Quick answer

Under Philippine law, inheritance passes either through a valid will or, if there is no effective will, through intestate succession. A will cannot freely dispose of the entire estate when there are compulsory heirs: children and descendants, qualifying parents or ascendants, the surviving legal spouse, and nonmarital children are entitled to legally protected shares called legitimes.

Sons and daughters inherit without preference based on sex, age, or birth order. A legally adopted child has the rights of a legitimate child in the adoptive family. A nonmarital child may inherit from both parents if filiation is properly established, although the child’s share is generally smaller than that of a marital child. Grandchildren may inherit by representation in appropriate cases.

The amount inherited is not calculated from everything the deceased appeared to own. The marital property regime must first be liquidated, the surviving spouse’s own property share separated, and estate debts, expenses, taxes, and certain lifetime donations considered. The remaining net hereditary estate is what can be divided.

These are the general Civil Code rules. Different rules may apply if the deceased was a foreign national, was governed by Muslim personal law, or owned ancestral-domain, agrarian-reform, homestead, corporate, trust, insurance, or other specially regulated property.

When inheritance rights begin

Successional rights are transmitted at the moment of death. Before then, a future heir has only an expectation and generally cannot prevent the owner from genuinely selling or using the owner’s property.

What passes at death includes property, transmissible rights, and obligations that are not extinguished by death. The estate—not automatically the heirs’ personal property—must answer for the deceased’s obligations. An heir’s exposure is generally limited to the value received from the inheritance. These principles appear in Articles 774–781 of the Civil Code.

The law in force on the date of death normally determines the heirs’ substantive rights. The deceased’s nationality also matters: under Article 16, the order of succession, hereditary shares, and intrinsic validity of testamentary provisions are generally governed by the deceased’s national law. Thus, Philippine succession law ordinarily governs a Filipino’s estate even when the Filipino lived abroad, while a foreign national’s Philippine estate may require proof of foreign law.

Determine what actually belongs to the estate

Before computing anyone’s inheritance:

Identify the deceased’s exclusive property.
Identify community or conjugal property and the governing marriage settlement.
Pay or account for community or conjugal obligations.
Separate the surviving spouse’s ownership share.
Identify estate debts, administration expenses, and taxes.
Consider lifetime donations that must be collated or reduced.
Check whether particular assets pass under a beneficiary designation, contract, trust, pension law, social-security law, or other special rule.

For example, if a house is community property, the surviving spouse may already own a portion after liquidation. Only the deceased spouse’s portion enters the hereditary estate. The surviving spouse may then receive an additional share as an heir. The exact liquidation depends on the marriage date, marriage settlements, applicable property regime, debts, and any prior marriage. The governing liquidation rules include Articles 99–104 and 126–133 of the Family Code.

A title registered solely in one spouse’s name does not always settle whether property is exclusive or community/conjugal. Preserve the deed, source-of-funds records, marriage certificate, marriage settlements, loan documents, tax declarations, and proof of acquisition.

If there is a will

A will controls only to the extent permitted by law. It must comply with the required formalities and must be proved and allowed by the proper court. A private family agreement cannot substitute for probate merely because everyone accepts the document.

Under Rule 75, the custodian must deliver the will to the proper court or named executor within 20 days after learning of the testator’s death. The named executor has a corresponding 20-day duty to present it and accept or refuse the trust. See the Rules on settlement of estates.

Compulsory heirs and legitimes

The following are the principal compulsory heirs under Articles 886–903 of the Civil Code:

Legitimate children and descendants;
In their default, legitimate parents and ascendants;
The surviving legal spouse;
Nonmarital children whose filiation is duly proved; and
In limited circumstances, the parents of a deceased nonmarital child.

An adopted child is treated as a legitimate child of the adopter. Under Sections 41–43 of Republic Act No. 11642, adoption creates reciprocal testate and intestate succession rights between adopter and adoptee and extends legitimate filiation to specified members of the adoptive family. Because adoption generally severs legal ties to biological parents, except in qualifying stepparent situations, claims involving the biological family require review of the adoption order, its date, and the applicable adoption law.

