Cases of inheritance at law in Vietnam

Cases of inheritance at law in Vietnam (Source: Internet)

1. Inheritance at law in Vietnam

Article 649 of the Civil Code 2015 stipulates inheritance at law as follows:

Inheritance at law means inheritance in accordance with the order of priority of inheritance and the conditions and procedures of inheritance provided by law.

The cases of inheritance according to the law prescribed in Article 650 of the Civil Code 2015 are as follows:

- Inheritance at law shall apply in the following cases:

+ There is no will;

+ The will is unlawful;

+ 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;

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

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

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

+ Parts of an estate related to an ineffective part of the will;

+ 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.

2. Heirs at law in Vietnam

Article 651 of the Civil Code 2015 stipulates heirs at law as follows:

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

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

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

+ 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.

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

- 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.

3. Regulations on succeeding heirs in Vietnam

According to Article 652 of the Civil Code 2015, the succeeding heirs are as follows:

Where a child of a testator died prior to or at the same time as the testator, the grandchildren of the testator shall inherit that part of the estate which their father or mother would have been entitled to inherit had such father or mother still been alive.

If the grandchildren also died prior to or at the same time as the testator, the great-grandchildren of the testator shall inherit that part of the estate which their father or mother would have been entitled to inherit had such father or mother still been alive.

4. Inheritance relationship in Vietnam

4.1. Inheritance relations between adopted children and their adoptive parents and biological parents

An adopted child and his or her adoptive parents may inherit each other's estates and may also inherit in accordance with Articles 651 and 652 of the Civil Code 2015.

(Article 653 of Civil Code 2015)

4.2. Inheritance relations between stepchildren and their stepparents

If a stepchild and his or her stepparents care for and support each other as though they were biologically related, they may inherit each other's estates and may also inherit in accordance with Sections 3 and 4.1.

(Article 654 of Civil Code 2015)

5. Inheritance where wives and husbands have divided multiple ownership property, have applied for divorce or have remarried

Article 655 of the Civil Code 2015 stipulates inheritance where wives and husbands have divided multiple ownership property, have applied for divorce or have remarried as follows:

- Where a wife and husband have divided their multiple ownership property while they are still married and one of them subsequently dies, the surviving spouse shall still be entitled to inherit the estate of the deceased.

- Where a wife and husband have applied for but not yet obtained a legally effective divorce pursuant to a judgment or decision of a court, or they have obtained such a divorce but the judgment or decision of the court is not yet effective, and one of them dies, the surviving spouse shall, nevertheless, be entitled to inherit the estate of the deceased.

- A person who is the wife or husband of the deceased at the time when his or her spouse dies shall be entitled to inherit the estate of the deceased even if that person subsequently remarries.

Ngoc Nhi

>> CLICK HERE TO READ THIS ARTICLE IN VIETNAMESE