Who inherits without a will in Norway?

The spouse takes one quarter, with a minimum amount fixed by law, and the children share the rest. The spouse may also keep the estate undivided and not divide it until later.

With the parents or siblings the spouse takes half, with a higher minimum amount fixed by law. With no other heirs the spouse takes everything.

Children first, then the parents and the siblings and their descendants, then the grandparents. If no one is found, the estate goes to the state.

A registered partner is treated as a spouse. A cohabiting partner who has a child with the deceased or lived with them for several years has a limited statutory right.

Children have a protected share of two thirds of the estate, up to a maximum amount per child. The spouse's minimum inheritance is also protected.

Norway does not take part in the EU Succession Regulation. Norwegian law generally applies to a person who lived in Norway.

Norway 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 Norway legal-system profile in the Legal Families Atlas →
Who owns what in a marriage in Norway? →

• Lovdata: the Inheritance Act