What happens if you pass away without a will

If you pass away without a will, you are considered to have died intestate. The law then determines how your assets are distributed. This distribution can vary, depending on who outlives you.

We'll start by defining a couple of terms:

Spouse refers to:

- The person you were married to just before your death.

- A partner registered under the Relationships Act 2003.

- A partner you had a significant relationship with, as described by the Relationships Act 2003, right before your passing, as long as the relationship lasted at least two years or led to the birth of a child.

Issue means your direct descendants: your children, and then further down the line, such as your grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

With those terms clarified, here's how your assets would be allocated:

If you leave behind a spouse, but no issue: Your entire estate is transferred to your spouse.

If you only have issue: Your entire estate goes to them.

If you are survived by a spouse and issue who are also the issue of your spouse: Your entire estate goes to your spouse.

If you have a spouse and any issue who are not the issue of your spouse: Your spouse receives personal effects, a statutory legacy (discussed below), and half of any remainder of your estate. The other half is given to your issue.

If you don’t have a spouse or issue: Your estate is equally divided among your parents, or goes wholly to your surviving parent, if only one is alive.

If you have multiple spouses but no issue: Your spouses share the estate equally unless there's an existing distribution agreement or order.

If you have multiple spouses and issue of one or more surviving spouses: Your spouses divide the estate equally unless there's a distribution agreement or order.

If you have multiple spouses and issue not belonging to any surviving spouse: Each spouse is entitled to a statutory legacy, your personal effects, and a share of half of the remainder, if any, of the estate.

If you leave no spouse, issue, parents, siblings, or their issue: Your estate is equally divided among your grandparents, or it goes entirely to your surviving grandparent.

If you have no spouse, issue, parent, sibling, their issue, or grandparent: Your estate is divided equally among your aunts and uncles, or goes entirely to your surviving aunt or uncle. If deceased aunts or uncles have surviving children, they are entitled to the respective share.

If you have no relatives: Your estate defaults to the Crown.

While this legal approach to distributing assets might seem fair to some, remember that it can be more time-consuming, stressful, and expensive than if you had a will. This is why we strongly recommend that everyone aged 18 and above drafts a will, even a basic one, to clearly express their wishes and reduce potential future complications.

All material on this site is provided for information purposes only. The contents do not constitute legal advice, are not intended to be a substitute for legal advice and should not be relied upon as such. You should seek legal advice or other professional advice in relation to any particular matters you or your organisation may have. If there are any issues you would like us to advise you on arising from this material, please get in touch.