Common baseline legitimes are:

Compulsory heirs present	Reserved legitime
Legitimate children or descendants only	One-half of the estate collectively
One legitimate child and surviving spouse	Child: one-half; spouse: one-fourth
Two or more legitimate children and surviving spouse	Children: one-half collectively; spouse: a share equal to each child’s legitime
Legitimate parents or ascendants only	One-half collectively
Legitimate ascendants and surviving spouse	Ascendants: one-half; spouse: one-fourth
Nonmarital children only	One-half collectively
Nonmarital children and surviving spouse	Children: one-third collectively; spouse: one-third
Surviving spouse only	One-half, subject to the deathbed-marriage exception below
Legitimate ascendants, nonmarital children, and spouse	Ascendants: one-half; nonmarital children: one-fourth collectively; spouse: one-eighth

When marital and nonmarital children concur, each nonmarital child’s legitime is generally one-half of each legitimate child’s legitime. These shares come from the disposable portion and are subject to statutory limits; the surviving spouse’s legitime must first be satisfied. Mixed families therefore require an exact computation rather than a simple percentage taken from the gross property.

If the surviving spouse is the sole compulsory heir and the marriage was celebrated in articulo mortis, followed by the testator’s death within three months, the spouse’s legitime is generally one-third rather than one-half—unless the couple had lived as spouses for more than five years.

The remainder after satisfying all legitimes is the free or disposable portion. A testator may leave that portion to any person legally capable of inheriting, including a compulsory heir who will consequently receive more than the minimum legitime.

Lifetime donations can affect the computation

The legitime is calculated using the value of property left at death, less proper debts and charges, with collatable donations added as required by Articles 908–911. A transfer labeled a “donation” or a simulated sale cannot necessarily defeat compulsory heirs. Excessive donations and testamentary gifts may be reduced upon a proper claim.

A genuine sale for real consideration is different: because heirs generally have no vested inheritance while the owner is alive, property validly sold ordinarily no longer belongs to the estate. Claims of simulation, fraud, incapacity, or lack of consideration are evidence-dependent.

If there is no effective will

Intestate succession applies when there is no will, the will is void or has lost validity, the will does not dispose of the whole estate, or an instituted heir cannot inherit and no applicable substitution or accretion resolves the share.

Common intestate combinations are:

Survivors	General division of the intestate estate
Legitimate children only	Equal shares
Legitimate children and spouse	Spouse receives the same share as each child
Legitimate and nonmarital children	Each legitimate child receives twice the share of each nonmarital child
Legitimate children, nonmarital children, and spouse	Use relative weights of 2 for each legitimate child, 1 for each nonmarital child, and 2 for the spouse
Nonmarital children only, with no legitimate descendants or ascendants	Children divide the estate
Nonmarital children and spouse	One-half to the spouse; one-half to the children collectively
Legitimate parents or ascendants only	They inherit the estate under the nearest-degree and paternal/maternal-line rules
Legitimate ascendants and nonmarital children	One-half to each group
Legitimate ascendants and spouse	One-half to each group
Legitimate ascendants, nonmarital children, and spouse	Ascendants: one-half; spouse: one-fourth; children: one-fourth collectively
Spouse alone, with no siblings, nephews, or nieces entitled to concur	Entire estate
Spouse with brothers, sisters, nephews, or nieces entitled to inherit	One-half to spouse; one-half to those collateral relatives
No descendants, ascendants, nonmarital children, or spouse	Brothers, sisters, and their qualifying children inherit first; other collateral relatives may inherit up to the fifth degree
No qualified heir	The State inherits through escheat

Full-blood siblings generally receive twice the share of half-blood siblings when they concur. Nephews and nieces may inherit by representation with surviving uncles or aunts; if qualifying nephews and nieces alone survive, the applicable per-capita rule may operate.

Brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces, and more remote relatives are not compulsory heirs. A valid will may exclude them completely, subject to the rights of any compulsory heirs.

Children, filiation, and representation

Nonmarital children

The statutory term is “illegitimate child,” but “nonmarital child” is used here except when referring to the exact wording of the law.

Filiation may be shown by:

A civil-registry birth record or final judgment;
An admission of filiation in a public document;
A private handwritten instrument signed by the parent;
Open and continuous possession of the status of a child; or
Other evidence allowed by the Rules of Court and special laws, potentially including DNA evidence.

The timing rules under Articles 172, 173, and 175 of the Family Code are technical. When a claim relies only on open and continuous status or other secondary evidence, an action to establish nonmarital filiation generally must be brought during the alleged parent’s lifetime. Claims based on a civil-registry record, final judgment, or qualifying written admission follow different rules. Do not wait for the estate settlement if filiation remains disputed. The Supreme Court discusses these rules in G.R. No. 210984.

