A couple wishes to protect the surviving spouse and bequeath a share to an association. The notary informs them of a fee for the authentic will, another for registration in the central file, and mentions advisory fees in addition. The will at the notary generates several distinct lines of costs, and confusing them amounts to signing without understanding the invoice.
Regulated fees for the notarial will: what the scale sets
There is often talk of a single fee for a will at the notary. In practice, the regulated scale distinguishes several acts, each with its own fee.
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The authentic will costs €113.19 excluding VAT in regulated fees, according to the current scale resulting from the 2024-2025 tariff revision. This amount covers the drafting of the deed by the notary and its preservation in the minutes of the office.
If one chooses instead to draft a holographic will themselves and entrust it to the notary for safekeeping, the fee drops to €31.69. The difference is clear, but the guarantees are not the same: the deposited holographic will has not been verified on its merits by the notary; it is simply kept in a safe place.
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In addition to these fees, there is an item that many articles forget to detail: registration in the Central File of Last Will Declarations (FCDDV) costs €18.45 including VAT. This registration is charged in addition, regardless of the type of will. It allows the notary in charge of the succession to locate the document after the testator’s death. Without this registration, a perfectly drafted will may remain untraceable.
To know precisely how much a will costs at the notary, one must therefore add the fee for the deed, the registration in the FCDDV, and the applicable VAT.
Notary’s free fees: the variable part of the invoice
The regulated fees represent only part of the final price. The advisory fees are freely set by each notarial office, and this is where the invoice can vary from simple to triple from one firm to another.
When the financial situation is simple (one property, direct heirs), the notary charges little or no additional fees. However, as soon as more technical arrangements are involved, things change.
Situations that generate high advisory fees
- Presence of a property held in divided ownership, which requires custom drafting to avoid conflicts between the usufructuary and the bare owner
- Desire to bequeath a share to an association or foundation, which involves verifying the legal capacity of the beneficiary and applicable tax exemptions
- Blended family with children from different relationships, where the distribution must respect the hereditary reserve while protecting the new spouse
- Wealth including shares in civil companies or holdings, requiring coordination with corporate law
In these cases, one moves from a quick consultation to a genuine estate engineering task. The notary must estimate it in advance, and it is advisable to request a written quote before signing the engagement letter.
Authentic will or deposited holographic will: arbitrate according to your risk
The common reflex is to draft a holographic will at home to save money. This approach works for simple situations, but it exposes one to risks that the reduced fee does not always compensate for.
A holographic will can be contested for formal defects: absence of date, partially typed writing, ambiguous signature. The authentic will, dictated to the notary in the presence of two witnesses, is almost unassailable in court. This legal security justifies the price difference for anyone anticipating a disagreement among heirs.
Depositing a holographic will with the notary (at €31.69) offers a compromise: one retains control over the drafting while securing safekeeping and registration in the FCDDV. But the notary does not check the validity of the content. If a clause violates the hereditary reserve or uses an ambiguous formulation, the problem will only be discovered at the time of succession.
For a family without foreseeable conflict, with modest assets and direct heirs, the deposited holographic will remains a reasonable option. As soon as there is doubt about the distribution or a risk of contestation, the authentic will becomes essential.
Preparing for the appointment with the notary: the concrete elements to gather
People often arrive at the notary with a vague idea of their wishes. As a result, the appointment drags on, advisory fees rise, and one leaves with a draft will to review at home before a second visit.
Gathering the property documents before the appointment reduces the bill and speeds up the drafting. Here’s what to bring:
- A complete statement of assets: real estate (with titles of ownership or purchase deeds), bank accounts, life insurance contracts, shares in companies
- The updated family record book, mentioning all children and the current marital status
- The exact matrimonial regime (community, separation of property, participation in acquisitions), as it determines what is part of the estate and what already belongs to the spouse
- The list of desired beneficiaries with their full identity (name, first name, date of birth, relationship)
- Any donations already made, as they count against the available share
With this file in hand, the notary can draft the project during the first appointment. Without these elements, they will need to request additional documents, which delays finalization by several weeks.
Modifying or revoking an existing will
A will is never set in stone. It can be modified at any time by a new will that revokes the previous one, or by a specific act of revocation. Each modification generates new fees (drafting a new deed, new registration in the FCDDV). Anticipating one’s wishes as much as possible during the first appointment limits these recurring costs.
Opinions vary on the ideal frequency of updates, but a review every five years or after each major family event (birth, divorce, real estate acquisition) remains a solid practice. The notary keeps a history of versions, which secures the traceability of the testator’s wishes over the long term.