Acceptance of inheritance by inventory – essence and features
Often, upon the death of a specific person, their heirs should be especially careful about the inheritance that this person has left. This is because the hereditary estate, in addition to rights, also contains all the obligations of the testator. Thus, in practice, it very often happens that if the inheritance is simply accepted, the liabilities in it may turn out to be greater than the assets, and this may lead to adverse consequences for the heir. It is for this reason that it is important to carefully assess what actions to take before accepting the inheritance.
In such a situation, it is best to turn to a good family and inheritance law attorney to present you with all the possibilities, so that, given the specifics of the particular situation, the most reasonable decision can be made.
The heir has a subjective right to accept or renounce the inheritance. In turn, the acceptance of the inheritance can be done expressly or tacitly. It is also possible to accept inheritance by inventory.
More information on renouncing inheritance can be found in our article “Renunciation of inheritance. How and when?”.
This article will address the issue of acceptance of inheritance by inventory.
The heir has the option to accept inheritance by inventory. In this case, they will limit their liability to what they have accepted as inherited property. The drawing up of an inventory of the inherited property leads to a distinction between the property that the testator owned at the time of their death and the property of the person called to inherit. As a legal consequence of this, the heir is liable for the debts of the testator up to the amount of the property received.
Legal nature of acceptance of inheritance by inventory
The acceptance of inheritance by inventory is a unilateral formal written act by which the person called to inherit exercises their subjective right to inherit. They exercise this subjective right through a declaration of will.
NB!!!! Acceptance of inheritance by inventory is mandatory for an heir with a right to a reserved share who has made a request for its restoration, when exercising this right against a person outside the circle of legal heirs.
In order to protect the interests of incapacitated persons, the state and public organizations, the Inheritance Act requires them to accept the inheritance only by inventory, without being bound by the three-month period specified in Art. 61, para. 1 of the Inheritance Act. Their liability is always limited and cannot exceed the amount of property received.
According to another provision of the law, the heir may benefit from the acceptance by inventory made by the other co-heirs, which, however, does not deprive them of the right to accept the inheritance directly or to renounce it.
Deadlines for acceptance of inheritance by inventory
The deadline within which the application for acceptance of inheritance by inventory must be submitted to the competent district court is 3 months from the heir’s knowledge of the death of the testator. The law provides the possibility for the specified period to be extended by another three months. In the latter case, however, it is necessary for the heir to prove that they have not been able to take the necessary actions to accept the inheritance due to special unforeseen circumstances. The term can also be restored, and again it should be proven what the reasons for missing the term are.
Documents required for acceptance of inheritance by inventory
To start the procedure for acceptance of inheritance by inventory before the competent district court, the following documents must be presented:
– Application for registration of an application for acceptance of inheritance by inventory. The application should contain all the property that is known to the heir and that is owned by the testator. This property includes both movable property and real estate.
– Identity documents or a certified copy thereof of the heir;
– Copy-excerpt from the death certificate of the person being inherited;
– Certificate of heirs;
– If real estate is included in the hereditary estate, a certificate from the “Local Taxes and Fees” department to the municipality at the location of the real estate (tax assessment of the property) should also be presented;
– Documents for paid state fee, which is a total of 25 leva;
Court proceedings for acceptance of inheritance by inventory
The district court in whose district the inheritance was opened is competent to consider the application for acceptance of the inheritance by inventory. An inventory is drawn up, which determines the specific volume of the inheritance left, and also clarifies the issue of the liability that the heir bears to the creditors. According to the requirements of the Inheritance Act, there is an obligation for the heir who accepts the inheritance by inventory to indicate to the court all known hereditary properties that should be entered in the inventory.
If it is subsequently established that this has not been done, the heir loses the benefits associated with accepting the inheritance by inventory. If someone has an objection regarding the ownership of the property, this objection is entered in the inventory and then the resulting dispute is resolved through legal action.
The inventory is carried out in accordance with the statutory procedure. The district court is competent, but it may assign the inventory to the municipality or the mayoralty. If this is the situation, after a protocol is drawn up, it should be sent to the district court. At the request of the applicant, the district court may assign the inventory to a bailiff.
The inventory is the preparation of a protocol, which indicates the date of its execution, a description of all items individually, and it is necessary to make an assessment of them. The heirs of the deceased and the creditors may be present during the inventory. After the items are described, they are handed over against signature to the heirs or to one of them. If there are no heirs or the latter do not wish to accept the described items, they are handed over to a third party for safekeeping.
Legal consequences of acceptance of inheritance by inventory
According to the provisions of the Inheritance Act, after the acceptance of the inheritance by inventory, actions can be taken by the creditors of the testator both against the property of the testator and against the personal property of the heir who has accepted the inheritance by inventory. Only such value can be taken from the heir as the inheritance received by inventory. The heir who has accepted the inheritance by inventory is prohibited from disposing of the hereditary estate before liquidating the debts of their testator.
The Inheritance Act imposes a restriction on the heir, which restriction is in the interest of the creditors and legatees – the alienation of real estate is prohibited for five years from the opening of the inheritance, and of movable property – for three years, unless permission is requested and obtained from a district judge. If the heir who has accepted the inheritance by inventory does not comply with this restriction, then they will be fully liable to the creditors of the inheritance.
Relations with creditors of the inheritance
Within three months of the acceptance of the inheritance by inventory, the creditors of the testator or the legatees have the power to request the separation of the two property masses – that of the testator from that of the heir. This leads to the elimination of the danger of mixing the two property masses and endangering the interests of the different property communities – that of the testator and that of the heir.
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More similar topics can be found in the section “Family and Inheritance Law”.
Sole Proprietorship Law Firm “Silvia Petkova” provides highly qualified legal assistance in the field of family and inheritance law, incl. in procedures for acceptance of inheritance by inventory.
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