Refusal of inheritance by will - registration and features

How to refuse an inheritance

The heir appointed in the will has the right to refuse his share of the property. A similar possibility is provided for in Art. No. 1158 of civil legislation.

But this can be done only by observing a number of conditions:

The refusal procedure must be completed through a notary.
The legislation defines a specific circle of persons in whose favor a refusal can be made.
Relinquishment of the deceased's due share of property occurs before its official acceptance.

To refuse, you will need to submit an official application to the notary in charge of inheritance records.
If the lawyer does not see any obstacles to this, for example, in the form of violations of the provisions of the Civil Code, then he issues a refusal. In this case, the share of the inheritance is transferred either to a specific co-heir or is divided among the remaining heirs in equal shares.

Let's look at an example

A certain citizen left a will for a house he owned, in which he designated his wife and son as heirs. However, the adult son has been living as a separate family for a long time, having his own living space. As a result, he submits a waiver to the notary, in which he identifies his mother, that is, the wife of the deceased, as the recipient of the share due to him.

Without inheritance

The easiest way to refuse an inheritance is when the heir has not yet had time to enter into inheritance rights. He can do this even in a situation where he has submitted to a notary a statement of consent to accept his share of the inherited estate.

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The main thing is that six months have not passed since the death of the testator and the inheritance case has not been closed. To do this, it is enough to simply write a second statement in the form of a waiver in favor of another heir.

If you have already inherited

It will be much more difficult to make a refusal after the closure of the inheritance case and the official acceptance of the willed property.

Refusal of inheritance after accepting the inheritance by filing an application addressed to a notary will no longer be possible.

There is only one way out of such a situation - applying to the courts with a claim to resume or extend the term of the inheritance case.

Let's look at an example

The uncle left his nephew his own apartment by inheritance. But, after taking possession of the bequeathed property, the young man learns that his late uncle had significant loan debts that exceeded the value of the bequeathed property. Appeals to the notary did not lead to anything, since the inheritance case was already closed. To resume its flow, I had to go to court with a statement of claim.

Reasons for refusing inheritance under a will

In Russia, approximately 20% of all inheritance cases end in refusal. Most often this is due to the following five reasons:

The deceased had large financial obligations that were somehow connected with his property. The heir does not want to accept these obligations, so he refuses the property transferred to him.
The heir, due to his financial situation, cannot complete all the necessary procedures related to the re-registration of the inheritance.
Only part of the real estate is inherited, which for some legal reasons cannot be separated from the main mass. The person does not want to live in the allocated part, so he refuses the transferred property.
The inherited property is in unsatisfactory condition, so the heir does not want to spend his money and effort on putting the property in order.
The user does not live in the area where the property of the deceased is located. In this case, it is much more convenient for him to formalize the refusal than to enter into the right of inheritance.

The listed methods can be combined and form new reasons for registering a refusal: a deceased person can inherit an old one-room apartment with a utility debt, the amount of which exceeds the cost of the apartment itself. In addition, the apartment is owned by several persons, requires major repairs and is located 1000 km from the heir.

Refusal of inheritance in favor of another heir

Abandonment of bequeathed property may occur without determining in whose favor it occurs. A specific person may also be indicated to whom the citizen wishes to transfer his part of the inheritance.

Art. No. 1158 defines the list of heirs in whose favor a refusal is permissible. It will be different in different situations.

If there is a will. In this situation, a refusal is possible only in favor of other heirs indicated in the testamentary document.
In the absence of a will. Refusal in favor of heirs of the same line is allowed.

In favor of whom one cannot refuse

Refusal of bequeathed property in favor of a person not indicated by the testator in the document with the posthumous will is not allowed.
That is, a person has the right to transfer his share only to those persons who are identified as co-heirs.

In the absence of a will, inheritance is made in accordance with the provisions of inheritance law. It provides for the renunciation of a share exclusively in favor of a person who is a relative of the same line. But if there are none, or they also did not want to accept the inheritance, such right passes to the next-generation relatives.