A birth certificate is not automatically conclusive if the alleged parent did not sign, acknowledge, or participate in its preparation. The actual record and surrounding evidence must be examined.

Grandchildren and representation

Representation places a descendant in the position of the person represented. In the direct descending line, it commonly applies when a child of the deceased died earlier or is legally incapable or validly disinherited. It does not arise merely because an heir voluntarily repudiates the inheritance.

A grandchild ordinarily does not inherit directly while the grandchild’s parent—the nearer-degree child of the deceased—is alive and qualified. When representation applies, the representatives divide only the share their parent would have received.

In Aquino v. Aquino, the Supreme Court held that children, regardless of the circumstances of their birth, may inherit from a direct ascendant such as a grandparent by representation. The ruling is limited to direct-line representation and did not erase every restriction involving collateral relatives. Filiation must still be proved. See G.R. No. 208912, December 7, 2021.

Rights of a surviving spouse or partner

Only a legally recognized surviving spouse receives the Civil Code rights of a widow or widower. Separation in fact alone does not ordinarily end those rights. A spouse who gave cause for a judicial legal separation may, however, lose intestate succession rights, while the rules on testamentary succession and the decree’s terms must also be examined.

A cohabiting partner, fiancé, or partner in a void or otherwise unrecognized marriage is not automatically a compulsory or intestate spouse-heir. That person may still:

Own property independently;
Have a provable co-ownership share under Articles 147 or 148 of the Family Code;
Be a beneficiary of a valid insurance policy or similar arrangement; or
Receive property under a valid will, within the disposable portion and subject to legal prohibitions.

Do not confuse a co-ownership claim with inheritance. The claimant must prove contributions, acquisition, applicable relationship rules, and ownership before the deceased’s estate can be identified.

Omission and disinheritance

A parent cannot validly disinherit a compulsory heir merely through a verbal statement, family quarrel, estrangement, favoritism, or an informal letter.

Disinheritance requires:

A valid will;
A legal cause expressly provided in the Civil Code;
Specification of that cause in the will; and
Proof by the other heirs if the disinherited heir denies the cause.

Statutory causes vary according to whether the heir is a child, parent, or spouse. They include certain attempts against life, specified false criminal accusations, fraud or coercion affecting a will, serious maltreatment, and unjustifiable refusal of legally required support. The complete provisions are in Articles 915–923 of the Civil Code.

Preterition is different from defective disinheritance. The complete omission of a compulsory heir in the direct line may annul the institution of heirs, while devises and legacies remain valid to the extent they do not impair legitimes. Whether an omission is true preterition depends on the will, lifetime transfers, and the heir’s legal status.

An heir may also be excluded for legal incapacity or unworthiness under Articles 1027–1034. That issue is separate from formal disinheritance and should not be asserted without evidence.

How an estate is settled

Extrajudicial settlement

Under Rule 74, heirs may generally settle without judicial administration when:

The deceased left no will;
There are no outstanding debts requiring administration;
All heirs are adults, or minors are represented by duly authorized judicial or legal representatives; and
All participating heirs agree.

The settlement must be in a public instrument and, when real property is involved, filed with the Register of Deeds. A sole heir may use an affidavit of self-adjudication. The required notice is published once a week for three consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation. Rule 74 also provides for a bond corresponding to the personal property involved.

An extrajudicial settlement does not bind an heir or other person who did not participate and had no notice. The estate and bond remain subject to specified claims for two years after distribution, with an additional rule for persons who were minors, incapacitated, imprisoned, or outside the Philippines when that period expired. Other causes of action may have different limitation periods, so an excluded heir should not rely on the two-year period as a universal deadline.

Judicial settlement

Court proceedings are generally necessary when:

There is a will to probate;
Heirs disagree;
An heir or creditor is omitted;
Filiation, marriage, ownership, or the validity of a will is disputed;
Estate debts require administration;
Property must be preserved or sold under court authority;
There are conflicting settlements;
A minor or incapacitated heir’s interests are not adequately represented; or
An executor or administrator must be appointed.

The proper venue ordinarily depends on the deceased’s residence at death. If the deceased lived abroad, venue may depend on where Philippine estate property is located.

