When a person dies without a valid will, the heirs do not automatically receive separate pieces of land, individual bank accounts, or specific assets. They first become co-owners of the net estate, subject to the decedent’s debts, taxes, and the surviving spouse’s existing property rights. Partition is the process of identifying the lawful heirs, calculating their shares, paying estate obligations, and assigning particular properties or their value to each heir.

A proper partition can be completed through an extrajudicial settlement when everyone agrees and the requirements of Rule 74 are met. When an heir refuses, ownership is disputed, debts remain unpaid, or the family cannot agree on who receives what, a judicial settlement or court action for partition may be necessary.

What Is Partition of an Intestate Estate?

An intestate estate is the property, rights, and transmissible obligations left by a person who died without a valid will covering those assets. Under Articles 774 to 777 of the Civil Code, succession takes effect at the moment of death. The heirs acquire hereditary rights immediately, but those rights remain subject to estate debts, taxes, and settlement procedures. (Lawphil)

When there are two or more heirs, Article 1078 provides that the estate is owned by them in common before partition. Article 1079 defines partition as the separation, division, and assignment of property or its value among the persons entitled to it. (Lawphil)

This distinction matters:

Settlement determines the estate, pays liabilities, identifies the heirs, and clears taxes.
Partition divides the remaining estate among the heirs.
Registration places the resulting ownership on the land titles, corporate books, vehicle records, bank records, or other official registries.

A notarized extrajudicial settlement by itself does not complete all three stages.

Determine What Actually Belongs to the Estate

Before calculating anyone’s inheritance, separate the decedent’s property from property that already belongs to another person.

Liquidate community or conjugal property first

If the decedent was married, property acquired during the marriage may belong to the absolute community or conjugal partnership rather than solely to the decedent.

Under Articles 102, 103, 129, and 130 of the Family Code, the marital property regime must be liquidated upon death. After debts and reimbursements are accounted for, the surviving spouse generally receives his or her share of the net community or conjugal property. Only the decedent’s share enters the hereditary estate. (Lawphil)

For example:

Net community property: ₱6,000,000
Surviving spouse’s community share: ₱3,000,000
Decedent’s share entering the estate: ₱3,000,000
Heirs: surviving spouse and two legitimate children

The ₱3,000,000 estate is divided into three equal hereditary shares under Article 996:

Surviving spouse’s inheritance: ₱1,000,000
Child 1: ₱1,000,000
Child 2: ₱1,000,000

The surviving spouse ultimately has ₱4,000,000: the spouse’s own ₱3,000,000 community share plus the ₱1,000,000 inheritance.

A common mistake is to divide the entire ₱6,000,000 equally among the spouse and children. That wrongly treats the spouse’s existing ownership as part of the inheritance.

Identify exclusive property

Property may be exclusive to one spouse when, for example, it was:

Owned before the marriage under an applicable property regime;
Acquired during the marriage by inheritance or donation;
Acquired using proven exclusive funds; or
Covered by valid marriage settlements establishing separation of property.

Titles alone do not always settle whether property was community, conjugal, or exclusive. The acquisition date, source of funds, marriage date, marital property regime, and supporting documents may all be relevant.

Who Inherits When There Is No Will?

Article 960 of the Civil Code governs when legal or intestate succession applies. Article 961 calls the decedent’s lawful relatives, surviving spouse, and, in the absence of qualified heirs, the State. The nearest relative generally excludes more distant relatives, subject to the right of representation. (Lawphil)

The following are common distributions. These refer only to the net hereditary estate, after separating the surviving spouse’s own property and paying estate obligations.

Surviving heirs	General intestate distribution
Legitimate children only	Equal shares among the children
Surviving spouse and legitimate children	The spouse receives the same share as each legitimate child
Legitimate and illegitimate children, no spouse	Each illegitimate child generally receives one-half of the share of each legitimate child
Spouse, legitimate children, and illegitimate children	Spouse receives the same share as one legitimate child; each illegitimate child receives one-half of a legitimate child’s share
Spouse and illegitimate children only	Spouse receives one-half; illegitimate children collectively receive one-half
Spouse and legitimate parents or ascendants	Spouse receives one-half; parents or ascendants receive one-half
Spouse, legitimate ascendants, and illegitimate children	Ascendants receive one-half; spouse receives one-fourth; illegitimate children collectively receive one-fourth
Spouse and siblings, with no descendants, ascendants, or illegitimate children	Spouse receives one-half; siblings or qualified nephews and nieces receive one-half
Spouse alone, with no other heirs entitled to concur	Spouse receives the entire estate

These rules appear principally in Articles 978 to 1002 of the Civil Code. (Lawphil)

Example with legitimate and illegitimate children

Suppose the net estate is ₱6,000,000 and the heirs are:

Surviving spouse;
One legitimate child; and
Two illegitimate children.

