of the citizen, for registration of inheritance. However, there are also difficult situations.

For example, the day of a citizen’s death cannot be determined for certain. In this case, a court decision will be needed to declare the person dead. And the date indicated in it will become the starting point for registering the inheritance.

If the time to contact a notary has been missed, then the court will help you get out of the situation. He can not only restore the period for the interested person to accept the inheritance, but also recognize by his decision the rights to the property.

It is advisable to contact the justice authorities when objective circumstances prevented a timely visit to the notary. Otherwise, there will be very vague prospects for resolving the issue in one’s favor.

Deadline for filing inheritance documents

Article 1154 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation defines the period for accepting an inheritance as six months. Depending on the circumstances, the beginning of the period may be considered:

1. date of opening of inheritance;
2. date of entry into force of the court decision;
3. date specified in the court decision.

If the successor dies and does not have time to accept the inheritance on time, then the right to inheritance passes to his heirs. In the case of hereditary transmission, the period increases to 9 months.

The limitation period for inheritance cases is 3 years. But if there are serious reasons and compelling arguments, it can be increased to 10 years.

If the heir missed the deadline due to ignorance about the opening of the inheritance or for other valid reasons, there is no need to panic. The deadline established for accepting an inheritance can be restored. To do this, it is necessary to obtain the written consent of all law-abiding heirs, otherwise apply to the court with an application to restore the period for accepting the inheritance.

How to find a notary at your place of residence

There are several simple ways to do this. In the Internet era, all coordinates of the notary office of interest can be obtained online. In addition, interactive maps are available that will help you find the nearest notary at your place of residence.

The sign of the notary's office can also give the right clue. By going to a notary and talking with him, you can find out all the information necessary to enter into an inheritance.

Friends, colleagues, and acquaintances who have already encountered the need to register an inheritance can also recommend a notary. They can also give useful practical advice.

If a person is not the first to apply for an inheritance, then you can find out a suitable notary through the notary chamber of St. Petersburg. After all, local notaries pass all the information about completed actions there.

What to do if the deadline is missed?

The law establishes a clear period for entering into the right of inheritance; you should not violate it. If, however, the successor did not manage to declare his rights in a timely manner, then they can be restored after 6 months only in court.

To do this, a statement of claim is drawn up, supporting documents and certificates are attached to confirm that the reasons for missing the deadline are valid.

The following are considered valid reasons:

• the relative did not know about the death, since he lived far away;
• staying on a long business trip outside the country;
• long-term hospitalization due to serious illness;
• the successor was in prison and did not have the opportunity to visit a notary;
• the heir was declared missing, but later he showed up, by which time the application filing period had expired.

The judge will carefully study the evidence presented and make one of the decisions, either extend the period for entering into inheritance, or refuse to satisfy the claims.

There is no need to put off going to the notary until the last day so as not to miss the deadlines established for the application, since their restoration is possible only through the courts.

Is it possible to apply to any notary to register an inheritance?

There are all sorts of situations, but you should take as a basis the rule prescribed in Art. 1153 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. It lies in the fact that an application for acceptance of an inheritance or for the issuance of an appropriate certificate is submitted at the place where the inheritance was opened.

This is considered to be the last place of residence of the deceased person (a specific city or other locality).

The matter is greatly simplified in the case when the circle of all heirs is located within the city. However, this is not always the case.

If the inheritance is in another city

The situation is quite typical. The testator and his closest relatives live in different parts of the country. You can, of course, if you have sufficient funds and time, go to the required notary yourself. However, there are alternative courses of action.

If you have the necessary documents, the entire procedure for receiving an inheritance can be entrusted to a representative living in the corresponding city. To do this, you must make a notarized power of attorney.

It must specifically and unambiguously stipulate the authority to submit an application to the notary to accept the inheritance and obtain a final certificate confirming the rights to the property.

The heir is also allowed to submit documents through his notary office. Its employees will forward them to their intended destination. With their assistance, a completed certificate of inheritance will be obtained.

Entry by law

An individual or legal entity can become an heir based on family ties or the will of the testator. The first way to determine the circle of applicants for abandoned property is on the basis of the law. The main beneficiaries in this case are the parents, children and spouses of the deceased person.

The husband or wife receives half of the partner's inheritance if it is marital property, and also shares in the division of the remainder.

The Civil Code of the Russian Federation provides for a sequence of applicants for inheritance, consisting of 8 circles of relatives of the deceased. If there are no main recipients, then the right to join is transferred to the next recipients. In the absence of all heirs, the property left behind is transferred to the benefit of the state.

