Instructions for persons managing the affairs of a decedent’s estate

We would like to express our deepest condolences to your sorrow at the departure of your loved one. Passing of a loved one requires a lot of practical arrangements in time of grief. To assist in these arrangements, basic information and instructions for managing a decedent’s estate have been collected here.

Hay swaying in the wind.

Parties to the estate 

When a person dies, his or her rights and responsibilities are transferred to the decedent’s estate. Matters concerning the estate are decided jointly by the parties to the estate.

Parties to the decedent’s estate are typically statutory heirs, surviving spouse if the spouses had marital right to each other’s property (the widow or widower is a party to the estate until the distribution of matrimonial assets has been carried out), and beneficiary of a general legacy. Beneficiary of a general legacy is a person to whom the deceased has bequeathed his or her entire property or part of it.

Statutory heirs under Finnish law

  • The decedent’s children or their descendants
  • The surviving spouse, if the deceased had no children or grandchildren
  • The decedent’s parents, if the decedent had no children, grandchildren or surviving spouse
  • The decedent’s grandparents or if they are dead, their children in case the decedent had no children or grandchildren, surviving spouse, parents or siblings.

Administration of the estate before the estate inventory

Powers of attorney or similar authorizations assigned by the decedent are no longer valid after the time of passing. The estate is also responsible for the debts of the decedent. It may be advisable to seek professional help to advice in the administration of the decedent´s estate, if necessary.

Taking care of banking matters relating to the decedent´s estate prior to the estate inventory requires that a party of the estate provides the bank with an extract from the population register, indicating that the person is either the surviving spouse or an heir.

Every beneficiary of the estate may alone

  • obtain balance statements concerning the decedent’s assets, loans and liabilities on the date of death for purposes of making the estate inventory,
  • obtain other information regarding the situation of the decedent’s banking matters on the date of death and after it,
  • terminate continuous fund saving agreement.

Administration of the estate after the estate inventory

An estate inventory must be carried out within three months from the date of death. The parties to the estate may authorize one of the parties or some other specified person to represent the estate with a power of attorney. The consent of all parties to the estate is required when:

  • an account transfer to an account other than the estate´s is made
  • the decedent’s investments, such as shares, are sold
  • requesting information on the deceased’s banking matters during his or her lifetime.

Documents needed for administration of the estate 

To take care of banking matters of the estate, we kindly ask to provide us with the copies of the following documents:

  • A copy of (or extract from) the decedent’s estate inventory deed;
  • An extract from the personal register of the decedent (i.e. an uninterrupted series of official certificates from the age of 15 until death). This extract from the personal register is not required if a copy of the deed of estate inventory includes an attestation from the registry office (or corresponding authority) that the parties to the estate are entered correctly in the deed of estate inventory or the list of estate beneficiaries is otherwise confirmed by the registry office (or corresponding authority). A certificate of the confirmation must be provided.
  • An official certificate of each beneficiary indicating that the person is alive (if not evident from other documents);
  • The will, if any;
  • The prenuptial agreement, if any;
  • A deed of distribution, if any, regarding the distribution between the decedent and his/her previous spouse;
  • A power of attorney, if any, for one beneficiary or a third party to manage the estate’s assets. The power of attorney must be sufficiently detailed and signed by all beneficiaries of the estate – an unlimited power of attorney is not acceptable;
  • If a court has appointed an estate administrator, a copy of the court decision must be provided;
  • A copy of each party’s official and valid identification document;
  • A copy of an official and valid identification document of an authorized person, if any. 

Please note that the list of required documents listed above is not exhaustive. We may request additional documentation on a case-by-case basis. 

Useful links:

Handling of the estate of a deceased person Finnish Financial Supervisory Authority:
https://www.finanssivalvonta.fi/en/Consumer-protection/matters-concerning-the-estate-of-a-deceased-person/

European Certificate of Succession Finnish Digital and Population Data Services Agency
https://dvv.fi/en/european-certificate-of-succession

Finnish Tax Administration:
https://www.vero.fi/en/individuals/property/inheritance/

Finnish Digital and Population Data Services Agency:
https://dvv.fi/en/death-and-estate-inventory

Help with practical matters and delivery of documents

We will be happy to answer your questions and help you with practical matters in Evli's Investor Service. You can also provide us with the documents necessary for managing the estate.

We can be reached on weekdays by e-mail at investorservice@evli.com or by phone at +358 (0)9 4766 9701 (from 9:30 am. to 4:30 pm.).