Statute of limitations for challenging inheritance according to the law of the Russian Federation

What is the statute of limitations for entering into inheritance?

The statute of limitations begins when a citizen learns that he is entitled to an inheritance or should have known about it.
The period is 3 years. If the heir did not know about the inheritance matter at that time, this does not mean that his right to the testator’s property is lost. Regardless of the period of application, the heir who has valid reasons for his absence has the right to a part of the inheritance. The reasons for his absence must be documented. After the applicants have submitted applications to take possession of the property of the deceased, the notary begins the inheritance case. Its essence is to legally distribute property between heirs. To do this, for 6 months the notary examines the documents provided and examines whether there are any applicants who have not declared themselves. If the validity of the heirs' claims is confirmed, a certificate of the right to inheritance is issued six months later.

The law allows for the concept of actual entry into inheritance (Article 1153). The legality of the action is confirmed by the facts:

Use of personal funds to maintain the property of the deceased.
Payment by the heir of the testator's debts.
Protection of the testator's property from encroachment by other persons.

The decision to enter into inheritance is made in court.

If after 6 months an heir appears who has not declared himself for a good reason in due time, then the issue of redistribution of shares is resolved in court.

According to the law, the minimum limitation period cannot be less than 3 years and more than 10 years. The starting point for the period in which it remains possible to restore one’s rights and enter into an inheritance comes from the date the case was opened by the notary. In some cases, the starting date may change depending on the circumstances of the case. This may be the day you receive notification of a relative's death or a verbal communication.

The limitation period for accepting inherited property is regulated by Art. 1154 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. Within a specified period, the successor, either in the current order or designated by the will, must claim his rights to the property of the deceased. He can do this in two ways - virtually and notarially.

The actual entry into inheritance is convenient in that it only involves performing actions characteristic of the real owner of the property:

service;
operation;
payment of current bills;
repayment of debts, even if they were taken out by a deceased owner.

Notarized acceptance of property requires a mandatory visit to a notary to confirm your rights to inheritance.

The fact is that it will not be possible to register the received property as property without a certificate of inheritance, and it is issued exclusively by a notary in charge of the inheritance case. In addition, the actual entry into inheritance carries risks. There were cases when property was accepted simultaneously by different heirs from the notary and in fact, which entailed subsequent legal proceedings. And their outcome was not always favorable for the successor, who did not turn to the notary.

The time established for accepting inherited property is 6 months from the date of opening of the inheritance. But under certain circumstances, this period can be characterized by different durations.

In case of refusal of inheritance by the successors appointed in the will, the time to declare their rights for sub-designated applicants is also 6 months. But the beginning of its calculation will not be the moment of death of the testator, but the date of refusal. A similar procedure is valid for entering into inheritance by law, when as a result of the abandonment of property by the heirs of the first priority, the right passes to the subsequent ones.

But, if the priority applicants or those appointed by the testator did not refuse, but simply ignored the deadlines for accepting the property, their rights are transferred to other successors within 3 months from the end of the 6-month period.

The date of opening of the inheritance coincides with the day of death of the testator or, if it is reliably unknown, with the date determined in court as the estimated moment of death of the citizen.

According to the law, after the death of the testator it is three years. This should be enough time to restore your capabilities. The limitation period for inheritance for real estate and other property is 10 years - this is the maximum limitation. However, there are nuances here.

If the reason for the omission was violated for valid reasons, then the time countdown automatically opens. If during this time the testator has not shown himself in any way towards the inheritance, then after this period he will lose it completely.

What to do if a citizen nevertheless missed the entire required period? Is it possible to restore it? In this case, there is only one way out of the situation - filing an application with the judicial authority with a claim for restoration of the right to the heritage. This procedure is not simple or quick, so you should be patient.

Important! The heir will have to try to prove to the court that he really had a good reason for missing out. For example, it could be a long business trip abroad in an area remote from civilization, a serious illness, or a successor who did not know about what had happened at all

The limitation period has a starting point. But there can be two options:

if the biological date of death of the testator is known;
if a citizen is declared dead or permanently missing with a court order;

On a note! There is also a third option, which includes the successor not being informed about the death of a relative. Although, notifying all possible heirs about the existing property from the deceased is the direct responsibility of the notary who is involved in this matter.

