Who inherits without a will in the Philippines?

The spouse and the children inherit shares together

In the Philippines the spouse takes a share equal to one child's, and the children share the rest equally.

Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.

The default, not your case. This page describes what applies when there is no valid will. Succession law is reformed often, a will changes everything, and the rules for an estate with a foreign element are complex. This is general information, not legal advice.

A spouse and children survive

The legitimate children and the spouse inherit equal shares. Children born outside marriage take half the share of a legitimate child.

A spouse survives, but no children

With the parents the spouse takes a half and the parents share the other half; with none, the spouse takes everything.

No spouse: who comes next

Legitimate children first; then the parents; then illegitimate children; then the siblings; then other relatives up to the fifth degree. If none, the estate goes to the State.

A partner who is not married

A partner who is not married does not inherit by law.

What a will cannot take away

A 'legitime' reserves part of the estate for the children, the spouse and the parents, who cannot be disinherited without a legal ground.

If the person or the property is abroad

The law of the person's nationality governs the estate, whatever the property or its location.

Understand the legal system first

The Philippines belongs to the Mixed: civil and common law family. Succession law grows out of the legal tradition, so it helps to know how the system works.

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

Official sources

Lawphil: the Civil Code of the Philippines

TheLawToKnow Tools’s inheritance guide is an educational overview of general rules. It is not legal advice, and it does not replace the official source or a lawyer in the country. Report a mistake.