Quick answer

Under Philippine law, heirs acquire successional rights from the moment a person dies, but they do not automatically become exclusive owners of particular assets. The estate must first be identified, the surviving spouse’s own share separated, debts and taxes addressed, any will probated, and the remaining net estate divided according to the will and the compulsory-heir rules—or, if there is no effective will, the rules on intestate succession.

A will cannot ordinarily deprive compulsory heirs of their legitime, the minimum share reserved by law. If there is no will, the closest relatives inherit in the combinations and proportions fixed by the Civil Code. Being the eldest child, caring for the deceased, possessing a title, or paying expenses does not by itself create a larger inheritance.

The result depends on the complete family tree, the validity of marriages and adoptions, proof of filiation, the date of death, the deceased’s citizenship, the marital property regime, prior donations, debts, and the wording and validity of any will.

What an heir actually inherits

Succession transmits the deceased’s property, transmissible rights, and obligations to the extent of the inheritance. The right arises at death under Articles 774–777 of the Civil Code.

This does not mean that an heir may immediately occupy, sell, withdraw, or retitle any asset at will:

Only property or rights belonging to the deceased enter the estate.
Community or conjugal property must first be liquidated. The surviving spouse’s own net share is not an inheritance.
Estate debts, administration expenses, taxes, and valid charges must be addressed before final distribution.
Until partition, the heirs generally hold undivided interests in the estate rather than exclusive ownership of particular assets.
A named devisee or legatee cannot simply take the property left by will; delivery must come through the heir, executor, or administrator authorized to deliver it.
Property controlled by a valid beneficiary designation or a special law may not pass in the same way as ordinary estate property.

A title solely in the deceased’s name is not conclusive that the entire property was exclusively theirs. Conversely, property used by the family is not necessarily community or conjugal property. Acquisition dates, source of funds, marriage date, marriage settlements, and the applicable property regime must be checked.

Who are compulsory heirs?

A compulsory heir is entitled to a legitime when the deceased leaves a will. Under Articles 886–904 of the Civil Code, the principal compulsory heirs are:

Legitimate children and descendants;
In their absence, legitimate parents and ascendants;
The surviving spouse; and
Illegitimate children, whose filiation must be established.

These categories do not always exclude one another. A surviving spouse and illegitimate children may inherit together with legitimate children or, in the proper case, legitimate ascendants.

Brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces, cousins, unmarried partners, stepchildren who were not adopted, godchildren, and caregivers are not compulsory heirs merely because of that relationship. They may inherit under a valid will or, for certain blood relatives, through intestate succession when the law calls them.

Adopted and legitimated children

An adoptee is considered the legitimate child of the adopter and is entitled to the rights of a legitimate child. Republic Act No. 11642 also gives adopters and adoptees reciprocal rights of testate and intestate succession without distinction from legitimate filiation. The effect on ties with biological parents, step-parent adoptions, rescinded adoptions, and adoptions completed under earlier laws may require examination of the adoption order and the law in force at the relevant time. See Sections 41–43 of the Domestic Administrative Adoption and Alternative Child Care Act.

A child validly legitimated by the parents’ subsequent marriage enjoys the same rights as a legitimate child under the Family Code.

The legitime when there is a will

The legitime is a minimum, not necessarily the heir’s final share. A testator may give a compulsory heir more than the legitime, but generally cannot give less without a valid disinheritance.

Common rules include:

Legitimate children collectively have a legitime equal to one-half of the hereditary estate, divided equally among them.
In the absence of legitimate descendants, legitimate parents or ascendants generally have a collective legitime of one-half.
Each illegitimate child’s legitime is one-half of the legitime of a legitimate child, subject to the disposable portion and the rights of other compulsory heirs.
A surviving spouse’s legitime changes according to whom the spouse inherits with. For example, with two or more legitimate children, the spouse generally receives a legitime equal to that of one legitimate child; with one legitimate child, the spouse’s legitime is one-fourth of the estate.
If only illegitimate children and a surviving spouse remain, the spouse is generally entitled to one-third, the illegitimate children collectively to one-third, and the remaining third is disposable.

