A cohabiting partner has died: do you inherit and which documents are needed?

1. Separate relationship type and heir status

Notaris.nl distinguishes married or registered partners from unmarried cohabitants. Relationship duration or closeness does not alone determine inheritance. A shared address and groceries do not automatically make you an heir. Check the actual relationship form and testamentary appointment. Everyday “partner” can be broader than the relevant legal category.

Ask the notary for the basis of your supposed heir status. Have relevant will wording explained, or statutory succession investigated if none exists. A relative saying you naturally keep everything is no substitute. Conversely, not being an heir does not mean relatives now own belongings already yours.

2. Locate the will and cohabitation agreement separately

A cohabitation agreement may cover personal and joint assets, debts and contributions. Notaris.nl explains these functions. A will instead determines succession and may appoint a partner. These are different documents that can matter together. Provide complete texts and amendments, not merely the deed's title.

The Central Register of Wills can establish Dutch registration and the notary. Contents require notarial investigation and assessment of your interest. Mention foreign circumstances too. An old copy or relative's statement does not establish all current documents. Ask what remains necessary to determine your position.

Specifically ask whether the cohabitation agreement contains a survivorship clause. It may confer rights to joint property but does not automatically make a home solely owned by the deceased yours. Wording, assets and required implementation need examination. Contractual acquisition is distinct from heir status.

3. Identify your own property alongside the estate

List the home, balances, contents and other assets. Record ownership or the agreement supporting a share. Your existing property does not automatically become estate property through death. Joint ownership concerns entitlement, not merely who holds keys or bank cards. Keep purchase evidence and deeds.

Notarial explanation of joint accounts notes that agreements and the source of money may matter. Names do not establish that each always owns precisely half. Investigate agreements and record the result with evidence. Do not move a balance to safeguard it for yourself while the estate's share remains unclear.

4. Assess housing with the right documents

For an owned home, title deed, mortgage arrangements and contractual provisions matter. Living together does not automatically make you a co-owner. Co-ownership does not answer every mortgage, use or deceased-share question either. Seek a focused assessment before consenting to sale or leaving solely under family pressure.

A rented home raises different contract and residence questions. This guide guarantees no continuation for every unmarried partner. Show the lease and correspondence to a suitable adviser if your stay is disputed. Present a requested departure date immediately. Heir status does not automatically resolve separate tenancy or ownership disputes.

Specific temporary protection may nevertheless exist. Article 4:28(2) of the Dutch Civil Code grants a person who maintained a lasting joint household with the deceased until death, subject to statutory conditions, continued use of the home and contents for six months from death under the previous conditions. The home and contents must belong to the estate or dissolved matrimonial community. This is neither permanent ownership nor a universal rule for every guest or tenancy. If departure is demanded, have this protection and any separate tenancy continuation assessed immediately.

If it is a rented home and your stay is disputed after the death, separately assess whether the tenancy can continue. Being or not being an heir does not settle the tenancy question.

5. Keep children and other heirs in view

The deceased's children's position may need assessment alongside yours. Notaris.nl explains that unmarried cohabitants without a different will do not have a spouse's or registered partner's statutory status. Do not assume ordinary statutory distribution for married couples. That comparison may create wrong expectations about funds and delayed payments.

If a will gives you a position, have children's possible rights assessed too. Appointing a partner does not automatically eliminate every other claim. Ask about provisions, legacies, monetary claims and shared information. Make no payment promise before understanding interactions. Representation of a minor may need separate attention.

6. Do not confuse tax or pension position with inheritance

Notaris.nl notes that a notarial cohabitation agreement may matter for tax partnership and partner-pension conditions. It does not automatically appoint an heir. “Partner” may therefore raise different questions for tax, pension and succession. Ask about documents and conditions for each instead of extending one confirmation to everything.

Prepare separate topics: property, home, estate, tax and possible pension benefit. An inheritance lawyer can assess your disputed position while a notary investigates deeds and succession. Agree responsibilities. This guide states no exemptions, benefit amounts or guaranteed cover; assess those against current arrangements and individual circumstances.

7. Fictional example: shared address, home in one name

Suppose partners live together unmarried for years in a home solely owned by one. After death, relatives demand the survivor leave immediately, while the survivor believes the agreement automatically gives them everything. Both conclusions need examination. Compare will, contract, ownership and housing question first.

The survivor gathers deeds, payments and correspondence and immediately has Article 4:28(2) temporary protection assessed before signing departure or sale arrangements. The required circumstances are not established in this example. It predicts neither ownership nor permanent residence rights. Investigation distinguishes temporary occupation, survivorship clause, own property and testamentary rights.

8. Checklist for the first meeting

First identify urgent pressure about access, money or signatures. Then organise legal positions. Your own file avoids relying solely on another interested person's explanation.

• Relationship form, death date and children or other relatives.
• Cohabitation agreement, will information and amendments.
• Title or lease, mortgage and use arrangements.
• Statements, purchase evidence and explanations of joint or personal property.
• Family correspondence, requested signatures, departure dates and separate tax or pension questions.