Use proportional units:

Spouse: 1 unit
Legitimate child: 1 unit
Illegitimate child 1: ½ unit
Illegitimate child 2: ½ unit

There are three total units. The distribution is:

Spouse: ₱2,000,000
Legitimate child: ₱2,000,000
Each illegitimate child: ₱1,000,000

The statutory terms “legitimate” and “illegitimate” remain relevant when applying the Civil Code, although the Supreme Court increasingly uses “marital” and “nonmarital” when not quoting the law.

Grandchildren and the right of representation

A grandchild does not automatically share equally with the decedent’s living children. Representation ordinarily applies when the grandchild’s parent, who was a child of the decedent, died before the decedent or was otherwise legally unable to inherit.

The grandchildren then divide the share that their parent would have received. This is called division per stirpes, or by family branch.

In Aquino v. Aquino, the Supreme Court held that a nonmarital child may represent a deceased parent in the intestate estate of a direct ascendant such as a grandparent, provided filiation and the other requirements for representation are established. (Supreme Court E-Library)

Adopted children

A legally adopted child generally inherits from the adoptive parent in the same manner as a legitimate child. Adoption records and the final adoption order or administrative adoption documents should be included when establishing the family tree.

A live-in partner is not automatically an intestate heir

A partner who was not legally married to the decedent does not inherit merely because they lived together for many years or had children together.

The surviving partner may nevertheless own a separate or co-owned share in property under Articles 147 or 148 of the Family Code, depending on the circumstances. That ownership must be separated from the estate before inheritance is calculated.

Extrajudicial Settlement or Judicial Partition?

Situation	Appropriate route
One heir, no will, and no unpaid estate debts	Affidavit of Self-Adjudication
Multiple heirs who all agree, no will, no unpaid debts, and minors are properly represented	Deed of Extrajudicial Settlement and Partition
An heir refuses to sign or disputes the proposed division	Judicial partition
There are unpaid creditors, disputed liabilities, or a need to manage estate assets	Judicial estate administration
A will is discovered	Probate of the will
Heirship, marriage, adoption, filiation, or ownership is disputed	Judicial proceeding
Estate assets are being concealed or income must be accounted for	Judicial settlement or partition with accounting

Section 1, Rule 74 permits heirs to divide an intestate estate through a public instrument without securing letters of administration when the decedent left no will and no debts, all heirs are adults, or minors are represented by duly authorized legal or judicial representatives. There is no maximum estate value for this form of extrajudicial settlement. (Lawphil)

Step-by-Step Extrajudicial Partition Process

1. Confirm that there is no will

Check the decedent’s personal papers, bank deposit boxes, lawyer’s files, and records held by family members.

A will cannot simply be ignored because the heirs prefer the Civil Code shares. Article 838 of the Civil Code requires a will to be proved and allowed in probate before it can pass property.

2. Prepare a complete family tree

List every possible heir, including:

Surviving spouse;
Children from the current marriage;
Children from prior marriages;
Legally adopted children;
Acknowledged or judicially established nonmarital children;
Predeceased children and their descendants;
Parents or grandparents, when there are no descendants; and
Siblings, nephews, and nieces when the closer classes of heirs are absent.

Obtain civil registry documents rather than relying only on family recollection. Differences in names, delayed birth registration, unannotated marriages, unregistered adoptions, and missing acknowledgments of paternity are frequent causes of delay.

3. Inventory all assets and liabilities

The inventory should include:

Land and buildings;
Condominium units and parking spaces;
Bank accounts and time deposits;
Shares of stock and business interests;
Vehicles;
Insurance proceeds payable to the estate;
Receivables, loans, and refunds;
Intellectual property and royalties;
Personal property of significant value;
Mortgages, loans, taxes, medical bills, and other debts; and
Rent, dividends, or income collected after death.

