Property, inheritance and legal matters in Jordan — handled from the USA.

Most of the families who contact us about Jordan are not dealing with anything exotic. They are dealing with ordinary property and family matters that became hard because nobody who can act is in the country, and nobody in the country has the authority to act.

The Department of Lands and Survey (دائرة الأراضي والمساحة). The government body that holds Jordan's land and property records and registers sales, transfers and inheritance. Whatever a relative tells you about a property, this record is what counts — so it is the first thing we check.

Hasr irth (حجة حصر إرث). The inheritance certificate that names the heirs and their shares. It is issued by the Sharia courts for Muslim families, and by the relevant church court for Christian families. Until it exists, a property stays in the name of the person who died.

Special power of attorney (وكالة خاصة). The document that lets someone act for you in Jordan. For an heir abroad, its wording has to cover the specific transaction — a sale, a transfer, an assignment or a division. A general power of attorney is not enough for every act.

Takharuj (تخارج). The assignment of one heir's share to other heirs, usually for an agreed amount. For families living in different countries, it is often the cleanest way to consolidate an inherited property so it can be managed or sold.

A power of attorney signed in front of an American notary is only the first step. For use in Jordan it normally has to be certified by the Secretary of State of the state where it was notarized, authenticated by the U.S. Department of State, legalized by the Jordanian Embassy in Washington, and then authenticated by Jordan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Skip a step, or get the wording wrong, and it is refused at the counter in Amman.

The wording matters as much as the stamps. The authority accepting it — a court, the land department — expects the document to name the property and the act it authorizes, and the names on it to match the identity documents and the inheritance certificate exactly. Small differences between the English and Arabic spellings of a name are one of the most common reasons files stall.

Our guides to power of attorney and inheritance are written around Palestine, but the sequence they describe — the certificate first, then a power of attorney that fits the act, then the registry — is the same shape in Jordan. They are a good place to understand what is involved before you call.