Inheritance
A succession opens at the deceased's principal residence at the moment of death, and his rights and obligations pass to heirs and legatees (Art. 826). It is intestate, testate or part of each, and whatever the deceased did not dispose of by will goes to the heirs-at-law (Art. 829). An heir must survive the deceased and not be unworthy (Art. 830); unworthiness follows a conviction for killing or trying to kill the deceased or his descendant, ascendant or spouse, or for a false accusation capable of leading to a capital sentence or rigorous imprisonment of more than ten years (Art. 838). All written or customary rules previously in force on matters covered by the Civil Code were replaced by it (Art. 3347(1)), but the Constitution lets religious and customary courts hear personal and family disputes with the parties' consent (Art. 34(5)).
The order of heirs is fixed by relationship. The children come first and share equally (Art. 842(1)-(2)), and the descendants of a dead child take his place (Art. 842(3)), a division "per stirpes" (Art. 853(1)). Failing descendants, the father and mother are called and each takes half (Arts. 843 and 844(1)); a dead parent is represented by his or her children or other descendants, and if one line has no heir everything goes to the other (Art. 844(2)-(3)). The grandparents come third, half to the paternal line and half to the maternal line (Art. 845), and the great-grandparents come fourth on the same pattern (Arts. 847 and 848). In default of relatives the inheritance goes to the State (Art. 852). Immovable property that came to the deceased by succession or donation from one family line cannot pass in full ownership to heirs of the other line; those heirs receive a usufruct without compensation (Arts. 849 to 851). Neither legitimacy of birth nor the heir's sex, age or nationality affects the succession (Arts. 836(1) and 837), and the World Bank's 2024 review cites Arts. 837 and 842 for equal inheritance rights of sons and daughters.
The spouse is not named among the heirs in Arts. 842 to 848 or 852, and the Government confirmed this reading when it ratified the African Union's Maputo Protocol on women's rights: its reservation to Art. 21(1), on a widow's right to inherit, states that under Ethiopian law spouses inherit from each other when designated as legatees in a will. The protection comes from other texts. When a marriage ends by death the Revised Family Code applies the rules on liquidating the spouses' property, including between the survivor and the heirs (Art. 109(2)), and the common property is divided equally between the spouses (Art. 90). A surviving spouse may also claim maintenance from the succession (Art. 1030, which refers to the Code's chapter on maintenance, now replaced in Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa by the Revised Family Code, Art. 319); it is paid as a life annuity (Art. 1032(1)), fixed definitively and lost on remarriage (Art. 1034), and the claim must reach the liquidator within one year from the opening of the succession (Art. 1031(1)). Descendants, ascendants and siblings can claim maintenance only if the law calls them to the succession, up to what they would have received without the will (Arts. 1028 and 1029).
There are three kinds of will (Art. 880). A public will is written by the testator or under his dictation and read in front of him and four witnesses, or made before two witnesses of whom one is a registrar or notary (Arts. 881 and 882). A holograph will must be written entirely by the testator, state that it is a will and carry the date and signature on every leaf (Art. 884); it lapses if it is not deposited with a notary or court registry within seven years (Art. 903). An oral will, given by a person who feels death is imminent to two witnesses, may only give funeral directions, particular legacies of up to 500 Ethiopian dollars and provisions on the guardian or tutor of minor children (Arts. 892 and 893), and it lapses three months later if the testator is alive (Art. 902). Joint wills are void (Art. 858). A testator may disinherit heirs-at-law, but disinheriting a child or other descendant is void unless the will states a reason that justifies it (Arts. 937 and 938), and a child born after the will, who accepts the succession, in any case receives three quarters of the intestate share (Arts. 904 and 905(2)). A legacy to a spouse lapses if the marriage ended otherwise than by death (Art. 906), and a court may reduce a legacy to a spouse where the testator left descendants who are not also the spouse's (Art. 872).
Settling the estate goes through liquidators: the heirs-at-law ipso facto, or the executor named in the will (Arts. 947 and 948), and the court appoints one on application where heirs are unknown or all renounce (Art. 950). An heir may renounce within one month of the liquidator's notice, extendable by the court to three months, in writing or before four witnesses (Arts. 978 and 979), and one who has not renounced in time is deemed to have accepted (Art. 982(2)). The court issues a certificate of heir on request (Art. 996) and an action to recover the inheritance from a person without title is barred three years after the heir learns of his right, and in any case after fifteen years from the death save for family immovables (Art. 1000). Heirs may demand partition once the succession is liquidated, the court may defer it by up to two years, and an agreement excluding partition lasts at most five years (Arts. 1062 to 1064). For Muslims, Art. 4 of the Sharia Courts Proclamation (No. 188/1999) covers succession and wills where the deceased was Muslim, subject to the parties' consent (Abdo, 2015).
