Florida intestate succession: who inherits when there is no will, the spouse's share, descendants, parents, siblings and other relatives, the homestead, who is not an heir and steps to settle the estate
Who inherits under Florida law when someone dies without a will: the spouse's share, how descendants, parents, siblings and more distant relatives take, who is not an heir, how the homestead passes and the steps to settle the estate.
When a person dies without a valid will, or a will leaves part of the estate unaddressed, that part passes to the decedent's heirs under § 732.102 and § 732.103 (§ 732.101(1), Fla. Stat. (2026)). The surviving spouse takes all of it if the decedent left no descendants, or if every descendant is also the spouse's and the spouse has no other descendants. Otherwise the spouse takes one-half, and the rest follows the order in § 732.103: descendants, then parents, then brothers and sisters and their descendants, then grandparent lines.
Intestacy reaches only the property that is subject to administration. An account with a named beneficiary and property held with survivorship pass outside it, and the homestead follows its own rule in § 732.401. Stepchildren, foster children and unmarried partners are not heirs. The heirs' right vests at the moment of death (§ 732.101(2)).
The surviving spouse's share
The share depends on whether the decedent left descendants, and on whose descendants they are. Section 732.102 sets four cases.
| Family at death | Spouse takes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| No surviving descendant of the decedent | The entire intestate estate | § 732.102(1) |
| Descendants of the decedent, all of whom are also descendants of the spouse, and the spouse has no other descendant | The entire intestate estate | § 732.102(2) |
| One or more descendants of the decedent who are not lineal descendants of the spouse | One-half of the intestate estate; the other half passes to the decedent's descendants | § 732.102(3), § 732.103(1) |
| Descendants of the decedent, all of whom are also descendants of the spouse, and the spouse has one or more descendants who are not descendants of the decedent | One-half of the intestate estate; the other half passes to the decedent's descendants | § 732.102(4), § 732.103(1) |
Sources: § 732.102 and § 732.103, Fla. Stat. (2026). A spouse's own descendants who are not the decedent's take nothing from the decedent's intestate estate.
Who takes the rest
The part that does not pass to the spouse, or the whole estate if there is no spouse, goes down this list. The first line with a living member takes everything that is left.
| Order | Who takes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The decedent's descendants. A deceased child's share passes to that child's descendants. | § 732.103(1), § 732.104 |
| 2 | If there is no descendant, the father and mother equally, or the survivor of them. | § 732.103(2) |
| 3 | If there is none of those, the brothers and sisters and the descendants of deceased brothers and sisters. | § 732.103(3) |
| 4 | If there is none of those, one-half to the paternal and one-half to the maternal kindred: first the grandfather and grandmother equally, or the survivor; if neither, uncles and aunts and the descendants of deceased uncles and aunts. If one side has no kindred, the other side takes all. | § 732.103(4) |
| 5 | If there is no kindred on either side, the kindred of the last deceased spouse of the decedent, as if that spouse had survived and then died intestate. | § 732.103(5) |
| 6 | If there is no one, the estate escheats to the state. The proceeds go to the Chief Financial Officer for the State School Fund, and a person claiming entitlement may reopen the administration within 10 years after payment. | § 732.107(1) to (3) |
Sources: § 732.103, § 732.104 and § 732.107, Fla. Stat. (2026).
Three rules adjust the shares. Descent is per stirpes, whether to descendants or to collateral heirs (§ 732.104). Collateral kindred of the half blood take half as much as those of the whole blood, but if all are of the half blood they take whole parts (§ 732.105). An heir conceived before the death and born after it inherits as if born in the decedent's lifetime (§ 732.106).
Worked examples
Round numbers on an intestate estate of $240,000 with no homestead. Real shares depend on the net value of the estate after claims and expenses.
| Family at death | Who inherits | Amounts | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spouse and two children, all children also the spouse's | The spouse | Spouse $240,000 | § 732.102(2) |
| Spouse and two children from the decedent's earlier marriage | The spouse and the two children | Spouse $120,000; each child $60,000 | § 732.102(3), § 732.103(1) |
| Spouse; two children of the decedent and the spouse; the spouse also has a child from an earlier relationship | The spouse and the two shared children; the spouse's other child takes nothing from the decedent | Spouse $120,000; each shared child $60,000 | § 732.102(4), § 732.103(1) |
| Spouse, no children, both parents living | The spouse; the parents take nothing | Spouse $240,000 | § 732.102(1) |
| No spouse; three children | The three children equally | $80,000 each | § 732.103(1) |
| No spouse; three children, one of whom died leaving two children | The two living children; the two grandchildren share their parent's share | Each living child $80,000; each grandchild $40,000 | § 732.103(1), § 732.104 |
| No spouse, no descendants; both parents living | The parents equally | $120,000 each | § 732.103(2) |
| No spouse, descendants or parents; one sibling living and one deceased with two children | The living sibling; the two nieces or nephews share the deceased sibling's share | Sibling $120,000; each niece or nephew $60,000 | § 732.103(3), § 732.104 |
| Unmarried partner of 20 years and one adult child | The adult child; the partner takes nothing | Child $240,000 | § 732.103(1) |
Illustration only. Sources: § 732.102, § 732.103 and § 732.104, Fla. Stat. (2026).
