What are my rights in the event of inheritance?

When an estate is opened, your rights depend mainly on your relationship with the deceased and on whether or not there is a will. In the absence of testamentary provisions, the law establishes an order of succession (ordre successoral) that determines your rights in the estate:

1. If you are the surviving spouse, you can live in the family home for one year (free of charge), then benefit from a lifetime right of residence (droit viager d’habitation), subject to conditions. In addition, your rights vary depending on whether or not there are children (e.g., if you have children together, you are entitled to either ¼ of the estate in full ownership or the entire usufruct of the estate).
2. Descendants (children, grandchildren, etc.) inherit first and benefit from the reserved portion (réserve héréditaire), the share of the estate that is guaranteed to them;
3. Ascendants and privileged collateral relatives (parents, brothers, and sisters) come next.

If there is a will and you are a compulsory heir (héritier réservataire), that is, a descendant or, if there are no descendants, the surviving spouse, the law guarantees you a minimum share. This reserve protects you against excessive gifts (donations or bequests) that the deceased may have made during their lifetime.

However, “no one is obliged to be an heir”: you have three options:

1. Unconditional acceptance (acceptation pure et simple): you become the owner of all the assets and debts of the estate. As a result, your personal assets may be seized to pay the debts of the estate (merger of estates, or confusion des patrimoines).
2. Acceptance up to the value of the net assets (acceptation à concurrence de l’actif net): you receive only the net assets of the estate, that is, the deceased’s estate after payment of their debts: your personal assets are protected. This option involves formalities (declaration, inventory, publication, etc.).
3. Renunciation: you may renounce the inheritance, in which case you will be considered a stranger to the estate.

Note: your descendants may accept and collect the share that would have passed to you through the mechanism of representation (représentation).

You have a period of four months during which no one can force you to make a choice (delaying exception, or exception dilatoire). After this period, any interested party may give you formal notice (mise en demeure) to make your choice within two months. If you do not respond, you are deemed to have accepted. Without formal notice, you have 10 years to decide. After this period, you are deemed to have renounced.

You may carry out protective acts (actes conservatoires) and acts of provisional administration without this constituting acceptance (Article 784 of the French Civil Code).

If you accept, you become an undivided co-owner (coindivisaire) with the other heirs until the estate is divided. In addition, you may request a court-ordered division (partage judiciaire) if no amicable agreement is possible.

Gaëtan Escudey, a lawyer trained in family property law, assists you at every stage of the estate settlement to assert your rights and secure your procedures, both in France and abroad.

This general information does not replace a consultation: each situation requires individual assessment.