The statute of limitations for entering into inheritance is 6 months. Upon expiration of the period, the recipient loses the opportunity to acquire the property of the deceased. The right is transferred to the next recipient.

In the absence of relatives, spouse and dependents, the right to accept the property of the deceased owner is transferred to the state (escheat).

If heirs are identified after the specified period, the recipient must confirm his rights in court. A claim may contain one or more claims. For example, I ask you to extend the period for accepting an inheritance and/or recognize ownership.

Deadline for entering into inheritance

The procedure and deadlines for accepting an inheritance are determined by the provisions of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. The starting point for calculating the timing is the date of death of the testator.

Methods for determining the date of death of the testator

No.	Way	A comment
1	Ascertainment of death by health workers	Based on a certificate from the morgue, registry office employees issue a death certificate. It indicates the date of death of the testator.
2	Entry into legal force of a court decision declaring someone dead	If a citizen was declared dead by a court decision, then he will need to wait for the completion of the trial. The procedural document becomes valid 1 month from the date of the decision. The moment the citizen was declared dead will be indicated in the court decision.
3	Establishment of the date of death by the court	If a citizen died in front of witnesses, but it turned out to be impossible to find his body, then relatives can go to court to establish the fact of death. In such a situation, the date of death will be indicated in the court decision.

From the moment the date of death of the testator is established, the countdown for entering into inheritance begins.

Inheritance methods:

law;
will.

Applicants in both categories are given 6 months to submit documents. Failure to contact a notary in a timely manner results in loss of property rights. The deadline for registering an inheritance is usually restored by the court.

If the priority applicants refuse the property or are eliminated for any reason, then the heirs of the 2nd degree will take over the rights of inheritance. The general period for filing papers is 6 months.

The countdown of time begins from the moment such right arises. That is, six months after the death of the testator. However, the period can be reduced if the heirs of the 1st line simply do not accept the inheritance (Article 1154 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). The key point in determining the timing is the reason for non-acceptance of the property by the heirs of the previous line.

Procedure for calculating the limitation period

Claims in cases related to inheritance issues are accepted for consideration by the courts in accordance with Art. 196 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, for 3 years from the date of the event in connection with which the claim is filed. In the vast majority of cases, the starting date of the time count in such cases is the day of death of the testator. But there are cases when this rule does not work and the starting point for the limitation period is determined by another date.

Such situations arise because the determination of the limitation period is regulated by Art. 191 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, according to which the beginning of the calculated period is considered to be the calendar day following the day of the event that occurred or the revealed fact for which the claim is filed.

The event in such cases is either the day of death or, under certain circumstances, the day the court makes a decision declaring a person dead. But the revealed fact may be the failure to receive timely notification of death or notification of the part of the deceased’s property due by law.

We suggest that you familiarize yourself with: Statute of limitations for bringing to administrative liability

According to paragraph 1 of Art. 192 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the limitation period ends on the corresponding date and month of the last year. For example, if a relative died on March 15, 2002, then the last day to challenge the decision on infringement of rights will be March 16, 2005, provided that all procedures provided for by law are followed.

Statute of limitations

6 months is really enough to accept an inheritance. But only if everything goes “smoothly” - agreement is reached between the heirs, all documents are in order, no one doubts the authenticity of the will, the procedure for dividing the inherited property suits everyone.

If any disputes arise (for example, disinheritance, challenging a will, division of inherited property, failure of a notary to fulfill his duty to notify heirs), it will take more time to resolve them.

Therefore, the law establishes a limitation period during which heirs who consider their inheritance rights to be infringed can file a claim in court. The court will consider the claim, identify and eliminate violations of the inheritance order. If the inheritance was distributed among the heirs illegally, it will be redistributed or returned (in kind or in the form of monetary compensation).

Example:

After the death of citizen V., an inheritance was opened - real estate in Moscow. Three daughters of the deceased had the right of inheritance. One of the daughters, citizen M., lived in another country, did not know about her father’s death, and did not apply for the inheritance. She found out about what happened a year later - at that time the sisters had already divided the Moscow apartment between themselves.