The exact calculation becomes more complex when several classes concur, a child predeceased the testator, representation applies, donations must be collated, or the free portion is insufficient.

Omission is not always the same as disinheritance

A compulsory heir cannot ordinarily be disinherited by silence, family estrangement, or a statement such as “I leave nothing to my child.” Disinheritance must be made in a will, for a cause expressly recognized by law, with the cause stated. If challenged, the persons benefiting from the disinheritance may have to prove the asserted cause.

Complete omission of a compulsory heir in the direct line—known as preterition—can annul the institution of heirs, although valid devises and legacies may remain effective to the extent they do not impair legitimes. Other shortfalls may instead be corrected by reducing excessive testamentary gifts.

Lifetime donations are also relevant. A parent cannot necessarily defeat legitimes by giving everything away before death. Donations subject to collation or found inofficious may be brought into the computation or reduced.

Who inherits when there is no valid will?

Intestate succession applies when there is no will, the will is void or ineffective, the will does not dispose of the entire estate, or an instituted heir cannot inherit and no substitution or other applicable mechanism fills the share.

The nearest relative generally excludes a more distant relative, subject to representation. These are common—not exhaustive—intestate combinations:

Surviving heirs	General division of the net intestate estate
Legitimate children only	Equal shares
Legitimate children and illegitimate children	Each legitimate child receives twice the share of each illegitimate child
Surviving spouse and legitimate children	The spouse receives the same share as each legitimate child
Spouse, legitimate children, and illegitimate children	Treat the spouse and each legitimate child as two units; each illegitimate child as one unit
Legitimate parents or ascendants only, with no legitimate descendants	Parents share equally; if only one parent survives, that parent generally takes all
Legitimate ascendants and illegitimate children, without a spouse	One-half to the legitimate ascendants and one-half to the illegitimate children
Spouse and legitimate parents or ascendants	One-half to the spouse and one-half to the ascendants
Spouse and illegitimate children	One-half to the spouse and one-half to the illegitimate children
Spouse, legitimate ascendants, and illegitimate children	One-half to the ascendants, one-fourth to the spouse, and one-fourth to the illegitimate children
Spouse and brothers, sisters, nephews, or nieces, with no descendants, ascendants, or illegitimate children	One-half to the spouse and one-half to the qualifying siblings, nephews, or nieces
Spouse alone, with none of the relatives whose rights the law preserves	Entire estate
Collateral relatives only	Brothers and sisters and their qualifying children are preferred; other collateral relatives may inherit only up to the fifth degree
No qualified heir	The State

Full-blood and half-blood siblings do not always receive equal shares. When full- and half-blood siblings inherit together, a full-blood sibling generally receives twice the share of a half-blood sibling.

These fractions apply only after determining the true net estate. They can change through representation, incapacity, repudiation, a valid marriage or legal-separation issue, or other facts.

When grandchildren inherit

A grandchild does not automatically receive an additional share alongside a living parent. The nearer relative normally excludes the more distant one.

A grandchild may inherit by representation, stepping into the place of a parent who predeceased the grandparent or was legally incapable of inheriting. The representatives divide only the share that their parent would have received. Representation does not ordinarily occur through an heir who merely repudiates the inheritance.

In Aquino v. Aquino, the Supreme Court held that a nonmarital child may represent a deceased parent in the estate of a direct ascendant such as a grandparent, regardless of the child’s birth status. The ruling was expressly limited to representation in the direct line and did not decide every issue involving inheritance in one’s own right from collateral relatives. Filiation must still be proved. See Aquino v. Aquino, G.R. Nos. 208912 and 209018, December 7, 2021.

Rights of illegitimate or nonmarital children

The law uses the term “illegitimate child,” although “nonmarital child” is often the more respectful description.

A nonmarital child can inherit directly from either parent once filiation is legally established. Under Article 176 of the Family Code, each nonmarital child’s legitime is one-half of a legitimate child’s legitime. The same one-to-two relationship generally applies when legitimate and nonmarital children inherit together intestate.

Using—or not using—the father’s surname does not by itself settle inheritance rights. Relevant proof may include:

A record of birth or final judgment establishing filiation;
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.

