Civil Partnership Inheritance UK (2026): Rights, IHT & Intestacy

Yes — under the intestacy rules in England and Wales (Administration of Estates Act 1925, as amended), a surviving civil partner has exactly the same inheritance rights as a surviving married spouse. If the deceased civil partner leaves no will and has no children: the surviving civil partner inherits the entire estate outright, regardless of its size. If the deceased civil partner leaves no will and has children: the surviving civil partner receives the personal chattels (household goods, cars, jewellery, etc.) absolutely; a statutory legacy of £322,000 (the current figure, which is reviewed periodically by statutory instrument — check the current amount via legislation.gov.uk); and half of any residue above the statutory legacy. The children share the remaining half of the residue. If the estate is worth less than the statutory legacy plus personal chattels, the surviving civil partner takes everything and the children receive nothing. Throughout the Administration of Estates Act 1925 and the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, the word 'spouse' includes 'civil partner' — the rights are legally identical.

Civil partners are entitled to exactly the same inheritance tax exemptions as married spouses under the Inheritance Tax Act 1984 (IHTA 1984). The key exemptions are: (1) The IHT spouse exemption (s.18 IHTA 1984): transfers between civil partners — whether made in lifetime or on death — are completely exempt from IHT, with no upper limit. The full market value of the estate can pass to the surviving civil partner without any IHT being charged, regardless of how large the estate is. (2) The transferable nil-rate band (s.8A IHTA 1984): if the first civil partner to die does not use their full nil-rate band (currently £325,000), the unused percentage can be transferred to the surviving civil partner's estate. This means the survivor can have up to a combined £650,000 nil-rate band. (3) The residence nil-rate band (RNRB) and its transferable equivalent: civil partners benefit from the RNRB (up to £175,000 in 2025/26) where a residential property is passed to direct descendants, and any unused RNRB from the first death can be transferred to the surviving civil partner's estate in the same way as the nil-rate band. These exemptions apply from the date a civil partnership is legally registered; there is no minimum duration of civil partnership required.

Yes — forming a civil partnership revokes any earlier will under s.18 of the Wills Act 1837 (as amended by the Civil Partnership Act 2004 s.71 and Schedule 4). The legal position is identical to marriage: the moment a civil partnership is registered, any will made before that date is automatically revoked and has no legal effect. This means that if the newly civil-partnered person dies without making a new will, the estate passes under the intestacy rules — which is often the correct outcome if both partners want the survivor to inherit, but could be disastrous if there are specific wishes for children from previous relationships, trusts, charitable gifts, or appointment of guardians. To avoid unintended intestacy: (1) either make a new will immediately after forming the civil partnership, or (2) make a will expressly in contemplation of the forthcoming civil partnership under s.18(3) Wills Act 1837 (a will that anticipates a named marriage or civil partnership formation and is expressed not to be revoked by it). A will made in contemplation of a specific civil partnership survives the registration of that civil partnership — but only of that specific partnership.

The difference is substantial and cannot be overstated. A civil partner (legally registered under the Civil Partnership Act 2004 or, for opposite-sex couples, from 31 December 2019) has full legal rights identical to a spouse — including: automatic inheritance on intestacy; the unlimited IHT spouse exemption; the transferable nil-rate band; the right to claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 as a spouse/civil partner (the highest entitlement under that Act); and survivor's pension rights from occupational schemes. A cohabiting partner — however long they have lived together, however financially interdependent they are, even if they have children together — has none of these rights as a matter of law. A cohabiting partner has no automatic right to inherit on intestacy, no IHT spouse exemption, no transferable NRB, and a weaker claim under the 1975 Act (as a 'dependant' rather than a spouse). The only way for a cohabiting partner to obtain rights approaching those of a civil partner is through: a well-drafted will; a formal cohabitation agreement; and ensuring jointly held assets are structured appropriately. People who believe they have 'common law' marriage or 'common law' civil partnership rights in England and Wales are mistaken — no such status exists.

Where the deceased civil partner had children — including children from a previous relationship — the surviving civil partner's intestacy entitlement is limited by those children's rights. The estate is divided as follows: (1) the surviving civil partner takes all personal chattels absolutely; (2) the surviving civil partner takes the statutory legacy (currently £322,000) absolutely; (3) the residue above the statutory legacy is divided 50/50 between the surviving civil partner and the children (the children's 50% is held on trust until each child reaches 18 or marries/forms a civil partnership earlier, if the rules so provide). The statutory legacy of £322,000 is set by statutory instrument and reviewed periodically; always verify the current figure. For blended families where the deceased has children from a previous relationship, this can create difficult outcomes: the surviving civil partner may be unable to remain in the family home if the estate value is close to the statutory legacy threshold and the children's share is held in trust. This is one of the main reasons why civil partners should always make wills even though the intestacy rules provide a baseline protection — a bespoke will can make more appropriate provision.

Yes — civil partners are fully eligible for Bereavement Support Payment (BSP), the DWP benefit payable to surviving spouses and civil partners when their partner dies (subject to the usual eligibility conditions: under State Pension age, partner paid at least 25 weeks of NI contributions, claim within 21 months of death). Civil partners receive BSP at the same rates as married spouses and the claim process is identical. For occupational pension survivor benefits, civil partners are entitled to the same survivor's pension or lump-sum death-in-service benefit as a married spouse under the Civil Partnership Act 2004 — pension schemes are required to treat civil partners on the same basis as spouses. For the State Pension, the same inheritance of additional State Pension entitlements from a deceased civil partner applies as for married spouses. Note: BSP (and its predecessor benefits) is not available to cohabiting partners in England and Wales, which is another key distinction between a registered civil partnership and informal cohabitation.

The position is the same as for a married spouse: a civil partner can be excluded from a will, but they have a statutory right to apply to the court for reasonable financial provision under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. As a civil partner, they are in the highest-priority class under the Act (the same as a spouse) and the court applies the 'surviving spouse' standard — provision appropriate for a spouse, not just what is reasonably required for their maintenance. Factors include the length of the civil partnership, the applicant's financial needs and resources, contributions to the relationship, and the standard of living enjoyed during the partnership. Courts regularly make substantial awards to disinherited civil partners, and the time limit for a claim is 6 months from the date of the grant of probate or letters of administration. Civil partners also retain their claim to the IHT-exempt portion transferred to them during lifetime — a civil partner cannot be required to return exempt lifetime gifts even if they are later disinherited. If you wish to leave limited provision to a civil partner, seek specialist legal advice as the Act is frequently used and claims are common.