The 6-month period for applying for an inheritance, as well as the 6-month period for restoring the missed period, have expired. But the 3-year statute of limitations for seeking judicial protection and challenging the illegal inheritance order has not yet expired. Within this period, heiress M. filed a lawsuit for redistribution of the inheritance. She based her claims on the fact that she had not received news from her sisters about her father’s death or notifications from the notary about the opening of the inheritance.

The claim was granted by the court. Based on the court decision, previous certificates were canceled and new ones were issued, and changes were made to the registration documents - extracts from the Unified State Register of Real Estate. Now each of the three heiresses became the owner of ⅓ of the inherited property.

According to paragraph 1 of Article 196 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the statute of limitations for inheritance cases is 3 years. But this article also contains paragraph 2 with an addition to the previous paragraph - the statute of limitations can be up to 10 years.

Although the law does not directly state this, judicial practice indicates that a longer limitation period (10 years) applies to particularly complex inheritance cases, for example, those related to the division of real estate between heirs.

Expert opinion

Semyon Frolov

Lawyer. 7 years of experience. Specialization: family, inheritance, housing law.

However, 10 years is also a certain limitation of the statute of limitations for those heirs who go to court for protection of inheritance rights many years after their violation. Judicial practice knows of cases where “lost” heirs claimed the right to inherit real estate, while the apartment or house had already been sold or gifted to strangers several times. Thus, protecting the rights of heirs can turn into a violation of the rights of bona fide buyers after such a significant period of time. Therefore, on September 1, 2013, amendments were made to Article 196 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation - a maximum limitation of the limitation period was established - 10 years.

Read more in the article “Limitation period for entering into inheritance“.

Calculation of the limitation period

So, everything is clear with the duration of the limitation period in inheritance cases - it is at least 3 years, but does not exceed 10 years. All that remains is to figure out the beginning of the countdown and the procedure for calculating the limitation period.

In the vast majority of cases, the countdown begins on the day after the opening of the inheritance (that is, the day after death or after the court decision to recognize the testator as deceased comes into force).

This calculation is used in simple inheritance cases in which all heirs participate, notified of the death (or recognition as deceased) of the testator, the presence (or absence) of a will, and the procedure for dividing the inherited property.

In rare, more complex cases, the start of the countdown occurs not after death, but after another event.

For example, after untimely receipt of notification of the death of a relative, after receiving information about the will he left, about a violation of inheritance law, about hidden or illegally appropriated, illegally distributed inherited property.

If the end of the limitation period falls on a weekend or holiday, it is postponed to the first working day after the non-working day (see “Time and place of opening of inheritance”).

Concept and purpose

The transfer of rights to the property of the deceased is carried out on the basis of his will or by law if there is no will. The law prescribes a specific algorithm for the distribution of inheritance by kinship.

There is a special category of citizens who receive a mandatory share of the inheritance upon acceptance, regardless of whether they are mentioned in the will or not. We are talking about the children of the deceased: marital, illegitimate, recognized and unrecognized (if the fact of paternity is documented). The transfer of property is carried out by a notary between the participants in the notarial case who have officially declared themselves.

After the death of the testator, relatives claiming property rights write applications to be recognized as heirs. Within 6 months, the notary reviews the inheritance case, if necessary, requesting additional documents confirming the family relationship with the deceased.

Limitation period for inheritance of real estate

/ Inheritance / Limitation period for inheritance of real estate

When we talk about the time frame associated with inheritance, 6 months for accepting an inheritance comes to mind. Many heirs are absolutely sure that after the expiration of this period it is no longer possible to resolve controversial issues. But that's not true.

In this article we will understand what the statute of limitations is, how long it lasts and what it is needed for.

So, everything is clear with the duration of the limitation period in inheritance cases - it is at least 3 years, but does not exceed 10 years. All that remains is to figure out the beginning of the countdown and the procedure for calculating the limitation period.

In the vast majority of cases, the countdown begins on the day after the opening of the inheritance (that is, the day after death or after the court decision to recognize the testator as deceased comes into force).

If the expiration of the limitation period falls on a weekend or holiday, it is postponed to the first working day after the non-working day.

If a person finds out that he has the right to the testator’s property after 10 years, then he has the right to file a claim in court to prove that his inheritance rights have been violated. Such cases are special. Before the meeting, the judge sends a request to the notary office where the case was opened in order to receive all the materials to complete the picture.