A birth certificate entry may not be sufficient in every case, particularly when the alleged father did not sign or acknowledge it. The applicable deadline for an action to establish filiation can depend on the kind of evidence relied upon, the child’s date of birth, and whether the alleged parent is still alive. This is an area where prompt, case-specific advice is important. See Articles 172, 175, and 176 of the Family Code and the amendment in Republic Act No. 9255.

Rights of a surviving spouse—and limits for an unmarried partner

A surviving legal spouse may be both:

Owner of a separate share resulting from liquidation of community or conjugal property; and
An heir to the deceased spouse’s net estate.

These are different rights and should not be combined when computing inheritance.

A spouse who caused a judicial legal separation may lose intestate succession rights. The validity of the marriage can also be decisive. A person is not automatically a surviving spouse merely because the couple lived together, had children, or was publicly treated as married.

An unmarried partner generally has no intestate share solely because of cohabitation. The partner may still have:

A proven co-ownership interest under Articles 147 or 148 of the Family Code;
Rights under a contract or beneficiary designation; or
A testamentary gift, if legally valid and not prohibited or reducible for impairing legitimes.

Those rights must be established separately from heirship.

Acceptance, repudiation, sale, and partition

An heir may accept or repudiate an inheritance only after the person’s death and after becoming certain of the right to inherit. Repudiation must be made in a public or authentic instrument or through a petition presented to the proper court. An informal family statement or private unsigned waiver may not be enough.

Before partition, an heir generally owns an ideal share in the estate—not the whole of a particular house, lot, or vehicle. One heir therefore cannot ordinarily sell the entire property without the authority or participation of the other owners. A sale by one co-heir may bind only the rights that ultimately belong to that seller.

If an heir sells a hereditary right to a stranger before partition, the other co-heirs may have a right of redemption under Article 1088 of the Civil Code, generally within one month from written notice of the sale. Because the notice and timing requirements are strict and fact-sensitive, immediate legal review is advisable.

Every co-heir generally has the right to seek partition, although a testator may prohibit partition for a period not exceeding 20 years and courts may temporarily defer a division that would cause serious prejudice.

Extrajudicial settlement or court proceeding?

Extrajudicial settlement

Under Rule 74, an estate may generally be settled extrajudicially when:

The deceased left no will;
The estate has no outstanding debts for purposes of the rule;
All heirs participate;
All heirs are adults with legal capacity, or minors are represented by duly authorized judicial or legal representatives; and
The required public instrument, registration, publication, and bond requirements are followed.

If there is only one heir, that heir may use an affidavit of self-adjudication when the Rule’s conditions are satisfied. The settlement must be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the required manner. Publication, however, is not a license to omit a known heir.

An extrajudicial settlement is not binding on a person who neither participated nor had the required prior notice. The Supreme Court has repeatedly held that publication after the other heirs have already executed the deed does not replace notice inviting an heir to participate. See Rule 74 of the Rules of Court and Cua v. Vargas, G.R. No. 156536, October 31, 2006.

Rule 74 contains a two-year period for specified claims against a valid extrajudicial settlement, but that period does not automatically defeat every omitted heir. Prescription, fraud, notice, possession, registration, and the nature of the action can produce different deadlines. Anyone discovering an exclusion should act immediately rather than assume that a claim is either expired or unlimited.

Judicial settlement

Court proceedings are normally required or prudent when:

There is a will;
A will’s validity or interpretation is disputed;
The heirs, shares, or filiation are contested;
There are unpaid debts or conflicting creditor claims;
An heir is missing, incapacitated, or inadequately represented;
Assets are being concealed, wasted, or transferred;
The heirs cannot agree on partition; or
An executor or administrator is needed to collect and preserve the estate.

No will passes Philippine property merely because the family accepts it. It must be proved and allowed by the proper court. A custodian who knows of the testator’s death must generally deliver the will to the proper court or named executor within 20 days; the named executor has a corresponding 20-day duty under Rule 75.

