The „inheritance certification deed”, or APD for short, is in fact the most important notarial deed in the entire inheritance proceedings, and its registration is done by the notary in the Inheritance Register. In its content, it contains a precise explanation of the share in which each of the heirs listed inherits the inheritance. It is therefore a formal confirmation of the right to inheritance. An interesting fact is that the possibility of drawing up an act of inheritance certification has been in operation since 2009. Previously, it was only possible to obtain the right to acquire an inheritance by virtue of a court decision. The deed of inheritance certification currently drawn up by a notary constitutes proof that the person indicated in this document is the heir. A fee of PLN 50 should be paid for its preparation – if the APD concerns statutory or testamentary inheritance, a supplementary act of inheritance certification for heirs inheriting a farm. In the case of a testamentary inheritance certificate with a debt collection record, the maximum rate is PLN 100. 23% VAT must always be added to the notary’s remuneration. The amount will increase by the number of extracts downloaded. As a rule, such an act has two sides. However, it should be remembered that the notary always sends one APD copy to the staroste and one to the head of the tax office.
However, the legislator excluded the possibility of notarial confirmation of the right to inheritance in the case of special wills. Such wills are: an oral will, a traveling will and a military will. In relation to this category of wills, evidentiary proceedings are usually conducted, during which it is usually necessary to question the witnesses of the will and assess the credibility of their testimonies, which goes far beyond the competence of the notary public. So the only way left is to go to court.