During the trial, it is important for the heir to prove that his right was violated. If the judicial authority finds the claims justified, the inheritance case will be reviewed

In this case, it will not matter that the statute of limitations has already passed.

To exercise your right to inherited property, the law establishes a specific period of 6 months. During this time, the heirs must have time to prepare all the necessary documentation and send an application to the notary's office.

The notary will need the following documents:

Successor's passport.
A certificate establishing the fact of the death of the testator.
A document confirming relationship with the deceased.
Will.
Papers for property owned by the deceased.
A certificate indicating the address where the person was living at the time of death.
Receipt confirming payment of the state duty.

The application and papers must be submitted within six months, and the inheritance certificate is issued only after this time.

Recovery

There are situations when successors miss the deadline for submitting an application to the notary's office. In this case, there is a chance to restore it. You can do this in two ways:

Having agreed with the remaining heirs and concluded a peace agreement with them, which is then handed over to the notary.
File a lawsuit with a request to restore the deadline. If the judge is on the plaintiff’s side, he will make a decision, a copy of which must be given to the notary’s office. In this case, the consent of the other successors is irrelevant.

If the heir appeals to the judicial authority, he must prove that he missed the deadline not on his own initiative. The law does not define which circumstances are considered valid. Respectfulness is determined by the judge at his own discretion.

Most often it is recognized if the citizen:

Didn't know that the testator had died or indicated him in his will.
He was under treatment for a long time due to a serious illness or being in a coma.
I was on a long business trip.

Simply coming to court and explaining the reason for missing the deadline will not give a positive result.

It is important for the heir to collect evidence in the form of documents and testimony. For example, to confirm a serious illness, you will need a medical report; when traveling on a business trip, you will need a certificate from your place of work, and so on.

Thus, the limitation period is a minimum of 3 years and a maximum of 10 years. The law allows 6 months to register an inheritance.

What is the statute of limitations for inheriting without a will under the law?

When it comes to inheritance, there are many factors to consider. The general period for filing an application is 6 months .

However, it can be extended depending on the category of heirs and the circumstances in which they find themselves. Even the statute of limitations is a relative concept.

For example, if the heirs have assumed their rights after the fact, then it is possible to draw up documents with a notary or establish ownership of property in court even after 5 years. To determine the deadline for exercising inheritance rights, you must consult a lawyer.

Factors that force recovery

The heir is not deprived of the right to receive a share of the property of a deceased relative if he does not appear before the notary in due time to declare his rights. Restoration of rights can be achieved through the court by writing a statement of claim and submitting documents confirming that its absence was caused by good reasons.

Certificates of acceptance of inheritance that have been issued are invalid. The entire inheritance mass is distributed anew, taking into account the emergence of another applicant.

The legislation does not provide an exact list of factors by which it is possible to restore rights, but during the consideration process the court may satisfy the claim if there are good reasons:

It was not possible to obtain information about the death of a relative.
Lack of information about inheritance.
Long-term illness, stay in a coma.
Living in another country.
Staying in places of detention.

We suggest you read: Is it possible to claim an inheritance for a non-privatized apartment?

Regardless of the reasons for the absence of heirs, the court considers each specific case subject to the provision of accompanying evidence in the form of official certificates, confirmations, eyewitness accounts and other things.

What does entering into an inheritance actually mean, read the article “

How is the procedure for actual inheritance carried out?

».

Is it possible to refuse an inheritance? The answer is here.

Reasons for missing deadlines

The main reasons for late acceptance of inheritance

No.	Cause	Comments
1	Lack of direct contact with the testator	Often relatives do not communicate with each other due to long-standing grievances or personal hostility. Sometimes the reason for lack of contact is distance - living in different regions or different countries.
2	Living or studying abroad	One option is a foreign business trip. A long stay outside the country does not always allow you to find out in a timely manner or take the necessary actions to accept property.
3	Long-term treatment	The heir may undergo long-term inpatient treatment. For example, with an open form of tuberculosis or in a psychiatric clinic.
4	Serving a sentence in prison	This is a fairly common reason for missing deadlines. However, sometimes courts refuse to satisfy plaintiffs' claims.
5	Acceptance of inheritance after the fact	Often, relatives of the testator submit an application after the allotted period has expired. If they cannot provide conclusive evidence of actual acceptance of the property, they will have to go to court. One of the points of the claim is a request for an extension of the deadline.
6	Concealment of a will by relatives	The testator can deprive family members of their property and assign it to a third party. However, if he does not hand over the will during his lifetime, then the relatives may subsequently hide the document from the applicant.
7	On the day of death of the testator the applicant was a minor	Typically, legal representatives act in the best interests of children. However, they may not always know about the existence of an inheritance. If a child, after reaching adulthood, becomes aware of a violation of his rights, then they can be restored through the court. The exception is the situation when a citizen deliberately did not enter into an inheritance in order to receive other material benefits.
8	Military service	The court will accept military service as a valid reason if the citizen served in another city and could not transfer authority to a representative.

