Statutory Succession under Greek law

At first instance, a person may be considered an heir depending on whether the decedent left a valid will (disposition upon death). If no such will exists, or if it does not cover the entire estate, statutory succession applies.

The decedent’s relatives (Orders I–IV), the surviving spouse (Vth Order), or, if there are not any, the State (VIth Order) may be classified as statutory heirs.

A. Relatives

The Greek Civil Code classifies relatives entitled to inherit into specific orders, similar to the German BGB:

First Order (Art. 1813 GCC)

Descendants (children, grandchildren, great‑grandchildren, etc.) are classified as heirs of the First Order. They inherit the entire estate unless a spouse survives; in which case the spouse is entitled to one quarter (¼) of the estate.

Within the First Order, succession is further organized by ‘stems.’ Each descendant, together with their own issue, constitutes a stem. Closer descendants exclude more remote ones within the same stem. If the leading relative in a stem is predeceased or excluded (e.g., by death, disinheritance, or disclaimer), their issue inherit by right of representation. Children inherit in equal shares.

Second Order (Art. 1814 GCC)

The decedent’s parents and siblings, as well as the children and grandchildren of predeceased siblings, inherit as heirs of the Second Order. Parents and siblings inherit equally. The children and grandchildren of predeceased siblings inherit by right of representation. In collateral lines, succession extends up to the fourth degree (i.e., at the grandchildren of siblings). Half‑siblings are governed by Art. 1815 GCC.

Third Order (Art. 1816 GCC)

If a grandparent has predeceased the decedent, that grandparent’s children and grandchildren inherit in their place. If none exist, the surviving grandparent of the same line inherits. If that grandparent is also predeceased, their children and grandchildren inherit accordingly. Children inherit in equal shares and exclude grandchildren of the same stem; grandchildren inherit by right of representation (by stems).

Fourth Order (Art. 1817 GCC)

Great‑grandparents of the decedent inherit in equal shares. If, at the time of death, all great‑grandparents have predeceased the decedent, succession in the next order applies (the Fifth Order).

B. Spouse’s statutory rights

As the spouse is not a blood relative, their inheritance rights are not determined by the above orders.

The spouse’s share: The surviving spouse is classified as a statutory heir (Art. 1820 GCC) and is entitled to, when inheriting alongside relatives of the First Order, one quarter (¼) of the estate, regardless of the number of surviving children. When called alongside relatives of the Second, Third and Fourth Order, the spouse is entitled to one half of the estate. The spouse is also entitled to the statutory household “advance” (Voraus) under Art. 1820 sentence 2 GCC (household items, etc.), subject to the needs of the decedent’s children.

When inheriting as an heir of the Fifth Order, the spouse is entitled to the entire estate if there are no surviving relatives of the First through Fourth Orders (Art. 1821 GCC).

Exclusion: The surviving spouse is entitled to inherit only if the marriage was valid at the time of death and had not been dissolved by a court. If the marriage is annulled after the decedent’s death, the estate is deemed never to have devolved upon the spouse (Art. 1381 GCC). The spouse may also be excluded if, for justified reasons, the decedent had filed for divorce prior to their death (Art. 1822 GCC).
Marital accrual: Where the marriage is governed by Greek law, the surviving spouse may have a claim to marital accrual (Art. 1400 GCC). A rebuttable presumption fixes this claim at one third (1/3) of the increase in assets during the marriage; higher or lower amounts may be demonstrated with evidence.