Heirs and non-heirs
The Probate Code defines heirs as “those persons, including the surviving spouse, who are entitled under the statutes of intestate succession to the property of a decedent” (§ 731.201(20)).
| Relationship | Rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Child born in marriage | Inherits as a descendant. | § 732.103(1) |
| Adopted child | Is a descendant of the adopting parent and one of the natural kindred of the adopting parent's family, and is not a descendant of the natural parents. Exceptions: adoption by the spouse of a natural parent leaves the relationship to the natural parent unchanged; adoption by a natural parent's spouse who married after the other parent died leaves the relationship to the deceased parent's family unchanged; adoption by a close relative leaves the relationship to the families of the deceased natural parents unchanged. | § 732.108(1) |
| Child born outside marriage | Is a descendant of the mother. Is also a descendant of the father if the parents took part in a marriage ceremony before or after the birth, paternity was adjudicated before or after the father's death, or the father acknowledged paternity in writing. | § 732.108(2) |
| Stepchild, foster child | Not a “child” under the Probate Code, which excludes a person who is only a stepchild or a foster child. Either takes under a will only if the will names the person. | § 731.201(3) |
| Parent whose parental rights were terminated | Barred from inheriting from or through the child, and treated as having died before the child. | § 732.1081 |
| Person who unlawfully and intentionally kills the decedent | Takes nothing under the Probate Code; the estate passes as if the killer died first. | § 732.802(1) |
| Spouse who procured the marriage by fraud, duress or undue influence | Not entitled to rights that come only from the marriage, including intestate inheritance, unless the spouses voluntarily cohabited with full knowledge of the facts or later ratified the marriage. | § 732.805(1) |
| Unmarried partner | Not named in § 732.102 or § 732.103. Dower and curtesy are abolished. | § 732.102, § 732.103, § 732.111 |
| Son-in-law or daughter-in-law | Not a descendant or kindred of the decedent. A deceased child's share passes to that child's descendants. | § 732.103(1), § 732.104 |
Sources: the 2026 Florida Statutes, as linked in each row.
Homestead without a will
The homestead is the one asset the spouse's share does not control. If it is not devised as the law allows, it descends like other intestate property, with one exception for a surviving spouse and descendants (§ 732.401(1)). The exemption from forced sale inures to the surviving spouse or heirs (Art. X, § 4(b), Fla. Const.).
| Family at death | Who takes the homestead | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Surviving spouse and one or more descendants of any age | The spouse takes a life estate. The descendants alive at the death take a vested remainder per stirpes. | § 732.401(1) |
| Same family; the spouse elects within 6 months after the death, during the spouse's lifetime | The spouse may instead take an undivided one-half interest as a tenant in common; the other half vests in the descendants alive at the death per stirpes. The election is irrevocable and is made by a recorded notice of election with the legal description. | § 732.401(2) |
| Surviving spouse, no descendants | The homestead descends like other intestate property, and the spouse takes the entire intestate estate. | § 732.401(1), § 732.102(1) |
| No surviving spouse | The homestead descends like other intestate property, to the descendants first. | § 732.401(1), § 732.103 |
| Property owned as tenants by the entireties or in joint tenancy with right of survivorship | Section 732.401 does not apply to it, and it is not protected homestead. | § 732.401(5), § 731.201(33) |
Sources: § 732.401 and § 731.201(33), Fla. Stat. (2026); Art. X, § 4, Fla. Const.. Before an election, expenses of ownership are allocated between the life tenant and the remaindermen under chapter 738 (§ 732.401(3)). An agent or guardian of the spouse can elect only with court approval (§ 732.401(2)(a)). The petition to determine protected homestead status is governed by Fla. Prob. R. 5.405.
The guide on what a homestead protects covers devise limits, and the determination of homestead page covers the petition.
