According to the law, upon divorce, only property acquired in marriage is divided. But inheritance, like property under a gift agreement, is a special category that cannot be divided, even if the husband received it after the wedding and before the divorce.
According to the law, if the spouses get divorced, then all the things that have acquired in marriage can be divided. So, the section is even subject to:
- salary;
- pension;
- scholarship;
- other income that one of the spouses received;
- things for vocational training are the same musical instruments.
After a divorce, common property does not lose its status, which means that even after several years, a husband or wife can file a lawsuit in court to divide the property.
But even this rule has exceptions.
What the law says
Inheritance or property under a donation agreement is not legally classified as divisible property. And the wife has no right to her husband's inheritance, even if he received it in marriage.
The inheritance can be tangible or intangible. The material includes:
- money, including deposits in banks and amounts in electronic wallets;
- shares and securities;
- land plots, apartments, houses;
- transport: auto, moto, bicycle, etc.;
- furniture, office equipment and even pets.
Intangible inheritance is audio materials, video recordings, and also literary creation.
Rules and exclusions
According to the law, the inheritance of one of the spouses is his personal property, therefore it cannot be divided. However, inheritance is by will and by law.
A will is a unilateral transaction that creates rights and obligations after the opening of an inheritance. And if the property is received by will, then it will remain with the spouse to whom it was bequeathed.
For example, a grandmother bequeathed an apartment not to her grandson, but to the wife of her grandson. In this case, it is the wife who has the right to inheritance, and the degree of her husband's relationship with the testator (that grandmother) does not affect anything.
If there is no will, the property is inherited by law. And here the degree of kinship matters: in the example above, the grandson would receive an apartment, and his wife would no longer have rights to her. However, if this grandson died, his wife, even his ex, would by law become the first in line of inheritance.
But there is also an exception. According to article 37 of the RF IC, a wife may have the right to her husband's inheritance property if, thanks to her, it has significantly improved or increased in value. For example, the same grandson received an apartment from his grandmother, his wife made major repairs in that apartment at her own expense, which greatly influenced the cost of the apartment. Now the wife can claim a share in this property. Even if both spouses made such repairs and both made a financial contribution, the wife still has the right to half of this apartment.
