What if I Die Without Making a Will – Rules of Intestacy
If you die without a Will, then the government will decide who will inherit your estate in accordance with the Laws of Intestacy. These were drawn up in the 1920’s, and despite major revisions in 2014, may not accord with your wishes. Depending upon circumstances and the size of your estate, your spouse may end up sharing your assets with your children. Or, if you are an unmarried couple, then your partner may not get anything.
If you do not make provision for young children, then the authorities will decide who is best placed to look after them, which may be hugely upsetting and disruptive. It can also mean that your partner (if you are not married) does not automatically become guardian of young children.
If you die without making a Will, your ex-spouse may be entitled to claim part or all of your estate in certain circumstances. Even if your ex-spouse cannot make a claim, the assets you leave in trust for your children may fall under their control.
The Laws of Intestacy in Scotland and Northern Ireland differ from those in England and Wales.
The Point of a Will
A Will only gives away what has not been taken from you or what you have not spent. Understandably, people have reservations regarding this delicate matter, but the process need not turn out to be as upsetting and difficult as you might think. In fact, having made a Will gives you a feeling that you have done everything correctly and provides inner warmth that only comes in the knowledge that you have tied up all those loose ends.
But making sure that you have a Will is not enough; it has to be the right type of Will – one that is professionally drafted to take into account your wishes, and your personal and financial circumstances.
The correct Will can allow you to:
- Specify whom you wish to inherit your estate, in what order and in what proportions so that you have comfort in the knowledge that your wishes will be carried out.
- Make specific legacies to family or friends or gifts to your favourite charities.
- Appoint suitable guardians for young children rather than leaving the decision to the Courts.
- Set up maintenance trusts for children to protect their inheritance until an age specified by you.
- Ensure the inheritance of your children or other beneficiaries should the survivor re-marry.
- Protect your share of the property from having to be sold to pay for the survivors future care fees, thus still having assets to leave to your family.
Amending an existing Will
If you already have a Will, it is recommended that you review it every 2 to 5 years. Sometimes your wishes may not have changed, but the value of your assets and the law may have. As such it is very important to ensure that your Will does exactly what you want it to do; that it protects your assets and investments, and most importantly that you have taken advantage of various areas of flexibility within the law of estate planning.
INHERITANCE TAX PLANNING, WILL WRITING, TRUSTS AND TAXATION ARE NOT REGULATED BY THE FINANCIAL CONDUCT AUTHORITY.
Ikiwa unakufa bila kufanya mapenzi, serikali itaamua ni nani atakayerithi mali yako kulingana na Sheria za Intestacy. Mkataba huo ulibuniwa mwaka wa 2014 na ingawa umebadilishwa sana, huenda usikubaliane na matakwa yako. Kulingana na hali na ukubwa wa mali yako, mwenzi wako anaweza kugawana mali yako na watoto wako. Ikiwa wewe na mwenzi wako ni wa ndoa, huenda mwenzi wako asikubali. Ikiwa huwezi kuandaa kwa ajili ya watoto wadogo, basi mamlaka zitaamua ni nani aliye katika nafasi bora ya kuwatunza, ambayo inaweza kuwa ya kusumbua sana na ya kuvuruga. Pia inaweza kumaanisha kwamba mwenzi wako (ikiwa hujaolewa) hawi mlezi wa watoto wadogo moja kwa moja. Ikiwa unakufa bila kufanya mapenzi, mwenzi wako wa zamani anaweza kuwa na haki ya kudai sehemu au mali yako yote katika hali fulani. Hata kama mwenzi wako wa zamani hawezi kufanya madai, mali unayoweka kwa ajili ya watoto wako inaweza kuwa chini ya udhibiti wao. Sheria za Intestacy katika Scotland na Ireland ya Kaskazini hutofautiana na zile katika Uingereza na Wales. """Atakayopenda, atawapa tu kile ambacho hakikuchukuliwa kutoka kwako au kile ambacho hukutumia.""" Ni jambo la kueleweka kwamba watu wana wasiwasi kuhusu jambo hili gumu, lakini mchakato huo haupaswi kuwa mgumu na wenye kusumbua kama unavyofikiri. Kwa kweli, kuwa umefanya mapenzi hukupa hisia kwamba umefanya kila kitu kwa usahihi na hutoa joto la ndani ambalo linakuja tu katika maarifa kwamba umefunga mwisho wote huo huru. Lakini kuhakikisha kwamba una Will si ya kutosha; ni lazima kuwa aina sahihi ya Will - moja ambayo ni kitaaluma iliyoandikwa kuzingatia matakwa yako, na hali yako ya kibinafsi na kifedha. Uhakika wa mapenzi unaweza kukuwezesha: - Kufafanua ni nani unayetaka kurithi mali yako, kwa utaratibu gani na kwa uwiano gani ili uwe na faraja katika kujua kwamba matakwa yako yatatimizwa. - Fanya urithi maalum kwa familia au marafiki au zawadi kwa misaada yako favorite. - Kuweka walezi wanaofaa kwa ajili ya watoto wadogo badala ya kuacha uamuzi kwa Mahakama. - Kuanzisha amana za matengenezo kwa ajili ya watoto kulinda urithi wao hadi umri maalum na wewe. - Hakikisha urithi wa watoto wako au wafadhili wengine ikiwa mzee-mzee ataoa tena. - Kuhifadhi sehemu yako ya mali kutoka kuwa na kuuzwa kulipa kwa ajili ya mabaki ya huduma ya baadaye ada, hivyo bado kuwa na mali ya kuondoka kwa familia yako. Ikiwa tayari una hati ya mapenzi, inashauriwa kuichunguza kila baada ya miaka miwili hadi mitano. Wakati mwingine matakwa yako hayawezi kubadilika, lakini thamani ya mali yako na sheria inaweza kuwa. Ni muhimu kuhakikisha kwamba mapenzi yako yanafanya kile unachotaka; kwamba inalinda mali yako na uwekezaji; na muhimu zaidi, kwamba umetumia maeneo mbalimbali ya kubadilika ndani ya sheria ya mipango ya mali. Mfumo wa kodi ya urithi, usimamizi wa mali, na uendeshaji wa mali haujatekelezwa na mamlaka ya mwenendo wa kifedha.