Legal Succession/Testate Succession:

Notaries public have the authority to carry out the notarial succession procedure when heirs are in agreement with regard to the composition of the deceased’s estate and the extent of their rights.

Under the legal succession rules, the rightful heirs are the surviving spouse and the relatives of the deceased, i.e. descendants, ascendants and collaterals of the deceased, in the order and according to the rules set forth by the Civil Code.

If a deceased left a will, his/her estate will be distributed as instructed in the will, with due regard for the law on the portion of the estate reserved to the heirs entitled to it.

When heirs dispute each other’s status and disagree on the extent of their rights, notaries public will direct the parties to resolve their differences in court.

Degrees of kinship are calculated from degree to degree, from the deceased to you. For example, a daughter is a first-degree relative to her mother and a second-degree relative to her grandmother, and so are siblings to each other. Uncles and aunts are third-degree relatives to the deceased, and first cousins are fourth-degree relatives to each other. A surviving spouse does not inherit alone, but only together with any of the heirs in one of the 4 classes.

In the case of a testate succession, the existence of a will left in your favour is not sufficient for you to become owner of the deceased’s possessions. Moreover, you need go to a notary public within maximum 1 (one) year after the deceased passed away and make a statement whereby you accept the testate succession and then settle the estate by obtaining an heir certificate. Even in the presence of a will, there are certain categories of relatives of the deceased (so-called heirs entitled to a portion of the deceased’s estate) who may, under certain conditions, claim rights to the deceased’s estate. If such heirs exist (descendants: children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, parents of the deceased and the surviving spouse), they need to be present at the distribution of the deceased’s estate and express their position in regard to claiming the share of the deceased’s estate to which they are entitled.

Required documents:

• Civil status documents of the deceased: death certificate, marriage certificate, divorce decree/certificate, birth certificate (original);
• Identification documents of the heirs;
• Civil status documents of the heirs showing the degree of kinship with the deceased: birth certificate, marriage certificate, divorce decree/certificate;
• Will, if any (original);
• Marriage contract, if any;
• Ownership deeds (in original) of the deceased (documents showing how property was acquired, e.g.: sale-purchase agreement, donation agreement, personal care agreement, heir certificate, title deed, building permit, acceptance report, building completion certificate, certificate issued by the City/Town Hall showing the property registered to the name of the deceased) - if such a document is not in your possession, the notary public can request it from the archive of the Land Registry (for a fee of RON 25 per document);
• Any other documents, depending on the specifics of the estate and the particulars of the succession, e.g.: vehicles - registration certificate and vehicle identification card; burial place - certificate issued by the Cemetery Administration (valid for 7 days); money in bank accounts - account statement showing the existing amount, etc.;
• In the case of heirs who are minors: a court order issued by the family court within the jurisdiction of which the minor resides, stating that the minor accepts the inheritance and appointing a guardian to assist the minor who has reached the age of 14 or to represent the minor under 14 in the succession procedure;
• The presence of 2 witnesses who knew the deceased’s family and are not related to this family, who knew the deceased personally, the deceased’s marital status and who know information about the existence and number of descendants or other relatives (in the absence of descendants), is mandatory.

The presence of all heirs is mandatory; if they are unable to be present in person at the notary’s office, they will provide the notary with a notarised power of attorney and a notarised declaration of inheritance acceptance or waiver, depending on each heir’s succession option.

As for the duration of the succession procedure, an heir certificate may be issued within 2 (two) months after completion and registration of the application for succession settlement, if the succession file contains all the necessary documents. With reference to the date of death, an heir certificate may also be issued before the expiry of 1 (one) year after the date of death, if there is no doubt whatsoever that there are no other persons entitled to inheritance.

Wills:

Pursuant to Article 1034 of the Civil Code, a will is a unilateral, personal and revocable document whereby a person (called testator) leaves instructions, in one of the forms required by law, for when he/she is no longer alive.

A will may contain instructions relating to the deceased’s estate or the assets included in the estate or to the direct or indirect designation of the legatee. A will may also include instructions relating to estate distribution, revocation of previous will instructions, disinheritance, appointment of executors, duties imposed on legatees or legal heirs, and other instructions which take effect after the death of the testator.

Required documents:

• Identification document of the testator - the person leaving the will (identity card, passport);
• Identification document of the legatee (photocopy) - the person in whose favour the will is left (identity card, passport);
• Ownership deed(s) for the asset(s) left in the will;
• Psychiatric Forensic Certificate issued by the Institute of Forensic Medicine determining the testator’s current mental capacity (if applicable)

Note: The presence of the legatee is not required.