Entering into an inheritance after 6 months after death is a common situation that arises due to a person’s ignorance of the laws of inheritance practice, or the impact of force majeure reasons that did not allow him to acquire rights in time. Legislative practice states that an inheritance not received on time is subject to proportional division among other legal successors or goes into the possession of public authorities. To avoid such problems, you should study the intricacies of inheritance affairs in advance or seek help from a professional.
Is it possible to inherit after 6 months?
After six months, applicants lose the right to inheritance. And it does not matter how exactly the transfer of rights is carried out - by law or by will.
You can solve the problem in the following ways:
- Through a notary (in case of actual acceptance of inheritance or hereditary transmission).
- By agreement with other heirs . It is necessary to provide the notary with the consent of the legal successors to include the new recipient among the heirs.
- By filing a claim in court . This is the most popular option. In court, it is enough to restore the deadline for accepting the inheritance. The only problem is the availability of admissible evidence. If they are not provided, the court will refuse to satisfy the claim.
What to do if one of the heirs refuses the inheritance
If any of the heirs refuses the will, then his share is distributed among the remaining heirs. At the same time, they are not required to take any additional actions (consents, statements). All issues related to refusal and increase in share are dealt with by a notary.
There are two types of refusal:
- general. Without specifying who will receive the refusenik’s share;
- targeted refusal. That is, in favor of a specific heir.
If the testator distributed all the inherited property among the persons specified in the will, then the refusal can only be made in favor of any of these heirs.
Example: A citizen bequeathed an apartment and a car to his brother and nephew. He had no more property. At the same time, the testator had a wife and children. The brother refused his share. Only a nephew can inherit an apartment and a car.
If only part of the property is bequeathed (not the entire inheritance), then a share of the inheritance can be transferred to the heirs by law.
Example: The testator had 2 cars and a summer cottage. He bequeathed one car to two of his neighbors. He did not dispose of any other property. Of the legal heirs, the testator had a wife and a son. One of the neighbors gave up his share of the car in favor of the testator's son. Thus, in addition to the inheritance due, the son will also receive ½ share of the car bequeathed to the neighbors.
In general, the task of the heirs is reduced only to monitoring the correctness of the notary’s actions.
Ways to receive an inheritance
Civil legislation provides for 3 ways of entering into inheritance after the expiration of the deadline. The heir can use one of the methods, taking into account the current situation, the number of people who rely on the property, or if the deadline for visiting the notary has expired.
Acceptance of an inheritance by law implies the entry into rights taking into account the priority. Children, parents and surviving spouse go first. Then brothers, sisters, grandparents.
Simultaneously with the inheritance order, the right to property is vested in the dependents of the deceased. These include:
- minor dependents (brothers, sisters, nephews, stepsons, stepdaughters, wards);
- disabled dependents (cohabitants, former spouses, brothers, sisters, strangers).
Through the court
The reasons for filing a claim can vary. One of the most common is missed deadlines.
Also, relatives may not know about a person’s death if the heir:
- did not maintain a relationship with the deceased person;
- was on a long business trip abroad;
- was in the hospital for a long time;
- did not know about the establishment of the fact of death in court;
- served time in prison;
- served in the military.
Sample statement of claim for restoration of deadlines
You can submit an application only within 6 months, after the reasons for missing the deadline have disappeared. If the applicant submits an application later, the court will refuse to satisfy the requirements.
Before filing a claim in court, the interested person must visit a notary and obtain a refusal to issue a certificate.
Without trial
To enter into rights after the death of a person after 6 months, the written consent of all persons to whom the inheritance certificate was issued is required. If a citizen missed the deadline for a good reason or other legal successors specifically hid information from him, then they may agree to re-register the documents.
Expert opinion
Stanislav Evseev
Lawyer. Experience 12 years. Specialization: civil, family, inheritance law.
Otherwise, a citizen can go to court to extend the deadline and still restore the violated rights. In addition, he can prove that the legal successors deliberately hid from him information about the death of the owner and recognize them as unworthy heirs. In such a situation, they will be completely disinherited.
Thus, in order to resolve the issue of entering into an inheritance after 6 months, the legal successor must have leverage over other recipients. Otherwise, they will not agree to re-registration, since the costs must be incurred again.
The applicant needs to come to an agreement with the remaining heirs. The written consent of the relatives serves as the basis for canceling the issued certificate and drawing up new papers, but with the participation of an additional heir.
At the same time, parts of the property are recalculated for all applicants. If relatives managed to register the property in their name in Rosreestr, then a notarial decree allows you to make changes to the state register of rights.
Alternatively, the assignee can pay for the re-registration of the property themselves.
