Inheritance Law is a branch of civil law that examines how and in what order all rights and responsibilities that can be measured in money will pass to individuals after the death of individuals. Inheritance law is regulated in civil laws. Inheritance law is regulated in the civil law of the continental European legal system. Inheritance transactions regarding the transfer of assets left by the deceased are documented by court decisions in some countries and by population registration systems established by notaries in some countries.

What is the Reserved Share in Inheritance?
In inheritance law, the deceased is not allowed to dispose freely of the entire estate. The right of the heirs to dispose is limited to the share of some heirs. For this reason, the part of the estate that cannot be disposed of on a certain share of some heirs is called the reserved share, and the heirs who are entitled are called the heirs with reserved shares. In short, if there are heirs of reserved shares, the testator cannot dispose of the reserved shares of these heirs, but can freely dispose of the remaining inheritance. In our law, heirs with reserved shares consist of 3 groups. These are; grandchildren, parents and surviving spouses. Today, siblings are not heirs of the hidden share. With the amendment made in 2007, they were removed from the group of heirs of the hidden share.

Who Can Get a Share of the Inheritance?
In Turkish Law, the persons who can get a share of the inheritance are determined according to the class system. These are;

The first class is the grandchildren and children of the deceased.
The second class is the mother, father, siblings and nephews of the deceased.
The third class is the relatives of the deceased such as grandmother, grandfather, maternal uncle, maternal uncle, aunt and maternal aunt. The heirs up to the third class are entitled to a share of the deceased’s inheritance. However, there is no such thing as the remaining classes claiming rights while the first class is alive within these classes.
Apart from these classes, persons who are not related by blood can get their share of the inheritance by writing a will. However, for this, the deceased must prepare a will before his/her death.

What Happens If One of the Heirs Does Not Sign?
If one of the heirs does not sign, any heir can apply to the court due to the lack of agreement between the parties, this is his/her most basic right. In this case, the heir has two rights to request from the court. The first is to share certain assets in the estate in the same way, and if it is not possible to share the assets in the same way, to share them through sale.

What is the Legal Period for Sharing the Inheritance?
Within the framework of the law, the period for sharing (dividing) the inheritance left by the deceased deceased to the heirs is seen as 1 year in Article 8/B of the law.

Can the Heir Sell His/Her Share?
It is possible to transfer the inheritance only to the heirs. An heir can transfer his/her share to one or more heirs or to all heirs in the desired proportions. An official document is prepared at the land registry office for the transfer of the inheritance share.

Are All Heirs Necessary for Transfer in the Land Registry?
Written approval or signatures of all heirs are not required for transfer procedures to be carried out. One of the heirs can also apply to the Land Registry Office on his own.

How Long is the Period for a Certificate of Inheritance?
In order to obtain a certificate of inheritance, an application must be made to a notary or a civil court of peace within 1 month at the latest. In this context, the period of the certificate of inheritance begins immediately after the death of the deceased heir. However, for appointed heirs, the date on which the heir learned about the inheritance is taken as basis, not the date of death of the deceased.

Is it Necessary to Issue a Certificate of Inheritance?
Although there is no limitation for issuing a certificate of inheritance, courts in many parts of Turkey may have jurisdiction. Heirs can see who is an heir, who is not, and their shares of inheritance thanks to the certificate of inheritance. For this reason, this certificate must be issued by the heir.

How is the Share of Inheritance Determined?
As seen in the law, inheritance shares vary according to the existence of the deceased’s surviving spouse. Apart from this, the remaining heirs receive an equal share of the inheritance.