Let's look at an example

After the death of the father, the son and daughter, as heirs of the first priority, were left with the apartment of the deceased, which was under a mortgage encumbrance. But, since his son was unable to pay the mortgage, he decided to transfer his share to his sister. But she also lost her share for financial reasons, and the right of inheritance passed to the brother of the deceased, who agreed to accept the apartment, which was under mortgage.

Refusal in favor of the state

The Civil Code of the Russian Federation does not provide for a direct renunciation of the inherited share in favor of the state, however, such a transfer is in principle possible.

If all the persons specified in the will or all the legal heirs refused to accept the property of the deceased, after 6 months it is de jure recognized as escheat. This means that all the property of the deceased goes to the state.

Is it possible to renounce an inheritance in favor of a third party?

It is possible to waive the right to inheritance in favor of third parties only if they legally
heirs The document of renunciation of inheritance may not contain third parties in whose favor the direct heir waives the right to own property specified in the will or prescribed by law. In the case where the heir is a person who has not reached the age of majority or is recognized as partially or completely incompetent, then refusal of the inheritance is possible with the consent of the guardianship and trusteeship authorities.

As mentioned earlier, according to current legislation, the heir does not have the right to renounce part of the property left by the testator, but is obliged to completely renounce the inheritance or the share specified in the will or prescribed by law. If the heir acts as the sole legal holder to receive one part of the assets by will, and the other by law, he has the opportunity to refuse on one of the grounds.

Methods of refusal

Legislative standards provide for two ways to waive the due share of inherited property:

Absolute.
Directed.

Absolute

An absolute refusal means a situation when a potential heir writes a refusal statement without indicating the person to whom he would like to transfer the share due to him. His part of the inheritance is returned to the general estate and is divided among other heirs in equal shares.

Directed

In the case of a directed refusal, a person who does not want to accept the inheritance indicates in the application a specific person to whom he wishes to transfer his share.

In this case, the provisions of Art. No. 1158, which contains a list of persons in whose favor a refusal can be made.

Procedure and procedure for registration of refusal

The refusal procedure requires compliance with a certain procedure established by the provisions of legal paperwork.

The refusal application is submitted to the notary conducting the given inheritance case within
no more than 6 months from the date of death of the testators.

Sample waiver

The waiver application is drawn up on a special form, which can be obtained directly from a notary’s office, or printed out yourself using a printer. The refusal form contains the following information:

The notary office to which it is submitted.
Passport details of the heir renouncing the due share.
The main text with the essence of the statement.
Indication of the degree of relationship with the deceased testator.
Date of compilation and personal signature of the applicant.

A sample waiver form looks like this:

Required documents

In addition to the application, you will need to present the notary with the established list of documents :

The applicant's general passport.
If the heir's age is less than 14 years, his records from the registry office will be required.
A document certifying the death of the testator.
If a minor refuses inheritance, you must obtain documented permission to do so from the guardianship authorities.
If an heir is appointed by the will, you will need to present the relevant document.
When inheritance occurs by law, documents are needed confirming the degree of relationship with the deceased.
If the refusal is made in favor of a specific person, his identity card is required.

Expenses

Registration of refusal is a paid procedure. For it you must pay a state fee of 100 rubles .

All related work of the notary on the preparation and execution of the necessary documentation is paid separately.

The cost is set by each regional chamber separately, in accordance with the price list.

Deadline for refusal

The State Property Committee of the Russian Federation establishes certain deadlines within which a waiver application can be submitted to a notary’s office. They are 6 months from the date of death of the testator, when the inheritance case is opened.

When the specified deadline is missed, filing a waiver with a notary becomes impossible.

How to refuse an inheritance if more than 6 months have passed

Refusal of inheritance after 6 months is possible only as a result of the court extending the inheritance case.

To do this, you need to convince the judge that there are some compelling reasons that prevented the applicant from renouncing the inheritance on time. The provisions of legislative acts do not clearly define such valid reasons.

