Dealing With Foreign Bank Accounts After Death

Why Foreign Banks Freeze Accounts Immediately

When a bank learns that an account holder has died, it freezes the account. This happens domestically, and it happens internationally — but with foreign banks, the freeze can last months or even years if the executor doesn't follow the correct documentation trail for that specific country.

The core problem is that your domestic probate court appointment does not by itself authorize you to access assets in another jurisdiction. A US Letters Testamentary document may need local recognition, resealing, or a separate local procedure in France, India, or South Africa. The foreign bank needs proof, under its local process, that you are authorized to act.

Step 1: Locate Every Foreign Account

Before contacting any bank, build a complete inventory. Check the deceased's tax returns for foreign account disclosures (FBAR filings, Form 8938), search their email for foreign bank correspondence, and review any safe deposit box contents for passbooks or statements. If the deceased was a US person with foreign accounts that collectively exceeded $10,000 at any point during the year, they should have filed FinCEN Form 114 — those filings list every account.

Don't overlook foreign brokerage accounts and mutual fund holdings; the FBAR rule applies to covered foreign financial accounts.

Step 2: Notify Each Bank With the Right Documents

Every foreign bank has its own documentation requirements, but most need these four items:

• Certified death certificate with an apostille (if the destination country is a Hague Convention signatory) or full consular legalization (if it's not)
• Court-issued letters testamentary or letters of administration, also apostilled or legalized. For securities handled by foreign transfer agents, letters are generally dated within 60 days of submission; confirm each bank's own freshness rule.
• Sworn or certified translation of both documents into the local language — French banks require a traducteur assermenté, German banks need a beeidigter Übersetzer, and common law countries accept a notarized certificate of translation accuracy
• Completed account closure or transfer forms from the bank itself, which you'll need to request

Call the bank's international or expat services desk first. Ask specifically what they need, because requirements vary even between branches of the same institution. Get the requirements in writing — email is better than a phone summary you might misremember weeks later.

Step 3: Handle Country-Specific Repatriation Rules

Moving money out of certain countries involves more than a wire transfer request.

India. Under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) may repatriate up to USD 1,000,000 per financial year (April 1 to March 31) from inherited assets or proceeds from liquidated Indian real estate. The funds must flow through a Non-Resident Ordinary (NRO) account, and the bank will require Form 15CA (a self-declaration) and Form 15CB (a Chartered Accountant's certificate confirming applicable Indian income and capital-gains taxes are paid) before releasing the wire.

South Africa imposes capital controls through the South African Reserve Bank. Non-residents who were never South African citizens can repatriate an inheritance without monetary limits if they provide proof of non-resident status and the approved Liquidation and Distribution Account to an Authorized Dealer. South African tax residents living abroad who have not formally ceased South African tax residency can remit up to R1,000,000 per calendar year under the Single Discretionary Allowance without prior tax clearance. Remittances above R1,000,000 and up to R10,000,000 require an Approved International Transfer (AIT) tax-clearance pin from SARS; amounts above R11,000,000 require direct, bespoke SARB approval. For transfers between R10,000,000 and R11,000,000, ask the Authorized Dealer or SARB which approval route applies.

EU countries generally allow free movement of funds, but banks will often require a European Certificate of Succession or local probate equivalent before releasing the account.

Step 4: Watch the Currency Conversion

Standard commercial banks charge currency conversion spreads of 3% to 5% above the mid-market rate. On a $200,000 account balance, that's $6,000 to $10,000 lost to conversion fees alone.

Specialized corporate foreign exchange brokers can secure spreads under 1%. Ask your probate attorney or international estate advisor for a referral, and always compare the offered rate against the mid-market rate on the day of conversion.

Common Mistakes That Delay Account Closures

Executors frequently submit letters testamentary without an apostille, present documents outside a receiving institution's freshness window, or use a standard translation instead of a sworn one. Foreign transfer agents generally use a 60-day window (six months in New York); confirm the bank's own requirement in writing. The other common delay is failing to clear local tax obligations before requesting fund transfers — India and South Africa may hold the money until required tax and exchange-control steps are complete.

The International Estate toolkit includes notification letter templates, a country-by-country document requirements matrix, and a foreign bank communication log to track every submission and response across jurisdictions.