Practical steps for heirs

Secure the property. Photograph and inventory the residence, vehicles, documents, valuables, business assets, and digital records. Prevent unauthorized withdrawals or transfers without concealing assets from other heirs.
Locate the original will. Preserve envelopes, codicils, drafts, notarial details, and information about witnesses. Do not alter, staple, annotate, or destroy the original.
Prepare a complete family tree. Include all marriages, children, adopted children, nonmarital children, predeceased children, grandchildren, parents, and siblings. Record dates of birth, adoption, marriage, and death.
Classify every asset. Determine whether it was exclusive, community, conjugal, co-owned, corporate, held in trust, or payable directly to a named beneficiary.
List debts and expenses. Preserve loan statements, mortgages, credit obligations, medical and funeral expenses, tax records, and claims against or in favor of the estate.
Choose the proper settlement route. Do not execute a self-adjudication if there may be another heir. Do not use an extrajudicial settlement when a will exists.
Compute shares only after classification and valuation. Use values and ownership interests supported by documents, not estimates based solely on title names or family assumptions.
Complete tax and registration requirements. Obtain the BIR electronic Certificate Authorizing Registration and comply with the Registry of Deeds, assessor, treasurer, bank, corporate secretary, or other asset custodian’s requirements.
Keep a written accounting. Anyone managing estate money should document receipts, rent, income, expenses, withdrawals, and distributions for all heirs.

Evidence to preserve

Keep originals or certified copies of:

PSA death, birth, and marriage certificates;
Adoption orders and amended civil-registry records;
The will, codicils, envelopes, and witness information;
Marriage settlements, annulment or nullity decisions, legal-separation decrees, and foreign divorce records;
Certificates of title, deeds, tax declarations, surveys, and real-property tax receipts;
Bank, investment, insurance, pension, loan, and credit records;
Vehicle registrations and business ownership records;
Stock certificates, corporate books, partnership agreements, and financial statements;
Receipts and records showing who paid for property;
Donation documents and evidence of consideration for disputed sales;
Public or handwritten acknowledgments of filiation;
Messages, photographs, school or medical records, remittance records, and other evidence of family status;
Inventory photographs, appraisals, rental records, and proof of estate income; and
Evidence of forgery, coercion, concealment, unauthorized sale, or dissipation.

Use lawful methods to preserve evidence. Do not access private accounts by impersonating the deceased or using credentials without authority.

Tax and registration deadlines

Inheritance shares and estate tax are different questions. An heir may have a valid share even when taxes remain unpaid, but property ordinarily cannot be registered in the heir’s name without tax clearance.

For deaths on or after January 1, 2018, the estate tax is generally 6% of the net taxable estate. The estate-tax return, ordinarily BIR Form No. 1801, must generally be filed within one year from death, with a possible filing extension not exceeding 30 days in meritorious cases. Payment is normally due when the return is filed. Approved payment extensions may reach five years for judicial settlements or two years for extrajudicial settlements; interest and approval requirements apply. Different tax laws and rates govern earlier deaths.

A CPA-certified statement is required when the gross estate exceeds ₱5 million. The current rules, deductions, filing place, payment arrangements, and eCAR requirements are in BIR Revenue Regulations No. 12-2018, BIR Form No. 1801, and the BIR estate-tax page.

The previous estate-tax amnesty filing deadline was June 14, 2025. Do not rely on outdated amnesty instructions for a new filing.

For inherited real property, the applicable provincial or city transfer tax is governed by local ordinance. Section 135 of the Local Government Code directs the executor or administrator to pay the transfer tax within 60 days from the decedent’s death. Confirm the local rate, documentary requirements, penalties, and payment office immediately.

Common mistakes

Dividing the entire community or conjugal property as though it all belonged to the deceased;
Assuming the eldest child, only son, or child who cared for the parent receives more;
Excluding an adopted or nonmarital child without checking filiation and adoption records;
Treating grandchildren as direct equal heirs while their parent is alive and qualified;
Assuming siblings inherit when the deceased left children;
Treating a cohabiting partner as a legal spouse without proving marriage or co-ownership;
Using an affidavit of self-adjudication despite another possible heir;
Signing an extrajudicial settlement without an inventory, valuation, or explanation of shares;
Believing newspaper publication cures the omission of a known heir;
Selling a specific estate property before partition as though one heir alone owned it;
Distributing cash before paying or reserving for debts and taxes;
Hiding a will or estate asset;
Relying on a tax declaration alone as conclusive proof of ownership;
Renouncing an inheritance informally; and
Assuming an estate-tax deadline also determines the deadline for every civil claim.