Judicial practice shows that they are usually recognized as:

A serious illness prevented the timely submission of the waiver.
Long stays away from populated areas - on a scientific expedition, in a remote army garrison, etc.
The impossibility of knowing in advance about the burden of the inheritance with the debts of the deceased.

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Reference to ignorance of the provisions of the current legislation, or minor health problems are not regarded as valid reasons.

In favor of whom can one waive an inheritance under a will?

This can only be done in favor of other heirs by will or by law. In favor of some strangers who would not inherit under any circumstances - neither by law nor by will, it is impossible to refuse the inheritance.

Article 1158 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. Refusal of inheritance in favor of other persons and renunciation of part of the inheritance

It is also impossible to refuse in favor of the heir who was deprived of the inheritance. The point here is the presumption of the will of the deceased. This will has priority, and if by his order he specifically deprived someone of an inheritance, then no one has the right to change this will.

If for some reason you consider this procedure to be unfair, then no one is stopping you from accepting the property and then transferring it to whomever you personally deem necessary. But the law does not allow you to refuse in favor of the one whom the testator deprived of property.

Legal consequences of refusal of inheritance

Refusal of inheritance implies the complete transfer of legal rights to it to another person.

The legal consequences of such a step are as follows:

First of all, this is the complete loss of any legal basis for the use of the bequeathed property. All of them are transferred to other heirs, who, after entering into the rights of inheritance, become its full owners.
Refusal, as a legal action, does not have retroactive effect . That is, after the voluntary registration of the waiver, it is no longer possible to cancel this document.
Changes in the shares of other heirs in the total amount of inherited property.
Disposal of the heir from debt obligations , if the deceased testator had any. It should be remembered that by accepting the property of the deceased, the heir not only acquires the rights to own it. He also acquires responsibilities for the testator's associated debts. They are distributed in direct proportion to the shares due to each testator.

What do you need to know when refusing an inheritance?

The procedure determining the refusal of inheritance by willed property is clearly stipulated in the legislation of the Russian Federation. It defines all the subjects, possible consequences and other nuances accompanying this expression of the will of the direct copyright holder to receive inherited property. Therefore, in case of refusal of inheritance, the following must be taken into account:

Refusal of inheritance in favor of another heir is possible only by legally capable persons . Therefore, persons who have not reached the age of majority, or who are partially or completely incapacitated, can renounce it only with the consent of the official guardian or trustee.
In case of refusal, no reservations or inaccuracies . So, for example, it is impossible to indicate in a statement that the heir renounces the property if debts left by the testator are discovered.
If rejected, it cannot be cancelled. If in the future a person changes his mind, then even in court he will not be able to return the inheritance.
Refusal is impossible in the case where the copyright holder has previously submitted an application to accept the inheritance.
It is impossible to refuse a separate part of the inheritance. The only exception is the situation when part of the inherited property was received by the heir by law, and part by will; only in such a situation can a refusal be made on one of the grounds.

Is it possible to refuse part of the inheritance?

It often happens that loan obligations apply only to a certain part of the deceased’s property: home, car, land. In this regard, a logical question arises for heirs: is it possible to refuse a part of the inheritance that is encumbered by a loan, or simply unnecessary?

Art. No. 1158 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation answers this question unequivocally - the heir does not have such a right. He must either accept the entire amount of the deceased's property due to him, or completely renounce the right of inheritance.

Let's look at an example

After his death, a certain citizen bequeathed to his nephew, as the only close relative, all his property - an apartment, a car, and other property. But it soon became clear that the car was under a credit encumbrance, being a bank collateral. Attempts to refuse to inherit the car led to nothing. The notary, referring to the provisions of Art. No. 1158 refused to issue a waiver for part of the inheritance. As a result, the heir had to accept the entire volume of the bequeathed property, along with the collateral car.