Between all identified recipients, the notary allocates shares to each. As a rule, the parts of all receivers are equal. Read more in our article: inheritance by law.

What documents are needed

The necessary documents for registering an inheritance with a notary depend mainly on the type of property received. However, there are also general requirements in relation to the information submitted to the notary.

In any case, the notary must submit:

1. Application for inheritance.
2. A copy of the death certificate of the testator.
3. Identity document of the heir(s).

If we are talking about inheritance by law, all available evidence of family ties between the testator and applicants for his property is provided.

This includes birth or marriage certificates. When kinship has been established in court, an appropriate decision will be required.

Care should be taken to evaluate the property being inherited. Based on the value determined by the appraiser, the state duty for issuing a certificate of inheritance will be determined. Now let's move on to the composition of documents in the context of specific types of property.

Real estate: apartment, house, land

First of all, you will need all the documents for the relevant object. They mean a certificate of registration of property, an extract from the register of rights, and a privatization agreement.

In addition, the notary will need:

1. Technical and cadastral passports.
2. Layout of the land plot.
3. Evidence of the allocation of a part in real estate (if a share is inherited).
4. Information from the house register.
5. An extract from Rosreestr confirming that the apartment (house, land) is not burdened with encumbrances.

Depending on the region, the notary may ask the heirs to provide additional information and certificates.

Vehicles: car, motorcycle, trailer

The object of inheritance can only be those cars or motorcycles that belonged to the testator by right of ownership. If a person owned a vehicle on the basis of a power of attorney or a lease agreement, then such property is not inherited.

So, what do heirs need to re-register rights to vehicles?

List of documents:

1. Certificate of registration of the vehicle (motorcycle, trailer).
2. Passport for the vehicle (PTS, registration certificate).
3. An expert's report on the value of the inheritance object at the current time.

Actually, nothing else is required for a notary. Therefore, there should be no problems with taking over your rights.

Bank deposits

Not only valuables and real estate are inherited, but also the funds that the deceased had during his lifetime.

When it comes to a bank deposit, the notary will need:

1. Deposit account agreement and savings book (if available).
2. A certificate from the bank about the balance of the deposit (it can be obtained based on a personal request from a notary).

Part of the money can be received from a bank deposit before the completion of the inheritance to compensate for the costs of the funeral of a deceased relative. In this case, the notary will prepare a corresponding decree for presentation to the bank.

Share in business: LLC, shares

When the testator was involved in entrepreneurship during his lifetime, his corporate rights also go to the heirs.

To receive them, the notary must provide:

1. Extract from the Unified Register of Legal Entities.
2. A copy of the company's charter.
3. A certificate confirming full payment of shares or share in the authorized capital.
4. Information from the register of shareholders.
5. Valuation based on the current value of shares or part of the authorized capital.

The notary has the right to ask for additional information depending on the specifics of the activities of the company in which the share is inherited.

Scheme of succession of heirs

The property of a deceased person can be distributed either by will or by law.
In the first case, everything is extremely simple - the testator reflected his will in an official document regarding the distribution of his own property and the mentioned heirs will only have to assume their rights in due time.

If for any reason there is no will (it was not created, it was lost, it was declared invalid), the law regulating the order of heirs comes into force. Inheritance rights to an apartment and other property after death in this case are distributed strictly according to the degree of relationship.

The order of heirs is determined by the degree of relationship - the number of births between the testator and his potential heirs is taken into account. Direct and lateral relationships are also important. In the first case, descending (descendants) and ascending (ancestors) relatives are considered, and in the second - relatives who have a common ancestor with the testator. In total, the law provides for 8 lines of relatives who, theoretically, can claim to receive an inheritance.

First-degree relatives include the husband or wife, children and parents of the deceased. Children born out of wedlock, but who have proven their relationship with the deceased, have the right to claim the inheritance in the first place, as well as legitimate children.

Cost of notary services

Receiving an inheritance entails certain financial costs. The lion's share of them falls on the state duty established for the registration and issuance of an inheritance certificate. The amount of the payment will vary depending on the nature of the relationship with the testator.

If the inheritance is drawn up by children, parents, the spouse of the deceased, as well as his siblings, the duty will be 0.3% of the value of the inheritance, but not more than 20 thousand rubles. For all other heirs, the payment amount is twice as large (but not more than a million).

However, there are a number of duty benefits. If the conversation is about real estate, people do not make payments if they live in an apartment (house) with the testator at the time of his death.