Sample written consent to include a new heir
Calculation of the six-month period: the countdown has begun
The law defines the general period for entry into inheritance as 151 (152) days. If the specified time has expired and the legal heirs are absent or have expressed their refusal, then their rights are transferred to the heirs of the next priority.
Attention. For persons who are not in the first positions in the queue, the acceptance period is reduced to 3 months.
Given this information, it is worth knowing a number of nuances of the process of entering into inheritance rights after 6 months:
- The law indicates the beginning of the calculation of the time for opening an inheritance case from the day when the testator died or was declared dead by the court. In fact, the calculation is carried out from the date following the date of death.
- The lack of information from the successor about the death of the testator, the presence of good reasons to confirm the lack of a real possibility of taking over the rights - grounds for renewing the term. A court decision is required, as a result of which the previous certificates are canceled.
To exercise legal rights, a citizen must submit an application to the courts no later than the 6 months specified by law from the date of receipt of information about the death of a relative. The application becomes the basis for declaring previous certificates invalid and opening the inheritance case anew.
Here you can read about what to do if the deadline has passed.
As another option for resolving the issue, the possibility of appealing to all real heirs with a request for consent to restore rights is recognized.
How to receive an inheritance after six months without going to court
The Civil Code provides for situations where entering into an inheritance after 6 months is legal. The assignee does not need to go to court or seek mutual understanding with other recipients. It is enough to submit documents to a notary.
Among them:
- Hereditary transmission. In the event of the death of one of the recipients after the opening of the inheritance, the right to register the property is transferred to his legal successors. If the death occurred more than 3 months from the opening of the inheritance, then the recipient has the right to extend the period for entering into the inheritance for another 3 months. Thus, to register the property of the deceased through the procedure of hereditary transmission, there is no need to go to court. It is enough to present evidence of the death of the heir to the notary.
- Refusal of successors of the 1st stage . If the main applicants are absent or have submitted a refusal to enter into property rights, then the right to apply to a notary is transferred to second-line relatives (brothers, sisters, grandparents). They must contact a notary office after 6 months. This period of entry into rights is provided for them by the Civil Code.
- Actual acceptance of inheritance . If the heir lived with the deceased person or moved into his apartment after death, then he may also not go to court. Since he actually accepted the inheritance, continuing to use the property and pay for utilities.
Such an heir can visit a notary at any time and receive an identification document for subsequent registration of property rights.
Evidence options
| No. | Document |
| 1 | Certificate from the Housing Office. The document confirms the fact of cohabitation with the testator on the day of his death. The rule also applies in the case of separate residence of the deceased, if his registration is tied to inherited property. |
| 2 | Information about payment of bills for the property or loans of the deceased. |
| 3 | Certificate from the Federal Tax Service on payment of taxes for housing in the interests of a deceased citizen. |
| 4 | A notarized agreement on full or partial payment of debts of a deceased relative. |
| 5 | Certificate from the local administration about repairs to the inherited property. This can also include an agreement for repair and construction work, receipts for payment for construction materials. |
Important! Evidence of the organization and conduct of the funeral is not the basis for recognizing the inheritance as actually accepted.
If the notary refuses to issue a certificate, the heir can appeal his actions through the claim procedure. Later, if there is a court decision, it will be possible to formalize the right to inheritance.
Causes
Most often, law-abiding relatives go to the notary within a month after the sad day. The notary takes statements from them and conducts a survey: what other immediate relatives of the deceased were or are still alive. The next point is what objects were owned: apartments, cars, country houses, dachas, garden plots, garages, and so on. It’s better to list everything at once.
The notary must explain what is needed to enter into an inheritance after 6 months and what this period is for:
- Relatives need to have time to accept or refuse the inheritance. Not everyone can do this right away. Some are forced to have the application certified by a notary in their city and sent by mail, while others are on a business trip or undergoing long-term treatment.
- Also, this period is more than enough to collect all the papers for each of the objects . Documents for housing, sales contracts, certificates from the BTI and the cadastral chamber, certificates from the passport office and, finally, your own documents. It often turns out that a relationship needs to be confirmed, but the person has no idea where his birth certificate is. Lost papers will have to be restored.
- Employees of the notary office check the authenticity of documents and also search for relatives if there is information about them.
All this can and must be done before obtaining the rights to dispose of it, so that this procedure goes quickly, calmly and without delays.
Having brought all the documents in accordance with the issued list, relatives receive information about whether it will be possible to enter into an inheritance after 6 months or whether something else will be needed.
How to enter into an inheritance after death without a will, if more than 6 months have passed through the court
If the heir missed the deadline, he needs to go to court. An application for restoration of deadlines for registration of inheritance is submitted at the place of residence of the deceased person. The case is being heard in the district court.