To restore the deadline, you must go to court (Article 1155 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). However, the law does not establish a list of reasons that will be considered valid.

When making a decision, the court proceeds from the specific situation. The burden of proof lies with the applicant.

The process to reinstate the deadline is complex. Therefore, it is advisable to hire a competent lawyer.

How is the statute of limitations for inheritance calculated?

According to the law, the statute of limitations for an inheritance case is at least 3 years and should not exceed 10. Calculation begins with the opening of an inheritance case. It opens the day after the death of a citizen or after the fact of his death is established in court. The fact of death is established by the court, for example, if a person goes missing.

The beginning of the calculation is made in cases where the testator has left a will, all claimants to the property have been notified of the death of a relative and have written statements stating that they are claiming their share.

Those who did not manage to meet the deadline have the opportunity to sue their part of the property, since the legislation, having determined the limitation period for inheritance, made it possible for the heirs to receive what was bequeathed to them or due by law.

Counting order

The limitation period is calculated from 2 positions:

From the moment when the heir learns or should receive information about the right to a share in the inheritance.
From the day of the death of a relative.

The notary opening the inheritance case must find out whether all the heirs have been found and notified of the death of the testator. If at least one of the applicants is not notified, the statute of limitations begins to count for him. The limitation period is calculated continuously, unless force majeure occurs. The Civil Code stipulates the possibility of interruption, suspension and renewal of the term.

Force majeure situations include, for example, those when a citizen cannot defend his rights while being seriously ill. As soon as the obstacles disappear, the statute of limitations continues to run. In the final calculation, time periods with obstructive situations are cut out. The presence of all obstacles must be documented.

Citizens often confuse two concepts: the period for accepting the property of the deceased by right of inheritance and the statute of limitations. It is necessary to distinguish between them, since, despite the fact that they are interrelated, the limitation of periods is established to achieve different goals. Acceptance of an inheritance within 6 months implies the period of entry into inheritance.

6 months is enough time to document the relationship with the deceased. If he left a will, this simplifies the procedure for entering into an inheritance, since the will of the testator is the basis for the distribution of the inheritance.

The statute of limitations for inheritance means the possibility of “late” applicants entering into the inheritance.

How is the limitation period for inheritance calculated?

The 10-year period allocated by the Civil Code for proceedings with inherited property simultaneously expands the rights of heirs and at the same time limits them. If six months and 10 years have passed, your application to the court to restore your rights will be denied. In practice, it happens that property claimed by “suddenly appearing” heirs is sold several times. It is not possible to cancel several transactions at once that were completed completely legally (in the legal framework at the time of conclusion). It is also difficult to reclaim funds from relatives who spent money from an inheritance a long time ago.

What is the statute of limitations for inheritance?

The legislation provides for the possibility of submitting a request not only during a personal visit to the branch, but also through a representative or by mail. In the latter option, the number of contacting the notary will correspond to the number of sending the letter - in this case, it does not take into account when the documents actually arrive at the office.

If the outcome of the case is positive, the heir receives a certificate that confirms his right to use the property of the deceased

However, it is important to understand that in the future this fact can be disputed by any interested party - usually these are relatives who do not want to come to terms with the fact that they did not inherit anything

If one or more heirs were not notified of the opportunity to purchase the inheritance, then the issued certificate of title to the property may be invalidated during court proceedings

The three-year limitation period is reflected in Article 196 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. However, this provision contains a caveat - this applies to all situations, without taking into account specific conditions.

That is, if there are certain cases in an inheritance case, then the time frame for filing an application can be significantly expanded. After going to court, the plaintiff must provide compelling reasons for reinstating the deadline.