There is no fee for the certificate of inheritance of a bank deposit. In addition, minor heirs are exempt from payment. This is stated in paragraph 5 of Article 333.38 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

In addition to the state fee, you must also pay for the work of the notary.

It includes:

• providing consultations;
• searching for the necessary information in state registers;
• preparation of requests to the BTI;
• notarization of copies of documents.

Depending on the region and the composition of the property, notary services can cost from two thousand rubles.

Legal basis

In his activities, a notary is guided by the following regulatory and local acts:

1. Fundamentals of the legislation of the Russian Federation on notaries.
2. Civil Code.
3. Family code.
4. Guidelines.

Other regulatory documents are applied as necessary. Much depends on the type of inherited property. For example, if the object of inheritance is a share in the authorized capital of a limited liability company, then when preparing documents, the provisions of the Federal Law “On LLC” dated 02/08/1998 No. 14-FZ are taken into account.

How and where to get a free consultation

There are many ways to get advice from a lawyer. And the procedure for receiving an inheritance is no exception in this regard.

Along with paid consultations, free communication with a lawyer is available. If you don’t have time to go to a personal appointment with a specialist, then the website yurist-spb24.ru will come to the rescue.

On our resource, you can get legal advice in two forms: by phone and online (by communicating with a specialist in the comments below the article).

In this way, it is easy to get advice on the procedure for choosing a notary, the composition of the required documents, and the timing of contacting a notary.

Please note that online consultation is available 24 hours a day, any day of the week. By asking a question in the comments to the article, you will definitely receive an answer.

The lawyer will also tell you what actions should be taken after completing the inheritance procedure.

However, answers to some pressing user questions can be found directly on our website. After all, many people who want to inherit an inheritance have similar difficulties.

Is it necessary to inherit?

The law does not oblige relatives to accept the inheritance. It is also not necessary to indicate the reason for waiving your rights.

You can refuse to receive an inheritance in the following ways:

• by default (without declaring your rights to the notary before the deadline);
• by submitting a written application (upon a personal application of the heir, it is possible to renounce the share in favor of another recipient).

Procedure for registering an address refusal:

1. The notary establishes the person's identity.
2. The notary explains the consequences of abandoning the property.
3. The citizen fills out an application for refusal.
4. After filing a waiver, the applicant loses the right to claim.

The cost of registering a targeted refusal in 2020 is 100 rubles.

Sample application for renunciation of inheritance

Questions and answers on the topic of inheritance and notary

Below we provide the text of some consultations provided by our lawyers. Since this article focuses on choosing a notary for inheritance, the topic of the questions is appropriate.

What to do if there is no notary in the locality

I live in a small town where there is no notary office. In this case, who should I contact to accept the inheritance?

If, according to the law, some actions equivalent to notarial ones can be performed by employees of a local government body, then this does not apply to inheritance.

You need to find a notary operating in the nearest city. All its coordinates can be easily found on the Internet. In the case when you are not the first to apply for an inheritance, the coordinates of the notary who oversees the entire process can be clarified with other heirs or at the notary chamber of the region.

Where to go when an inheritance case is opened

I need to inherit after my mother's death. Other relatives have already submitted documents. Which notary should I contact?

Even if now you can submit documents to any notary, but in the case when an inheritance case is opened, there are other rules. Documents are always submitted to the notary in charge of the inheritance matter.

If you live in another city, you can apply for inheritance to a local notary, he will send a package of documents to the city where the inheritance case was opened.

Accepting claims from creditors

One of the duties of a notary is to accept claims from the testator’s creditors (Article 63 of the Notary Law). Most often, such requirements are put forward by banks. For example, when taking out a mortgage loan or buying a car.

Typically, such property is pledged. The encumbrance is removed only after the loan is fully repaid.

If the borrower dies, the outstanding obligations pass to the heirs. If there are several legal successors, then the obligations are distributed among them in accordance with the share of the accepted property.

The procedure for satisfying creditors' claims:

1. Creditors must submit an application at the place of registration of the testator.
2. The notary notifies the heirs about them.

Important! Creditors must declare their rights within 3 years . Otherwise, the heirs are released from liability.

1. If the heirs are not identified or refuse the encumbered property, then it is recognized as escheated and goes to the state. In such circumstances, creditors present their claims to the ultimate beneficiary. For example, a local authority.

Until the applicants assume their rights, creditors have the right to make claims against the executor of the will or directly against the inheritance.

