"The UK" sounds like a single legal system, and it isn't. When it comes to proving who inherits and who administers an estate, England and Wales follow one procedure; Scotland follows a completely different one, with its own court and its own legal tradition. Northern Ireland, in turn, has its own probate office. If your estate includes Spanish assets and the deceased lived in the UK, the first step is identifying which of these systems applies.
England and Wales: the Grant of Probate
In England and Wales, the executor applies for the Grant of Probate (if there's a will) or Letters of Administration (if there isn't) at the Probate Registry of HM Courts & Tribunals Service. The process includes a statement of truth about the estate and the UK tax authority's (HMRC) forms for inheritance tax. Once the Grant is issued, the executor can sell assets and deal with banks and insurers — the same type of document, with the same name, we already covered for Australian, Canadian and Irish estates, since they all share the same common-law roots.
Scotland: Confirmation, not Probate
Here's the nuance that surprises most heirs. Scotland has its own legal system — Scots law, influenced by European civil law as well as the common law — and its succession procedure is called Confirmation, not probate. It's granted by the Sheriff Court (the commissary department of the local court, or Edinburgh's), based on an inventory of the estate using Form C1 and the tax declaration on Form C5.
There are notable practical differences from England:
- In Scotland, the executor signs a declaration; there's no formal oath before a solicitor, which is required in England and Wales.
- If the deceased died without a will, Scotland also requires a Bond of Caution — a guarantee bond, similar to an insurance policy — before Confirmation is granted. England has no equivalent requirement.
The resulting document, the Certificate of Confirmation, serves the same function as the English Grant of Probate: it's the proof that the executor or administrator has authority to manage the estate, and it's what the Spanish notary will ask for if the deceased lived in Scotland.
No European Certificate of Succession, in any case
Unlike a Dutch estate, where the European Certificate of Succession is fully available, a UK estate has no access to that route under any circumstances. The UK had opted out of EU Regulation 650/2012 — the same as Ireland — even while it was still a member state, and after Brexit it's also a third country for all purposes. The only route is the Grant of Probate or the Certificate of Confirmation, depending on which UK nation handled the succession.
The apostille: a single authority for all four nations
Here the UK simplifies things compared with Canada or the United States: there's no split of authority between England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The sole apostilling authority for the whole UK is the FCDO Legalisation Office (Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office), based in Milton Keynes. It doesn't matter whether the Grant of Probate was issued in London or the Confirmation in Edinburgh: the apostille always goes through the same body.
The death certificate: a different registrar depending on the nation
A minor but real nuance: the death certificate is issued by the General Register Office if the death occurred in England or Wales, and by the National Records of Scotland if it occurred in Scotland — two different civil registries, although both documents are apostilled equally at the FCDO.
The sworn translation
The Grant of Probate or the Certificate of Confirmation, along with the death certificate and the will, get translated into Spanish by a sworn translator-interpreter accredited by the MAEC, always after the apostille: apostille first, translation second.
What we're not
We're not a notary's office or a tax or succession adviser, and we don't determine which law governs the estate or what's owed in tax in Spain. That depends on the deceased's habitual residence and where the assets are located, and is a matter for your notary or lawyer. Our job is translating, with official validity in Spain, the UK documentation that process asks you for.
In summary
- England and Wales use the Grant of Probate; Scotland uses Confirmation, a different procedure from a different legal system, with the Bond of Caution as an extra requirement for intestate estates.
- The UK has no access to the European Certificate of Succession under any circumstances, Brexit or not.
- All documents, whichever nation they come from, are apostilled at the same authority: the FCDO Legalisation Office.
- The sworn Spanish translation always comes after the apostille.
Related pages
- Inheriting from Ireland with assets in Spain
- Inheriting from Australia with assets in Spain
- Inheriting from Canada with assets in Spain
→ Request my sworn translation
At Textualia we translate the English Grant of Probate, the Scottish Certificate of Confirmation and the rest of the UK succession file into Spanish, signed by a translator accredited by the MAEC. We review the file before starting: if a document arrives without an apostille, we tell you before translating anything.