Such additions and conditions of the current legislation, taking into account the orders of judicial practice, often lead to the fact that many interested parties and close people of the testator, after many years, try to challenge the registered certificate.

In search of justice and compensation, they went to court. The government could not ignore the current situation for long, so on September 1, 2013, the legislation of the Russian Federation was supplemented with an additional clause, according to which the limitation period was set at 10 years.

Separately, it is worth considering the time frame for inheriting obligations, since often the heirs acquired not only the property of the deceased, but also his debts. At the same time, applicants are not always aware of such “surprises” in front of third parties or credit institutions - they could suddenly open up after a sufficiently long time has passed after taking ownership.

It is worth noting that a citizen is liable for the debts of the deceased only within a certain amount - no more than the amount of the value of the acquired property. That is, the creditor cannot force the heir to pay all debts if their size is greater than the appraised value of the property received.

Debts are distributed among all applicants who have taken ownership and have the appropriate certificate. The statute of limitations for debt collection by a creditor ranges from 3 to 10 years.

Is there a statute of limitations for entering into inheritance?

Expert opinion

Stanislav Evseev

Lawyer. Experience 12 years. Specialization: civil, family, inheritance law.

The Civil Code contains such a concept as a statute of limitations. It is 3 years (Article 196 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). This period of time is given to citizens to protect violated or disputed rights.

That is, within 3 years you can file a claim in court if there is a corresponding conflict of interest. One of them may be the issue of inheritance.

For example, if there is a dispute between the heirs about the size of the shares, the deadline for contacting a notary is missed, or the will contains contradictory provisions.

However, the limitation period differs in duration from the time given for accepting an inheritance. Claimants under a will or relatives who are called upon to inherit by law must declare their rights within 6 months .

If they missed the 6-month deadline , they may lose their property rights. If there are compelling reasons, you can restore the lost right to inheritance. For example, if the heir did not know about the death of the testator or was outside the Russian Federation.

If the heir actually accepted the property, then he can formalize his rights even after the expiration of the 6-month period. However, beneficiaries are not always able to obtain paperwork from a notary.

From time to time, citizens have to go to court. 3 years are given to protect property interests .

From what moment does the calculation of the period begin? The starting point is the moment when a person became aware of a violation of his rights and the person who will act as a defendant (Article 200 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

If the allotted time is missed

The Civil Code stipulates a long period for the emergence of new claimants to the property of the deceased. There are times when these deadlines may be missed. A person who learns about an inheritance cannot immediately appear to declare his rights for objective reasons. The legislation allows the resolution of the inheritance issue in court, even if the time provided by the Civil Code has been lost.

A citizen who learns that he is entitled to an inheritance, after the expiration of the 10-year period established by law, can file a lawsuit in order to prove that his rights have been violated.

Such applications are considered by the court in a special procedure. The judge to whom the case is transferred checks the compliance of the format of the application and its content with legislative norms, and the composition of the attached documents. If no claims arise against them, he sets a date for consideration of the case.

During the process, the circumstances due to which the heir did not declare himself and the reasons that prompted him to do so are clarified. Only the court determines the true validity of the applicant's arguments. If they are found to be valid, the inheritance case is subject to review, regardless of how many years have passed since the death of the testator.

Based on Article 1072 of the Civil Code, the court restores the missed limitation periods and adds the citizen to the list of heirs if the following conditions are met:

The deadline was missed for objective reasons.
There is an evidence base in the form of documents confirming the rightness of the applicant.
The citizen filed a claim no later than six months after he learned that he was entitled to an inheritance or after the reasons that prevented him from filing the claim had disappeared.

All certificates of ownership of the testator’s property issued earlier are canceled, and the distributed property again becomes the common inheritance mass. The court determines measures to protect the newly-minted heir and includes him among the legal successors.

Having recognized the right of the new heir, the court re-determines the shares due to each. There are many nuances to the distribution of property after restoration. For example, if there were no heirs other than him at any level, then all the property went to the state. In this case, the defendant is the local municipality. He is obliged to return to the citizen the property due to him.

Why do you need a certificate of inheritance, read the article “

We invite you to read: Seizure of an account by bailiffs: how to return money to the debtor’s bank account

How to draw up and receive a certificate of inheritance

».