Key points
| Governing text | Civil Code of 1960, Title V (Arts. 826 ff.) |
|---|---|
| First heirs | Children, in equal shares; their descendants represent a dead child (Art. 842) |
| Order after descendants | Parents (half each), grandparents, great-grandparents, then the State (Arts. 843 to 852) |
| Surviving spouse | Not an intestate heir; half of common property (Revised Family Code, Arts. 90 and 109(2)) and maintenance annuity (Civil Code, Arts. 1030 to 1034) |
| Equality | Sex, age, nationality and legitimacy of the heir are irrelevant (Arts. 836(1) and 837) |
| Public will | Four witnesses, or two witnesses of whom one is a registrar or notary (Arts. 881 and 882) |
| Holograph will | Entirely handwritten, dated and signed on each leaf; lapses if not deposited within 7 years (Arts. 884 and 903) |
| Oral will | Two witnesses; legacies up to 500 Ethiopian dollars; lapses after 3 months (Arts. 892 to 894 and 902) |
| Disinheriting a child | Void unless a justifying reason is stated in the will (Art. 938) |
| Renunciation | Within 1 month of the liquidator's notice, extendable to 3 months; in writing or before 4 witnesses (Arts. 978 and 979) |
In practice
- Separate the spouse's own half before sharing the estate: the common property is divided equally under Art. 90 of the Family Code, and Art. 109(2) applies that liquidation between the survivor and the heirs.
- Look for a will first, and check its form: a holograph will needs the testator's own handwriting and a date and signature on every leaf, and a will deposited with a notary or court registry is recorded in that office's alphabetical register (Arts. 884 and 891).
- If heirs are known they act as liquidators from the day of death (Art. 947); if they are unknown or all renounce, ask the court to appoint a liquidator (Art. 950). Heirs who do not want the estate must say so within one month of the liquidator's notice (Art. 978).
- Ask the court for a certificate of heir to prove your share (Art. 996), and sue within three years of learning that someone holds the property without title (Art. 1000).
- A surviving spouse who needs support should file the maintenance claim with the liquidator within one year of the death (Art. 1031(1)).
Cost and coverage
The sources opened give no court fee, probate duty or notary tariff for an estate.
Recent changes
The World Bank's Women, Business and the Law 2024 report scores Ethiopia as giving sons and daughters equal rights to inherit, citing Arts. 837 and 842 of the Civil Code.
Where to go
- The court, which appoints liquidators, issues certificates of heir and decides partition (Arts. 950, 996 and 1062).
- A notary or a court registry, where public or holograph wills may be deposited (Art. 891).
- The Sharia courts, for Muslims who both consent, on succession and wills (Proclamation No. 188/1999, Art. 4; Constitution, Art. 34(5)).
Worth knowing
The English text consulted is the 1960 edition of the Civil Code, so later amendments to Title V were not checked, and the Sharia courts hear succession cases of Muslims only with the consent of the parties, which can produce a different result from the Code for the same estate.
Frequently asked questions
Does a widow inherit from her husband in Ethiopia?
Not by intestacy: she is not listed among the heirs in Arts. 842 to 848 or 852 of the Civil Code, and Ethiopia's reservation to the Maputo Protocol says spouses inherit from each other through a will. She first receives her half of the common property (Family Code, Arts. 90 and 109(2)), may claim a life annuity as maintenance from the estate (Civil Code, Arts. 1030 to 1034) and can be named in a will, within the limit of Art. 872 where the testator left children from another union.
Do daughters inherit as much as sons?
Yes: Art. 837 makes the heir's sex irrelevant and Art. 842(2) gives each child an equal portion of the succession.
How long do heirs have to refuse an inheritance?
One month from the day the liquidator informs them that they are called, which the court may extend to three months, and the refusal must be in writing or before four witnesses (Arts. 978 and 979); silence counts as acceptance (Art. 982(2)).
Sources
- Civil Code of the Empire of Ethiopia, Proclamation No. 165 of 1960, Title V "Successions" (scanned English edition hosted by Citizenship Rights in Africa; amendments after 1960 were not checked) — Arts. 826 to 856 (heirs), 857 to 906 (wills), 937 to 941, 946 to 950, 976 to 1000, 1028 to 1034, 1060 to 1064 and 3347
- Revised Family Code, Proclamation No. 213/2000, Federal Negarit Gazeta, Extraordinary Issue No. 1/2000, Addis Ababa, 4 July 2000 (English text, copy hosted by The Advocates for Human Rights) — Arts. 90, 109 and 319 (division of common property, including on death; Civil Code family chapters replaced)
- African Union, list of countries which have signed, ratified or acceded to the Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol), with reservations and declarations (19 September 2023): Ethiopia signed 1 June 2004, ratified 18 July 2018, deposited 17 September 2019 — Ethiopia's reservation to Art. 21(1): spouses inherit from each other when designated as legatees in a will
- Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (1995), English text on Constitute Project — Art. 34(5) on religious and customary courts
- Mohammed Abdo, "Legal Pluralism vs Human Rights Issues: Sharia Courts and Human Rights Concerns in the Light of the Federal Constitution of Ethiopia", Ghent University (paper, 2015) — Art. 4 of the Sharia Courts Proclamation (No. 188/1999), consent of the parties, Art. 3347 of the Civil Code
- World Bank, Women, Business and the Law 2024 -- Ethiopia country data (main business city: Addis Ababa) — equal inheritance rights of sons and daughters (Civil Code, Arts. 837 and 842)
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