Dividing an estate when there is no will: who inherits, and what are the limitation periods and procedures?

Where there is no lawful will, the estate is divided among three ranks of heirs; the first rank comprises the spouse, parents and children, who receive equal shares. Limitation periods for requesting division of an estate: 30 years for immovable property and 10 years for movable property. If the heirs reach agreement, the division is notarised; if there is a dispute, a claim is brought before the court.

Legal basis

When is an estate divided by law?

An estate is divided by law when there is no will, when the will is unlawful, or when a person entitled under the will does not receive their share.

Summary of Article 650 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13: inheritance at law (thừa kế theo pháp luật) applies where there is no will; where the will is unlawful; where the heirs under the will die before or at the same time as the testator, or the agencies or organisations entitled under the will no longer exist at the time of opening of the succession (thời điểm mở thừa kế); or where the persons designated as heirs under the will are not entitled to inherit or renounce the inheritance. Inheritance at law also applies to the part of the estate not disposed of by the will, the part relating to any part of the will that has no legal effect, and the part relating to heirs under the will who fall within the cases above.

Which property forms the estate to be divided?

The estate comprises only the property belonging to the deceased; the share of the surviving spouse or of other co-owners is not part of the estate. Article 612 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13 provides: “An estate includes the separate property of the deceased and the deceased’s share of property held in common with others” (unofficial translation).

Summary of Clause 2, Article 66 of the Law on Marriage and Family No. 52/2014/QH13: where division of the estate is requested, the joint property of the spouses is divided in half, unless there is an agreement on the matrimonial property regime; the deceased’s share is divided in accordance with the law on inheritance.

Who inherits when an estate is divided by law?

Heirs at law are arranged in three ranks; the first rank comprises the wife, husband, natural father, natural mother, adoptive father, adoptive mother, natural children and adopted children of the deceased. Heirs of the same rank receive equal shares; a lower rank inherits only when no one remains in the higher ranks.

Table 1. The three ranks of heirs under Clause 1, Article 651 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13

Summary of Clause 3, Article 651 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13: a lower rank inherits only when no one remains in the higher ranks because they have died, are not entitled to inherit, have been disinherited or have renounced the inheritance.

Adopted children and their adoptive parents inherit from each other; so do stepchildren and their stepfathers or stepmothers if they have cared for and supported each other as parent and child. An heir must be alive at the time of opening of the succession, or have been conceived before the person leaving the estate died and born alive (Articles 613, 653 and 654 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13).

Certain persons are not entitled to inherit, such as a person convicted of intentionally infringing the life or health of the person leaving the estate, or a person who has seriously breached the obligation to care for that person (Clause 1, Article 621 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13).

When does inheritance by representation apply?

Inheritance by representation (thừa kế thế vị) applies when a child of the person leaving the estate dies before or at the same time as the person leaving the estate. Article 652 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13 provides: “Where a child of the person leaving the estate dies before or at the same time as the person leaving the estate, the grandchild is entitled to the share of the estate to which the grandchild’s father or mother would have been entitled if alive; if the grandchild also dies before or at the same time as the person leaving the estate, the great-grandchild is entitled to the share of the estate to which the great-grandchild’s father or mother would have been entitled if alive” (unofficial translation).

The grandchildren share the single share of their father or mother. If the child dies after the person leaving the estate, this is not inheritance by representation: the child’s share arises from the time of opening of the succession (Article 614 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13) and is divided in turn as part of the child’s own estate, so the child’s wife or husband may also receive a portion.

Illustrative scenario (hypothetical, not a real matter). Mr A died in 2025 without leaving a will; his parents had died before him. The property is a house jointly owned by Mr A and his wife, Mrs B. They had three children, C, D and E; E died in 2022, leaving two children, G and H.

Table 2. How the house is divided in the hypothetical scenario

Mr A’s estate is 1/2 of the house, divided into four shares: Mrs B, C, D and E’s share. The actual result also depends on the documents, the property obligations and the agreement of the parties.

If dividing the house would seriously affect the life of Mrs B and her family, Mrs B has the right to ask the court to determine each person’s share of the estate but not to allow the division for a period not exceeding 3 years from the time of opening of the succession; when this period ends, if she can prove that the division would still seriously affect them, Mrs B may request a single extension of no more than 3 years (Clause 2, Article 661 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13; Clause 3, Article 66 of the Law on Marriage and Family No. 52/2014/QH13).

Where there is a will, who still inherits even if the will does not give them a share?

Minor children, the father, the mother, the spouse and adult children who are incapable of working are still entitled to a share equal to two thirds of the share of one heir at law, calculated as if the estate were divided by law. Summary of Article 644 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13: this right arises when the will does not give them any part of the estate or gives them less than two thirds of that share; it does not apply to persons who renounce the inheritance under Article 620 or who are not entitled to inherit under Clause 1, Article 621 of the Code.

What are the limitation periods for dividing an estate and for confirming inheritance rights?

The limitation period for requesting division of an estate is 30 years for immovable property and 10 years for movable property; for requesting confirmation or rejection of inheritance rights, it is 10 years; for requesting heirs to perform the property obligations of the deceased, it is 3 years. All are counted from the time of opening of the succession.

Table 3. Limitation periods for inheritance under Article 623 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13

Clause 1, Article 611 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13 provides: “The time of opening of the succession is the time when the person who owns the property dies” (unofficial translation). When the limitation period for division expires, the estate belongs to the heir who is managing it (Clause 1, Article 623 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13).

