The Government is preparing changes to the rules governing so-called undivided inheritances, an issue that could return to the political agenda after the Council of Ministers meeting. The Executive’s intention is to facilitate processes that are currently blocked for years, especially when there is disagreement between heirs about the division of assets. According to , one of the changes under study provides that only one heir can trigger certain procedures linked to the sale of properties.
The proposal comes in a context in which many properties remain without formal sharing for years, preventing their sale, use or effective management. This blockade has been identified as one of the factors that contribute to the existence of properties stuck on the market.
In practice, the Government wants to create mechanisms that allow these impasses to be overcome, especially when heirs are unable to reach an agreement on the destination of the assets.
What does an undivided inheritance mean?
When a person dies, the assets and rights they leave behind are not automatically divided among their heirs. Until the formal division is carried out, all assets remain legally united in a single patrimonial mass.
According to the website Saldo Positivo, from Caixa Econômica Federal, at this stage each heir does not have a concrete inheritance asset. Instead, it only holds an ideal fraction of the total assets. As the same portal explains, this situation is called undivided inheritance and remains until the assets are formally shared among the heirs.
In practice, it means that all heirs are co-owners of the estate, but none of them can claim that a certain asset belongs exclusively to them.
Still according to the Positive Balance, when the death of an asset holder occurs, the so-called opening of the succession occurs immediately. From that moment on, the rights and obligations begin to affect the inheritance as a whole.
Even if the heirs accept the inheritance, the actual division of assets can take years. Until the sharing is formalized, the assets remain undivided.
Government wants to facilitate the sale of properties in blocked inheritances
The Executive is now preparing changes that seek to resolve some of these blockages, especially when there are properties involved. According to the Público newspaper, cited by Notícias ao Minuto, the Government intends to create a special process that allows the sale of properties belonging to undivided inheritances.
In practice, the proposal provides that a single heir can trigger the process to end the division and promote the sale of the property, whether urban or rural. This possibility arises as a response to situations in which an heir manages to prevent any decision regarding inherited assets for years.
According to the same publication, the intention is to allow that, after a certain period, an heir can request the sale of the property in court when there is no agreement between everyone.
The measure is also associated with two broader political objectives: increasing the supply of housing available on the market and facilitating the management of rural properties that may pose a fire risk.
Changes can affect the sharing process
Currently, it is enough for an heir not to agree to the sharing for the process to be blocked. As Notícias ao Minuto explains, the government’s proposal provides that, two years after accepting the inheritance, a single heir can request the sale of the property if disagreement persists between the others.
This request may give rise to a process of sale or sharing of one or more assets belonging to the inheritance.
Another measure being analyzed involves speeding up some legal processes related to evictions in cases of repeated non-compliance. According to the Público newspaper, cited by the same source, the objective is to reduce the duration of processes and increase the effectiveness of judicial decisions.
Who can inherit under the law
Portuguese legislation distinguishes two main types of heirs: legitimate heirs and legitimate heirs. As explained by the Saldo Positivo portal, the difference between these two groups depends mainly on the existence or not of a will.
When there is no will, the law establishes an order of succession that determines who is entitled to the deceased’s estate.
According to the same portal, the first in the line of succession are the spouse and descendants, that is, children or, in their absence, grandchildren.
If there are no descendants, the inheritance can pass to the spouse and ascendants, such as parents or grandparents. If there are no heirs in these categories either, the succession may fall to siblings and their descendants. Other relatives up to the fourth degree of kinship follow, such as first cousins, great-uncles or great-nephews. In the absence of any family member in these categories, the assets end up reverting to the State.
The changes that the Government is studying for undivided inheritances seek precisely to resolve the conflicts that arise throughout this process, especially when the lack of agreement between heirs prevents the use or sale of inherited assets for years.
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