Find out how to search for an inheritance here.

Where to contact

After the death of a citizen, heirs can find out whether he left a will on the distribution of his property. An official will is drawn up in a notary's office at the place of residence of citizens, so the heirs can easily find out about its contents from the notary. If the deceased relative did not have time to write it, then the property is distributed according to the law. The notary opens the inheritance case, and after 6 months, all heirs are issued a certificate of inheritance.

A claim can be filed by:

An heir who believes that his rights have been violated during the distribution of shares.
Relatives who were not included in the will.

The court resolves all issues that the relatives were unable to resolve peacefully, acting on the basis of legislation and taking into account only real documents confirming the validity of the statements of the offended relatives.

Applications for restoration of the right to inheritance are considered by the district court. In the application, the citizen must describe the reasons why he did not attempt to declare his rights to inheritance in a timely manner.

Information that must be provided in the claim:

The date of receipt of information about the death of the testator.
About the reasons for the absence of a relative at the time of death.
Reasons why the applicant did not claim the inheritance.
What are the grounds for challenging a will?
Links to articles of legislation according to which he has the right to challenge an inheritance case.

The plaintiff petitions to restore the statute of limitations from the moment he learned about the death of a relative or about the inheritance due to him. He prescribes a list of documents that he submits for consideration by the court. On their basis, the evidentiary basis of the claim is built.

It is preferable if a probate lawyer takes part in drawing up the claim. He will be able to correctly advise which legislative acts need to be referred to in a particular situation. The application must present only real facts that have become an obstacle for the plaintiff to participate in a timely manner in the procedure for distributing the inheritance.

How long does it take to challenge an inheritance?

The limitation period for challenging an inheritance is determined in accordance with Art. 195 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. Different deadlines apply in different situations - general or special.

The standard time period for going to probate court is 3 years. If you missed the specified deadline, you can restore it. But this can only be done if there are good reasons for absence (long-term illness, temporary incapacity, etc.).

The statute of limitations depends on the specific situation.

Even if the statute of limitations has expired, the court does not have the right to refuse to accept your claim. If the other party to the dispute declares that the period of dispute has passed, only then will the court take this fact into account and refuse to satisfy your claims. Therefore, there is still a chance to challenge the inheritance, because the other party may not know about the limitation periods, or may miss this point.

The reason for missing the deadline must be valid, otherwise the court will refuse to reinstate it.

How is the statute of limitations calculated?

In inheritance disputes, the limitation period is counted from the moment the inheritance case is opened (death of the property owner). But in some situations this rule does not work. For example, if the successor learned about the death of the testator after some time. In such a situation, the period begins to be calculated from the moment when the plaintiff learned about the will and the heirs indicated in it.

The statute of limitations is counted from the moment of death of the testator.

According to Part 2 of Art. 196 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, exceeding the statute of limitations by more than 10 years is unacceptable. However, it can be suspended in case of emergency, military service, etc. Suspension is also provided for in cases where the parties are trying to resolve the situation peacefully.

Is it possible to challenge the decision?

The legislation of the Russian Federation provides for the possibility of challenging an inheritance.

So, in order to recognize the issued certificate as invalid, the following reasons are distinguished:

irregularities in paperwork;
an incorrectly drawn up will;
revealing the heir's unworthiness;
establishing new facts about the testator’s activities;
identification of new persons claiming inheritance;
Obviously, this is not a complete list of reasons that are considered sufficient for going to court to challenge an inheritance case.

The trial includes the following procedures:

evidence of a family or marital relationship with the deceased;
establishing the fact of cohabitation with the testator;
confirmation of actual acceptance of property;
extension of the time frame for entering into inheritance.

If there are several applicants, then they can come to an agreement to pay some compensation in favor of one of the heirs for abandoning their share. In this case, mandatory notarization of such a procedure will be required. Moreover, the registration must be carried out in written format.

As judicial practice shows, this aspect is often not fulfilled. In this regard, the Government has developed the possibility of restoring such a time frame to ensure the protection of the interests of citizens who, for good reason, were unable to immediately issue a certificate or challenge the right to it.

To exercise rights, you must correctly install

time of opening of inheritance

Find a sample application for actual acceptance of inheritance here.