Refusal of inheritance

The articles of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation establish that inheritance of property after the death of the owner can occur on the basis of the terms of a executed will or in the order of the legal order of applicants for the inheritance. Regardless of the method of transfer of values, the opening of inheritance proceedings is carried out only after receiving such an application from the relatives of the deceased. That is, the candidates themselves must initiate the procedure for re-registration of ownership rights to objects.

If the relative does not contact the notary’s office within the time period specified in the law, then receiving the valuables will be impossible. All property will be divided in shares between applicants who have expressed such a desire.

After reviewing the full list of inherited property, a citizen can make one of the following decisions:

agree to formalize ownership of the property in full;
refuse to accept material benefits without accompanying conditions;
formalize a waiver of inheritance in favor of other persons.

It is not allowed to receive only part of the property, therefore either the entire property passes into the possession of the heir, or the right to inheritance will be completely lost without the possibility of restoration.

The most common reasons for an heir to file an application to renounce an inheritance (unconditionally or in favor of another heir) include:

the inheritance includes not only material benefits, but also financial obligations that the applicant does not want to fulfill;
a will with an encumbrance has been drawn up and the candidate does not want to implement the agreed conditions for obtaining inheritance rights;
the heir does not need the property and, in order to avoid additional legal procedures, immediately renounces the property in favor of his children.

Important! The notary is obliged to include the applicant in the list of potential heirs only after receiving the corresponding application. The petition confirms that a relative (or a third party) wishes to enter into inheritance rights to the property.

Can a minor heir write a refusal?

Minor children, just like adults, can act as heirs.

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But, since from a legal point of view, they are not fully capable citizens, they do not have the right to draw up documents on their own. This is done for them by official representatives - parents (adoptive parents) or guardians.

The same applies to the possibility of refusing the inheritance of a minor heir.

If the persons in whose care he is placed consider that the bequeathed property for any reason is likely to be detrimental to the welfare of the child, they may refuse to accept it on his behalf. Most often we are talking about an inheritance that is burdened with large debts, purchased on credit or pledged.

To do this, you will need to obtain official approval for the refusal from the guardianship authorities, whose responsibility is to supervise the material and moral well-being of the child.

How is an application for refusal of inheritance drawn up?

In the application, the heir must provide reliable information in full. Very often the notary already has a standard form for such an application.

For 2020, there is the following application procedure:

The header of the statement. The notary will help you write the top part of the document correctly.
Document's name.
Personal data.
Place of official registration.
Personal information of the deceased owner.
Level of relationship with the heir.
Date of death of the property owner.
Indicate to whom the right of inheritance is transferred (personal data, level of relationship).

In cases where the refusal of inheritance was made using pressure, force, threats or for commercial purposes (for purchase and sale), the application is canceled and considered invalid. Also, if the court recognizes the incapacity of the citizen-heir at the time of signing the refusal document, then the effect of such a statement is considered void.

The heir who has taken possession of the property can challenge his decision in court and refuse the inheritance within six months. It is considered that the heir has entered into inheritance rights after:

Providing evidence.
Actions of the heir aimed at preserving property.
Maintenance and care of the inheritance.

However, it is worth considering that it is quite difficult to refuse an inheritance after taking it into possession.

In legal practice, this issue is the most difficult and does not always have a positive result for the heir.

Video: Lawyer about refusal of inheritance, in which cases you can’t refuse

Is it possible to revoke a refusal of inheritance?

It happens that the heir who wrote the refusal suddenly changes his mind.

The reason for this may be some changed circumstances, for example, it was possible to find a profitable buyer for an apartment or car as collateral. As a result, financial obstacles to receiving the rest of the bequeathed property disappear. Is it possible in such a situation to revoke your refusal of inheritance, previously submitted to a notary?

Before the end of six months

You can submit a refusal to a notary's office during the course of the inheritance case - no later than 6 months after the death of the testator. A waiver submitted to a notary is reviewed, in accordance with office work standards, for no more than 2 weeks. During this period, the applicant may withdraw the submitted paper with an application for refusal of inheritance. After this period, it is no longer possible to withdraw the application - it comes into force, and the bequeathed property is distributed among other heirs.