Repudiation must be made in a public or authentic instrument or by petition to the court handling the estate. It is generally irrevocable. A purported renunciation in favor of selected heirs may instead constitute acceptance followed by a transfer or donation, with separate tax consequences.

When legal help is urgent

Consult a Philippine succession lawyer promptly when:

Someone is selling, mortgaging, withdrawing, or transferring estate assets;
A will is being concealed, destroyed, altered, or withheld;
The one-year estate-tax or 60-day local transfer-tax deadline is approaching;
An extrajudicial settlement or new title has already excluded an heir;
Filiation remains unproved and the alleged parent is still alive;
There are minors, incapacitated heirs, missing heirs, or heirs abroad;
There are multiple marriages, a void marriage, foreign divorce, or competing spouses;
The deceased was a foreign national or left a foreign will;
Muslim personal law may govern;
Ancestral-domain, agrarian-reform, homestead, trust, or corporate assets are involved;
There are disputed lifetime donations or suspicious “sales”;
The estate includes a business, perishable property, rent-producing assets, or urgent debts; or
Forgery, coercion, threats, fraud, or destruction of evidence is suspected.

Qualified indigent persons may seek assistance from the Public Attorney’s Office. The Integrated Bar of the Philippines also provides legal-aid contact information.

Special legal regimes

The Civil Code tables above should not be used mechanically where another legal regime applies.

For Filipino Muslims, succession may be governed by Book Three of the Code of Muslim Personal Laws, Presidential Decree No. 1083, which has different heirs, exclusions, and fractional shares.

Ancestral domains and lands may involve communal ownership and customary-law protections under the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act. Agrarian-reform land, free patents, homesteads, corporations, partnerships, trusts, insurance proceeds, pensions, and social-security benefits may likewise be subject to restrictions or distribution rules outside ordinary succession law.

FAQ

Can a parent leave everything to only one child?

Usually not if other compulsory heirs survive. The favored child may receive the free portion in addition to that child’s legitime, but the other compulsory heirs may demand completion of their legitimes.

Do daughters receive less than sons?

No. Children inherit without distinction based on sex or age.

Does the eldest child automatically receive the family home?

No. There is no general right of primogeniture. An indivisible property may be assigned to one heir who pays the others their proper shares, or it may be sold and the proceeds divided. A qualifying heir may demand public auction under Article 1086.

Can a nonmarital child inherit from the father?

Yes, if paternity or filiation is established by legally sufficient evidence and within any applicable period. The share is generally one-half of a legitimate child’s corresponding share when they concur.

Can grandchildren inherit if their parent is still alive?

Generally, the nearer-degree parent inherits first. Grandchildren ordinarily inherit by representation only when the legal conditions for representation exist.

Does an adopted child inherit from adoptive grandparents?

Current adoption law extends the adoptee’s legitimate filiation to the adopter’s parents and specified adoptive relatives. The adoption order, date, and any rescission must still be checked.

Can a common-law partner inherit?

Not automatically as a spouse. The partner may have a separate ownership or co-ownership claim and may receive the disposable portion under a valid will, subject to legal restrictions.

Can one heir live in or rent out inherited property without accounting to the others?

Before partition, co-heirs generally own the estate in common, subject to estate debts. An occupying or managing heir may have to account for rents, fruits, income, damage, and reimbursable expenses.

Can an heir refuse an inheritance with heavy debts?

Yes, but repudiation must follow the required formal form. Do not sell, assign, or dispose of hereditary rights first, because those acts can amount to acceptance.

Does publication make an extrajudicial settlement valid against an omitted heir?

No. Rule 74 expressly states that an extrajudicial settlement does not bind a person who did not participate and had no notice.

Is estate tax based on what each heir receives?

Estate tax is imposed on the transfer of the decedent’s net taxable estate, not separately on each heir’s inheritance. The civil-law shares and the tax computation should be prepared separately and then reconciled.

Official legal sources

This article provides general legal information, not advice for a particular estate. Shares and remedies depend on the death date, nationality, family relationships, filiation, marriage and adoption records, property regime, will, debts, donations, asset documents, and applicable special laws. Sources and procedures were checked as of August 4, 2026.