Testamentsvollstrecker: Why Your US Will's Executor Can't Act in Germany

The Executor Problem American Families Do Not See Coming

A US will typically names an executor (or personal representative) who receives court-issued letters testamentary authorizing them to act on behalf of the estate. In the United States, those letters are broadly recognized — banks, title companies, and government agencies accept them as proof of authority.

In Germany, letters testamentary from a US probate court have no legal force. German banks, land registries (Grundbuchamt), and pension authorities will not recognize a US executor's authority to access accounts, transfer property, or sign on behalf of the estate. The executor who managed everything smoothly in the United States discovers, upon contacting a German bank, that their court order is treated as a foreign curiosity with no domestic effect.

This is not a bureaucratic oversight. It reflects a fundamental structural difference between US common law and German civil law.

Why the Systems Are Incompatible

US probate: executor-driven administration. In the United States, probate is a supervised process in which a court appoints an executor who takes legal title to estate assets, pays debts, and distributes the remainder to beneficiaries. The executor acts as an intermediary between the deceased's assets and the heirs.

German succession: universal succession (Universalsukzession). In Germany, assets and liabilities transfer directly to the heirs at the moment of death. There is no probate process that interposes an administrator between the estate and the heirs. The heirs become the legal owners of everything — including debts — instantly. A court-supervised executor role, as understood in US law, simply does not exist in the German default system.

Germany does recognize a role called Testamentsvollstrecker (executor appointed by the testator), but it must be explicitly created in the deceased's will and operates under completely different rules than a US executor.

What a Testamentsvollstrecker Is

A Testamentsvollstrecker is a person appointed in the deceased's will to carry out specific testamentary instructions — distributing assets, managing property, ensuring bequests are fulfilled. Unlike a US executor, the Testamentsvollstrecker:

• Must be named in the will by the deceased (not appointed by a court after death)
• Operates under the testator's will, with the court confirming the appointment through a Testamentsvollstreckerzeugnis
• Must be formally confirmed by the German probate court (Nachlassgericht), which issues a Testamentsvollstreckerzeugnis (Certificate of Executorship)
• Has legal standing that German banks and registries will recognize

The critical point: even if a US will names an executor, that person is a US executor. They are not automatically a Testamentsvollstrecker under German law unless the will explicitly references the German concept and the German court issues the certificate.

What the US Executor Can Actually Do

Without a Testamentsvollstreckerzeugnis, Erbschein, or other accepted authority such as a Vollmacht: The US executor generally cannot act unilaterally in Germany. German institutions may refuse to disclose account information, release funds, or accept instructions until the relevant authority is established.

The workaround: The US executor (or the heirs directly) must establish one of the accepted authority paths:

1. An Erbschein (Certificate of Inheritance) — proves who the legal heirs are under German succession law. This is the most common path for US families. The heirs then act directly (or through a German attorney with power of attorney) to manage the German assets.

2. A Testamentsvollstreckerzeugnis — proves that the will created a valid German-law executorship. This path only works if the US will's executor appointment language is broad enough that a German court can interpret it as a Testamentsvollstrecker designation. In practice, standard US will templates almost never contain the specific language German courts look for.

3. An accepted Vollmacht — a valid power of attorney, including a transmortale Vollmacht that continues after death, may let an authorized person manage assets without waiting for an Erbschein if the relevant institution accepts it.

How to Fix This When It Is Already Too Late

If your family member has already died in Germany with a standard US will, the practical path forward is the Erbschein. The application process requires sworn statements, apostilled US vital records, and sworn German translations, filed through either a German Consulate in the United States or a German notary in person.

The Erbschein identifies the legal heirs, and those heirs — not an executor — then deal with German institutions directly. If the heirs are in the United States and cannot manage the German estate themselves, they can grant a German attorney a specific power of attorney (Vollmacht) to act on their behalf.

The entire process typically takes 2 to 6 months, depending on the complexity of the estate and how quickly the apostille and translation preparation is completed.

How to Prevent This Problem in Advance

For Americans with assets in Germany — bank accounts, real estate, business interests, pension entitlements — the estate plan should include a Germany-specific provision:

Dual-jurisdiction will or German supplementary will (Nachlasserganzungstestament). A German attorney can draft a supplementary will, executed under German formal requirements (handwritten or notarized), that explicitly designates a Testamentsvollstrecker for the German assets. This document works alongside the US will without conflicting with it.

Transmortale Vollmacht. A trans-mortal power of attorney (transmortale Vollmacht) is a special power of attorney that survives the death of the grantor. If recognized by the relevant German bank, it allows the designated agent to manage accounts immediately after death without waiting for an Erbschein. Not all banks accept it, but when they do, it eliminates months of delay.

The setup cost for these instruments varies with the notary, attorney, and estate plan. Ask the German professional preparing the document for a current quote.

The American Dies in Germany — Family Emergency Guide covers the Erbschein application process step by step and includes guidance on the Testamentsvollstrecker pathway for families whose wills may qualify.