After six months

If the two-week period allotted for revoking the refusal has been missed, the only option left to cancel the submitted application is to file a lawsuit in court.

The lawsuit demands that the waiver be declared invalid.

There are several reasons for this:

The heir is in an insane state at the time of writing the application.
Exposing him to moral or physical pressure from third parties.
Deliberately misleading him.

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It is also possible to request the judge to reinstate the 2-week period. This is possible if the time to revoke the waiver was missed due to circumstances beyond his control: force majeure, serious illness, etc.

The procedure for refusing inheritance by law

There are several ways to refuse an inheritance that is distributed according to the law:

Option 1.

Do not take active steps (in other words, remain inactive regarding the right to inheritance) to enter into inheritance rights for 6 months. This is the maximum period, after which the testator’s property is distributed among other heirs within this queue, and in their absence, it passes to the next. The advantage of this option is the possibility of reinstating missed deadlines through the court if the heir wishes (although there will need to be a valid reason for missing deadlines).

The disadvantage of the above option is that the heir who missed the deadline cannot indicate the person to whom his share will go. It will be automatically distributed according to the law. But in some cases, in this way, it is possible to achieve the intended goal.

For example, the testator left behind a two-room apartment. His wife and daughter (heirs of the 1st stage) act as potential heirs. But the wife would like the child to get the apartment. If she does not declare her rights within six months, the property will go to her daughter.

Option 2.

Issue an official refusal at a notary office. The heir should take into account such an important property of the abandonment document as its irreversibility. Those. the heir will not be able to cancel it in the future if he wishes to become an heir. His rights will never be restored, even through court. Therefore, an heir who wants to sign a waiver should very carefully assess the consequences of this step.

A refusal can be issued only up to 6 months after the death of the testator (according to Articles 1154 and 1157 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). This can be done even after writing an application for inheritance from a notary. If the six-month deadline is missed, then it makes no sense to draw up a document on refusal, because the heir is considered to have lost his right to divide the inheritance.

A refusal of inheritance can be executed by any legally capable and adult person. If we are talking about an inheritance received by a child, then the parents must obtain consent from the local guardianship and trusteeship authorities for this. Controlling authorities must check whether the refusal does not violate the property interests of the child. So, if the child’s mother decides to formalize the refusal of the apartment she inherited from her father, from whom she is divorced, the guardianship authorities are unlikely to approve such a decision, since this does not meet the interests of the minor.

A waiver can be issued in favor of any legal heir-relative. This cannot be done in favor of an outsider who is not included in the list of legal heirs.

It is also not allowed to sign a targeted waiver in favor of heirs who were previously deprived of rights to the testator’s property in court (for example, recognized as unworthy heirs).

The law provides for the possibility of extending the established six-month deadlines for refusal if the inheritance was carried out through actual inheritance.

Option 3.

Enter into inheritance rights and re-register ownership rights to another person. After entering into inheritance rights and receiving a certificate of inheritance after 6 months, the heir can re-register the property as his own. After which he has the right to dispose of the property at his own discretion, in particular to donate it.

For example, the apartment was inherited by the grandmother by law. After 6 months, she officially became the owner of the property, re-registering it in her name in Rosreestr. After which she issued a deed of gift for the apartment in favor of her niece.

What is an increment of hereditary shares

If one of the heirs refuses the part of the property of the deceased due to him, without indicating the person in whose favor the refusal was made, his share is distributed among the remaining co-heirs. This process in inheritance law is called the increment of shares in the inheritance (Article No. 1161 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

Conditions for increment

An increase in hereditary shares occurs only under a number of mandatory conditions :

The share of only those co-heirs who agreed to enter into inheritance rights increases.
The refuser’s share is divided if he has not indicated a specific person to whom he wants to transfer it.
The co-heirs agree to the division of the refuser’s share.