Recent Changes To Inheritance And Succession Law

The recent revocation of Section 42 of the Wills and Succession Law Cap 195 has resulted in major changes to Cyprus’s succession law regime.

Cyprus has a complicated system of forced heirship in which a portion of a deceased’s estate must be effectively passed to surviving family members according to a set system of inheritance. Natural children of deceased persons are entitled to an equal share of their parent’s property (along with their parents’ spouses).

This forced heirship regime means that even if a deceased writes a will leaving a certain portion of their estate as a gift to their spouse, their wishes will be deemed invalid if there are natural children who are entitled to a fixed minimum percentage of the estate.