Are joint wills and inheritance contracts permitted in Italy?
Under Italian law, joint wills and inheritance contracts are not permitted (Art. 458, 589 and 635 Cciv). The reason given for this is that a two-sided binding disposition violates the freedom to make a will. A reinterpretation into two individual wills is also prohibited. Not permitted.
The prevailing opinion characterises the question of the admissibility of drawing up a joint will or contract of inheritance not as a question of form, but as a question of fact. For this reason, the establishment of a joint testamentary disposition, even if only one of the two parties has Italian nationality, has generally been discouraged.
With the introduction of the European Succession Regulation, it is now also possible for Italian testators to conclude joint wills and inheritance contracts under the conditions of the Regulation. It is therefore possible, for example, for a married couple with Italian nationality and habitual residence in Germany to effectively draw up a joint will. This remains effective even if the couple subsequently changes their habitual residence, as the circumstances at the time of drawing up the will or contract of inheritance are decisive for the admissibility and effectiveness of the will or contract of inheritance.