The UK intestacy rules are the law that decides who inherits when someone dies without a valid will. Understanding these rules is essential — both to understand why having a will is so important, and to understand what will happen to your estate if you delay writing one.
These rules differ across the UK's three legal jurisdictions: England and Wales operate under one system, Scotland under another, and Northern Ireland under a third. This guide covers all three.
The Rules of Intestacy for England and Wales are set out in the Administration of Estates Act 1925, significantly amended by the Inheritance and Trustees' Powers Act 2014. The fundamental principle is that only a legally married spouse/civil partner and blood relatives can inherit.
| Survivors | Who Inherits and How Much |
|---|---|
| Spouse/civil partner only (no children) | Entire estate to spouse/civil partner |
| Spouse + children | Spouse: £322,000 statutory legacy + all personal chattels + half of remainder. Children: share other half equally |
| Children only (no spouse) | Children share equally; descendants of deceased children take their parent's share |
| Parents only | Parents share equally |
| Siblings (full blood) | Siblings share equally; descendants of deceased siblings take their parent's share |
| Half-siblings | Half-siblings share equally |
| Grandparents | Grandparents share equally |
| Aunts/uncles (full blood) | Share equally; children of deceased aunts/uncles take their parent's share |
| Half aunts/uncles | Share equally |
| No qualifying relatives | Estate passes to the Crown (bona vacantia) |
The statutory legacy is the fixed sum that a surviving spouse receives before the estate is divided with children. As of 2026, this is £322,000. This amount was last increased in February 2020 (from £250,000) and has not been updated since, despite inflation.
With average UK house prices above £280,000, many estates will exceed this threshold, meaning children will receive a share even if the surviving spouse needs the full estate to maintain their lifestyle and remain in the family home.
Under the intestacy rules, the surviving spouse receives all "personal chattels" in addition to the statutory legacy. These are defined in the Administration of Estates Act 1925 as tangible moveable property — furniture, vehicles, art, jewellery, clothing, computers, and similar items — but NOT cash, business assets, or investment property.
Despite representing one of the fastest-growing household types in the UK (there are approximately 3.6 million cohabiting couple families), unmarried partners have zero automatic inheritance rights under English and Welsh intestacy law.
This is perhaps the most dangerous gap in UK inheritance law. A cohabiting couple who have been together for 30 years, own a home together, and have children may find that if one partner dies intestate:
The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 allows a cohabiting partner to apply to court for "reasonable financial provision" from the estate — but this requires proving financial dependency, is expensive, and is not guaranteed to succeed.
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Create Your UK Will Now →Scotland's intestacy law is governed by the Succession (Scotland) Act 1964 and operates quite differently from England and Wales. It has three layers:
Before any other distribution, a surviving spouse or civil partner is entitled to:
Children in Scotland have an automatic right to a share of the deceased's moveable estate regardless of any will:
After prior rights and legal rights are satisfied, the remaining "free estate" is distributed according to the intestacy order (similar to England and Wales).
Scotland is notably different from England and Wales here. Under the Family Law (Scotland) Act 2006, a cohabiting partner can apply to court within 6 months of the death for financial provision from an intestate estate. The court has discretion based on the length of the relationship, financial contributions, and other factors. This right does not exist in England and Wales.
Northern Ireland's intestacy rules broadly follow England and Wales, governed by the Administration of Estates Act (Northern Ireland) 1955. The key difference is that the statutory legacy amount may differ from England and Wales — specialist Northern Ireland legal advice is recommended.
Some assets pass automatically regardless of a will or intestacy rules:
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