Written by Claire Thompson | Wills, Trusts, Tax and Probate Team | Nash & Co Solicitors | 26 October 2026
When someone close to you dies while living abroad, there can be a great deal to sort out, particularly if they still owned a house or other property in the UK.
Perhaps your parents retired to Spain but kept their former family home in England. Maybe a relative moved to France many years ago but continued to own a property in Devon or Cornwall. Or you might be dealing with the estate of someone who owned homes in several countries.
You may already be dealing with solicitors overseas and now find yourself wondering what needs to happen to the property in the UK. Will you need to apply for probate here? Can the property be sold? And what happens if probate has already been completed in the country where your relative lived?
The important thing to know is that property in England and Wales may still require a separate legal process, even if the person lived abroad and probate is already being dealt with overseas. The steps involved will depend on how the property was owned, the country where the person lived and the legal documents already in place.
At Nash & Co Solicitors, we help families and executors deal with international probate and cross-border estates. This guide explains what happens to property in England and Wales when its owner was living overseas at the time of their death, what you may need to do and where legal advice can help.
What happens to UK property when someone who lived abroad dies?
If someone dies while living overseas but still owns property in England or Wales, that property may need to be dealt with as part of their estate. It might not automatically pass to their family simply because they have died, and an overseas probate process may not provide the legal authority needed to sell or transfer it.
Before deciding what happens next, there are three important questions to answer.
How was the property owned? Was it in the deceased's sole name or jointly owned with someone else?
Who is entitled to inherit it? This may depend on their Will, how the property was owned and the inheritance laws that apply.
Who has legal authority to deal with it? A Grant of Probate or another form of legal authority may be required in England and Wales.
For example, imagine your mother retired to Spain 15 years ago but kept a house in Plymouth. Following her death, you discover that she made a Spanish Will and that a solicitor in Spain is already dealing with her estate.
You might reasonably assume that the Spanish probate process will also cover the house in Plymouth.
However, that is not necessarily the case. Additional steps may be required in England and Wales before the property can be sold or transferred to whoever is entitled to inherit it.
This is a common feature of international estates, and there are established legal procedures for dealing with it.
Does it matter where the person lived when they died?
Yes. Where someone was living before their death can affect which inheritance laws apply and how their estate needs to be administered. However, it is important to distinguish between where someone lived and where they happened to die.
Someone who lives permanently in England but dies while on holiday in Spain is in a different position from someone who moved to Spain 20 years ago and made it their permanent home.
In the first situation, the person's usual home remains in England. In the second, they may have established their habitual residence in Spain, which can affect how their estate is dealt with.
This distinction can be important when deciding which country's inheritance laws apply, particularly where the person owned property in more than one country.
Other factors may also matter, including their nationality, previous residence history, the location of their assets and whether they made a Will in more than one country.
The country where someone died does not automatically determine which laws apply to everything they owned.
For this article, we are concentrating on people who were living overseas but retained property in England and Wales.
Will you need probate in England and Wales?
In many cases, yes. If the person owned property in England or Wales in their sole name, a Grant of Representation will normally be needed before the property can be sold or transferred, even if they lived and died overseas.
Where there is a Will and an executor is appointed, this authority is usually confirmed through a document called a Grant of Probate.
Where there is no valid Will, a different document called Letters of Administration may be required.
Both are forms of what lawyers call a Grant of Representation.
However, whether a Grant is needed, and which procedure applies, will depend on the circumstances, particularly how the property was owned.
What if the property was in their sole name?
If the deceased was the only registered owner, the property will generally form part of their estate.
The people responsible for administering the estate will normally need to obtain the appropriate legal authority before selling or transferring it.
Where the deceased lived overseas, this may involve applying for a Grant in England and Wales, even if probate has already been obtained abroad.
What if they owned the property jointly with someone else?
If the property was jointly owned, the position depends on the type of joint ownership.
There are two main ways of owning property jointly in England and Wales.
Joint tenants
If the property was owned as joint tenants, the deceased's interest will normally pass automatically to the surviving owner.
A Grant of Probate is not usually needed simply to register the surviving owner's entitlement to the property.
Tenants in common
If the property was owned as tenants in common, each owner has a separate share in the property.
When one owner dies, their share forms part of their estate and passes according to the applicable Will or inheritance rules.
The legal steps needed to deal with that share will depend on the circumstances, including who remains registered as an owner and whether a Grant is needed for other parts of the estate.
If you are unsure how the property was owned, this can usually be checked through the property's Land Registry records, although the register may not always provide a complete answer about the beneficial ownership.
