How to Probate a Will in the Philippines
This article explains how to Probate a Will in the Philippines.
When you inherit though a Will, you must go through Probate Court (or the Probate Proceedings) so that the Will can accepted by the BIR, RD and City Assessors and the property can be transferred to the heirs.
Any kind of Will – a foreign Will, a Holographic Will or Notarial Will – requires Probate.
Without Probate Proceedings, the Will will not be accepted at government agencies. Titles, Tax declarations and other documents will not be transferred to the heirs without Probate Proceedings.
In this article, I discuss How to Probate a Will, Reprobate, Probate Court and Probate Proceedings.
For help making a Will, check my article How To Make A Last Will And Testament In The Philippines
What is a Will?
A Will is a document created according to Philippine Law which determines how a person’s (the Testator) assets are to be distributed to his Heirs.
There are 2 types of Wills in the Philippines.
• A Holographic Will is handwritten
• A Notarial Will is notarized and witnessed.
Each must follow certain requirements so that the Will is valid.
For instance, a Notarial Will must be notarized, signed and dated by the Testator. It must also be signed by 3 witnesses in the Testator’s presence. These are only some requirements. There are several other requirements that must be followed to ensure the Notarial Will is respected.
On the other hand, a Holographic Will must be handwritten, signed and dated.
Both Notarial Wills and Holographic Wills must comply with the law on Legitimes or Compulsory Heirs. This law mandates who inherits and the amount they inherit. This law must be obeyed for a Philippine Will to be valid.
A couple of important points when making a Philippine Will:
• A Will only disposes of the Free Portion of the Estate. The rest of the Estate must follow the Philippines law on Compulsory Heirs. This law dictates how much and to whom you can give your Properties.
• You can disinherit Compulsory Heirs BUT you have to follow the laws on Disinheritance.
• A Will must go through Probate Proceedings at a Probate Court for you to be able to use it
• A Will has to strictly follow the correct form and rules.
Read More: If you want to make a Will, you must be careful as to the form of the Will. This can be very important and I give practical advice here but it is really best you have a lawyer when making a Will.
What are Probate Proceedings?
Probate Proceedings is a court process to prove a Will is valid. It is required for the BIR, RD, City Assessors or other government agencies to transfer the property to the heirs.
It is important that the Will is validly made and follows Philippine Law (such as the law on Compulsory Heirs.)
Probate Proceedings should be filed at Probate Court in the municipality or city of the deceased persons permanent residence.
Court filing fees will need to be paid when filing for Probate of Will. Court filing fees are a percentage of the Estate and fees can be very large.
Evidence, such as the original Will, must be filed in court during Probate Proceedings to validate the Will.
For the completely handwritten Holographic Will, handwriting samples of the Testator must be submitted.
For a Notarial Will, the three Witnesses who signed the Will usually testify.
While some of the proof needed is standard, other forms of proof may be required depending on the situation especially if someone does not agree with or disputes the Will.
If someone opposes the Will or the court needs more proof, then Probate Proceedings can be long and expensive.
People making a Philippine Will should consider filing Probate Proceedings while alive. They can testify at Probate Court as to their intentions and the validity of the Will.
People should also consider if they really want to make a Will given the high cost of the Probate filing fee.
Does a Will have to go to Probate Court?
Yes. A Will must go through Probate Court because government agencies require it before transferring any property to the Heirs. The Probate Court Decision will be required by officers in each agency before starting on the transfer.
The Probate Court Decision will be inspected at each step and so you must go through Probate Proceedings for any Will to be validated.
So, until the Probate Process is completed, the properties will remain in the name of the deceased.
Does a foreign Will Probated abroad still have to be Probated in the Philippines?
Yes. A foreign Will must still go through Probate Court in the Philippines so that it can be proven that the Will is valid.
There are some common situations where this applies:
• If the deceased was a foreigner and the Estate includes Philippine property/stock
• If the deceased was a Filipino/dual citizen who created a Will abroad regarding their Philippine property/stock
Administrative bodies will not transfer Philippine real property or stocks without the Philippine Probate Court’s decision even if the deceased was a foreigner.