For each real property, verify the title at the Registry of Deeds. A photocopy held by the family may be outdated, cancelled, mortgaged, or subject to adverse claims.

4. Classify marital and exclusive property

Prepare separate lists for:

Surviving spouse’s exclusive property;
Decedent’s exclusive property;
Community or conjugal property;
Community or conjugal liabilities; and
Personal liabilities of the decedent.

Liquidate the marital property regime before computing inheritance shares.

5. Calculate each heir’s legal share

Prepare a written computation showing:

Gross estate;
Surviving spouse’s own property share;
Debts and estate expenses;
Net hereditary estate;
Each heir’s fractional share; and
The value of the property proposed for each heir.

Do not rely only on area. Five hundred square meters of commercial land may be worth considerably more than two hectares of remote agricultural land.

6. Agree on the actual partition

The heirs may choose among several arrangements:

Every heir remains a co-owner of every property;
Each heir receives a separate property of substantially equal value;
One heir receives an indivisible asset and pays the others the difference in cash;
The property is sold and the net proceeds are divided; or
Land is physically subdivided into separate lots.

Articles 1085 and 1086 require equality as far as possible. An indivisible property may be assigned to one heir who pays the others the excess. If an heir demands a public auction under the conditions stated in Article 1086, the property may have to be sold. (Lawphil)

Unequal allocation can have tax consequences. BIR Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 94-2021 treats certain partial waivers or allocations in which an heir receives less than the value of the lawful share as a taxable donation of the value forgone. A document titled “partition” does not prevent donor’s tax if its economic effect is a donation. (Bir Cdn)

7. Execute the proper public instrument

For multiple heirs, the document is usually titled Deed of Extrajudicial Settlement of Estate and Partition. It should clearly state:

The decedent’s identity, residence, nationality, marital status, and date of death;
That the decedent died without a will;
The status of estate debts;
The complete names, relationships, civil status, citizenship, addresses, and tax identification numbers of the heirs;
The factual basis for heirship;
A complete description of every asset;
The surviving spouse’s property share;
Each heir’s legal share;
The agreed assignment of assets;
Any equalization payment;
Any sale, waiver, or donation included in the transaction; and
Authority for designated representatives to process taxes and registration.

All participating heirs must sign and acknowledge the instrument before a notary. A person abroad may sign personally before an authorized official or act through a properly authenticated Special Power of Attorney.

8. Publish the settlement

Rule 74 requires publication of the fact of the extrajudicial settlement in a newspaper of general circulation once a week for three consecutive weeks.

Keep:

The publisher’s affidavit;
Complete newspaper issues or certified clippings;
Official receipts; and
Proof of the three publication dates.

Publication does not cure the deliberate omission of a known heir. Rule 74 expressly states that an extrajudicial settlement is not binding on a person who did not participate and had no notice. Supreme Court decisions have repeatedly rejected the argument that the two-year Rule 74 period automatically defeats every claim of an excluded heir. (Supreme Court E-Library)

9. File and pay the estate tax

For deaths on or after January 1, 2018, the regular estate tax is generally 6% of the net taxable estate, after allowable deductions. The estate tax return is generally due within one year from death. The rules in effect on the date of death control, so older estates may require a different computation. (Bir Cdn)

Common BIR requirements include:

BIR Form No. 1801;
PSA death certificate;
TINs of the decedent and heirs;
Certified titles and tax declarations;
Bank certifications showing balances at death;
Proof of valuation of shares and other assets;
Marriage and birth certificates;
Proof of deductions and liabilities;
Notarized settlement document or court order;
Proof of publication when required; and
Proof of tax payment.

The BIR issues an electronic Certificate Authorizing Registration, or eCAR, after the estate tax and documentary requirements are cleared. The Registry of Deeds, banks, corporations, and other institutions generally require the eCAR before transferring registrable assets.

The estate tax amnesty period extended by Republic Act No. 11956 ended in June 2025. For taxpayers who applied within the amnesty period, BIR Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 33-2026 clarifies that there is no separate deadline for later submission of proof of estate settlement, but the proof remains necessary before the eCAR can be issued. (Lawphil)

10. Complete the LGU and Registry of Deeds requirements

For real property, the heirs ordinarily proceed through the local treasurer, assessor, and Registry of Deeds. Requirements commonly include:

Owner’s duplicate title;
Certified true copy of the title;
Estate settlement deed;
eCAR;
Estate tax return and payment records;
Real property tax clearance;
Current and historical tax declarations;
Applicable local transfer tax receipt;
Publication affidavit;
Valid identification documents;
Approved subdivision plan, when separate lots are being created; and
Registration and annotation fees.