Establishing the ownership position early can help avoid unnecessary applications and make it clearer what needs to happen next.
What if probate has already been completed overseas?
Even if probate has already been completed in another country, further legal steps may be needed before you can deal with property in England and Wales. An overseas Grant of Probate is not automatically recognised here.
You may already have obtained probate in the country where your relative lived, or an overseas solicitor may be dealing with the estate on your behalf.
It can be frustrating to discover that further paperwork is needed, particularly when you thought the probate process had already been completed.
However, there are procedures that allow certain overseas Grants to be recognised in England and Wales. Where this is not possible, a separate application may be required.
What does resealing a foreign Grant of Probate mean?
Resealing is a legal process that allows certain Grants issued in other jurisdictions to be recognised in England and Wales.
Put simply, it means that a qualifying overseas Grant can be given the legal authority needed to deal with assets here.
This can avoid the need to make a separate application for a new Grant of Representation.
However, resealing is only available for Grants issued in certain jurisdictions and where the relevant legal requirements are met.
Not every country qualifies, and you should not assume that an overseas Grant can be resealed simply because it has already been issued by a court or other authority abroad.
It is important to establish whether the Grant is eligible before deciding how to proceed.
What if the overseas Grant cannot be resealed?
If resealing is not available, a separate Grant of Representation will normally be needed in England and Wales to deal with a property owned solely by the deceased.
This does not necessarily mean starting the entire overseas probate process again.
Instead, an application is made under the rules that apply in England and Wales, using the relevant information and documents from the estate.
The requirements will depend on the circumstances, including whether there is a Will, the deceased's domicile for succession purposes and who is entitled to apply.
At Nash & Co Solicitors, we can help establish which process is appropriate and deal with the application where necessary.
You can also read more about the different procedures on our dedicated Resealing Foreign Grants of Probate page.
What happens if the person owned property in both countries?
If someone owned property in England or Wales and in the country where they lived, their estate may need to be dealt with under two different legal systems.
For example, a couple might retire to France but retain their former family home in Cornwall, which they rent out.
When one of them dies, the estate may involve property in both countries.
The property in England and Wales may require the probate process of England and Wales to be followed, while the French property will need to be dealt with under the procedures that apply in France.
There may also be differences in the inheritance laws that govern the properties.
Some countries have rules that protect the inheritance rights of particular family members. Others allow greater freedom over who inherits.
It is important not to assume that the same Will, legal process or inheritance rules will necessarily apply to every property.
Where solicitors or other professional advisers are involved in both countries, they may need to work together to ensure that the different parts of the estate are dealt with correctly.
Where an estate involves property or other assets in several countries, our guide to international probate and cross-border estates explains how the different legal processes may need to work together.
Can you sell the UK property after someone dies abroad?
Yes. A property in England or Wales can usually be sold as part of the estate administration, but the people arranging the sale must have the appropriate legal authority.
Where the deceased owned the property in their sole name, a Grant of Representation recognised in England and Wales will normally be needed before the sale can be completed.
You may be able to begin preparing for the sale before the Grant has been issued, including obtaining valuations and speaking to estate agents.
However, you should make sure that the necessary legal authority will be available before committing to a completion date.
There are also practical matters to consider while the property remains part of the estate.
For example, you may need to check that the property is properly insured, particularly if it is empty. If there is a mortgage, payments and other obligations will need to be managed. If the property is rented out, existing tenancy arrangements will also need attention.
The property will usually need to be valued as at the date of death for estate administration and potentially inheritance tax purposes.
If the executors live overseas, arrangements may also be needed for identity checks, signing documents and dealing with the sale from another country.
These matters can generally be managed without the executors having to travel to England although the precise arrangements will depend on the circumstances.
What if you want to keep the property rather than sell it?
If you or another beneficiary is entitled to inherit the property, it may be possible to transfer it into that person's name instead of selling it.
The process will depend on the terms of the Will, the applicable inheritance rules and how the property was owned.
There may also be tax considerations, particularly if the person inheriting the property lives overseas.
It is worth obtaining advice before deciding whether to retain, transfer or sell a property, especially where the estate involves assets in more than one country.
What if your relative made a Will abroad?
A Will made overseas may be recognised in England and Wales, but it is important to check what the Will covers and whether it affects any other Wills the person made.
Someone who has lived overseas for many years may have made a Will in the country where they settled.
They might also have an older English Will, or separate Wills intended to deal with property in different countries.
This does not necessarily create a problem, but the documents need to be considered carefully.
There are several questions that may need to be answered.