So Probate is necessary step even when there is a foreign Will.
Can a foreign Will be Probated in the Philippines without Probate abroad?
Yes. It is not required for a foreign Will to be Probated abroad before being Probated in Probate Court Philippines. [G.R. 169144, Jan 2011]
As an example, you have an Filipino aunt who died abroad and left you property in a foreign Will.
This Will can be Probated in the Philippines without going through Probate Proceedings abroad.
This will validate the Will and allow transfer of property.
Where do I Probate a Will?
Probate Proceedings in the Philippines stipulate that a Will is Probated in a Probate Court in the city/municipality of the deceased’s permanent residence.
If the deceased’s permanent residence is abroad, then the Will is Probated in the Probate Court where the land or property is located.
The case is filed at the Regional Trial Court.
Can I Probate my Will while I am still alive?
Yes, you can Probate a Will while you are still alive.
Probating a Will while the Testator is alive can be very effective.
The Probate Court Philippines can see for itself that the person creating the Will is of sound mind.
The court can also more easily ensure that the Will really comes from the Testator and that it faithfully explains his wishes.
I generally urge a person who has a Will to undergo the Probate of the Will while alive as it saves so much trouble later on.
Probate Proceedings Philippines: What is the process?
The Probate Proceedings process has several steps including filing, testifying, and presenting evidence at Probate Court. Probate Proceedings can be filed by anyone with an interest in the Estate or even the person who made the Will himself (the “Testator”).
A Probate of Will in the Philippines generally has the following steps:
• File the Will and the Petition in court.
• Pay the filing fee. The filing fee can range based on the table of fees. A good estimate is about 2%.
• Publish a Notice in a Newspaper as per the court order for 3 consecutive weeks with service to all interested parties.
• Testimony will be required and can take a long time if the Will is contested. (i.e. someone objects.)
• The Probate Court Decision is released.
It takes at least 2 or so years. This can be longer if the Will is Contested, in which case the Probate Court will render its decision.
If you have any questions, concerns or wish to engage a lawyer to help you with writing or Probating a Will you may contact us
Atty. Francesco C. Britanico FCB Law Office
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Good day, Attorney.
I would like to ask for a practical advice considering that the subject property is one that is located in an urban poor area with only 120sq.m. The deceased died without an heir (no spouse, no children, no parents or grandparents left) but he left a holographic will stating that he is giving his 120sq.m. parcel of land to his nephew. This will had been witnessed and signed by one of the siblings of the deceased.
However, few years after and because of some family problems, the sibling-witness together with two other siblings sent a demand letter to the nephew asking for Php150,000.00 for each sibling as their “share” in the said parcel of land. This amounts to a total of Php450,000.00, an amount which is too big for the family of the nephew-recipient. Although you have mentioned that there is no need for the holographic will to be notarized, they are insisting that the will cannot be recognized as it was not notarized.
My question is, is there a need for the holographic will to be probated first before it can be considered as effective which will consequently give the nephew the right to assert ownership over the parcel of land? We believe that if the holographic will is already effective as it is, it will bar the claims of the siblings over the said land as they are only collateral relatives of the deceased.
Thank you for your assistance, Attorney. The article is already very helpful in our problem but we would really appreciate any advice you may give us regarding the above matter.
A will must be probated for it to transfer property.
Can the probate proceedings be expedited given the following conditions:
1. All compulsory heirs are in the will.
2. All compulsary heirs give no objection to the will.
3. Person who passed away has no debts or civil obligations
Can the compulsary heirs just provide an affidavit stating the abovementioned items to expedite the proceedings?
The probate still has to go through the court process which does include the filing of affidavits among other requirements.
what if the testator is dead and the petitioner who is going to file this probate lives in the same city but all the properties are located in a different city or province.. where should it be filed?