The Registry of Deeds may annotate the two-year liability under Section 4, Rule 74. During that period, the real property and any required bond may answer for unpaid creditors or persons deprived of their lawful participation. (Supreme Court E-Library)

11. Transfer personal property separately

Each asset custodian applies its own documentary checklist.

Banks may require an eCAR, settlement deed, death certificate, tax documents, indemnity documents, and proof of publication.
Corporations may require the stock certificates, corporate secretary’s requirements, eCAR, deed, and transfer-book documentation.
Vehicles require transfer through the Land Transportation Office.
Business registrations may require amendments or closure and re-registration with the appropriate agencies.
Insurance proceeds payable to named beneficiaries normally pass under the policy, while proceeds payable to the estate form part of the estate.

When Judicial Partition Is Necessary

One heir cannot force the others to sign an extrajudicial settlement. Article 1083 nevertheless gives every co-heir the right to demand partition, subject to limited lawful restrictions. No co-owner is generally required to remain in co-ownership indefinitely. (Lawphil)

Judicial estate administration

A judicial intestate proceeding is usually appropriate when:

The estate has unpaid debts;
An administrator must collect, preserve, lease, or sell assets;
The heirs or their shares are uncertain;
Property must be recovered from third persons;
There are several conflicting marriages or family branches;
A minor’s rights require court protection;
Estate funds are being misused; or
Creditors need a formal claims process.

This proceeding is generally filed in the Regional Trial Court connected with the decedent’s residence at death, subject to the venue rules for estate proceedings.

Ordinary action for partition under Rule 69

An ordinary partition action is appropriate when co-ownership exists but the parties cannot agree on division. The complaint must identify the property, state the plaintiff’s interest, and join all persons with an interest in the property.

A Rule 69 case normally has two stages:

The court determines whether co-ownership exists, identifies the shares, and decides whether partition is proper.
The parties submit an agreed partition, or the court appoints up to three commissioners to divide the property. If physical division would seriously prejudice the owners, the court may order a sale and division of the proceeds.

The court may also require an accounting of rents, fruits, income, necessary expenses, and damage to the property. (Lawphil)

For a real action, jurisdiction generally depends on the property’s assessed value. Under Republic Act No. 11576, first-level courts have jurisdiction when the assessed value does not exceed ₱400,000 outside Metro Manila or ₱2,000,000 in Metro Manila; higher assessed values fall within RTC jurisdiction. The assessed value appearing in the tax declaration—not merely the selling price—must be properly alleged. (Lawphil)

Documents Commonly Needed

Document	Main purpose
PSA death certificate	Proves death and date succession opened
PSA marriage certificate	Establishes surviving spouse and marital regime
PSA birth certificates	Establishes filiation and relationship
Death certificates of predeceased heirs	Supports representation by descendants
Adoption order or administrative adoption record	Establishes adopted child’s status
CENOMAR or Advisory on Marriages when requested	Helps verify marital history
Certified title and owner’s duplicate	Establishes registered real property
Tax declarations for land and improvements	Supports valuation and local processing
Bank balance certificate as of death	Values bank deposits
Stock certificates and corporate valuation	Establishes shares and their value
Vehicle OR and CR	Establishes vehicle ownership
Loan, mortgage, and expense records	Supports debts and deductions
Valid IDs and TIN records	Required for tax and registration processing
Extrajudicial settlement or court order	Shows the legal basis for distribution
Publisher’s affidavit and clippings	Proves publication
BIR return, payment proof, and eCAR	Clears the estate transfer for registration
Apostilled or authenticated SPA	Authorizes a Philippine representative for an heir abroad

Offices may request additional documents when names are inconsistent, titles are missing, the decedent had several marriages, property was acquired before the Family Code, or the estate involves foreign law.

