Recent Amendments to the UAE’s Laws have made it easier for expatriates to implement the laws of their home country when it comes to the personal matters like marriage, divorce as well as in the matter of inheritance.
Amendments to the Personal Status Code and the Civil Law announced on November 7, 2020, give the expatriates living in the UAE the option to choose the law that would be applied to their inheritance in order to ensure the stability of the financial interests of the foreign investors in the country.
The new changes stipulate that inheritance would be dealt with as per the nationality of the deceased person at the time of his death. As for the general terms of the will and other post-mortem terms, they would be dealt with according to the law of the country specified in the Will. If that condition is not specifically mentioned in the Will, the law of the country of nationality of the deceased person at the time of his/her death will be applied, instead of the application of UAE law (which codifies Islamic Sharia principles on Inheritance). However, an exception remains with respect to UAE real estate, which shall continue to be subject to UAE laws, unless a Will has been registered in the UAE. This is where having a registered Will in place becomes essential to ensure the assets are distributed as per personal preferences.
There are some differences between each Courts and the following explains how it differs from each:
In the UAE, as per the law, after the demise of a person, their bank accounts – including joint accounts – will be frozen. However, getting the bank account activated by placing a Will is a fairly easy process. The Succession Certificate can be obtained from the Dubai Family Court, which categorically indicates the beneficiaries who will inherit the demised person’s moveable and immovable assets respectively. This is also including and limited to end of service benefits and other assets that are indicated in the will of the deceased person.
When an individual passes away, the guardians named in the Will should be entrusted with the custody of the children. An appointed executor will distribute the assets to the beneficiaries indicated in the Will through a process known as ‘Probate’, which includes the settling of any liabilities of the deceased person. The Dubai Local Courts allow a non-Muslims to notarize a Bilingual Will before a Notary Public.
It is advisable to place a Schedule of assets and liabilities, which contain all your local and overseas assets, an estimated market value of the assets, and your outstanding debts, with the registered will to give the legal administrators of the estate information on the individual’s estate. It can be amended at any point of time throughout the expat’s life.
As mentioned above, drafting a Will should be done by employing the services of a legal counsel, to ensure all the requirements are fulfilled as per UAE Law and the Will is finely drafted in a way which is enforceable.
This step can be completed by the assistance of your legal counsel, and is done online.
The personal attendance will be required before the Notary Public to sign and finalize all of the will formalities.
The fees for executing and notarizing a Will before the Dubai Courts amounts to approximately Dh2,000.
DIFC (Dubai International Financial Center)
The DIFC Courts Wills Service provides the online facility which enables the eligible persons for the completion and submission for the registration of a Will. DIFC Courts Will is specified for only to their real estate property.
This ‘Property Will’ can encompass up to five (5) Real Estate Properties (or a share up to five (5) real estate properties) in number which are existing in UAE. The online facility for the registration is available in the site as in the name ‘Property Will Portal’ which is only available via the website.
The different types of Wills available through the DIFC Courts Wills Service are listed below with its costs
The cost of the Will registration can vary depending upon the type of the Will. Also, Single Wills – made for an individual – can cost less compared to a Mirror Will – which a couple can opt for. Mirror wills are virtually identical wills where one person in a couple leaves their estate to the other in the event of their passing away.
The various Wills under DIFC Wills and Probate Registry are:
Which covers shares in up to 10 different bank accounts; which can be registered in the DIFC Wills Service Center Office or Via Virtual Registry. Cost of a Single Will: Dh5,000, Mirror Wills: Dh7,500) and
For the Pre-Registration checks for a property Will can be carried out by appointment at the Wills and Service or by via the Virtual Registry.
Deputy Registrar at DIFC Wills Service, Property Wills, Business owners’ Wills and Financial Assets Wills already had a virtual registry at DIFC. The courts have now started an online service for Full Wills.
“The registration of Full Wills happens via a video conferencing, enabling the service to be accessed remotely from your smartphone, tablet or desktop devices and from the comfort of your home itself. The system allows the Testator and two witnesses to join in on the video conferencing call from any locations, and which further allows an approved Will to be directly uploaded on the system and to affix the electronic signatures,”
The first step is to reach out to a legal practitioner registered with DIFC Courts, who can draft your will following the basic requirements as laid out by the UAE law. This is a crucial step, because if you do not fulfil the basic legal requirements, your will would not be enforceable. Thus, the DIFC Court Will is considered as an extremely important document which should needed to be prepared under a proper legal practitioner to make it error free.
By pressing ‘Get Started’ button after going to the ‘Property Will Portal’, it will be directed to the portal where you will gain access to the online Property Will template and comprehensive explanatory notes to commence the preparation of the Property Will. If it is married person, and only if one person needed to be registered the Will; he/she should select the Single DIFC Courts Will option. Whereas if both husband/wives wish to register a DIFC Courts Will at the same time, then they should select the Mirror DIFC Courts Will option (giving an overall net reduction in registration fees). Drafting the will is the most detailed part of the process, as you would need to select your beneficiaries, choose the executor of your will, appoint a guardian for underage children and be specific about who gets what. This is another reason you should consider getting a legal expert to guide you through the process.
Once you have drafted the will, you would then need to book an appointment online by visiting https://eregistry.difccourts.ae/#login or via the DIFC Wills Mobile App, which is available on Apple AppStore and Google Play Store.
You would then need to make the necessary payments in order to go ahead with the registration.
The DIFC Wills Service allows the eligible non-Muslim individuals to formally register their Will in English language according to the principles of testamentary freedom. This allows the individuals to choose to dispose of their UAE or worldwide based assets upon their death as they wish.
At the registration hearing, which is now being done online, you would need to be present along with two witnesses.
You would need the following documents during this process:
Once the details have been reviewed, all parties will be able to affix electronic signatures to complete the process.
The registration of a will in person at the DIFC Wills Service takes approximately 45 minutes to one hour.
Thus, the DIFC Court Will is considered as an extremely important document which should needed to be prepared under a proper legal practitioner to make it error free.
The DIFC Wills Service allows the eligible non-Muslim individuals to formally register their Will in English language according to the principles of testamentary freedom. This allows the individuals to choose to dispose of their UAE or worldwide based assets upon their death as they wish.
The Abu Dhabi Judicial Department (ADJD) has certain rules relating to the Succession and Inheritance matters for non-Muslims holding assets in the UAE.
Any non-Muslim having either assets or family in the UAE can register Wills in Abu Dhabi. The registration can either be done by visiting the offices of Wills Registration Office at Abu Dhabi Judicial Department or through Video Conferencing. For registration through video conferencing, the Testator must either be a UAE Resident or has to be in the UAE on a Visit Visa on that stipulated time.
The new office allows non-Muslims with assets in Abu Dhabi and other emirates to have the option to distribute their estates as they so choose. It also offers a flexible legal option, to assist non-Muslim families in the event of death.
The Abu Dhabi Judicial Department provides the following steps that need to be followed by anyone wanting to register a will:
The fees for all these processes fall to 950 Dirhams.
The Shariah Law principles will apply as default for the Muslims in the UAE for the inheritance and the distribution of the property in the UAE. The person who wants to write a Will can select Standard Shariah Compliant Will or UAE Muslim Will along with Letter of Consent.
These letters are private declarations which are intended to serve the interim documents related to guardianship of the minor children.
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