Inheritance under Estonian law without a will

Who inherits if there is no will?

The legal heirs are the deceased's spouse, registered partner and the relatives named in the law (PärS § 11 lg 1) [2]. Relatives inherit in three orders; the next order inherits only if there are no heirs in the previous one (PärS § 12) [3].

• The first order are the deceased's descendants – children, grandchildren and so on (PärS § 13 lg 1) [4]. Children inherit in equal shares; the children of a child who died before the deceased take that child's place (PärS § 13 lg 3 ja 5) [4].
• The second order are the deceased's parents and their descendants (PärS § 14 lg 1) [8]. If both parents are alive, they inherit the whole estate in equal shares (PärS § 14 lg 2) [8].
• The third order are the deceased's grandparents and their descendants (PärS § 15 lg 1) [9].

If there are no legal heirs, the local authority of the place where the succession opened inherits (PärS § 18 lg 1) [10].

How much does the spouse get?

The surviving spouse or registered partner inherits together with the relatives (PärS § 16 lg 1) [11]:

• beside the first order, a share equal to a child's share, but not less than one quarter of the estate (PärS § 16 lg 1 p 1) [11];
• beside the second order, half of the estate (PärS § 16 lg 1 p 2) [11];
• the whole estate if there are no relatives of the first or second order (PärS § 16 lg 2) [11].

Beside the second order, the spouse also receives, as a preferential share, the ordinary furnishings of the common home (PärS § 17 lg 1) [12]. The spouse has no right of succession if, before death, the deceased had filed for divorce with a court or given written consent to the divorce (PärS § 16 lg 4) [11].

What the law says

• „Päritakse seaduse järgi, kui pärandaja ei ole jätnud kehtivat testamenti või pärimislepingut.“ [1] (translation: succession is by law if the deceased left no valid will or succession contract; PärS § 10 lg 1).
• „Pärandaja lapsed pärivad võrdsetes osades.“ [4] (translation: the deceased's children inherit in equal shares; PärS § 13 lg 5).
• „Pärandist loobumise tähtaeg on kolm kuud.“ [6] (translation: the time limit for renouncing an estate is three months; PärS § 119 lg 1).
• „Pärast pärandist loobumist ei saa seda enam vastu võtta.“ [13] (translation: once an estate has been renounced, it can no longer be accepted; PärS § 116 lg 2).

Accepting the estate and debts

An heir who does not renounce the estate within the time limit set by law is deemed to have accepted it (PärS § 118 lg 1) [5]. The time limit is three months and starts when the heir learns or should learn of the death and of their right to inherit (PärS § 119 lg 1) [6]. To renounce, an application certified by a notary must be filed with the notary within that time (PärS § 118 lg 3) [5].

On acceptance, the deceased's rights and obligations pass to the heir (PärS § 130 lg 1) [7]. If the estate is insufficient, the heir must perform the obligations from their own assets, unless they performed them in the manner provided by law after an inventory, or bankruptcy of the estate has been declared (PärS § 130 lg 3) [7]. An heir who has accepted the estate may ask the notary for an inventory (PärS § 137 lg 1) [14].

What to do

1. To open succession proceedings, file an application certified by a notary with the notary (PärS § 166 lg 1) [15]; an Estonian notary conducts the proceedings if the deceased's last residence was in Estonia (PärS § 165 lg 2) [16].
2. Find out the deceased's debts before the three-month renunciation period ends – without renunciation in that time the estate is deemed accepted (PärS § 118 lg 1; PärS § 119 lg 1) [5] [6].
3. If the debts may exceed the assets, consider asking the notary for an inventory (PärS § 137 lg 1) [14] or renouncing by a notarised application (PärS § 118 lg 3) [5].
4. The notary certifies the certificate of succession when the right to inherit and its extent are sufficiently proven, but not earlier than one month after the notice of the proceedings is published (PärS § 171 lg 1) [17].

Frequently asked questions

Do the children and the spouse inherit equally?

Beside the first order, the spouse inherits a share equal to a child's share, but not less than one quarter of the estate (PärS § 16 lg 1 p 1) [11]; the children inherit in equal shares among themselves (PärS § 13 lg 5) [4].

Do I have to pay the deceased's debts?

On acceptance, the deceased's obligations pass to the heir, and if the estate is insufficient they must be performed from your own assets, unless after an inventory in the manner provided by law or in bankruptcy of the estate (PärS § 130 lg 1 ja 3) [7].

How long do I have to renounce the estate?

Three months from when you learned or should have learned of the death and of your right to inherit (PärS § 119 lg 1) [6]. For good reason, the notary may extend it if the other heirs do not object (PärS § 119 lg 2) [6].

Can a renunciation be withdrawn?

No – once an estate has been renounced, it can no longer be accepted (PärS § 116 lg 2) [13].