Who inherits if you die without a will?

Who inherits if you die without a will in the UK?

If you die without a valid will in England & Wales, you die intestate, and a fixed set of rules — not your wishes — decides who inherits. A surviving spouse or civil partner comes first. If you have no children, they inherit the whole estate. If you do have children, your spouse takes all your personal possessions, the first £322,000 outright (the statutory legacy), and half of anything left above that; your children share the other half equally, held on trust until they turn 18.

The single most important point: an unmarried partner inherits nothing under intestacy, however long you have lived together and even with joint children. There is no such thing in law as a 'common-law spouse'. The same applies to stepchildren you have not legally adopted. A will is the only way to provide for them — use the calculator above to see exactly who would inherit in your situation, and the actual £ amounts.

Statutory legacy of £322,000 applies to deaths on or after 26 July 2023 (SI 2023/758), under the Administration of Estates Act 1925 as amended. England & Wales only.

The order of inheritance

Intestacy follows a strict order. The estate passes to the first category in which a qualifying relative survives — and never skips to a later one while an earlier one exists.

1. Spouse or civil partnerTakes all (no children) or the statutory legacy plus half the remainder (with children).
2. Children & their descendantsInherit equally; a deceased child's share passes to that child's own children.
3. ParentsInherit equally — or all of it if only one parent survives.
4. Brothers & sisters (whole blood) & their childrenWhere there is no surviving spouse, child or parent.
5. Half-brothers & half-sisters & their childrenOf the half blood, where there are no whole-blood siblings.
6. GrandparentsWhere none of the above survive.
7. Uncles & aunts (whole blood) & their childrenThen uncles and aunts of the half blood.
8. The Crown (bona vacantia)If no qualifying relative can be found at all.

Three real splits people get wrong

Intestacy rules — your questions

This tool applies England & Wales intestacy rules under the Administration of Estates Act 1925 (as amended). Statutory legacy: £322,000 (SI 2023/758, in force from 26 July 2023). This is general information, not legal advice.

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