Dying Without a Will in Ireland: Who Gets What Under the Succession Act 1965 (With Share Examples)
If someone dies in Ireland without a valid will, the Succession Act 1965 — not their wishes — decides who inherits. A surviving spouse with children takes two-thirds and the children share one-third; a spouse with no children takes everything; and where there is no spouse the children take all, equally. Below, the exact statutory shares, the next-of-kin pecking order, and a full €450,000 worked example showing what lands in each beneficiary's hands after Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT).
What "intestate" actually means
A person dies intestate when they leave no valid will, or when a will only deals with part of their estate (a "partial intestacy"). At that point, distribution is taken out of anyone's hands and set by statute. The governing rules are in Part VI of the Succession Act 1965, which has applied since the Act came into force on 1 January 1967.
Two things matter before any share is worked out. First, only the net estate is divided — that is, what is left after debts, funeral expenses, and the costs of administering the estate are paid. Second, the law looks at who is alive at the date of death. Relationships that no longer exist (a divorced former spouse, for example) generally do not share in an intestacy, while a separated-but-not-divorced spouse may still have rights depending on the circumstances.
"Issue" in the Succession Act 1965 means a person's children and their descendants — and it includes children born within and outside marriage, and adopted children, on an equal footing. A child can never be cut out of an intestacy by accident, because there is no will to leave them out of.
The statutory shares at a glance
Everything turns on whether there is a surviving spouse or civil partner, and whether there are children ("issue"). The table below is the core of the entire system.
| Who survives | Spouse / civil partner gets | Children get |
|---|---|---|
| Spouse and children | Two-thirds (2/3) of the estate | One-third (1/3), divided equally between them |
| Spouse, no children | The whole estate | — |
| Children, no spouse | — | The whole estate, divided equally |
| No spouse, no children | — | Passes to next-of-kin (see order below) |
Spouse and children: 2/3 to the spouse, 1/3 to the children
This is the most common scenario. The surviving spouse or civil partner takes two-thirds of the net estate. The remaining one-third is divided equally among the children. With two children, each child gets half of that third (one-sixth of the estate each); with three children, each gets one-third of that third (one-ninth each), and so on.
If a child has already died but left children of their own, those grandchildren step into their late parent's share and divide it between them — this is called taking per stirpes (by the branch of the family).
Spouse with no children: the spouse takes everything
Where the deceased leaves a spouse or civil partner but no children, the spouse inherits the entire estate. Parents, siblings, and other relatives receive nothing — the spouse stands ahead of them all.
Children only: equally, where there is no spouse
If there is no surviving spouse or civil partner, the children take the whole estate in equal shares. Again, the children of any predeceased child divide that child's portion between themselves.
No spouse and no children: the order of next-of-kin
Where there is neither a surviving spouse nor any issue, the estate climbs and then spreads out across the family tree. The principle is simple but strict: the nearest surviving class of relatives takes everything, and all more distant relatives get nothing. You never reach the siblings if a parent is alive; you never reach the nieces and nephews if a sibling is alive.
| Order | Who inherits | How it is divided |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Parents | Equally between both; the whole estate to one if only one survives |
| 2 | Brothers and sisters | Equally; a deceased sibling's share passes to that sibling's children (your nieces/nephews) |
| 3 | Nephews and nieces | Equally (where no parent or sibling survives) |
| 4 | Grandparents | Equally |
| 5 | Aunts and uncles | Equally |
| 6 | More remote relatives | Nearest in blood; estate divided per the statutory degrees of relationship |
If, after all of this, no relative can be found at all, the estate ultimately passes to the State as the "ultimate intestate successor."
How each share then faces CAT
Working out the statutory shares is only half the picture. Each beneficiary is then assessed separately for Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT) — the tax on inheritances and gifts — based on their relationship to the deceased, not on the size of the whole estate.
Every beneficiary has a lifetime, tax-free threshold determined by their relationship group. Only the value taken above that threshold is taxed, and the rate is currently 33% for gifts and inheritances taken on or after 6 December 2012, per Revenue.
| CAT group | Typical relationship to the deceased | Tax-free threshold |
|---|---|---|
| Group A | A child of the deceased (and a parent inheriting an absolute interest) | €400,000 |
| Group B | Brother, sister, niece, nephew, grandchild, lineal ancestor/descendant | €40,000 |
| Group C | Anyone else — cousins, more remote relatives, friends | €20,000 |
| Spouse / civil partner | Surviving spouse or civil partner | Fully exempt — no CAT, any amount |
The thresholds above apply to gifts and inheritances taken on or after 2 October 2024 (set in Budget 2025), confirmed by Revenue and Citizens Information. Two crucial points:
- The threshold is a lifetime, cumulative figure. Earlier gifts or inheritances within the same group eat into it (this is the "aggregation" rule).
