Inheritance law in Switzerland: Who inherits how much of the assets?

Swiss inheritance law is part of Swiss private law. It is enshrined in Part Three of the Swiss Civil Code (CC), where it can be read in detail from Article 457 onwards. The law regulates:

• the rights and obligations of the community of heirs
• the legal succession within the family

When does statutory inheritance law apply?

It applies in several situations, including:

• No will exists
  
• A will is invalid under the law (e.g., due to formal errors)
  
• Heirs voluntarily renounce the inheritance
  
• Heirs are unable to accept the inheritance (e.g., due to illness or predeceasing the testator)

The first case is certainly the most common. In these cases, inheritance law determines how the inheritance is to be distributed. To this end, the law divides the deceased’s relatives and descendants into different groups depending on the degree of kinship.

How does statutory succession work under Swiss law?

The Swiss Civil Code defines three groups of heirs under the parentel system (Articles 457–459 and 462 ZGB):

1. First parentel – the deceased’s direct descendants
   
2. Second parentel – the deceased’s parents and their descendants
   
3. Third parentel – the deceased’s grandparents and their descendants

Spouses and registered partners are not part of this system but have inheritance rights under Article 462 ZGB, depending on which parentel the estate is being shared with.

The position of the spouse in the line of succession

The law stipulates that, in the case of married couples, the spouse has a special right to take first place in the line of succession (Article 462 of the Swiss Civil Code). In legal terms, this is also referred to as the spouse’s right of inheritance. Registered partners have the same status in Switzerland. If applicable, they share the inheritance equally with the descendants of the deceased person.

If there is no spouse or registered partner entitled to inherit at the time of death, it is the turn of the deceased’s children to inherit. In third place among the relatives entitled to inherit are the grandchildren of the deceased. If they are no longer alive, the great-grandchildren are the next heirs.

Succession for unmarried and childless testators

If the deceased is unmarried and has no children, the estate passes to their parents, who are considered second parents by law (Article 458 of the Swiss Civil Code). The inheritance passes to both parents in equal shares. If the testator’s parents are no longer alive, it is their descendants’ turn. If they have no (more) descendants, the grandparents are entitled to inherit in second place, followed by their descendants.

In the event that no relatives entitled to inherit are still alive, Swiss law stipulates that the estate can be allocated to the competent municipality or canton (Article 466 of the Swiss Civil Code).

Are adopted children entitled to inherit?

Under Swiss inheritance law, adopted sons or daughters of the deceased are treated in the same way as the deceased’s biological children. They are therefore regarded as descendants with full inheritance rights.

Special case 1: Inheritance rights of stepchildren

Stepchildren are sometimes not taken into account at all in the succession. Without an appropriately enforceable will, stepchildren or their children therefore receive nothing from the assets left behind by law.

Tip: If you have stepchildren and would like to include them in your estate, you should stipulate this in a will or inheritance contract during your lifetime. A lawyer specialising in inheritance law can help you with this.

Special case 2: Inheritance law for cohabiting partners

In contrast to registered partners, cohabiting partners are not mentioned in Swiss inheritance law. This means that they and their children are left empty-handed without a formal will. Even proof of a long-term cohabiting partnership does not change this.

Tip: For unmarried couples or patchwork families without a marriage certificate, it makes sense to start thinking about a will that protects your loved ones in the event of an emergency. A lawyer can help you with this and inform you about the associated rights and obligations.

The compulsory portion is regulated in Article 471 of the Swiss Civil Code and describes the legal entitlement of certain persons to a portion of the existing estate. These persons entitled to a compulsory portion are the spouse, registered partner and descendants. The right to a compulsory portion protects these family members from being ignored in a will and disadvantaged in the event of inheritance.

The compulsory portion also applies in wills

What many people do not consider when drafting their last will and testament without the help of a lawyer is that the right to a compulsory portion of a specific person or community of heirs cannot be completely excluded in a will – even if the authors of the will so wish. By law, certain relatives therefore have the right to assert their compulsory portion in court.

If you make arrangements for your estate during your lifetime, you can also get an overview of which relatives will receive how much of your assets by law. The calculation differs slightly depending on which relatives are taken into account. You can then allocate the freely available part of your assets, the so-called ‘free quota’, yourself.

Calculation examples:

You would like to divide your inheritance between your wife and your children: According to the law, your wife and your children will each receive a quarter of your assets in this case. You can decide for yourself who receives the remaining half.
You would like to leave your estate to your spouse and your parents: Your spouse’s statutory inheritance share is three-eighths, your parents have no statutory inheritance share. You can therefore freely divide the five eighths between them.

Swiss inheritance law is currently being revised and modernised. In May 2017, the Federal Council decided to carry out the revision of inheritance law in three stages. The first changes, which primarily concern the testators’ freedom of disposition, have been in force since January 2023. The aim of taking cohabiting partners into account in statutory inheritance and compulsory portion law has not yet been implemented.

The changes planned for the second and third phases include technical aspects of inheritance law and amendments to individual laws in connection with succession planning in family businesses.