The court applies the limitation period only when one or more of the parties so request before the first-instance court issues its judgment or decision (Clause 2, Article 149 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13; Clause 2, Article 184 of the Civil Procedure Code No. 92/2015/QH13).

For a succession opened before 01/01/2017 where the estate is immovable property, Precedent No. 26/2018/AL determines the limitation period for requesting division of the estate under the Civil Code 2015, i.e. 30 years, where the court resolves the case after the Code has taken effect. The precedent cites Point d, Clause 1, Article 688 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13, which is a transitional provision on limitation periods for civil transactions established before the Code took effect. Also under this precedent, if the person leaving the estate died before the date of publication of the Ordinance on Inheritance dated 30/08/1990, the limitation period for requesting division of the estate starts from the date of publication of that Ordinance.

For successions opened long ago, the calculation of the limitation period may also be affected by specific transitional provisions, so it needs to be checked case by case. Where it is unclear which type a request falls into, the shorter limitation period should be used.

What is the procedure for dividing an estate at a notarial practice organisation?

Where the heirs agree on how to divide the estate, they draw up an estate division document and request notarisation; the acceptance of the notarisation request is publicly posted before notarisation. The notarised document is the basis for registering the transfer of rights to the persons receiving the estate (Clause 6, Article 59 of the Law on Notarisation No. 46/2024/QH15).

Table 4. Steps for dividing an estate by agreement

This procedure also applies where there is only one heir, which is commonly referred to as an inheritance declaration (khai nhận di sản) (Clause 5, Article 59 of the Law on Notarisation No. 46/2024/QH15).

For houses and land, a notarial practice organisation with the appropriate competence must be chosen. Summary of Article 44 of the Law on Notarisation No. 46/2024/QH15: notaries may notarise transactions concerning immovable property only within the province or city where the notarial practice organisation has its head office, except for wills, documents renouncing an inheritance, letters of authorisation relating to immovable property and certain other cases. The rules on the territorial scope for notarising transactions concerning immovable property have been amended by Law No. 04/2026/QH16, with effect from 01/01/2027.

Where the estate consists of land use rights, how is the title transfer registered?

The heir must carry out registration of changes within 30 days from the date on which the division of the land use rights forming the estate is completed, or from the date on which the court’s judgment or decision takes legal effect (Clause 3, Article 133 of the Land Law No. 31/2024/QH15). The application is submitted to the agency competent to carry out land registration.

Documents on the inheritance of land use rights are notarised or certified in accordance with civil law (Point c, Clause 3, Article 27 of the Land Law No. 31/2024/QH15). The requirement to have a Certificate of Land Use Rights and Ownership of Land-Attached Assets (Certificate) under Point a, Clause 1, Article 45 of the Land Law No. 31/2024/QH15 does not apply to the inheritance of land use rights, so land without a Certificate can still be passed on by inheritance. However, where the estate consists of land use rights, the file requesting notarisation of the estate division document must include documents proving the land use rights of the person leaving the estate (Point c, Clause 2, Article 59 of the Law on Notarisation No. 46/2024/QH15). Documents on the origin and history of the land use should therefore be checked in advance.

If the co-heirs cannot agree, where is a claim brought?

Disputes over the inheritance of property are resolved at first instance by the Regional People’s Courts (Tòa án nhân dân khu vực) (Clause 5, Article 26 and Article 35 of the Civil Procedure Code No. 92/2015/QH13; Article 35 as amended by Law No. 85/2025/QH15 from 01/07/2025). If the subject matter of the dispute is immovable property, only the court of the place where the immovable property is located has jurisdiction (Point c, Clause 1, Article 39); if the immovable property is located in several localities, the plaintiff may ask the court of the place where any one of the properties is located to resolve the dispute (Point i, Clause 1, Article 40 of the Code).

Under Clause 1, Article 4 of the Law on Organisation of People’s Courts No. 34/2024/QH15 (as amended and supplemented), the People’s Courts comprise the Supreme People’s Court, the provincial People’s Courts, the Regional People’s Courts, the Specialised Court at the International Financial Centre and the military courts. Before filing, the Regional People’s Court with territorial jurisdiction must be correctly identified.

Clause 2, Article 235 of the Land Law No. 31/2024/QH15 requires land disputes to go through mediation at the commune-level People’s Committee before a competent state agency resolves them. For disputes over the inheritance of land use rights specifically, Clause 2, Article 3 of Resolution No. 04/2017/NQ-HĐTP of the Council of Judges of the Supreme People’s Court gives guidance that mediation at commune level is not a precondition for bringing a claim. This Resolution was issued while the Land Law 2013 was in force, and there are still differing interpretations in practice, so each case needs to be considered individually.

During the period for preparing the first-instance trial, the court conducts conciliation (Clause 1, Article 205 of the Civil Procedure Code No. 92/2015/QH13). If the estate has to be divided, heirs have the right to request division in kind; if it cannot be divided equally, the heirs agree on the valuation and on who receives the property in kind, or sell it and divide the proceeds (Clause 2, Article 660 of the Civil Code No. 91/2015/QH13).

What documents should be prepared?

The documents usually required include documents proving the death of the person leaving the estate, documents proving the inheritance relationship, the will (if any) and documents on the estate. The exact list depends on where the matter is dealt with and the state of the file.

Table 5. Documents commonly required for dividing an estate by law

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