An inheritance that starts in another country is usually handled there first. Your role from New York is to gather documents, be careful what you sign, and then ask your own advisers what the receipt means for you. This is a checklist, not a full tax guide. It is general information, not legal advice. Reporting of foreign gifts and bequests is discussed in /blog/reporting-foreign-inheritances-irs-form-3520-basics/.
Let the local process lead
In many cases the court, notary, or heirship procedure where the relative lived has to finish, or at least start, before anyone will release property. You will often need a lawyer in that place. We practice New York law only and coordinate with counsel abroad. Ask local counsel what your status is, whether you must appear, and what a New York resident is usually asked to sign. Do not sign a power of attorney or a waiver you do not understand.
Documents worth asking for now
Ask local counsel for the death certificate, the will and any probate order, an heirship certificate or equivalent, and a description of each asset. You will often need certified copies, an apostille under the Hague Apostille Convention when that treaty applies, and a certified English translation for your records and for any United States institution. A document checklist is at cross border document checklist. Keep a clean set. Do not write on originals.
A power of attorney that can be used abroad
If you cannot travel, local counsel may ask for a power of attorney. A New York notarization is often not enough by itself for use in another country. The document may need an apostille, a translation, and wording the foreign institution will accept. Plan the signing with both sides before you go to a notary. We can coordinate with counsel abroad on the New York formalities. We do not draft the document under foreign law.
Tax and bank questions
An inheritance is often excluded from United States income. A U.S. person who receives aggregate gifts or bequests from non-U.S. persons above the applicable annual amount may have to report information about those receipts, often on Form 3520 (IRC 6039F). A foreign account that a U.S. person keeps may have to be reported on an FBAR. Your tax adviser handles those forms and decides whether they apply. If money will move to a United States bank, ask the bank what it needs. Read /blog/reporting-foreign-inheritances-irs-form-3520-basics/.
Update your own New York plan
Receiving assets can change your own plan. You may now own property in another country, or hold more property here. Review your will, your beneficiaries, and who would manage both. A New York will does not always control foreign property, and what you now own can affect your spouse's rights if you are domiciled here. For a Free Consultation about your own documents, call (212) 518-3868 or see free consultation.
What to do after you learn of the inheritance
Move in this order so you do not sign away a right, or miss a paper a bank or a tax adviser may ask for later.
- The one most people forget
✓ All done — nicely handled. The next step is a free consultation. Free Consultation →
Country notes: questions to raise in a consultation
Which other country is in the picture often changes the plan. These are questions to bring to a Free Consultation, not answers for every family. Schwartsman Law Group practices New York law only. Where another country's law may matter, we coordinate with counsel abroad. Call (212) 518-3868.
- Is there a U.S. estate or gift tax treaty? Most countries have none. As of the IRS list reviewed on November 8, 2026, the United States has estate and/or gift tax treaty provisions with Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, South Africa, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Canada's estate provisions sit in Article XXIX B of the U.S.–Canada income tax treaty. Each treaty works differently. Check the current IRS estate and gift tax treaties page before relying on any country.
- Does a document need an apostille or consular legalization? That depends on whether both the country that issued the paper and the country that will use it are parties to the Hague Apostille Convention, with the Convention in force between them and without a relevant objection. Membership alone is not enough. Check the HCCH status table for the Apostille Convention. An apostille authenticates the origin, signature, capacity, and seal of a public document. It does not prove the contents are true, that the document is valid under local law, or that a New York court or clerk will accept it.
- Does the other country reserve fixed shares for family (forced heirship) or treat trusts differently? Many civil-law countries do. For property situated in New York, a will made by someone not domiciled in New York may, in some cases, elect New York law under EPTL 3-5.1(h). New York's highest court has applied such an election to reject a foreign forced-heirship claim to New York assets (Matter of Renard, 56 NY2d 973 (1982)). Results depend on the facts, and the election does not control property abroad. Foreign counsel should review the home-country side.
- Will an heir or beneficiary living abroad receive a New York share without court conditions? Under SCPA 2218, if a noncitizen beneficiary lives in a country to which U.S. government checks cannot be sent under federal rules, the court directs that the share be paid into court until a later court order. The court may also do so in some other cases, such as where a beneficiary would not have the benefit, use, or control of the money, or where a foreign country's laws effectively deny New York residents that benefit. Where it appears a noncitizen beneficiary may not have the benefit, use, or control of the share, that person generally has the burden of showing that they will. These questions turn on facts, not on nationality alone. The U.S. Supreme Court held an Oregon reciprocity statute unconstitutional as applied, because probing foreign regimes intruded on the federal foreign-affairs power (Zschernig v. Miller, 389 U.S. 429 (1968)).