This article is the third in a series on inheritance and succession law in Cyprus and answers the question of what share of the estate relatives are entitled to (for the first and second parts in the series see "Inheritance and succession: statutory portion" and "Inheritance and succession: what makes a person unworthy of succession?").
According to the provisions of the Law on Wills and on Succession (Cap 195, section 44), a person becomes an inheritor if they have a kinship relationship up to the sixth degree with the decedent.
Cypriot legislation provides for four classes of kinship. Members of a class exclude the members of the following class.
After the repayment of any debts or liabilities, the spouse is entitled to a share in the statutory portion – namely, the part of the estate that cannot be disposed by a will and the part of the disposable portion that remains undisposed, if any. The remaining part of the statutory portion and of the disposable portion that remains undisposed, if any, will be distributed to the relatives of the deceased according to the degree of kinship.
The following table contains further details on the class, the types of relatives and descendants, and the shares they receive.
Class | Types of relatives and descendants | Shares received |
First class | Option A – Living spouse and children of the deceased. | In equal shares. |
Option B – Living descendants (of any of the natural children of the deceased) that had passed away during the lifetime of the deceased person. | In equal shares by branch. | |
Second class | Option A – Living mother and father of the deceased (or if they are not alive at the time of death of the deceased, the closest living ascendant) and the siblings or half-siblings of the deceased. | In equal shares, with the exception of half siblings, who receive half of the share to which siblings are entitled. |
Option B – Living descendants of any of the deceased's siblings that passed away during the decedent's lifetime. | In equal shares by branch. | |
Third class | The closest (in degree of kinship) living ascendants of the deceased. | If, at the time of death of the deceased, there are living ascendants on both sides (namely on the maternal and the paternal side of the family tree), the ascendant of each side will receive half of the share. If there is more than one ascendant on each side, each half will be distributed in equal shares. |
Fourth class | The closest (in degree of kinship) living ascendants up to the sixth degree of kinship. However, the closest relative excludes others. | In equal shares. |
For further information on this topic please contact Christos Kastanias at AGP Law | A G Paphitis & Co LLC by telephone (+357 25 73 10 00) or by email ([email protected]). The A G Paphitis & Co website can be accessed at www.agplaw.com.