Wills

[face2face]

Does anyone know if a will is prepared in the UK, is it recognised here, if not anyone know what sort of cost it is to have one drawn up here.

Thank you

[Deniz1]

I was quoted £250 here.

[The Dog Walker]

I have friends whose Wills have cost between 250 and 1000 sterling, but it's much cheaper, and equally legal, to have it done by a Notary, who will ensure that you have copies in both English and Turkish. I don't know about having a Will drawn up in UK, but would rather doubt its legality -- perhaps others will know.

[PoshinDevon]

A will drawn up in the UK will not cover your assets, property etc in the TRNC.

We were advised to get a TRNC will in place.

Some people did say that using a TRNC advocate (solicitor) was not necessary and that it could be done yourself if you were prepared to do so. Think also a notary can do the same for you as well. On balance we decided to use the same legal representative who looked after our property purchase to draw up our joint matching wills. Process was straightforward with a short trip to the court complex in Girne to have the wills formerly registered, sealed and lodged.

Think the cost was around £200 plus some stamps. Charge seemed reasonable for peace of mind.

Hope this helps.

[journey1]

I concur with all advice from PoshinDevon but also advise to ensure you do not have the North Cyprus solicitors as your named executers within your will. Always make sure it is someone you trust fully. You will require their British passport details for the document ( that is if they are British)
cheers

[PoshinDevon]

Of course you can choose your own executor to exercise the will.

Think carefully who you want to use as your executor, remember that whoever is the executor will need to understand and follow the law/ rules of the TRNC. Plus having some knowledge of the language would be very useful as well.

I dont necessarily agree that you should not use a TRNC advocate/solicitor, its about personal choice and really depends on wether you can trust them. Do your research and then decide.

The most important thing is of course to ensure you have the will in place and peace of mind that you have done the right thing.

[journey1]

I still think you should check carefully the terms and conditions of using a North Cyprus solicitor as your executor and as said ensure whoever you do choose is aware of the ever changing situations in North Cyprus.

[face2face]

Thank you so much for your advise and opinions, I have taken these on board and will look into these further.

Best Wishes, M

[soyelcin]

Out of interest , what happens when a will is not made?

[PoshinDevon]

Out of interest , what happens when a will is not made?

Not 100% certain bit I am sure we were told that your assets are taken up by the state. Could be wrong but one thing will be certain is that with no will in place things will be very complicated to resolve.

[Philoz]

I think this will answer most of your questions-

http://www.nmplegal.com/assets/docs/Gui ... e_TRNC.pdf

Glad to be of service.

[Deniz1]

Thank you Philoz very helpful.

[soyelcin]

Thank you Philoz, do you have anymore info regarding this ......TRNC nationals and other foreigners do not have complete freedom to dispose of their entire estate in this way.
I believe all belongings must be shared equally to children, do you know if this is correct?

[sophie]

This is from an official TRNC Document, re dying without making a will.

The TRNC Government is not entitled to your estate if you do not make a will. The Government is only entitled, by law, to an estate should there by no next of kin. If there is no will and the deceased has no surviving spouse or legitimate children or descendants of those children in the first level of heirs and no parents and brothers or sisters in the second level of heirs then the right of inheritance in varying percentages devolves down to the fourth level of relatives. If there are no relatives up to the fourth level then the estate goes to the state.
++++++++++++++++

There is no such term as "common law wife/husband - better now know as "Partner" and is not recognised in the TRNC, and no matter how many years couples have lived together, if they are not LEGALLY married, on either of their deaths, none of the estate is left to the surviving partner. Again, if a child is born to parents who are NOT legally married and even if the father has registered the child in his name, still the illegitimate child is not entitled to inherit any property left from His/her unmarried father. Under these circumstances any couple not being legally married, and wanting to leave their property on their death to their surviving partner and/or to their children, should ENSURE that before their death they make a will leaving their estate to whomever they wish. (In other words, if there is NO will then NO part of the estate goes to partner or children)

++++++++++

If you own a property in the TRNC and a car and money in TRNC bank accounts you will definitely need a TRNC will. Wills made in other countries DO NOT protect properties in the TRNC and VICE VERSA.

[tomsteel]

We re-registered our new wills in Girne Court this morning. Will registration is done on Mon, Wed & Fri mornings between 0900 and 1200, however, you may wish to visit first and make an appointment with Filis (upstairs office on right), who speaks good English. Costs, via Government Stamps, were: 46 TL, 6 TL and 2 TL for cancellation of old will. Did not use an advocate and have a good Turkish Cypriot friend as executor (he's married to an advocate though). You must have 2 witnesses' signatures and passport details on the will and have each page signed plus take your passport. Painless process!

[Deniz1]

So did you write the will yourself?

[Loobyloo]

Citizens advice at Karakum will help. The problem with using your ' Cypriot lawyer ' as executor is they can charge about 15% of your estate which could be a fairly large amount of money

[Owl Lady]

Also for information, there is no such thing here as a codicil, as there is in the UK. If you want to add anything, you have to have the whole will, re-written!! Don't forget also to have both or all names of car drivers on your log book. If it is in one name only and that person dies the others cannot even drive the car or sell it! All this learnt from experience!!

[tomsteel]

Ref writing of wills, yes we did them ourselves using a template available from this site under Soner's posting. Our advocate checked them and offered a few minor amendments, some of which we agreed with and used in the final draft.

[sophie1]

Tomsteel

Can I ask did you use a notary in the process at all? or did you have your will drawn up as you say and have 2 witnesses sign at the same time as you signed with all their details included, IE. Passport Number. Did you then take the completed will to the court office to have it formally registered?

Regards
Sophie

[Nuggets]

Ref writing of wills, yes we did them ourselves using a template available from this site under Soner's posting. Our advocate checked them and offered a few minor amendments, some of which we agreed with and used in the final draft.

Hi, after doing all that work yourself do you really need to pay an Advocate? if you do aprox is the amount you will have to pay ? thanks.

[PoshinDevon]

Nuggets

No need to use an advocate. You could do it yourself or get a notary to draw up the will.

Really is personal choice and what you feel is for the best. Plus also the costs. DIY is obviously the cheapest way to go.

As I posted in message 4 a while back, we used our advocate. The prime reason for this is we wanted to get things right and whilst we thought about a DIY option we did have concerns that we may not have done it correctly. For the money we paid for the wills we thought the expense worth it. Personal choice, but the most important thing is to get a will/s in place.

[Nuggets]

Nuggets

No need to use an advocate. You could do it yourself or get a notary to draw up the will.

Really is personal choice and what you feel is for the best. Plus also the costs. DIY is obviously the cheapest way to go.

As I posted in message 4 a while back, we used our advocate. The prime reason for this is we wanted to get things right and whilst we thought about a DIY option we did have concerns that we may not have done it correctly. For the money we paid for the wills we thought the expense worth it. Personal choice, but the most important thing is to get a will/s in place.

Thanks for your reply, its the same in Turkey you can do a lot of stuff yourself if you know how, my wife is Turkish so that helps a lot.

[PapaBravo]

Thanks Philoz, most helpful.