Settling an intestate estate
| Step | What happens | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Look for a will | A custodian of a will must deposit it with the clerk within 10 days after learning that the testator died. A petition in an intestate estate states that, after reasonable diligence, the petitioner is unaware of any unrevoked will. | § 732.901(1), Fla. Prob. R. 5.200(h) |
| 2. Choose the personal representative | The order of preference is the surviving spouse, then the person a majority in interest of the heirs selects, then the heir nearest in degree. The person must be qualified under §§ 733.302 to 733.304. | § 733.301(1)(b) |
| 3. Serve the notices | The personal representative promptly serves the notice of administration on the surviving spouse and the beneficiaries, and promptly publishes the notice to creditors. | § 733.212(1), § 733.2121(1) |
| 4. Determine the heirs | If the personal representative or another interested person is in doubt about the beneficiaries or their shares, a petition asks the court to determine them after formal notice. If the estate may escheat, the personal representative starts that proceeding within 1 year after letters issue and serves the Department of Legal Affairs. | Fla. Prob. R. 5.385 and 5.386(a) |
| 5. Inventory | The inventory is filed within 60 days after letters issue and served on the surviving spouse and each heir at law. | Fla. Prob. R. 5.340(a) and (d) |
| 6. Spouse and family protections | Exempt property, up to a net value of $20,000 for household items, goes to the surviving spouse or, if none, the children. The family allowance is capped at $18,000 in total. The petition for exempt property is due by the later of 4 months after service of the notice of administration or 40 days after related proceedings end. | § 732.402, § 732.403 |
| 7. Pay claims, distribute, close | Claims are paid in the statutory order. The final accounting and petition for discharge are filed within 12 months after letters issue unless a federal estate tax return extends the time. | § 733.707(1), Fla. Prob. R. 5.400(c) |
Sources: the 2026 Florida Statutes and the Florida Probate Rules, October 15, 2026 edition, as linked in each row. The guide on the personal representative's duties lists the full set of duties and deadlines.
Small intestate estates
Two shortcuts replace full administration in some intestate estates. Summary administration is available when the value of the estate subject to administration, less property exempt from creditors, does not exceed $150,000, or the decedent has been dead more than 2 years (§ 735.201(2)). Disposition without administration of intestate personal property is available when the estate holds only exempt personal property and nonexempt personal property up to $20,000 plus preferred funeral expenses and the last 60 days' medical expenses, the decedent has been dead more than 1 year, and no administration is pending (§ 735.304(1)). An heir entitled to a share under § 732.102 or § 732.103 requests the distribution by affidavit (§ 735.304(2)).
A financial institution may pay the funds in the decedent's sole-name accounts to a family member, with no court proceeding, if the combined funds at that institution total no more than $2,000, no earlier than 6 months after the death, on a death certificate and a sworn affidavit (§ 735.303). The amounts were raised by ch. 2026-57, Laws of Fla., effective July 1, 2026.
Sources
Last checked: October 17, 2026. Statutes are cited to the 2026 Florida Statutes on the Florida Senate site; rules to the Florida Probate Rules, October 15, 2026 edition, The Florida Bar.
- § 732.101, § 732.102, § 732.103, § 732.104, § 732.105 and § 732.106, Fla. Stat. (2026). Intestate estate; spouse's share; share of other heirs; per stirpes; half blood; afterborn heirs.
- § 732.107, § 732.108, § 732.1081 and § 732.111. Escheat; adopted persons and persons born out of wedlock; termination of parental rights; dower and curtesy abolished.
- § 732.401, § 732.402 and § 732.403. Descent of homestead; exempt property; family allowance.
- § 732.802 and § 732.805. Killer not entitled to benefits; spousal rights procured by fraud, duress or undue influence.
- § 731.201. General definitions.
- § 732.901, § 733.212, § 733.2121, § 733.301, § 733.707. Production of wills; notice of administration; notice to creditors; preference in appointment; order of payment.
- § 735.201, § 735.303 and § 735.304. Summary administration; payment to successor without court proceedings; disposition without administration of intestate property.
- Art. X, § 4, Fla. Const.. Homestead; exemptions.
- Fla. Prob. R. 5.200, 5.340, 5.385, 5.386, 5.400 and 5.405, Florida Probate Rules, October 15, 2026 edition, The Florida Bar.
- Ch. 2026-57, Laws of Fla. (CS/HB 1337), effective July 1, 2026.
- Florida Department of Revenue, Estate Tax and IRS, Estate tax, accessed October 17, 2026.
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