Does the overseas Will cover the property in England? Is an earlier English Will still valid? Has a later Will revoked an earlier one? Which country's inheritance laws apply to the property?
These questions can become particularly important where someone made separate Wills for assets in different countries.
For example, a person might have made an English Will dealing with their property in Devon and a Spanish Will dealing with their home in Spain.
If the documents were prepared without considering one another, there is a risk that the wording of one Will could affect the other.
Where more than one Will exists, it is sensible to have them reviewed before taking steps to administer or distribute the estate.
Will inheritance tax be payable on the UK property?
Potentially, yes. Living abroad does not automatically mean that property in England and Wales is exempt from UK inheritance tax.
Whether inheritance tax is payable will depend on the circumstances, including the value of the estate, the available exemptions and reliefs, the person's UK residence history and when they died.
For deaths on or after 6 April 2025, the UK introduced new rules based principally on long-term UK residence when determining whether overseas assets fall within the scope of UK inheritance tax.
Broadly speaking, UK property can remain within the scope of UK inheritance tax even where the deceased was not a long-term UK resident.
For someone who had been a long-term UK resident, overseas assets may also be within the scope of UK inheritance tax. This can sometimes continue for a period after they have moved abroad.
Different rules apply to deaths before 6 April 2025.
Could inheritance tax also be payable in the country where they lived?
Yes, depending on the country involved, the estate or beneficiaries may also face inheritance, estate or succession taxes overseas.
Different countries have their own rules about which assets are taxed and who is responsible for paying.
However, this does not necessarily mean the same assets will ultimately be taxed twice without relief.
There may be double-taxation agreements or other reliefs available to reduce the impact of tax charged in more than one jurisdiction.
The position can be complicated, particularly where the estate includes valuable property, investments or other significant assets.
It is therefore sensible to establish the tax position before making decisions about distributing the estate.
How long will it take to deal with the UK property?
There is no fixed timescale for dealing with UK property following the death of someone living overseas. The time required will depend on the probate process, the documents available and whether there are any complications with the property or wider estate.
If an overseas Grant has already been obtained and is eligible for resealing, the process may be more straightforward than where a separate application is needed.
However, there can still be additional steps, including obtaining overseas documents, arranging translations, dealing with inheritance tax reporting and waiting for the relevant Grant to be issued.
If the property is being sold, the conveyancing process will also need to be completed.
Where the estate involves several countries, the different legal processes may need to be coordinated, which can affect how long the administration takes.
One of the most useful things you can do is establish the correct procedure early. This can help avoid spending time preparing an application that turns out not to be appropriate.
Your first steps when dealing with UK property
If you are responsible for dealing with the estate, you do not need to have everything organised before seeking legal advice. However, gathering a few key details can help establish what needs to happen next.
Find out how the UK property was owned. Was it in the deceased's sole name or jointly owned? This can affect whether a Grant is needed.
Locate any Wills. Try to establish whether your relative made a Will in England and Wales, overseas or both.
Check whether probate has already been obtained abroad. If an overseas solicitor is dealing with the estate, ask whether a Grant or equivalent document has been issued.
Gather information about the UK property. Its address, ownership details, mortgage information and approximate value will all be useful.
Make sure the property is protected. Check insurance arrangements, security and any ongoing financial commitments.
Establish which probate process applies. Before arranging a sale or transfer, find out whether an English or Welsh Grant is required and whether an overseas Grant can be resealed.
You do not necessarily need to complete these steps in this order, and some may not apply to your circumstances.
The aim is simply to begin building a clear picture of the estate and the legal steps that may be required.
Talk to our specialist international probate solicitors
If someone close to you has died while living abroad and left property in England or Wales, you may have questions about what happens next, whether probate is needed or how to deal with the property.
Our specialist international probate solicitors at Nash & Co Solicitors are here to help. We can listen to your circumstances, explain the legal steps that may be needed and help you understand your options.
You don't need to have all the answers before getting in touch, and there's no obligation or pressure to instruct us. An initial conversation is simply an opportunity to explain your situation, ask questions and find out how we may be able to help.
You can contact our team in whichever way is easiest for you:
Call us on 01752 827067
Email us at probate@nash.co.uk
Request a call back through our Contact Us page
Whether you're in Devon, Cornwall, elsewhere in the UK or living overseas, we're happy to talk through your circumstances and help you understand what to do next.
Written by Claire Thompson
Claire is a Partner with the firm, and an International probate specialist within our Wills, Trusts, Tax and Probate team. She joined the Team in August 2022.
See Claire’s profile here
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