Typical Expenses and Timelines

Common expense categories

Expense	What affects the amount
Estate tax and penalties	Date of death, asset values, deductions, and filing delay
Donor’s or other transfer taxes	Waivers, unequal allocation, sale, or donation within the deed
Notarial and document-preparation costs	Estate value, number of heirs, properties, and document complexity
Publication	Newspaper, location, and length of the notice
PSA, Registry, and assessor certifications	Number of persons and properties
Local transfer tax and real property tax	Local ordinance, assessed values, and arrears
Registry of Deeds fees	Value and number of titles
Survey and subdivision costs	Land area, boundaries, terrain, and approval requirements
Court filing and commissioner’s fees	Assessed value and complexity of judicial partition
Apostille, authentication, and courier costs	Country of execution and number of documents

Practical planning ranges

These are working ranges rather than fixed legal deadlines:

Stage	Common working range when documents are complete
Gathering civil and property records	Two to eight weeks
Three-week publication and publisher’s affidavit	About four to six weeks
BIR review and eCAR processing	One to four months or longer for old or complex estates
LGU and Registry of Deeds transfer	Two to eight weeks
Straightforward extrajudicial settlement from start to title transfer	Roughly three to nine months
Contested judicial settlement or partition	Often several years

Missing heirs, title defects, several generations of unsettled estates, inconsistent civil registry records, foreign documents, and disputed property classifications can substantially extend these periods.

Common Problems That Delay or Invalidate Partition

Leaving out a child or other heir

Every lawful heir must be identified and included. Publication is not a lawful substitute for knowingly omitting someone.

An omitted heir may seek annulment, reconveyance, judicial settlement, or recovery of the lawful share. A buyer who acquires property with notice of the omission or a Rule 74 annotation may also face title problems.

Treating the tax declaration as proof of ownership

A tax declaration is evidence of a claim and may support valuation, but it is not equivalent to a Torrens title. The title, deeds, inheritance history, possession, and land records must be examined together.

Settling only the most valuable property

An extrajudicial settlement should disclose the complete estate. Undeclared properties can require amended tax filings, another settlement instrument, and additional eCAR processing.

When several generations died without settling prior estates, each succession stage may need to be documented. The heirs generally cannot jump directly from a grandparent’s title to great-grandchildren without accounting for the intermediate successions.

Giving the entire house to one heir without equalization

Agreement alone does not eliminate tax consequences. If one heir receives substantially more than the lawful share and does not pay the difference, the excess may be treated as a donation.

Assuming an heir in possession owns the property

An heir occupying a family home does not become sole owner merely by paying taxes, making repairs, or living there for many years while recognizing the co-ownership.

During partition, co-heirs may demand an accounting for rent, fruits, income, necessary expenses, useful improvements, or damage caused by neglect, as recognized in Article 1087.

Selling a specific inherited property before partition

A co-heir may transfer hereditary rights, but cannot bind the other heirs by selling the entire estate or a specific property as though already the sole owner. Under Article 493, a co-owner’s sale or mortgage is generally limited to the portion eventually allotted to that co-owner.

Article 1088 may also allow co-heirs to exercise legal redemption when hereditary rights are sold to a stranger before partition, provided they reimburse the buyer within one month from written notice of the sale. (Lawphil)

Physically dividing land without an approved subdivision plan

A deed may assign fractional interests without creating separate titled lots. Separate titles for physical portions ordinarily require a survey by a licensed geodetic engineer, approved plans and technical descriptions, tax declaration adjustments, and Registry of Deeds compliance.

Agricultural property may also involve agrarian reform restrictions, land-use rules, retention limits, or clearances that prevent the family from dividing it solely according to preference.

Filipinos Abroad and Foreign Heirs

An heir abroad does not have to travel to the Philippines merely to sign every document. The heir may execute the settlement abroad or authorize a representative through a Special Power of Attorney.

The authority should expressly cover the necessary acts, such as:

Signing the estate settlement and partition;
Filing BIR returns and obtaining the eCAR;
Paying taxes and fees;
Processing publication;
Transacting with LGUs and the Registry of Deeds;
Signing subdivision documents; and
Receiving titles, checks, or other transferred assets.

Documents executed in an Apostille Convention country are generally apostilled by the competent foreign authority. Documents from a non-Apostille country ordinarily require the applicable Philippine consular authentication process. Philippine embassies confirm that an apostilled document has legal effect in the Philippines without an additional embassy authentication, subject to agency-specific requirements. (Philippine Embassy in Ottawa)

Can a foreigner inherit Philippine land?

