Succession to Foreign Accounts and Brokerage Portfolios

Money and securities held in foreign accounts are among the most common — and the most fragile — parts of an estate. While the owner is alive, access seems to be taken for granted; after death the account turns into an asset that the heirs must reclaim under the rules of a foreign country, in a foreign language, and through an unfamiliar procedure. How the account is arranged in advance decides whether the family gains access in weeks or loses years to it.

Concept

A foreign account does not pass to the heirs automatically on the owner's death. The bank freezes it and will release it only to a person who proves their rights in the form the bank itself recognises — and it recognises documents drawn up under the law of its own country, which is why a Russian certificate of inheritance is usually not enough abroad. The fate of the account is decided by the law of the country where it is held (lex situs); the heirs' place of residence and the deceased's nationality are secondary here.

Freezing and Access

The bank learns of the death from a relative's notice, from returned correspondence, or through its own checks, and stops operations at once. It then waits not for any papers but for a specific set that confirms both the fact of inheritance and the heir's identity by local standards. Until that point the funds are available at most for funeral costs and taxes — and not even everywhere. The real time to unfreeze is therefore measured in months, and where the heirs are in dispute it stretches into years.

Documents and Timelines

What exactly the bank will require depends on the country. In continental Europe it is usually a local certificate of inheritance or its equivalent; in common-law countries, a grant of probate or letters of administration. For estates with a European element the European Certificate of Succession applies — a single document recognised by every state bound by the Regulation. Russian papers must be apostilled abroad (or legalised, if the country is not party to the Hague Convention) and accompanied by a sworn translation. Assembling and getting this package recognised is the main reason access stretches over months.

Brokerage Portfolios and US-situs

A particular risk is a brokerage portfolio holding US securities. Shares in US-incorporated companies count as US-situs assets even when bought through a European broker or registered to a nominee. On value above $60,000 the estate of a non-resident non-citizen is charged federal estate tax at up to 40%, and that threshold has not been indexed since 1976. US bank deposits, Treasury bonds, and bonds falling under the portfolio interest exemption drop out of situs, however. A tax treaty between the US and the deceased's country can raise the exempt amount; the threshold rules and Form 706-NA are set out by the IRS.

Europe: Brussels IV and the Single Certificate

In the European Union, cross-border succession is governed by Regulation (EU) No 650/2012, known as Brussels IV. As a general rule the estate is governed by the law of the country of the deceased's last habitual residence, though a will can choose the law of one's nationality in advance (professio juris). It was this Regulation that introduced the European Certificate of Succession, replacing separate procedures in each country. It applies across almost all of the EU, but Denmark and Ireland do not take part — national rules remain in force there.

United Kingdom: From 2025, by Residence

From 6 April 2025 the UK inheritance tax is tied to long-term residence rather than domicile. A long-term resident — someone who has been UK tax-resident for at least 10 of the last 20 years — pays IHT on worldwide assets; everyone else answers only for assets with a UK situs. The rate remains 40% above the nil-rate band of £325,000. UK shares and accounts fall under IHT regardless of where their owner lived, and after leaving the country a "tail" of between 3 and 10 years persists. Rates across countries are easy to compare on the inheritance-tax map.

CRS: Who Sees What

Under the CRS standard, banks automatically report account information to the tax authorities of the country where the owner was tax-resident. So the state is most likely aware of the account's very existence. That does not help the heirs: the bank is under no duty to track them down and will not report the account on its own initiative. If the owner left no list of accounts, the family often learns of them by chance — from bank letters, phone apps, or old statements. A map of accounts drawn up during one's lifetime therefore saves both time and money.

How to Simplify

A few concrete steps speed up access. First, a map of accounts: where they are held, of what type, with managers' contacts and details, updated at least once a year. Second, joint accounts and designated beneficiaries (joint account, payable-on-death) where local law allows it. Third, for large portfolios, a trust or a family holding: these hold the assets and survive the founder's death without freezing. And finally, a will that expressly covers the foreign assets and is aligned with the law of the country where the account is held.

🧭 Check your case: Inheritance Navigator — which law applies, where forced heirship and taxes arise.

This material is for informational purposes only and does not constitute individual legal advice.

Sources

• IRS
• Regulation (EU) No 650/2012