Introduction

The Association of the European Network of Registers of Wills (ENRWA) Founded in 2005 by the Belgian, French and Slovenian notariats, ENRWA is an international non-profit association governed by Belgian law. It operates within the framework of the Basel Convention on the Establishment of a System for the Registration of Wills (16 May 1972).

The ENRWA enables Member States with a register of last wills and testaments to interconnect these registers. Thanks to this network, any European citizen can identify the wills left by a deceased person, regardless of the country of registration. This system thus facilitates the management of cross-border successions..

Since 2015, the ENRWA has extended its activities to European Certificates of Succession (ECS),introduced by European Regulation No 650/2012. The competent authorities can use it to search for the issuance of an EIC in another Member State bound by this Regulation (excluding Ireland and Denmark).

Key actions to fulfil its mission:

• Encourage the creation and interconnection of will registers in Europe;
  
• Raise awareness among notaries and legal professionals about the use of the ENRWA and the challenges of cross-border succession;
• Communicate with notaries and the public about the mission and actions of the ENRWA
• Develop and manage security protocols related to the registers and the financial sustainability of the initiative.

ENRWA core values

The ENRWA is based on the principles of the 1972 Basel Convention: 

• Respect for national specificities: taking into account the specific legal environments in the process of interconnecting registers;
• Confidentiality : registers undertake to keep information about wills secret during the testator's lifetime and to allow consultation upon presentation of the death certificate. 

The association is committed to continually developing and improving its quality management system