There are over 700,000 blended families in France. And these are all special situations, with all the questions that go with them, especially when it comes to inheritance. Marc and Sylvie are among them.
Marc and Sylvie have both been divorced for many years. After 15 years together, they have decided to get married. But they're wondering how to protect each other if one of them should die. Knowing that they each have children from a previous marriage, and that they have a 9-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy in common.
Marc :
How do you keep the children in balance?
Marc and Sylvie are fortunate enough to have children who get along well, and they want to avoid breaking up this beautiful relationship because of a badly anticipated inheritance problem. In the event of remarriage, there are no consequences for the rights of children from the previous marriage. They retain their share of the inheritance asreserved heirs in the same way as their half-brothers (or half-sisters). To ensure equality between their joint children and their children from a previous union, Marc and Sylvie may opt for a joint gift-sharing arrangement. This type of gift allocates the couple's joint assets to all their children from different unions. In addition to preserving family harmony and facilitating inheritance settlement, this gift benefits from a favorable tax regime. Each child is deemed to receive the gift from his or her own parent, entitling him or her to an allowance of 100,000 euros.
Adoption: another solution
Simpleadoption (or full adoption in certain cases) gives the child the same rights as biological children. By adopting your spouse's child, he or she inherits part of his or her father-in-law's (or mother-in-law's) estate, with the same tax benefits as biological children (notably 60% exemption from inheritance tax ).
Sophie:
How can I protect Marc in all circumstances?
If neither Marc nor Sylvie have made any special arrangements concerning their inheritance, the surviving spouse will receive the share of the inheritance provided for by law. This varies according to the presence or absence of children. In this case, since there are children from a first union, the surviving spouse is entitled to full ownership of 1/4 of the estate. The children will share the remainder. To improve the surviving spouse's situation and enable him or her to receive more than is provided for by law, there are perfectly legal means:
- gifts between spouses. Also known as a "last living gift", it increases the rights of the surviving spouse in the event of death, especially if there are children (as is the case for Marc and Sylvie);
- a will. This document makes it possible to provide for the transfer of assets during one's lifetime, and avoids conflicts between children born of different unions. It allows you to allocate a particular asset to the person of your choice, with the only limit being respect for the hereditary reserve. It's a tailor-made tool.
Gradual gifts and bequests
This provision allows you to transfer assets in two stages. In this way, you give or bequeath one or more assets in full ownership to your spouse, while requiring him or her to keep them so that, on death, they can be passed on to your children from a previous marriage. This bequest or gift must be made within the limits of the available portion. Your spouse will therefore be able to benefit from them (while ensuring proper management), but he or she will not be able to sell them, give them away or bequeath them to his or her own children. For tax purposes, your children will be deemed to inherit from you, and as such will benefit from the allowance applicable between parents and children, i.e. 100,000 euros. To be valid, this deed must be drawn up before a notary and agreed by the first beneficiary and the second.
Marie-Christine Ménoire