Where a deceased died outside of Ireland we consider these to be foreign cases. These tend to cause concern for some practitioners as regards the correct approach. I attach a link below to the probate office page on foreign elements as it is a helpful starting point in navigating foreign cases.

If one is administering Irish property, and the deceased and owner of the property died outside of Ireland (either with or without a will), and if you wish a full grant over both moveables and immovables, then, you will need either (A) a foreign grant or (B) if there is no foreign grant, then you will need an affidavit of laws.

However, you can dispense with the need for an affidavit of laws (even where you have no foreign grant) if you limit your application to the Irish real property. So applying for a limited grant is a really neat way of avoiding affidavits of laws where your only asset is Irish real property.

Not only that, the advantage of a limited grant is that the person applying only needs to show that they have entitlement under Irish law.

Example

Mary dies intestate in Switzerland the owner of a property in Ireland. Her sister Catherine lives in Germany. Mary is not survived by a husband, parents, child, or children of a pre-deceased brother and sister and so normally in intestacy under Irish law, any sibling can apply. Catherine makes an intestacy application limited to Irish immovables. There is no need for an affidavit of law.

Here is the link to the probate office’s page on foreign cases.

https://www.courts.ie/foreign-domicile-application

Hope this helps and if you have any queries related to probate, will drafting or tax matters on estates please reach out to ckelly@hcalaw.ie.