The probate case should be filed where the properties are located or where the deceased resided.
If there is a notarial will and all the beneficiaries and legitimate heirs claim no objection to the will, and that the maker of the will has no debts, is there a way to fast track the probate or avoid it? (e.g jointly signing an affidavit of no objection to the will)?
All wills must go through probate in order to validly transfer property. The best way to fast track under such circumstances is to prepare and manage the court case efficiently.
Good day! My hardworking auntie, who is a single and no beneficiary, Filipino citizen, died 2yrs ago leaving properties and money in the bank,(at Ph). Parents are both dead. she made a holographic will, giving her assets to selected siblings and relatives who took care of her. Other siblings are thinking that it is not fair. My question: Is it possible not to probate the holographic will but instead sharing the assets equally to living siblings and to the family of dead siblings?
How does one define fair here?
If the entire family agrees, perhaps there is nothing to stop them from dividing the assets as they wish.
On the other hand, it was her property, her estate, and she had the right to allot it the way she wanted.
I am a U.S. citizen.
I am a legal resident of the Philippines by way of SRRV, Special Retiree Resident Visa.
I am single and I have no children.
I want to make a holographic will, leaving all funds in my bank accounts to one person, a longtime friend.
My question is:
As a non-Filipino citizen, but a legal resident, will my holographic will be valid here in the Philippines, the same as for a Filipino citizen?
Yes, but it will have to be probated (proved in court) for it to transfer property. The probate of a will may be done before or after the testator’s death.
Thank you so much for the information.
Hi. My mom is legally adopted by my grandmother. She also has sole heirship papers that state that the land where our ancestral house (built by my grandmother) will be transferred to my mom.
However, years later after the passing of my grandmother, my uncle wanted to own the land and house my grandmother left for us. He said he has a written will stating that the land and house was given to him by my grandmother as payment for taking care of her when she was ill.
As of this writing, they haven’t filed any claims yet. We haven’t seen the written will, too. And if for that reason (payment for taking care of my grandma), we believe it wasn’t her intention as my mom and grandmother have a good relationship before her passing.
Your mother may consider filing a case for the settlement of her mother’s estate with the documents she has. It would then be your uncle’s obligation to submit the will to the court or admit that there was none.
Hi, there is someone emailed me about the inheritance. And they sent me files stated that I have to inherit the will. Is it legitimate or not?
We can’t know without reviewing the documents ourselves, but please be wary of scams.
Is there a deadline for filing the will to the court to be probated? My aunt died in 2017 and the admin was not able to file to court because of many obligations
There is no expiration date for probate, but the estate tax penalties may accrue over time depending in part on whether you can avail of the estate tax amnesty currently offered by the Philippine government.
What if the probated will includes properties outside of the country, but the owner wanted it to transfer to a Filipino citizen. Lex Situs, the land is governed by the state they are situated. Is the probated will recognized?
If the will was already probated abroad, it may be reprobated in the Philippines:
https://lawyerphilippines.org/2019/04/29/reprobate-of-wills-in-the-philippines/
Hello. How does one start the probate process in the Philippines? My grandmother and I have a joint property in the U.S. She did not leave a will when she passed away. My mom, her only child, did not leave a will when she passed away. Both passed away in the Philippines. My siblings and I are the only surviving heirs.
If there was no will and all the heirs are in agreement, an extrajudicial settlement of the estate would be the way forward.
We have written about this here:
https://lawyerphilippines.org/2018/10/20/how-to-transfer-land-heirs-philippines-extrajudicial-settlement-philippine-land-inheritance/
We have a client in the U.S. whose parents are both deceased, and left property in the Philippines to their two adult sons. Would you please contact me regarding the process?
Will send an email.
Hi. I found your site informative. I would just like to inquire and confirm some actions.
