The heirs always inherit the debts of the testator along with the property. At the same time, the heir cannot accept the inheritance partially and the only way to avoid paying the debts of the deceased is to completely abandon the property. Svetlana Korabel, managing partner of YUS KOGENS, attorney and consultant on inheritance planning, told socialbites.ca.
According to the expert, the debts of the testator are all the debts of the deceased on the date of the inheritance.
“There are debts that will not be paid to the heirs. These include debts that are inextricably linked with the personality of the debtor, such as alimony. The obligation to pay this debt ends with the death of the testator. If the debt can be fulfilled without the personal participation of the debtor, it does not end with his death and passes to the heirs.
So, for example, if the testator took a loan from a bank and later died, then under the loan agreement the heir is obliged to return the money received by the testator to the creditor and pay interest on time and on time. as specified in the loan agreement. The important thing is: not before. At the same time, until the testator enters the inheritance – as a general rule, 6 months after the death of the testator – the bank has no right to set additional conditions, charge penalties, fines and interest.
“Debts are inherited by all heirs who accept the inheritance. The legator must be jointly and severally liable for his debts, that is, all together. At the same time, each of the heirs is responsible for the debts of the testator as much as the value of the inherited property. So the creditors cannot claim more than the inheritance, ”said Svetlana Korabel.
If the inheritance itself dies before it has time to enter into the inheritance, the hereditary transfer – the transfer of the right to inheritance – works. Thus, the right to accept the due inheritance passes to the heirs of the deceased heir. Thus, the heir, who becomes this through inheritance, inherits the debts of the original testator. However, if, for example, the deceased heir has debts of his own, his heir is not obliged to repay them from the property acquired as a result of hereditary transfer.
“A simple example: A grandfather died, leaving his son an inheritance and debts. The son also died, leaving an inheritance and his own debts to his grandson, he did not have time to accept the inheritance after he was divorced from his grandfather. Then comes the message. The grandson receives the inheritance and debts of his son, that is, his father, as well as his grandfather’s inheritance and debts. The grandson pays off the grandfather’s debts from the grandfather’s estate and the son pays the debts from the son’s estate,” the estate planning consultant explained.
He noted that in any case, be it hereditary inheritance or ordinary inheritance, the heirs are liable for these debts only in the amount of inherited property. But if it is absolutely clear that the amount of inherited debts exceeds the value of the property received, there is a simple way out – not to inherit.
“This means not only not applying with a notary public for the acceptance of the inheritance, but also not making any transactions that can be considered as the actual entry of the inheritance. You also need to take into account that the heir cannot accept the inheritance in part, only in full – this is the law. In addition, heirs who are not heirs cannot be held responsible for the debts of the testator. Heirs are those from whom the estate of the testator appointed in the will should be inherited.
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