Certificate of Inheritance Translation for Germany

The Nachlassgericht and the Erbschein counterpart

Official proof of heirship in Germany is the Erbschein issued by the Nachlassgericht attached to the local court; the Turkish certificate of inheritance is not the counterpart of that document but the supporting record showing the heirs and their shares. In translation the Turkish certificate is not equated with an Erbschein; its heading, the name of the issuing authority (civil court of peace or notary) and the case and judgment numbers are carried over in their original form, with a parenthetical explanation where needed. Whether the Turkish certificate will be accepted directly, or whether a separate application for an Erbschein is required, rests with the assessment of the Nachlassgericht; the translation prepares the ground for that assessment, it does not settle the outcome.

The proportion showing an heir’s entitlement is known in German law as the Erbteil and is usually expressed as a fraction. The share fractions in the Turkish certificate, numerators and denominators alike, are preserved exactly; rather than writing an Erbteil equivalent, the fraction in the source is carried over as it stands, because establishing correspondence is for the authority. Bringing the terms for degrees of kinship (spouse, descendant, ascendant) closer to the German classification blurs who inherits in what capacity.

The European Certificate of Succession (Europäisches Nachlasszeugnis), which eases succession matters within the EU, does not apply directly to a Turkish certificate, since Türkiye lies outside the EU; a matter handled in Germany therefore usually follows the national Erbschein route. The translation of the Turkish certificate works as the source document setting out the heirs and their shares in an application to the Nachlassgericht for an Erbschein. Knowing that distinction from the start makes clear which document is to be requested from which authority and keeps an incomplete file from coming back.

Presentation to the Grundbuch and to a bank

Where the estate touches immovable property in Germany, the land register, the Grundbuch, will usually look for an Erbschein or a recognised certificate of heirship before it corrects the entry of ownership; the same document is asked for at a bank when access is sought to an account forming part of the estate. The translation of the Turkish certificate is the vehicle the Grundbuchamt or the bank official needs in order to read the heirs and the Erbteil proportions. At this stage what proves decisive is which copy the certificate is attached to and whether the heirs’ names match the spelling in their passports exactly; in Latin-script spelling a single difference raises doubt as to whether the record belongs to the same person.

A certificate rarely travels alone in a succession file; a civil registry extract, the death certificate and, where needed, a power of attorney sit in the same file. The spelling of names, the dates and the kinship details are held consistent across these documents, because the Nachlassgericht reads the file as a whole. Correction of the entry for immovable property at the Grundbuchamt is usually made only once heirship has been settled by document; a readable and complete translation is therefore the precondition for the process moving on to its next step.

The applicable law and the competent authority

Which law applies to an estate connected with Germany is determined by criteria such as habitual residence and the location of the assets; that assessment, carried out within the framework of the EU succession regulation, is the business of the Nachlassgericht and of a lawyer, not of the translator. The translator carries the heirship and share details in the certificate over as they stand and adds no interpretation as to the applicable law. The document thus offers a sound footing for the legal assessment.

• Do not equate the Turkish certificate with an Erbschein; carry the name of the authority over in its original form.
• Convey the Erbteil fractions exactly, without turning them into decimals.
• Write the heirs’ names as they appear in the civil registry and in their passports.

A judicial document: apostille and sworn translator

Because a certificate of inheritance issued by a court is a judicial document, its apostille is obtained not from the governor’s office but from the relevant judicial justice commission; where the certificate comes from a notary the route differs. A translation submitted for official use in Germany must bear the stamp of a translator sworn before a court (öffentlich bestellter und beeidigter Übersetzer); in a translation produced in Türkiye, a sworn translator signs it, it is notarised where required, and an apostille is added. Germany is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention; confirm the current position from the official HCCH list. You can run your file through our single office in Kızılay, Ankara, see the cost on our pricing page and upload your document to request a quote. This page is for general information and does not take the place of legal advice; for the recognition process consult your lawyer and the Nachlassgericht concerned.