If a man and woman cohabit as husband and wife, how much will they inherit when one of them dies in Vietnam?

If a man and woman cohabit as husband and wife, how much will they inherit when one of them dies in Vietnam?

Article 14 of the Law on Marriage and Family 2014 stipulates settlement of consequences of men and women cohabiting as husband and wife without marriage registration as follows:

1. A man and woman eligible for getting married under this Law who cohabit as husband and wife without registering their marriage have no rights and obligations between husband and wife. Rights and obligations toward their children, property, obligations and contracts between the partners must comply with Articles 15 and 16 of this Law.

Pursuant to Clause 1, Article 651 of the 2015 Civil Code, regulations on heirs according to law

1. Heirs at law are categorized in the following order of priority:

a) The first level of heirs comprises: spouses, biological parents, adoptive parents, offspring and adopted children of the deceased;

b) The second level of heirs comprises: grandparents and siblings of the deceased; and biological grandchildren of the deceased;

c) The third level of heirs comprises: biological great-grandparents of the deceased, biological uncles and aunts of the deceased and biological nephews and nieces of the deceased.

2. Heirs at the same level shall be entitled to equal shares of the estate.

3. Heirs at a lower level shall be entitled to inherit where there are no heirs at a higher level because such heirs have died, or because they are not entitled to inherit, have been deprived of the right to inherit or have disclaimed the right to inherit.

In addition, Article 626 of the 2015 Civil Code stipulates the rights of the testator specifically as follows:

A testator has the following rights:

1. Appoint heirs or to deprive an heir of the right to inherit the estate;

2. Determine those parts of the estate which each heir is entitled to;

3. Reserve part of the estate as a gift or for worship purposes;

4. Designate heirs to perform obligations;

5. Appoint a custodian of the will, an administrator of the estate, and a distributor of the estate.

According to this Article, compared to the case you mentioned when they started cohabiting as husband and wife in 2021, during this period of time until now, although they have cohabited as husband and wife, not registering their marriage has led to are not recognized by law in Vietnam as husband and wife. Therefore, people cohabiting as husband and wife will not inherit, unless there is a will leaving property.

If a man and woman cohabit as husband and wife, how much will they inherit when one of them dies in Vietnam? (Image from the Internet)

What are cases of inheritance according to current law in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Article 650 of the 2015 Civil Code, the above content is stipulated as follows:

Cases of inheritance at law

1. Inheritance at law shall apply in the following cases:

a) There is no will;

b) The will is unlawful;

c) All heirs under the will died prior to or at the same time as the testator dying, or the bodies or organizations which are entitled to inherit under the will no longer exist at the time of commencement of the inheritance;

d) The persons appointed as heirs under the will do not have the right to inherit or disclaimed the right to inherit.

2. Inheritance at law shall also apply to the following parts of an estate:

a) Parts of an estate in respect of which no disposition has been made in the will;

b) Parts of an estate related to an ineffective part of the will;

c) Parts of an estate related to heirs under the will not having the right to inherit, having disclaimed the right to inherit, or having died prior to or at the same time as the testator dying; and parts of an estate related to bodies or organizations entitled to inherit under the will but no longer existing at the time of commencement of the inheritance.

Above are cases of inheritance at law related to current civil law in Vietnam.

Best regards!