I am Bulgarian, have lived in Vienna for 15 years, and my children live in Sofia. Which law applies to my will?
Your co-pilot in inheritance law
Mag. Nevena Shotekova-Zöchling
Attorney in Vienna · 16 years of legal practice · Inheritance law
She is Bulgarian. But her inheritance law is Austrian.
Two thirds or half
She is Bulgarian and has lived in Vienna for many years, divorced, with her partner in the flat she owns. Her two adult children live in Sofia. Her wish: if something happens to her, her partner should be able to stay in the flat.
She thinks that is out of the question. “I’m Bulgarian, so Bulgarian law applies. And under it my children get two thirds, whatever I write.” With that thought she had put off making a will for years.
She is Bulgarian. But her inheritance law is Austrian.
Under the EU Succession Regulation, what counts is not citizenship but where she lives. And she lives in Vienna. Under Austrian law, the compulsory share of her two children together amounts to half, not two thirds. And it is a monetary claim, not a share in the flat. What she had thought impossible had long been possible.
We calculated both scenarios with her, in Bulgarian. She deliberately decided against choosing Bulgarian law. In the will her partner receives the flat, the children receive the remaining assets, and their compulsory share is covered.
The lesson: if you live abroad, don’t assume which law applies, check it. Sometimes you have more room than you think.
What the law says
- Without a choice of law: under the EU Succession Regulation, the law of the state of your last habitual residence applies. If you live in Vienna, that is Austrian law, for all your assets, including in Bulgaria.
- With a choice of law: as a Bulgarian citizen you can choose Bulgarian law in your will (Art. 22 of the Regulation). You cannot choose Austrian law as a Bulgarian citizen. It applies only as long as you live here.
- Compulsory share in Austria: it is half of the statutory share. With two children and no spouse, that is together half of the estate. It is purely a monetary claim.
- Reserved share in Bulgaria: it is higher, two thirds of the estate together for two or more children, half for one child. In principle it can be claimed from the estate itself.
- Unmarried partners have no regular statutory inheritance right in either Austria or Bulgaria. Without a will they generally get nothing.
- Moving changes everything: if you later move back to Sofia, Bulgarian law applies without a choice of law. A will built on Austrian law should then be reviewed.
What you should do now
- Clarify what you want to achieve: who should get what, and who should be provided for?
- Calculate both laws: Austrian law without a choice against Bulgarian law with a choice.
- State the decision expressly in the will, with or without a choice of law.
- Have the will deposited and registered, and reviewed if you move.
Who has jurisdiction in a succession between Austria and Bulgaria: My mother lived in Vienna, the house is in Bulgaria, my brother lives in Germany. Who has jurisdiction? →
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