Who inherits without a will in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

The spouse and the children are the first order and inherit in equal shares. A child who has died is replaced by their own children.

In the second order the spouse takes half and the parents take the other half in equal parts. If a parent has died, that parent's share goes to the siblings. With no parents or siblings, the spouse takes everything.

Children first; then the parents and their descendants (the siblings); then the grandparents and their descendants; then more distant ancestors. If there is no heir, the estate passes to the state.

Some countries of the region treat a long-lasting extramarital union like a marriage for inheritance. Check the national law, since the conditions differ.

Descendants, the spouse and the parents are necessary heirs with a reserved share that a will cannot take away. The size is set in the national law.

The country has its own rules on which law governs an estate. An estate with a foreign element needs advice in each country involved.

• The Federation, Republika Srpska and Brčko District each have their own law of inheritance, so the answer depends on the entity.

Bosnia and Herzegovina belongs to the Civil law family. Succession law grows out of the legal tradition, so it helps to know how the system works.

Read the Bosnia and Herzegovina legal-system profile in the Legal Families Atlas →
Who owns what in a marriage in Bosnia and Herzegovina? →

• Ministry of Justice of Bosnia and Herzegovina