Intestate Succession Quebec: Who Inherits When There Is No Will

When someone dies without a valid will in Quebec, the Civil Code of Québec takes over entirely. The rules are clear, mandatory, and leave no room for what the person "would have wanted" based on family conversations or informal arrangements. The distribution is determined solely by legal relationships — and several categories of people who might expect to inherit receive nothing at all.

Here is exactly how intestate succession works in Quebec, who qualifies as a legal heir, and what happens next.

The First Task: Confirming No Will Exists

Even when a family is certain the deceased never had a will, Quebec law requires a mandatory will search (recherche testamentaire) through both the Chambre des notaires du Québec and the Barreau du Québec before treating the succession as intestate.

The deceased may have made a notarial will decades ago and forgotten to mention it, or drafted a holograph will that was registered but not kept at home. The will search must be completed — using the DEC-issued Copy of an Act of Death as the required document — before the estate proceeds under intestacy rules.

Only when both registries return negative results, and no holograph or witnessed will surfaces among the deceased's personal effects, does the succession officially proceed as intestate.

How the Civil Code Distributes the Estate

The Civil Code of Québec divides potential heirs into three classes, with strict priority between them:

Class 1 — Descendants: Children and grandchildren

Class 2 — Privileged ascendants and collaterals: The deceased's parents and siblings

Class 3 — Ordinary ascendants and collaterals: Grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins

The class system works as follows: if there are any living heirs in Class 1, they inherit everything and Class 2 gets nothing. Class 2 only inherits if there are no living Class 1 heirs. Class 3 only inherits if Classes 1 and 2 are both empty.

With a surviving married or civil union spouse:

The spouse is not classed in the same system — they receive a share determined by their relationship to the deceased's other heirs:

• Spouse and children: Spouse receives one-third, children share two-thirds equally
• Spouse, no children, but surviving parents: Spouse receives two-thirds, parents share one-third
• Spouse only (no children, no surviving parents, no siblings): Spouse receives 100%

These fractions apply to the net succession assets — after the family patrimony partition is calculated (see below) and after all debts are paid.

Without a surviving spouse:

• Children only: split equally among all children
• No children, both parents alive: split equally between the parents
• No children, one parent alive and siblings: parent gets one-quarter, siblings share three-quarters
• No children, no parents, but siblings: split equally among siblings

If a direct heir has predeceased the testator, that heir's share passes to their own descendants by representation. A predeceased child's share goes to their children (the deceased's grandchildren), not to the surviving siblings.

The Common-Law Spouse Problem

This is the most consequential rule in Quebec intestate succession, and it affects a large number of families: a common-law (de facto) spouse inherits nothing under Quebec intestate rules.

It does not matter how long the couple lived together — 2 years or 30 years. It does not matter if they share children. Under the Civil Code of Québec, only legally married spouses and civil union partners have succession rights. A de facto partner who cohabitated for decades, contributed financially to a home, and raised children together is treated as a legal stranger to the succession.

This has two common outcomes:

1. The couple's children inherit the full estate — including any property the common-law partner lives in — leaving the surviving partner potentially homeless or without access to joint financial resources

2. If there are no children, the estate passes to the deceased's parents, then siblings — again, completely bypassing the surviving partner

Quebec's QPP surviving spouse pension rules are different and do recognize de facto spouses who cohabitated for three years or more (or one year with a child). But that is a pension benefit, not an inheritance right.

Family Patrimony Still Applies

Even in an intestate succession, if the deceased was married or in a civil union, the family patrimony partition must be calculated before the intestate distribution occurs. The surviving spouse's claim to up to half the value of family residences, furniture, vehicles, and pension entitlements accumulated during the marriage is processed first.

Only after the family patrimony partition is settled does the intestate distribution apply to the remaining net succession assets.

Appointing a Liquidator Without a Will

When there is no will, there is no named liquidator. The Civil Code requires the heirs to appoint one. By majority vote (by their share of the succession, not by headcount), the heirs can designate one of themselves or a third party to act as liquidator.

If the heirs cannot agree, or if the succession is complex, any interested party can apply to the Superior Court to have a liquidator appointed. This is particularly necessary when:

• Heirs are spread across multiple provinces or countries
• The estate is insolvent and the heirs disagree on renunciation
• There are minor children among the heirs (requiring the Tuteur aux biens or Curateur public's involvement)

The Declaration of Heredity

Once the liquidator is appointed and the mandatory will search confirms no will exists, the liquidator must work with a notary to draft a Declaration of Heredity (déclaration d'héritiers) — a formal notarial act that identifies and establishes the legal identity of all heirs under the intestate rules.

This document is required before the liquidator can begin the estate administration, open an estate bank account, or notify financial institutions. Without it, the liquidator has no legal document establishing who the heirs are and by what share.

The Declaration of Heredity requires the notary to trace the deceased's family tree and confirm that no closer heirs exist. If the family structure is complex — previous marriages, children from different relationships, potential half-siblings — this process can take time to complete accurately.

Renouncing an Insolvent Intestate Succession

If the mandatory inventory reveals that the estate's debts exceed its assets, each heir must individually decide whether to accept or renounce the succession. Renouncing protects the heir from becoming personally liable for the deceased's debts.

Renunciation must be formal — typically a notarial act registered in the RDPRM. An heir who takes any action that could be interpreted as accepting the succession (taking personal items, using estate funds, paying estate bills beyond the urgent expense threshold) may be deemed to have tacitly accepted and cannot later renounce.

In an intestate situation where the estate is potentially insolvent, getting legal advice before taking any action is strongly recommended.

The Full Settlement Process After Confirming Intestacy

Once the will search confirms no will exists and the Declaration of Heredity identifies the heirs, the succession process follows the same framework as a testate (will-based) succession: RDPRM registration, formal inventory, creditor notification period, tax returns, clearance certificates, and final distribution.

The Quebec Estate Settlement Guide covers both testate and intestate successions with the same step-by-step workflow — including the Declaration of Heredity process, the family patrimony calculation, and the RDPRM registrations that apply regardless of whether a will exists.

If you are a common-law spouse facing an intestate succession where you may be left with nothing, consult a notary or lawyer about potential civil claims based on unjust enrichment before the estate is distributed. These claims must generally be filed before distribution occurs.

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