What happens if there are no heirs?

Westphalian Chamber of Notaries. If a deceased person had no direct relatives, the estate passes to more distant relatives or, if no heirs can be identified, to the state. Anyone wishing to make individual arrangements for the distribution of their assets instead of this statutory succession has various options for structuring their estate according to their own wishes.

Succession regulated by law

In Germany, the Succession according to so-called orders. First-degree relatives are the children; deceased children are replaced by grandchildren. Relatives of the second order are the parents or their children, i.e. the siblings of the deceased. This scheme continues up to the last order, the state. The state inherits if there are no more legal heirs.

Managing asset succession during your lifetime

Leaving nothing of value behind is difficult to achieve in practice. If there is sufficient retirement provision, assets such as real estate or money can be transferred to third parties or charitable organizations during your lifetime so that you can still personally experience the effect of your assets. If you don't want to give up control of your own assets completely, you can set up a non-charitable foundation yourself, for example for your own family or for social purposes, and endow it with foundation capital.

Self-determined succession through a will

The most practical and popular way to determine the order of succession is to draw up a will. The testator is free to determine how they wish to distribute their estate among certain people and in what proportions - taking into account the statutory compulsory portion regulations. They can also use the will to set up a foundation or a Executor of a will to carry out the dispositions. It is advisable to have the will drawn up and certified by a notary so that the last will and testament is formally and substantively effective and to avoid bureaucratic hurdles for the heirs.

If you would like advice on this topic from a notary in advance, you can find it on the Internet at https://notar.de/ the right contact person. You can also visit the online consumer portal of the Chamber of Notaries at https://ratgeber-notar.de/.