- A surviving spouse's two-thirds share carries no CAT at all — spouse-to-spouse transfers are entirely exempt.
Aoife dies intestate, leaving a net estate of €450,000. She is survived by her husband Conor and their two adult children, Saoirse and Liam. There is no will, so the Succession Act 1965 statutory shares apply.
Step 1 — Apply the statutory shares. Spouse plus children means the spouse takes two-thirds and the children share one-third equally:
- Conor (spouse): 2/3 × €450,000 = €300,000
- Children's pool: 1/3 × €450,000 = €150,000
- Saoirse: €150,000 ÷ 2 = €75,000
- Liam: €150,000 ÷ 2 = €75,000
Step 2 — Assess each beneficiary for CAT.
- Conor inherits as a spouse — entirely exempt. CAT = €0.
- Saoirse is a child, so Group A (€400,000). Her €75,000 inheritance is far below the threshold (assuming she has had no prior Group A benefits). CAT = €0.
- Liam — identical position. €75,000 against a €400,000 Group A threshold. CAT = €0.
Result: the whole €450,000 passes with no Capital Acquisitions Tax. That is because the spouse is exempt and each child's share sits comfortably under the €400,000 Group A threshold.
Now change one fact. Suppose Aoife had no spouse, the estate was €1,200,000, and she left the same two children. Each child would take €600,000. Each child's CAT would be 33% × (€600,000 − €400,000) = 33% × €200,000 = €66,000 each. Same family, very different outcome — which is why the relationship group and the size of the share both matter.
- Spouse + children: 2/3 to the spouse, 1/3 split equally among children.
- Spouse, no children: the spouse takes the entire estate.
- Children, no spouse: the children share everything equally.
- No spouse or children: parents first, then siblings, then nieces/nephews, then grandparents, then aunts/uncles — nearest class takes all.
- CAT is assessed per beneficiary using their group threshold (A €400,000 / B €40,000 / C €20,000), at 33% on the excess. A surviving spouse is fully exempt.
- A simple will lets you override all of this — and use planning that the rigid intestacy rules do not allow.
Why a will usually beats intestacy
Intestacy is a blunt instrument. It cannot leave anything to an unmarried partner (who has no automatic entitlement under the rules), cannot ring-fence a family home for a particular child, and cannot make use of small-gift planning, trusts for minors, or dwelling-house arrangements. It also forces a fixed split that may sit awkwardly with a blended family. A straightforward, properly witnessed will avoids all of these constraints and lets the CAT thresholds be planned around rather than stumbled into.
Sources
- Succession Act 1965 (No. 27 of 1965), Part VI — Irish Statute Book
- CAT thresholds, rates and aggregation rules — Revenue (rate 33%, Groups A/B/C)
- Budget 2025 — Citizens Information (thresholds from 2 October 2024)
- Capital Acquisitions Tax — Citizens Information
Frequently asked questions
What share does a surviving spouse get if there is no will in Ireland?
Under the Succession Act 1965, a surviving spouse or civil partner takes the whole estate if there are no children. If there are children, the spouse takes two-thirds and the children share the remaining one-third equally between them.
Do children inherit if there is no surviving spouse?
Yes. Where there is no surviving spouse or civil partner, the children take the entire estate in equal shares. If a child has already died leaving children of their own, that deceased child's share passes down to their children equally (per stirpes).
Who inherits when someone dies with no spouse and no children?
The estate passes to the nearest surviving relatives in a strict order: parents first (equally, or the whole estate to one surviving parent), then brothers and sisters, then nephews and nieces, then grandparents, then aunts and uncles, then more remote relatives. The nearest surviving "circle" of relatives takes everything, to the exclusion of all more distant relatives.
Do beneficiaries pay inheritance tax on an intestate estate?
Yes. Each beneficiary is assessed separately for Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT) using the threshold for their relationship group. A surviving spouse or civil partner is fully exempt. Children use Group A (€400,000); siblings, nieces and nephews use Group B (€40,000); everyone else uses Group C (€20,000). CAT is charged at 33% on the value above the threshold.
Does the spouse's two-thirds share trigger CAT?
No. Inheritances and gifts between spouses and civil partners are entirely exempt from Capital Acquisitions Tax in Ireland, regardless of value. The spouse's intestate share carries no CAT liability at all.
Can an intestate estate skip a relative who has died?
Within the children and siblings tiers there is limited representation: the children of a deceased child take their parent's share, and the children of a deceased brother or sister (your nieces and nephews) can take that sibling's share. Beyond those defined cases, the rule is simply that the nearest surviving class inherits and remoter relatives receive nothing.
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