Quick summary: A renuncia de herencia (renunciation of inheritance) in Guatemala must be express and made in writing before the judge or by escritura pública (public deed) (Código Civil, Art. 1034). The deadline is 6 months from death if you are in Guatemala or 1 year if you are abroad (Arts. 1031 and 1034). Renouncing does not let you choose who receives your share: your children or descendants may inherit in your place through representación hereditaria (inheritance by representation) (Art. 929). An heir’s liability for the deceased person’s debts is limited to the estate’s assets (Art. 920).
Renunciation can take the form of a public deed or a written submission to the judge handling the estate. A court submission requires the signature and seal of the abogado colegiado (licensed lawyer) assisting you, as well as timbres forenses (court-related legal stamps). The statutory exceptions to lawyer assistance concern matters of ínfima cuantía (very small monetary value) and places where the court sits in a town with fewer than four qualified lawyers (Código Procesal Civil y Mercantil, Arts. 50 and 61).
The Draft Deed and Court Submission
Download the Spanish-language draft deed and court submission (.docx)
The legal requirements distinguish these documents:
- Escritura pública de renuncia de herencia (public deed renouncing an inheritance). The renunciation must be express (Art. 1034). If you are entitled to the same inheritance under a will and through intestacy, renouncing one means renouncing both (Art. 1037). Renouncing the inheritance alone does not prevent you from claiming legados (specific testamentary gifts) left to you (Art. 1035). The applicable deadline is set by Arts. 1031 and 1034.
- Escrito de renuncia (written renunciation) before the judge handling the estate. Article 61 of the Código Procesal Civil y Mercantil (Civil and Commercial Procedure Code) sets the requirements for an initial court submission: the judge or court addressed; the applicant’s or representative’s full name, age, marital status, nationality, profession or occupation, domicile and notification address; the facts; the legal basis and relevant laws; the names and residence of people against whom a right is claimed, stating if their residence is unknown; a precise request; place and date; and the applicant’s and assisting lawyer’s signatures and the lawyer’s seal. If the applicant cannot sign or does not know how, another person or the assisting lawyer signs for them.
What the Código Civil Says
| Rule | Text or summary | Article |
|---|---|---|
| Form | Express renunciation in writing before the judge or by public deed | 1034 |
| Deadline | The same as for acceptance: six months from the testator’s death if the heir is in Guatemala, or one year if abroad | 1031, 1034 |
| Who may renounce | People with free disposal of their assets | 1033 |
| Minors and legally incapacitated people | Judicial approval and intervention by the Ministerio Público (Public Prosecutor’s Office) are required | 1029 |
| Legacies | Renouncing only the inheritance does not prevent the person from claiming legacies left to them | 1035 |
| Entitlement under both a will and intestacy | Renouncing one means renouncing both | 1037 |
| Court-set deadline | After nine days from the opening of the inheritance, an interested person may ask the judge to set a deadline of no more than thirty days for the heir’s declaration; failure to declare means the inheritance is treated as accepted | 1038 |
| Possession | A person who validly renounces an inheritance is treated as never having possessed it | 641 |
| Debts | The heir is liable for estate debts and charges only to the extent of the estate’s assets | 920 |
For acceptance, Art. 1030 says it cannot be conditional or partial.
Who Inherits the Share You Renounce?
Renouncing does not transfer your share to a person you choose. The Código Civil determines what happens:
- Your descendants, by representation. Article 929 extends inheritance by representation to cases where an heir has renounced. Children or descendants may inherit in the renouncing heir’s place.
- Other relatives of the same degree, by acrecimiento (accrual of the share). In sucesión intestada (intestate succession), if relatives of the same degree renounce or cannot inherit, their shares accrue to the others of that degree, subject to the right of representation (Art. 1077).
- Where there is a will, renunciation by the named heir gives rise to intestate succession, except where substitution, representation or accrual applies (Art. 1068, item 2).
Renouncing From Abroad
The deadline is one year from death if you are outside Guatemala (Art. 1031). The form remains the same: a written submission before the judge or a public deed (Art. 1034).
The CENADOJ Código Civil Comentado cites a 27 April 1987 cassation judgment in the note to Art. 1034. The Cámara Civil of the Corte Suprema de Justicia (CSJ, Supreme Court of Justice) found a renunciation made in Miami invalid in Guatemala because it had not been made before the judge handling the succession or by public deed. In that same case, the court upheld the woman’s donation of those rights to her grandchildren, perfected through a public deed authorized in Guatemala.
A deed before a consul: Art. 6, item 2, of the Código de Notariado allows Guatemalan consuls or diplomatic agents accredited and resident abroad to exercise notarial functions if they are qualified notaries under that law. This provision alone does not establish that a particular US consulate offers the service.
Identification and language: The Código de Notariado lists a passport among the ways to identify a grantor whom the notary does not know; the provision also lists the cédula de vecindad and two witnesses known to the notary, or both methods where the notary considers it appropriate. It does not establish a universal passport-for-DPI substitution. A party who does not know Spanish appoints an interpreter, who should be a traductor jurado (sworn translator) if possible. If the interpreter cannot sign or does not know how, a witness signs for them.
Before Signing
- Count the deadline from the date of death (Arts. 1031 and 1034).
- Check for legacies left to you: renouncing the inheritance alone does not take away your right to claim them (Art. 1035).
- If you have your own debts, and renunciation harms your creditors, those whose claims predate it may ask the judge to authorize acceptance in your name. Acceptance benefits them only up to the amount of their claims (Art. 1039).
- Notary fees: fees and payment conditions are freely agreed. Without an agreement, the Código de Notariado tariff applies in national currency (Art. 106).
Related Procedures
General guidance, not legal advice. Legal references: the CENADOJ Código Civil Comentado and Código de Notariado, and the Código Procesal Civil y Mercantil available through WIPO Lex.