PA Executor Guide
Pennsylvania Intestacy Laws: Who Inherits When There Is No Will
The rule almost everyone assumes — that a surviving spouse simply inherits everything — is not what Pennsylvania’s statute says.
In Pennsylvania the spouse does not inherit everything, even when all the children are theirs
This is the single most common misunderstanding about Pennsylvania intestacy, and the statute is explicit. 20 Pa.C.S. § 2102(3) provides that where “there are surviving issue of the decedent all of whom are issue of the surviving spouse also,” the spouse takes “the first $30,000 plus one-half of the balance of the intestate estate.” The children take the rest — including minor children, whose shares then need to be handled for a minor. A spouse takes the whole estate only where there is no surviving issue and no surviving parent.
Pennsylvania intestate succession chart: the spouse’s share, situation by situation
| If this describes the family | What the surviving spouse takes |
|---|---|
| No surviving issue and no surviving parent | The spouse takes the entire intestate estate. |
| No surviving issue, but a parent or parents survive | The spouse takes the first $30,000 plus one-half of the balance. The parents take the rest. |
| Surviving issue, all of whom are also the spouse’s | The spouse takes the first $30,000 plus one-half of the balance. The issue take the rest. |
| Surviving issue, one or more of whom are not the spouse’s | The spouse takes one-half of the intestate estate, with no $30,000 allowance. The issue take the other half. |
These are the statutory defaults for the intestate estate — the assets that pass under the will-substitute rules, not assets with a named beneficiary or a right of survivorship, which pass outside it entirely.
Who inherits if there is no spouse (or beyond the spouse’s share)
The share the spouse is not entitled to — or the entire estate where there is no spouse — passes under § 2103 in this order: to the issue of the decedent; then, if no issue survives, to the parents or parent; then to the issue of each of the decedent’s parents (brothers, sisters and their issue); then, if at least one grandparent survives, half to the paternal grandparents or their children and half to the maternal side.
The Pennsylvania intestate succession order under § 2103, in full:
| Order | Who takes the intestate estate |
|---|---|
| 1 | The decedent’s issue. |
| 2 | If no issue survives — the parents, or the surviving parent. |
| 3 | If no parent survives — the issue of each of the decedent’s parents (brothers, sisters and their issue). |
| 4 | If none of the above survives and at least one grandparent does — half to the paternal grandparents or their children, half to the maternal side. |
What happens when someone dies without a will in Pennsylvania?
Dying without a will in Pennsylvania does not stop the estate from being settled. It changes who is in charge and who receives what. No will means no named executor, so the Register of Wills of the county where the person had their last family or principal residence (20 Pa.C.S. § 3151) grants letters of administration to an administrator instead. See how letters are granted in Pennsylvania.
Who can serve follows the priority list in § 3155(b): the surviving spouse first, then the heirs under the intestacy statute (as the Register judges best), then principal creditors, then other fit persons. Creditors and other fit persons cannot be granted letters until 30 days after the death. Family members who would rather not serve commonly sign a renunciation, which the Register may ask to see.
An administrator generally has to post a bond (§ 3171). Under § 3174(b) no bond is required of a Pennsylvania-resident administrator who is the sole heir, or who is the nominee of all the adult heirs, unless the court orders one.
Three other points apply whether or not there was a will:
- Small estates may not need a full administration. Pennsylvania has a bank-payment rule and a small estate petition for estates up to $50,000 (§§ 3101 and 3102).
- Named-beneficiary and survivorship assets still pass outside the estate, to the named person, whatever the intestacy statute says.
- Pennsylvania inheritance tax still applies. Each heir’s share is taxed by relationship: 0% for a surviving spouse, 4.5% for children and other lineal heirs, 12% for siblings and 15% for others. The return is due nine months after the death (PA inheritance tax calculator).