Where no estate proceeding is pending, an heir may, in appropriate circumstances, bring an ordinary civil action to protect succession-based ownership rights without first obtaining a separate judicial declaration of heirship. This does not eliminate the need for probate, administration, or partition where those proceedings are otherwise required. See Treyes v. Larlar, G.R. No. 232579, September 8, 2020.

Estate tax and transfer requirements

Estate tax is separate from the heirs’ substantive shares. The law in force on the date of death controls the tax computation.

For deaths on or after January 1, 2018, the general rules under the TRAIN Law and Revenue Regulations No. 12-2018 include:

Estate tax is generally 6% of the net taxable estate, not 6% of each heir’s share.
A resident or citizen estate generally has a ₱5 million standard deduction, subject to the governing tax rules.
A qualifying family home deduction may be available up to ₱10 million.
The surviving spouse’s net share in community or conjugal property is deducted because it is not part of the deceased’s estate.
A return is required for taxable transfers and, regardless of value, where the estate includes registered or registrable property requiring BIR clearance.
A return with a gross estate exceeding ₱5 million requires a CPA-certified supporting statement.
The estate tax return is generally due within one year from death. A meritorious filing extension may not exceed 30 days and must be requested through the proper Revenue District Office.
Tax is generally paid when the return is filed. If estate cash is insufficient, installment or hardship-relief provisions may apply, subject to BIR requirements and approval.
An electronic Certificate Authorizing Registration, or eCAR, is normally needed before registrable estate assets can be transferred.

The estate ordinarily secures its TIN and files with the RDO having jurisdiction over the deceased’s domicile. Nonresident estates follow different venue rules. Check the current documentary checklist before filing through the BIR estate-tax portal and BIR Citizen’s Charter service page.

A bank that knows of a depositor’s death may permit withdrawal within one year, subject to a 6% final withholding tax and the documentary conditions in Revenue Regulations No. 12-2018. If the deposit has instead been declared in the estate, the estate tax paid, and an eCAR issued, different withdrawal treatment applies. The withholding route should not be used without understanding that the withheld amount is generally not credited against or refunded from the estate tax.

The general estate-tax amnesty availment period closed in June 2025. BIR Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 33-2026 concerns estates that timely availed of that amnesty, including proof of settlement and approved installment issues; it did not reopen the program generally.

Practical steps for heirs

Secure the original will and death record. Do not write on, restaple, remove pages from, or discard an original will.
Prepare a complete family tree. Include every marriage, child, adopted child, nonmarital child, deceased child and that child’s descendants, surviving parent, and sibling.
Verify civil status. Obtain PSA and local civil-registry records, adoption orders, annulment or nullity judgments, legal-separation records, and acknowledgments of filiation.
Create an estate inventory. List real property, vehicles, bank deposits, investments, shares, businesses, receivables, insurance, pensions, digital assets, and property held by other people.
Separate ownership from inheritance. Determine which assets were exclusive, community, conjugal, co-owned, held in trust, or governed by beneficiary designations.
Preserve the estate. Notify appropriate institutions of the death, secure property, maintain insurance, record income and expenses, and prevent unauthorized withdrawals or transfers.
Identify debts and taxes. Collect loan agreements, mortgages, tax records, medical and funeral bills, and proof of payments made for the estate.
Choose the lawful settlement route. Use probate or administration when required. Use an extrajudicial settlement only if all Rule 74 conditions genuinely exist.
Compute shares only after the net estate and all heirs are established. Include prior donations and advances that may require collation or reduction.
Complete BIR and registration requirements before distribution. After obtaining the appropriate settlement document, tax clearance, and eCAR, transfer titles and records through the relevant Registry of Deeds, LTO, corporation, bank, or other institution.

Evidence worth preserving

Keep originals or certified copies of:

Death, birth, marriage, and adoption records;
The original will and evidence of its custody and execution;
Land titles, deeds, tax declarations, surveys, and acquisition records;
Bank, investment, stock, business, insurance, and pension records;
Loan documents, mortgages, receipts, and creditor communications;
Marriage settlements and proof of the source of funds used to acquire property;
Written acknowledgments of children or family relationships;
School, medical, remittance, support, photograph, and correspondence records relevant to filiation;
Messages or documents showing concealment, threatened sales, forgery, coercion, or exclusion;
An accounting of rent, harvests, dividends, withdrawals, maintenance expenses, and taxes after death; and
Every draft and signed version of an extrajudicial settlement, waiver, sale, or partition.

