What happens if you die without a will in Victoria?

General information for people in Victoria · ORLA Connect

If you die without a valid will in Victoria you die intestate - and the law, not you, decides who receives your estate. Here is how it works.

The law decides who inherits

Victoria's intestacy rules set a fixed order. If you have a partner and no children, or only children with that partner, your partner generally receives the whole estate. If you have children from another relationship, the estate is shared between your partner and children under a set formula.

If you have no partner

The estate passes down a statutory order - to your children, then your parents, then your siblings, and so on. If no relatives can be found, the estate can ultimately pass to the State.

Someone must administer the estate

With no will there is no named executor, so a relative must apply to the Supreme Court for Letters of Administration before the estate can be dealt with, which usually takes longer and costs more.

Why it matters

Intestacy can ignore your wishes entirely - an unmarried partner, stepchildren, friends or charities you would want to provide for may receive nothing. A simple will avoids this.

How to sort it out the easy way

Post your matter on ORLA Connect and get matched with Victorian wills and estates firms - free and private.

This article is general information only and is not legal advice. For advice about your situation, post your matter and a matched Victorian law firm can help.