If you missed the deadline for accepting an inheritance, see what to do in this publication.

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Limitation period for inheritance disputes

The concept of limitation of actions is explained in Art. 195 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation and designates the period of time allotted for the protection of the rights of the person who filed the claim. Its beginning is established by Art. 200 of the mentioned legislative act and coincides with the moment when the plaintiff learned about the violation of his rights and about the proper defendants in this case.

In a claim to restore the deadline for accepting an inheritance, filing an application is possible six months after the death of the testator, but no later than 6 months from the day when the heir had such an opportunity. In this case, the date of filing the claim will be the beginning of the limitation period.

In cases related to the division of inherited property, the protection of inheritance rights begins from the moment one of the owners of indivisible property has relevant claims, confirmed by filing a statement of claim.

The general limitation period is 3 years, but cannot exceed 10 years from the fact of the occurrence of violations (Article 196 of the Civil Code).

It is important to know that the court does not have the right to refuse to accept a claim for the protection of inheritance rights even after the expiration of the specified period. Only the defendants (heirs who took possession of the property, or the Russian Federation, its subject, municipality) have the authority to declare the application of the limitation period. At their request, the claim will not be accepted for consideration.

The concept and application of the statute of limitations is one of the most complex and confusing aspects of the law. But its significance in resolving inheritance disputes obliges the future plaintiff to thoroughly study the provisions of the law in this regard.

Lawyers from the website https://ros-nasledstvo.ru are ready to provide assistance in this matter, who will explain the main provisions of the legislation and help apply them to a specific situation.

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Limitation period for reviewing an inheritance case

The law provides for a person’s right to review the decision on the division of property that occurred after the death of relatives. The procedure for restoring property rights consists of filing a lawsuit in court to restore the period for entering into inheritance. In the statement of claim, the citizen must indicate the circumstances that prevented participation in the division of property and a request for a review of the property rights of the relatives who accepted the inheritance. The appeal to the court occurs within the new period (six months counted from the date of completion of the inheritance case).

During the period allotted for the division and registration of inherited property, the leading role in organizing the process is given to the notary. The quality of the distribution of the hereditary mass largely depends on his actions, after which no controversial issues will arise. The invalidation of documents in judicial practice is often caused by the negligent attitude of officials to notify relatives.

Within the limitation period, there are cases of collision within the same authority. When separating the concepts of legal and actual inheritance, the second process is the judicial determination of the right to inheritance.

The actual entry into the inheritance is confirmed by the following documents:

Spending your personal funds (fees, legal services, utility bills) for the maintenance of the inheritance;
Payment of the deceased's obligations from personal funds;
Receiving funds from an inheritance;
Registration of ownership rights to the property of the deceased.

During such proceedings, the court re-checks the absence of other applicants. After such a decision, restoring your rights will be extremely problematic.

Extension of the limitation period

It is not always possible for legal successors to file a claim on time (they do not know about the inheritance for a long time). It is possible to restore the period 10 years after the distribution of the inheritance. To do this, you should also apply to the court with a petition to extend the limitation period and review the inheritance case.

Such civil proceedings are considered special. Before the initial hearing, the judge sends a request to the notary office that handled this inheritance matter. The notary provides all available materials for review.

During the trial, it is important for the heir to prove that his right of inheritance was actually violated (Omarin, as an 8-year-old boy, was sent to an orphanage and was raised there until adulthood. When he was 9 years old, his uncle inherited an apartment in the city. However, no one was a pupil of the orphanage did not notify him of his right to acquire property. His uncle's wife sold the living space, and the boy, who left the educational institution, learned about what happened from his uncle's friends 11 years later. Having received a legal assessment of the situation from a legal consultant, he filed a lawsuit against his relative and received a monetary compensation).

IMPORTANT !!! Thus, the limitation period should be understood as a period of time defined by law during which a person has the right to go to court for the protection of violated interests. According to general provisions, the permitted period for filing a claim is 3 years, and in some cases it may not exceed 10 years.

However, if there is a real possibility of proving the valid reasons for missing the allotted decade, the court has the right to review the opened inheritance case. The consequences of the review may be very different. When claims are satisfied, financial compensation is usually awarded to the injured party, since it often happens that real estate already belongs to complete strangers.