Procedure and procedure
When going to court, you must be guided by the Civil Procedure Law.
Algorithm of actions:
- Preparation of evidence.
- Filing a claim.
- Sending data to court. The application must be submitted at the place of residence of the testator. Copies of the necessary papers and a receipt for payment of the state duty are attached to the claim.
- Attending court proceedings.
- Obtaining a court decision. Based on the results of the court hearing, a decision is made to satisfy or reject the stated requirements.
If there is a positive decision, the heir can contact the notary again.
Further actions are carried out on a general basis:
- an application is submitted;
- the property is assessed;
- state duty is paid;
- a certificate is issued;
- ownership is registered.
Required documents
The heirs need to prove not only the validity of the missed deadlines, but also the existence of a family connection with the deceased person.
The following documents must be attached to the application:
- death certificate;
- a copy of the plaintiff's passport;
- documents confirming relationship;
- papers indicating the existence of an inheritance;
- certificate from the place of residence of the deceased citizen;
- documentary refusal of the notary to issue a certificate;
- papers that confirm the existence of valid reasons for missing the deadline.
The last point is one of the key ones. Oral testimony is not enough. There must be written evidence of the circumstances stated in the claim.
If the person was on a business trip abroad, then you can provide:
- employment contract;
- order of the director of the enterprise;
- an extract from the business trip log;
- travel certificate;
- train or plane tickets;
- baggage receipt;
- international passport;
- visa;
- receipt for payment for hotel accommodation;
- power of attorney (if necessary).
If a person underwent a long course of treatment in a hospital and could not leave the medical institution for health reasons, then he must provide a certificate signed by the head physician.
Also attached to the claim is a receipt for payment of the state duty. If the applicant belongs to the preferential category of citizens, then documents confirming this right must be attached to the claim.
If you have a proxy, you must attach a notarized power of attorney. If the interests of a minor legal successor are represented by parents or other legal representatives, then a notarized power of attorney is not required.
Statement
The statement of claim must contain the following information:
- name of the court where the documents are submitted;
- information about the plaintiff (full name, residential address, contact telephone number);
- information about the defendants (if the application contains additional requirements - recognition of ownership of the inherited property);
- name of the claim;
- information about the death of the owner;
- information about the reasons for missing deadlines;
- reference to law;
- applicant's requirements;
- list of attached documents;
- signature of the plaintiff or his representative.
The application must state the essence of the case, indicate which line of heirs it belongs to, why the deadlines for registering the inheritance were missed, and indicate a request for their restoration. At the bottom of the document is the date of its preparation and the signature of the applicant or representative by proxy.
Expenses, state duty, cost
When filing a claim, a state fee must be paid. Its size depends on the category of the case that is being considered in the framework of special or action proceedings.
If the deadline for accepting an inheritance is restored, you need to pay 300 rubles. Details can be obtained from the district or city court.
Additional costs usually arise if the applicant engages a representative (attorney or solicitor). The cost of the claim and the participation of a lawyer in court is determined by agreement of the parties. This can be a one-time service or full legal support.
The minimum rate for representing a client’s interests in the court of first instance in 2021 is RUB 15,000. Rates may be higher depending on the city and law firm.
Can the court refuse to satisfy a claim?
When making a decision, the court is guided by the law and the documents submitted by the parties. If the plaintiff is unable to substantiate his claims or does not provide evidence of actual acceptance of the inheritance within six months, the court will refuse to satisfy the claim.
However, the applicant has the right to appeal such a decision in the court of 2nd instance. The trial period will increase by another 2 months. During the specified period, the citizen must prepare more compelling evidence.
Partial entry
Is it possible to partially inherit? No. Partial acceptance of property is not provided for by law.
If the heir has filed an application for property rights, then all identified property is transferred to him in the order of inheritance. An exception is a share in property if there are several applicants for it.
The only option is to have several grounds for registration of inheritance. For example, a person may receive a share by will and by law. In this case, the successor may find himself disposing of the property and accepting it only by law.
Actions of a notary to verify applications
When accepting an application and before issuing a certificate of inheritance, the notary must:
- identify the heir (passport details, name indicated in the will and presented by the applicant);
- check the legality of the will in form and content;
- if the will indicates blood ties connecting the deceased, examine the documents confirming the relationship;
- allocate the marital share from the inheritance mass;
- establish everyone who is entitled to a mandatory share in the mass of the inheritance. When such is established, the inheritance should be fairly distributed;
- clarify that if the heirs under the will oppose the allocation of the obligatory share, then this is a legal dispute;
- take measures to preserve property, if required.