My grandaunt passed away last June 8. She left a holographic Will. All the important elements are there — signature, date signed and was handwritten by the deceased. As per my understanding to this website, this holographic Will should be probated before I am able to use it to the bank, for example? So I must go the the municipal hall of Quezon City to have this probated? Are there any requirements that I should bring? Is there a deadline for this? If the holographic Will is probated, there is no need for the extra-judicial settlement then? Will this holographic Will apply to a dual citizen? I would appreciate any response from your end. Thank you and hoping for your email reply.
Sent the email reply.
My inquiry is also almost entirely the same with this.
A holographic will is known to be existing and we are yet to find where it might be. My aunt, who passed away 28 March 2021 Sunday, at age of 86, married (husband also deceased), has only one heir, living abroad, US citizen, owns a residential land with home constructed thereon. She is also part owner of a land through inheritance of my grandparents here in our province. Further, what are the rules during this pandemic, deadlines, proceedings, etc. I am inquiring on behalf of the family, the son of my aunt is still in US and unable to travel due to pandemic.
Finding the will would be important. Absent a will, the sole heir could self adjudicate the property to himself without needing to go court. This can be accomplished even if he is not in the country provided that the paperwork is set in order.
We could look into the specific situation if you fill out our form on:
https://lawyerphilippines.org/
All our properties and financial assets are jointly owned by my wife and I. Can we execute a joint will.
No. A joint will is invalid in the Philippines.
Hi, my late uncle owned 1/3 of our ancestral home.. having no children, he left me his share of the property through a holographic will. My mother had the will probated years ago (I was still very young) but it was dismissed for some reason. My mother said it was dismissed because she only paid for the tax of the share of my uncle (since he only had 1/3 share and co-owned it with 2 of his siblings) not the full estate tax. My mother, wanting a peaceful co-existence with my aunts and uncles, no longer pursued the matter.. she hid the will and never talked about it again. My mother has since passed away.. Upon packing up her things i found the will of my late uncle among her things. Can i still file for probate? can it be considered as a late discovery of will since my mother hid the will from me?
Sent an email.
Hi Atty.
My Father’s Aunt passed away last 2012, she has no spouse nor children. We found out that she made a notarial will which states that she wanted to give her small portion of land (less than 100 square meters) to me and my 2 other siblings. Do you think how much will be the cost for the probate process? And how would it usually take? Can we start renovating the land without probate? Thank you
Sent an email.
My father passed away and I become executor of his will.I am Filipino by birth and now have different nationality..and living abroad
Can I continue being eXecutorr of his Will
If the philippines law stated that the executor be a resident in the philippines?
, a
Sent an email.
My friend’s parents both passed away within one year and they left a notarized will naming him as executor. He wants to know if he can probate the will without getting the services of a lawyer. In other words, can a person probate a will on their own without the help of a lawyer? Thanks so much.
Your friend will need a lawyer.
Hi,
I have a friend who passed a way about a year ago, she is naturalized citizen to the city where she reside upon her death.
She has will probated in the city where she reside., she is single and no sibling nor parents living. She has a property in the philippines. how will the executor proceed with the process.
thanks
Sent an email.
A resident of Philippine died not married but has brothers sisters nieces and nephew. No Will or real estate was owned by him in Philippines. He does own property with his sister in the U S. Can the court in Philippines issue a document or letter stating no probate?
Sent an email.
My sister who died years ago left a holographic will. She has two properties. An agri land and the residential house at antipolo. We had a buyer who is interested to buy the agri land asap so i and the other heirs decided to produce an extrajudicial settlement of estate of my sister to be able to sell the agri land left by my sister. The process was smooth and we are just waiting for the transfer of title to the buyer. What is left is the property at Antipolo. The title was mortgaged, we have paid it completely but the Company is requiring a court order since they knew about the Last Will, before they release the title of the House to us. Now, we have to probate the last will to get the title and we are worried of the extrajuducial process we made on the agri land. Can you please advise me what to do about this. Will there be a problem on the aold agri land?
Sent an email.
