Many countries, for example France, Germany and Spain, have what is known as ‘forced heirship rules’. These are restrictions on how property you own in that country can be left to your heirs.
Forced heirship rules vary from country to country, but they tend to specify that a certain percentage of your assets must be passed in equal shares to particular members of your family. As these rules are part of public policy of the country in question, any Will you have written that goes against the forced heirship rules will be invalid.
England and Wales does not have a forced heirship regime, so you are free to decide who inherits your assets based there, subject to claims from dependants. But if you own foreign assets, depending on your circumstances you may need:
a multi-jurisdictional Will in order to deal with assets located in more than one country; or
different Wills dealing with the property in each jurisdiction to avoid local problems.
If the property is located in an EU country (other than Ireland or Denmark), you may be able to elect in your Will for the laws of England and Wales to apply to the succession of the property instead.