A foreigner may acquire Philippine private land through intestate hereditary succession. This is an exception to the general constitutional restriction on foreign land ownership. The exception does not allow the foreign heir to acquire additional land through a disguised sale or voluntary donation in the settlement. (Lawphil)

When the decedent was a foreign national, Article 16 of the Civil Code provides that the decedent’s national law governs the order of succession, the amount of successional rights, and the intrinsic validity of testamentary provisions, regardless of where the property is located. Philippine procedural, tax, registration, and land-ownership rules still apply to Philippine assets. (Lawphil)

Foreign succession law must normally be established through competent proof. In judicial proceedings, Philippine courts treat foreign law as a fact that must be properly alleged and proved; when it is not proved, courts may apply the doctrine of processual presumption and presume that it is the same as Philippine law. (Lawphil)

Frequently Asked Questions

Can one heir refuse to partition an estate?

An heir may refuse to sign an extrajudicial settlement, which prevents a consensual extrajudicial partition. The other heirs may file a judicial partition because every co-heir generally has the right to demand an end to the co-ownership.

Can the majority of the heirs outvote one heir?

No. An extrajudicial settlement requires the participation and consent of all heirs whose rights are affected. A majority cannot assign or waive the dissenting heir’s share.

What if there is only one heir?

The sole heir may execute an Affidavit of Self-Adjudication under Rule 74, subject to publication, tax clearance, creditor protection, and the documentary requirements of the relevant agencies.

Is a court case required when all heirs agree?

Usually not, when the decedent left no will, there are no unpaid estate debts, all heirs are competent or properly represented, and everyone agrees. A notarized and published extrajudicial settlement may be used, followed by BIR, LGU, and registration processing.

Can inherited property be sold before it is partitioned?

All heirs may jointly sell estate property if legal and tax requirements are satisfied. A single heir ordinarily cannot sell the whole property. Buyers commonly require the settlement deed, estate tax clearance, eCAR, and signatures of all heirs before proceeding.

Does publication prevent an omitted heir from making a claim?

Not necessarily. Rule 74 states that a settlement is not binding on a person who did not participate and had no notice. The two-year Rule 74 liability period should not be treated as an automatic license to exclude an heir or commit fraud.

Is the estate tax amnesty still open?

The amnesty period extended by Republic Act No. 11956 ended in June 2025. Estates that did not timely qualify are generally governed by the estate tax law applicable at the decedent’s death, including applicable penalties and interest. Timely amnesty applicants may still submit proof of settlement for eCAR processing under BIR Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 33-2026.

Can heirs divide the estate differently from the Civil Code shares?

They may agree on which assets each heir will receive, but the values should respect their lawful shares unless a valid sale, donation, equalization payment, or renunciation is intentionally made and the resulting taxes are addressed. Calling an unequal transfer a “partition” does not prevent the BIR from treating the excess as a donation.

Can a common-law spouse inherit?

A partner who was not legally married to the decedent has no automatic intestate share as a surviving spouse. The partner may still establish ownership of a personal or co-owned portion of the property, which must be removed from the estate before the lawful heirs divide what remains.

How long can heirs leave an estate unsettled?

Hereditary rights arise at death, but delaying settlement increases the risk of penalties, lost records, additional deaths among the heirs, title complications, and disputes. The Family Code also requires liquidation of a terminated community or conjugal property regime within six months when no judicial settlement is filed, and dispositions involving unliquidated marital property may be void.

Key Takeaways

Determine the lawful heirs and the complete estate before deciding who receives each property.
Separate the surviving spouse’s own community, conjugal, or exclusive property before calculating inheritance.
Heirs initially own the net estate in common; no heir automatically owns a particular room, lot, or asset.
An extrajudicial settlement requires the consent and participation of all affected heirs and compliance with Rule 74.
Pay debts and estate tax and obtain the eCAR before completing transfers of registrable property.
Publication does not cure the omission of a known heir.
Unequal allocation, waiver, sale, or donation within a partition may create additional taxes.
A dissenting heir cannot block partition forever, but disagreement usually moves the matter into court.
Separate land titles require more than a partition deed when physical subdivision is intended.
Foreign heirs and heirs abroad must address apostille, authentication, nationality, land-ownership, and foreign-law requirements.