Accepting or Refusing an Inheritance in Puerto Rico

Being called to an inheritance does not automatically make you an heir forever. The law gives each person the choice to accept or refuse (repudiar) the inheritance. It is a serious decision, because it cannot be undone, and it sometimes has consequences the family does not expect, especially for the children and grandchildren of the person who refuses.

Before you decide: the "call" to inherit

When a person dies, the law or the will calls certain people to inherit. This call is known as the delación. From the death until those called accept, the inheritance is yacente, meaning on hold (Art. 1562 of the Código Civil de Puerto Rico de 2020, the 2020 Civil Code), and it is managed by the person the causante (the deceased person whose estate it is) chose, by the albacea (executor) or by those called themselves. See the estate and co-ownership among heirs.

These are the basic rules of the decision:

• It is irrevocable. Once you accept or refuse, you cannot change your mind (Art. 1571).
• It is retroactive. Its effects count from the moment of death (Art. 1572).
• It is all or nothing. You cannot accept part and refuse another part, or accept "for a while" or on a condition (Art. 1573). The exception is a person who receives both as an heir and as a legatee (someone left a specific gift): they can accept in one role and refuse in the other (Art. 1574).
• It passes to your heirs. If the person called dies without having decided, the right to accept or refuse passes to their own heirs (Art. 1586).

Minors and people lacking legal capacity accept or refuse with the assistance the law requires (Art. 1576). A guardian can refuse only with court authorization and if the inheritance would be a significant burden (Art. 167). For parents, the Code does not say so expressly, so it is wise to get guidance; see minors as heirs.

How you accept an inheritance

Express acceptance

This is acceptance the person called makes in a public or private document (Art. 1579). For example, by appearing in the deed of partición (division of the estate) or by signing a document stating that they accept.

Implied acceptance

This results from acts that necessarily presume the intent to accept, or that the person would have no right to do if they were not an heir (Art. 1579). The Code says there is implied acceptance when the person called (Art. 1580):

• gives away or sells their right to the inheritance or any of its assets;
• renounces in favor of one or some of the others called, choosing whom to benefit;
• takes or hides assets of the inheritance.

What is NOT accepting

Many people fear that by caring for the house or paying a bill, they have already "accepted." Art. 1581 makes it clear: there is no implied acceptance when the person called carries out acts of possession, preservation, oversight or management, or pays the taxes owed by the estate, unless through those acts they present themselves as an heir. So keeping up the house, changing a lock or paying the CRIM (Municipal Revenue Collection Center) property tax does not bind you.

Nor does a person accept who renounces for free in favor of the people who would receive their share anyway.

How you refuse an inheritance

Refusal (repudiación) is the act by which the person called states that they do not want to be an heir (Art. 1582). It has a required form: it is done by public deed (before a notario, who in Puerto Rico is an attorney) or by a written filing with the court (Art. 1583). A letter, a text message or a family conversation is not enough.

The deed or court resolution of refusal is one of the documents later submitted in the declaration of heirs (declaratoria de herederos), so the notary or the court knows that person does not inherit.

The interpelación: when someone does not decide

There is no general deadline to accept an inheritance. But an heir who does not decide can bring the whole family to a standstill. That is what the interpelación (a court demand for a decision) is for (Art. 1578):

1. Once 30 days have passed since the delación, any interested person can ask the court to set a deadline for the person called.
2. The court gives them a deadline of no more than 30 days to say whether they accept or refuse.
3. The court warns them that, if they do not respond, the inheritance will be treated as accepted.

What happens to your share if you refuse

Your descendants can inherit in your place

This is one of the most important changes in the 2020 Code. Representation applies when the person called refuses the inheritance (Art. 1612), and the Code expressly says that "an ascendant whose inheritance has been refused may be represented" (Art. 1615). In practice:

• If you refuse your mother's inheritance and you have children, your children take your place and receive the share that would have been yours, divided by branch (por estirpes) (Art. 1614). See children, grandchildren and representation.
• If there is no one to represent you, in an inheritance without a will your share accrues, meaning it is added to the shares of the other relatives of the same degree (Art. 1617).

Be careful with "renouncing in favor of." Renouncing in favor of selected co-heirs is, in reality, accepting and giving the share away (Art. 1580). For gifts made after 2017 there is no gift tax in Puerto Rico, but a gift information return may have to be filed if you exceed $10,000 per recipient in the year (Código de Rentas Internas, the Internal Revenue Code, Section 2051.02(e)). See lifetime gifts.

Your creditors can step in

If you have debts of your own and refuse to the detriment of your creditors, they can ask the court to accept the inheritance in your name, up to the amount that covers their claims. That right expires 4 years after the refusal (Art. 1584).

An inheritance with more debts than assets: do you have to refuse?

Not necessarily. Under the 2020 Code, an heir is liable for the deceased's debts only up to the value of what they receive (Art. 1587), without having to request the benefit of inventory. Accepting an inheritance with debts does not put your house or your wages at risk, as long as you do not use estate assets to pay debts that are not yet due when the debts exceed the assets, and do not let assets be lost through your fault (Art. 1588). If a creditor tries to seize your own property, you can object by presenting an inventory of what you received (Art. 1591). We explain this in debts of the deceased.

Refusing may make sense if you do not want to be involved in managing a complicated or contentious inheritance, or if you do not want to take on the risk under Art. 1588. But remember that, if you have children, they are called in your place and will have to make their own decision.

If the death was before November 28, 2020, different rules from the 1930 Code apply: a person who accepted unconditionally was also liable with their own property (Art. 957), the interpelación could be requested 9 days after the death (Art. 958), and descendants could not represent a person who refused (Art. 886). See 2020 Civil Code vs. the 1930 Code.

CaudalRelicto.com is an independent guide. It is not Puerto Rico's Departamento de Hacienda, the courts or any government agency. This page is general information, not legal advice from an attorney who knows your case. Names and figures in examples are hypothetical. Found an error? Tell us.