Selling inherited jewelry to pay inheritance tax

It is a situation we encounter every week: heirs receive valuable jewelry but must pay inheritance tax in cash. The assets are there; the liquidity is not.

Why the question arises almost always

Inheritance tax is due upon filing the estate declaration, usually within six months of the death. But the assets transferred — an apartment, jewelry — do not turn into cash at the same speed. When the estate has few bank accounts and many assets, heirs must find the money elsewhere.

Selling part of the jewelry is often the quickest and least painful solution: faster than a real estate sale, less permanent than a loan, and generally without major emotional impact for pieces no one wears.

Before selling: three precautions

1. Have the entire collection appraised, including what you plan to keep. You can only sell what you know the value of, and the notary will need a value for everything.
2. Get the agreement of all heirs. Until the estate is partitioned, the jewelry is held in joint ownership: the sale requires the consent of all co-owners. See our page on joint ownership and partition of jewelry.
3. Inform your notary. The timing and form of the sale have effects on the declaration: a public sale within two years of death fixes the value retained, which is not the case for a private sale to a professional.

Auction or direct purchase?

Both paths are legitimate; they simply do not meet the same need.

Auction can achieve the best price for a rare, signed, or historic piece when time is available: allow several months between inventory, sale, and settlement, and deduct the sale costs.

Direct purchase — our business — offers the opposite: an immediate firm offer and same-day payment, with an invoice. This is the route chosen by most heirs pressed for time by the tax deadline, or wishing to settle a joint ownership without waiting.

We have no interest in pushing you one way or the other: if a piece clearly belongs in an auction room, we will tell you — we maintain good relations with several Parisian auction houses.

What we buy in an estate context

Certified or uncertified diamonds, signed jewelry (Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Bulgari, Boucheron, Chaumet, Chopard…), antique and family jewelry, colored stones, pearls, scrap gold, and mixed lots. We examine everything, including what seems worthless: surprises exist in both directions.

How it works

You come without an appointment to 43 rue Beaubourg, with the jewelry and, if available, the certificates and the ID of the seller. The appraisal is done in front of you. If the offer suits you, payment is immediate and you leave with an invoice — a useful document for the estate file. If it does not, you leave with your jewelry and the written estimate, free of charge.

Updated on July 24, 2026 — scales and allowances are subject to change with each Finance Act.