If I find out that the will is lost, can I claim to redistribute the inheritance in Vietnam?
My father died leaving a will, but due to carelessness we lost the will. So the property was divided according to the law. But recently we have found a will, is it possible if I want to redistribute it? My father passed away 2 years ago.
If I find out that the will is lost, can I claim to redistribute the inheritance in Vietnam?
Pursuant to Article 642 of the 2015 Civil Code, loss and damage of wills are as follows:
1. If, from the commencement of the inheritance, the will is lost or damaged to the extent that it is incapable of indicating clearly the wishes of the testator and there is no evidence of the true wishes of the testator, it shall be deemed that no will exists and inheritance at law shall apply.
2. Where the will is found prior to distribution of the estate, the estate shall be distributed according to the will.
3. Within the prescriptive periods for requesting estate distribution, if a will is found after the distribution of the estate, the estate shall be distributed according to the will at the request of the heir under will.
In Article 623 of the 2015 Civil Code, the prescriptive periods with respect to inheritance is as follows:
1. The prescriptive period with respect to a claim of an heir for distribution of an estate shall be thirty years regarding immovable property or ten years regarding movable property from the time of commencement of the inheritance. Upon the expiry date of the aforesaid period, the estate shall belong to the estate administrator. In case where there is no estate administrator, the estate shall be dealt with as follows:
a) It shall belong to the person possessing it as prescribed in Article 236 of this Code;
b) It shall belong the State if there is no possessor prescribed in Point a of this Clause.
2. The prescriptive period with respect to a claim of an heir for a declaration of right of inheritance of the requester or to disallow the claim to inheritance of another shall be ten years from the time of commencement of the inheritance.
3. The prescriptive period with respect to a claim for an heir to fulfill property obligations of the deceased shall be three years from the time of commencement of the inheritance.
Thus, if prescriptive period with respect to a claim of an heir for distribution of an estate shall be thirty years regarding immovable property or ten years regarding movable property from the time of commencement of the inheritance, if the lost will is found, it is completely possible to request the division of the inheritance in Vietnam.
Therefore, after 2 years from the time of division of inheritance according to law in Vietnam, if you find a will, you can completely request to redistribute the estate in accordance with the content of the will.
Best Regards!
