Inheritance Law in Azerbaijan
- Emil Khudiyev (Lawyer)
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When you think about how the process of obtaining an inheritance goes, you probably imagine a large office where a notary sits right in the center, who opens a sheet on which the last will of the deceased is written, and saddened relatives and friends sit around. Everything is not exactly the same, but rather even in a completely different way.
Each citizen has the right to independently determine the heirs and leave his property after his death to any person, regardless of the degree of kinship, or to transfer the property to any organization.
Let’s review the procedure step by step.
What is inheritance?
Types of inheritance succession in Azerbaijan
Inheritance – the process of transferring the property of a deceased person to other persons (his heirs). So, as it becomes clear, the right to inherit arises only after the death of the testator or the recognition of his death by the court.
The property of the testator can pass to the heirs by law or by will (a combination of these two methods is also possible). Inheritance by law (transfer of the property of the deceased to the persons specified in the law) is valid when the testator did not leave a will or the will is declared invalid in whole or in part.
Intestate succession
According to Article 1159 of Civil Code of Azerbaijan following persons are considered as equal heirs during intestate succession:
1. I (first) line – children of decedent, child born after testator’s death, wife/husband, parents [adoptive parents]. Adopted person and his (her) children are equal with children and grandchildren of adoptive person as his (her) heirs or relatives.
2. II (second) line – sisters and brothers of decedent.
3. III (third) line – grandmother and grandfather on both mother’s and father’s sides, mother and father of grandmother, mother and father of grandfather.
4. IV (fourth) line – uncles and aunts on both father’s and mother’s side.
5. V (fifth) line — cousins (aunts and uncles’ children) on father’s and mother’s side then their children if they are deceased.
The existence of at least one of the successors of the previous queue excludes inheritance by the subsequent queue.
Testamentary succession in Azerbaijan
The testator may also leave his property or part of it to one or more persons from among the heirs and 3rd parties by drawing up a will. The testator may determine the shares of the heirs appointed under the will, or indicate what property will go only to one heir. If there is no such indication in the will, the inheritance is divided equally among the heirs.
Important info: A will must be drawn up personally by the testator. It is not allowed to draw up a will through a representative, however, it is possible to accept an inheritance by representative (Article 1245 of the Civil Code of Azerbaijan). Along with this, a will can be drawn up both in a notarial form in the presence of witnesses (Article 1184 of the Civil Code of Azerbaijan), and at home by hand (preferably indicating the date of the will).
But if a person died, how do you know if he left an inheritance? Very simple! It is enough to apply to notaries. To do this, you need to have an ID card (or passport), a death certificate (or an appropriate extract from the registry office) and a document confirming the relationship with the testator (birth certificate) with you.
Each notary has access to an information system that contains information about all wills in the territory of Azerbaijan. So, to search for a will, you can contact any notary, but it is better to the one that serves the last place of residence of the testator.
Important info: Notary undertakes to take all necessary measures to search for heirs who are not located at the place of opening of the inheritance (Article 1318 of the Civil Code of Azerbaijan). Notary can also assist the heirs in finding property, but this is not the responsibility of the notary body. The heir himself must take the necessary measures to search for the property of the deceased testator, and if the heir has any guesses about the property of the deceased, he can inform the notary about this so that he sends the necessary requests to state bodies, banks, companies, etc.
Accepting inheritance in Azerbaijan
Time & place of inheritance commencement
It is necessary to review such important aspects as time and place of the inheritance commencement.
Time of inheritance commencement – the day of death or the day the court decides to declare the person dead.
Place of inheritance commencement – the place of residence of the deceased person, and if it is impossible to find out, then the location of the inheritance.
Civil Code of Azerbaijan establishes that the heir may accept the inheritance within 3 months from the day when he learned or should have known about the call to inherit. It is not allowed to accept an inheritance after 6 months from the date of opening the inheritance (Article 1246 of the Civil Code of Azerbaijan).
What documents are required?
In order to inherit property (open an inheritance) located in the territory of Azerbaijan, it is necessary to submit the following documents to the relevant notary body personally or through a representative:
– Certificate of death of the testator;
– Certificate from the last place of residence of the deceased;
– Birth certificate of the testator;
– Certificate of death of the testator’s parents (if any);
– Testator’s marriage certificate;
– Birth certificate of the testator’s children;
– Documents for hereditary property (Registration certificate and Extract from the state register);
– Form № 1 for property for which there is a Registration Certificate (issued by the State Service on Property Issues);
– ID cards;
– Documents confirming the acceptance or refusal to accept the inheritance property.
After completion of this procedure, the notary issues a certificate of the right to inheritance. The certificate of the right to inheritance can be issued after 6 months from the date of opening of the inheritance.
Shares in inheritance and compulsory share
The inheritance is divided among the heirs who accept it in accordance with the share that is due to each of them by law or by will. The testator also has the right to establish in the will the procedure for the division of property between the heirs.
First, the inheritance is distributed among the heirs according to the will or the law. After that, the heirs can divide it in other proportions – by mutual agreement.
Compulsory share in inheritance is half of the share that would be due to the heirs in case of inheritance by law. In this case, heirs are the children, parents and spouse of the testator, regardless of the content of the will.
Other heirs act as joint debtors to the person entitled to claim the mandatory share.
Who are the unworthy heirs?
1. Unworthy heir – cannot be an heir either by law or by will, if these circumstances are confirmed by the court.
2. Spouses who have dissolved their marriage cannot inherit from each other.
3. Parents who have been deprived of parental rights and who have not restored these rights before the date of entry into the inheritance cannot be legal heirs.
4. Actual termination of marital relations – If it is confirmed that the marriage of the wife (husband) with the testator was actually terminated at least three years before the opening of the inheritance and the husband and wife live separately, the wife (husband) may be deprived of the right to inherit by law.
How EMZE can help you?
Searching for qualified inheritance lawyer in Azerbaijan to understand how to act? I help my clients to formalize and accept inheritance in Azerbaijan, the registration of property rights, as well as representation of interests in state authorities.
You can review all my services in the field of inheritance law by checking the “My Services” section.
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