Pennsylvania intestacy calculator
Describe the family and this applies the statutory formula. It is arithmetic, not advice — and it assumes an ordinary case:
Estimate only. It applies the headline formula to an ordinary case and ignores disqualification rules, adopted and posthumous children, survivorship requirements, the elective share, advancements, and debts and expenses that come off before any of this. A Pennsylvania attorney can tell you what a specific estate actually does.
The point of the exercise: intestacy is a statutory default, not a reading of what the person would have wanted. Where the result above is not what the family expects, that gap is the reason to have a will — and, for the estate already in front of you, the reason to get the distribution confirmed before you pay anyone.
Stay on every step (and every dollar)
The PA Executor Compliance Kit maps the whole Pennsylvania process — the deadlines, the notices, the creditor window and the record the court expects — whether or not there was a will.
See the Compliance Kit → Free deadline calculatorSee real pages from inside the kit → · Every kit carries a 30-day money-back guarantee — if it isn't the help you needed, email and I'll refund you in full. No forms, no questions.
Free: the Executor's First 30 Days checklist
Not ready to dive in yet? Get the printable checklist — plus your key Pennsylvania deadlines — by email, from a real executor. No spam; unsubscribe anytime.
We never sell your info. ExecutorPilot is an educational resource, not a law firm.
Frequently asked questions
Who inherits if there is no will in Pennsylvania?
The estate passes under 20 Pa.C.S. §§ 2102 and 2103. The surviving spouse takes a share fixed by statute, and the rest goes to the decedent’s issue, then parents, then brothers and sisters and their issue, then the grandparents’ side. The split is not a matter of family agreement.
Does a surviving spouse get everything in Pennsylvania?
Only where there is no surviving issue and no surviving parent. This is the most common misunderstanding in Pennsylvania intestacy. Even where every child is also the spouse’s, § 2102(3) gives the spouse the first $30,000 plus one-half of the balance, and the children take the rest.
What if some of the children are from an earlier relationship?
The $30,000 allowance disappears. Under § 2102(4), where one or more surviving issue are not the spouse’s, the spouse takes one-half of the intestate estate and the issue take the other half.
What happens to a minor child’s share in Pennsylvania?
It still belongs to the child, and that is the practical complication of intestacy with young children: money passing to a minor generally cannot simply be handed to the surviving parent. How it is held is a question for the Register of Wills or an attorney before any distribution is made.
Does intestacy apply to everything the person owned?
No, and this is the distinction that decides most estates. Intestacy governs the probate estate. Assets with a named beneficiary — life insurance, retirement accounts, transfer-on-death and payable-on-death registrations — and assets held with a right of survivorship pass outside the estate entirely, to the named person, regardless of what the intestacy statute says. It is common for the intestate estate to be a small fraction of what the person actually owned.
Can the family agree to divide it differently?
The statute sets what each heir is entitled to receive, and a personal representative who distributes against it is exposed. Adult beneficiaries can, separately, choose what to do with their own shares once received, and there are formal mechanisms such as a disclaimer with their own strict requirements and deadlines. That is a conversation to have with an attorney before anything is paid out, not after.
Is there a Pennsylvania intestate succession chart?
Yes — this page sets the order out as two charts. The first shows what a surviving spouse takes in each family situation under 20 Pa.C.S. § 2102. The second shows the order everything else passes in under § 2103: the decedent’s issue, then parents, then brothers and sisters and their issue, then the grandparents’ side. Both describe the intestate estate only — assets with a named beneficiary or a right of survivorship pass outside it entirely.
What happens if you die without a will in Pennsylvania?
The estate still goes through the county Register of Wills. Instead of an executor, the Register grants letters of administration to an administrator, with the surviving spouse first in priority and then the heirs (20 Pa.C.S. § 3155(b)). The administrator distributes the probate estate in the statutory order of §§ 2102 and 2103. Pennsylvania inheritance tax applies to each heir’s share as usual, and assets with a named beneficiary pass outside the estate.