How do attorneys in the Philippines handle fees? For example, in the states, probate attorneys are paid out of a bank account opened under a tax ID number created for the estate and there is often a delay until assets are deposited into this account. Our client has land titles he would like to sell and is wondering if the attorney fees can be paid after the properties have been sold.
Sent an email.
Hello! My father suppose to received a land inheritance from his mother through verbal promise however the land title is still under his mother. Now, my uncle is currently living on that land and wanting to own it. Not sure what to do? Both my grandmother and father are already dead and there’s no will left on what to do on the land. Thank you so much for your help.
I assume that your grandmother and grandfather are Filipino and both have no will?
If such, then the inheritance will fall under Philippine intestate laws. These dictate who inherits and the amount of the inheritance.
In addition, an extrajudicial process must be followed to transfer the property to the heirs’ names.
Hello, I would like to ask I have a client one of the heirs US citizen it was about to close the deal when the owner died in the homecare & she has 3children but the will goes to the 3 grand children. the 2 children are deprived why the will goes to the grand children. 2siblings file a probate there in the US while the property is in the Phils If the grandchildren will excute the SPA to one of the heirs in the Phils in order to proceed the said sale. Is it valid? How to close the said sale? Some heirs in the Phils want to receive the proceeds. Is there any possiblity to close the deal with agreement between the seller & buyer.
It is unclear whether the probate in the US is already completed. It is also unclear from the description whether the deceased was a Filipino citizen or not, which makes a difference as to the scope of her freedom to dispose of the property in a will.
Assuming she could validly skip over her children in a will because she was no longer a Filipino – an assumption by no means certain – the foreign will may still need to be reprobated in the Philippines in order for it to transfer property in the Philippines.
Hello, po. How much would it cost to probate a will po?
We would need to know more details, such as in which city or municipality the probate case should be filed. Please complete our form on https://lawyerphilippines.org so that we can help you.
My mother is past 90 years old and would like to transfer a property to her 8 grandchildren. It takes time to transfer so we’re thinking of preparing a will specifying the names of her grandkids to whom she wills the property . Is this advisable? How do we go through it? Do we need a lawyer? Thank you .
It can be done. Yes, you will probably need a lawyer because there are formal and substantive requirements that have to be complied with for a valid will.
Our form on https://lawyerphilippines.org can get the details of your situation so that we can begin to know your particular circumstances.
Good morning, my uncle died last dec 2019.. left a property here in PH. All heirs are in the US. They would like to sell the property already. They would like to know if the spouses of the children need to sign the Extrajudicial settlement or can be signed only by the widowed wife and the children. Thanks!
Spouses of heirs generally do not participate in the inheritance.
My father in law is a uk citizen who married a philippine woman and moved to the philippines, they split up after moving but couldnt get a divorce, he told my wife she was to be left monies in his will and has passes away a month ago. My wife doesnt have any idea on what to do or where to start and would appreciate any advice
This may require contacting his Philippine lawyer who might have drafted his will, if he had one. We would need more information to say. Will send you an email.
How much is the filing fee? Is it roughly 2% of Assessed Value OR Market Value??? Pls reply..
Typically whichever is higher.
Hello I would like to know what to do My Mom and Dad owns a land and house. My Dad pass away long time ago then my Mom pass away Dec. 15, 2010.
My question is 7 of us their children are all US citizen we are upto date of paying the real property tax but we did not know that there is penalty by not transferring the estate right away..It’s a family house we only visit when we go on vacation in the Philippines.
What are our steps in transferring the estate among us.
I have sent you an email.
I mean po is condonation not condemnation
My wife is the executor of her mother’s will in the PI. What if any are the ranges of executor fee.
This very much depends on the nature and scope of the estate. Do note though that an executor must be a resident of the Philippines.
Mam Jacque we have the same issue, only that I’m in the Phil’s. We have not paid d estate tax of our parents properties but I’m paying the yearly land tax. Pls make sure to process d estate tax before feb 2021. Pres digong ordered for the condemnation of the fines and penalties for not paying estate taxes, but only for 2 years. Pls act now