Do not surrender the only original document or sign a waiver before receiving a complete asset schedule and a clear computation of the proposed shares.

Common mistakes

Dividing only the assets known to the most influential relative;
Assuming the eldest child, family breadwinner, or caregiver gets the largest share;
Treating the surviving spouse’s own community or conjugal share as an inheritance;
Assuming a will can freely exclude children or a spouse;
Excluding a nonmarital child solely because the child uses the mother’s surname;
Giving grandchildren individual shares while their parent is alive and qualified to inherit;
Signing a deed stating that there are no debts or other heirs without verification;
Believing newspaper publication cures the exclusion of a known heir;
Selling a specific estate property before partition without authority from the other heirs or the court;
Confusing the ₱5 million standard deduction with a universal exemption from filing;
Missing the one-year estate-tax deadline while the family negotiates; and
Using a notarized “waiver” without checking whether it is legally a repudiation, donation, sale, or partition with separate tax consequences.

When legal help is urgent

Seek a Philippine succession lawyer promptly if:

Someone is hiding, forging, destroying, or refusing to deliver a will;
Estate property is being sold, mortgaged, withdrawn, occupied, or retitled without consent;
An heir was omitted from an affidavit of self-adjudication or extrajudicial settlement;
The one-year estate-tax deadline is approaching or has passed;
Filiation is disputed or the alleged parent has died;
There are minor, missing, incapacitated, or overseas heirs;
A marriage, adoption, legal separation, or foreign divorce affects status;
The deceased or any significant asset was connected with another country;
There are conflicting wills, suspected undue influence, or questions about testamentary capacity;
The estate has substantial debts, an operating business, or contested ownership; or
An heir is being pressured to sign a waiver or deed without an inventory and computation.

Frequently asked questions

Can a parent leave everything to only one child?

Usually not if other compulsory heirs survive. The favored child may receive the disposable portion and that child’s own legitime, but gifts impairing other legitimes can be reduced. A valid statutory disinheritance is an exception.

Does the eldest child get a bigger share?

No. Birth order and sex do not increase a child’s statutory share.

Can an illegitimate child inherit from the father?

Yes, if filiation is legally established. The child’s surname alone neither creates nor destroys the right.

Does a grandchild inherit if the grandchild’s parent is alive?

Generally, no. The living parent, being nearer in degree, ordinarily excludes the grandchild. Representation applies only in circumstances recognized by law.

Can a live-in partner inherit without a will?

Not merely because of cohabitation. The partner may have a separate co-ownership, contractual, or beneficiary right, but ordinarily has no intestate share as a spouse.

Is a notarized extrajudicial settlement enough?

No. Rule 74 eligibility, participation of all heirs, proper representation of minors, publication, filing, bond where applicable, BIR compliance, and registration must also be addressed.

Can one heir sell inherited land before partition?

An heir may attempt to transfer the hereditary interest that ultimately belongs to that heir, but cannot ordinarily convey the other heirs’ shares or exclusive ownership of a specific estate asset. Co-heir redemption and registration issues may also arise.

Do heirs inherit the deceased’s debts?

Estate obligations must be settled from estate property. An heir’s liability arising from the inheritance generally does not exceed the value of the share received, but heirs should not distribute or dispose of the estate while valid obligations remain unresolved.

Which law applies if the deceased was a foreign citizen?

Under Article 16 of the Civil Code, the deceased’s national law generally governs the order of succession, the amount of successional rights, and the intrinsic validity of testamentary provisions, regardless of where the property is located. Philippine court, property-registration, and tax rules may still apply to Philippine assets.

Official legal references

This article provides general Philippine legal information, not legal advice or a definitive computation of any estate. Succession and tax outcomes depend on documents and facts, including the law in force on the date of death. Sources and current procedures were checked as of July 31, 2026.