Example. OJSC MDM Bank filed a lawsuit against the Federal Property Management Agency for debt collection from an inheritance. The essence of the requirements is that a loan agreement was concluded between the bank and the deceased debtor. In pursuance of the agreement, the lender transferred funds to the borrower's account. The client regularly repaid the debt until the day of his death. After his death, a debt arose. By law, the obligations of the testator pass to his legal successors. Therefore, the creditor asks to collect the debt from the defendant. The inheritance included a car. A request to the notary showed that none of the heirs of the deceased citizen declared their rights. Consequently, the beneficiary of the escheated property is the state. The representative of the Federal Property Management Agency did not object to the claim. The claims were satisfied (Decision of the Central District Court of Khabarovsk dated March 19, 2013 in case No. 2-212/13).

Ensuring the safety of the inheritance

An additional duty of the notary is to ensure the safety of the identified property (Article 1171 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

Algorithm of actions to ensure the protection of the property of the deceased:

1. The heir submits an application to the notary.
2. To protect property, an inventory is made.
3. When carrying out necessary activities, at least 2 witnesses must be present. Participation of heirs is optional. However, they may also be present in the inventory.
4. If the notary identifies cash, it is deposited.
5. Currency values ​​or precious metals are transferred to the bank for safekeeping.
6. If a weapon is detected, the notary must notify the executive authority.
7. The remaining property may be transferred for storage to one of the legal successors.

Important! If necessary, the notary engages a trustee. The maximum period for ensuring the safety of the inheritance is 9 months.

Actual acceptance of inheritance

Acceptance of an inheritance due to the actual use of the property of the deceased presupposes the actual use of the property of the deceased, managing his household, incurring expenses for maintenance and repairs, paying debts, etc. To confirm the actual entry into inheritance and obtain a certificate from a notary, you must provide written evidence.

For example . Father and son own a small business: two stores selling spare parts, in equal shares. Father dies. Since the son knows the supply and sales mechanism that operates in his family business with his father, he continues to control the work of both stores, because he knows the organization of the business well, and has replaced his father more than once, since he has been sick a lot lately. What documents to register an inheritance without a will should the son bring to the notary in order to confirm his actual entry into the inheritance? There are no other candidates.

In the situation under consideration, the list of data that must be provided cannot be clear and exhaustive. It is important that the notary considers the evidence submitted to him sufficient to issue a certificate of inheritance upon actual acceptance.

Thus, these may be copies of contracts concluded with citizens employed in stores, their testimony about the actual management of the business by the son of the deceased, testimony of suppliers who had business relations with the son, receipts for payment of debts to the bank, creditors, etc. In a word, everything that testifies to the real participation of the son in organizing the work of both stores.

In practice, receiving compensation for the funeral of the deceased is usually regarded as an intention to accept an inheritance. Therefore, when applying for a certificate of accession to the rights of an heir, you must attach a document confirming receipt of compensation payments.

Adoption procedure: step-by-step process

When analyzing the procedure for accepting inherited property, it is worth remembering that the process will differ depending on whether inheritance occurs by law or by will.

Inheritance by law

1. To accept property, it is enough to submit a written application or bring a certificate to an authorized notary. Moreover, it is worth noting separately the fact that it is this notary who must open and conduct the inheritance case. Such an application can be delivered to the notary's office in person or by mail.
2. After the procedure for opening an inheritance case, each individual heir has the full right to issue from a notary the certificate of right to receive inherited property that is due to him.
3. After six months from the opening of the current case, it is received.
4. In a situation where the heir, for his own reasons and judgments, refuses to accept the property of a deceased person due to him , he may voluntarily abandon it in favor of other claimants. In such a situation, his entire share will be divided into equal parts among all relatives.

Inheritance by will

When accepting inherited property under a will, in particular if this properly drawn up document is of a closed nature, a certain procedure must be followed.

1. Within fifteen days after the death of the immediate testator, his successors must provide a certificate and will to the notary's office.
2. Having received the above documents, the notary must make sure that the testator is really dead. To do this, it is enough just to check the accuracy of the documents provided.
3. The next step is to familiarize all those present with the will of the testator. In this case, all obligatory heirs must be present, as well as at least two outside witnesses.
4. The envelope must be opened, immediately after which it is the turn to read the will. Only a notary can do this.
5. Immediately after all those present are familiar with the will of the deceased, the authorized person will have to draw up a protocol on the opening of the document, in which the entire text of the will will be rewritten. When drawing up such a paper, witnesses must also take an active part.
6. At the end of such a procedure, the will remains for storage in the notary’s office, and all heirs are given a copy of the drawn up agreement.