Spain · Who inherits · Information, not legal advice — as at 28 June 2026
Who inherits if there is no will in Spain?
If your relative died without a valid will, the Spanish Civil Code decides who inherits in a fixed order: first the children and their descendants, then the parents and ascendants, and only then the surviving spouse. Crucially, the spouse always keeps a protected life interest (usufruct) even when the children inherit the estate itself. Some regions have their own rules, but on the costas the Civil Code usually applies. Which country’s law applies is decided first by Brussels IV.
When someone dies without a valid will in Spain, the estate is shared by law in a fixed order — sucesión intestada (or ab intestato), set out in the Spanish Civil Code. For families on the Costa del Sol, Costa Blanca and across Andalucía, the general Civil Code rules below normally apply. The Spanish leg can be handled remotely under a power of attorney.
Does Spanish law apply — or your own?
This comes first. Under Brussels IV (Regulation 650/2012), the succession is governed by default by the law of the country of the deceased’s habitual residence at death. So a foreign national who had truly settled in Spain may fall under Spanish intestacy rules; one who stayed resident at home, but owned a Spanish apartment, may not. We establish the governing law before applying any order of heirs.
What is the order of heirs with no will?
Where Spanish common law (the Civil Code) governs, the order is:
- Descendants — children first, sharing equally; a deceased child’s share passes to their own children (Arts. 930–934).
- Ascendants — parents, then grandparents — only if there are no descendants (Arts. 935–942).
- The surviving spouse — inherits the estate only if there are no descendants and no ascendants (Art. 944).
- Siblings and other collateral relatives to the fourth degree (Arts. 946–955).
- Finally, the State, if no qualifying relative exists.
What does the surviving spouse actually get?
The order above understates the spouse’s position, because the spouse always keeps a protected usufruct (a life interest — the right to use the asset or receive its income) even when they are not the one who inherits the underlying estate: a usufruct over one third of the estate when sharing with children (Art. 834), and over one half when sharing with the deceased’s ascendants (Art. 837). On top of this, in a community-property marriage the spouse already owns their own half of the joint assets (bienes gananciales), which never forms part of the estate.
What if there are no children or parents?
Then the surviving spouse inherits the estate outright (Art. 944). If there is no spouse either, it passes to siblings and wider relatives to the fourth degree, and only then to the State. An unmarried partner does not inherit on intestacy under the Civil Code, although some regions give registered partners limited rights.
Do the regions change this?
They can. Several Spanish regions have their own civil law of succession — notably Catalonia, Galicia, the Basque Country, Navarre, Aragón and the Balearic Islands — and their intestacy and reserved-share rules differ from the Civil Code. The big expat coasts of Andalucía, the Valencian Community and Murcia apply the general Civil Code described here. Which body of law applies depends on the deceased’s regional civil status (vecindad civil), which for a foreign national is generally resolved through Brussels IV plus Spain’s internal rules.
How do I keep control instead?
Make a Spanish will for your Spanish assets, ideally with an express Brussels IV choice of your national law where that suits your wishes. It avoids the intestacy order above, speeds up the transfer for your heirs, and removes most of the cost and delay. See Do I need a Spanish will?