Family & Estate · Intestate Succession
Intestate Succession in Illinois
Who inherits, and how much, when a person dies without a will in Illinois, broken down by family situation, cited to the statute.
Who inherits in Illinois, by scenario
The share for the surviving spouse and everyone else, for each common family situation.
| Who survives | Surviving spouse gets | Everyone else gets |
|---|---|---|
| Spouse and descendants | One-half of the entire estate | The descendants take the other half, per stirpes. |
| Spouse, no descendants | The entire estate | Parents inherit nothing while a spouse survives. |
| Descendants only (no spouse) | Nothing (no spouse) | The descendants take the entire estate, per stirpes. |
| No spouse or descendants, parents or siblings living | Nothing (no spouse) | The estate is split among the parents and siblings in equal parts, with a double share to a lone surviving parent. |
| No spouse, descendants, parents, or siblings | Nothing (no spouse) | The estate passes to grandparents and more distant kindred, split between the paternal and maternal sides. |
| No spouse or descendants | Nothing | With no spouse or descendant, the estate goes to parents and siblings in equal shares, then to grandparents and more distant kindred. If no kindred can be found, the real estate escheats to the county where it sits and the personal property escheats to the State of Illinois. |
| How it is administered | Probate | The estate is administered in probate under these rules unless a small-estate affidavit applies. The Illinois small-estate threshold for personal property is $150,000 as of 2026. A valid will overrides all of it. |
| Statute | 755 ILCS 5/2-1 | The controlling statute. Read the full text through the source link below. |
The Illinois small-estate affidavit threshold rose to $150,000 in personal property in 2026, which lets more estates avoid full probate. The intestacy shares themselves, one-half to the spouse and one-half to descendants, are unchanged.
Next steps
Concrete, neutral steps if you are dealing with an estate that has no will in Illinois. This is legal information, not legal advice.
- Apply the clean one-half split
If a spouse and descendants both survive, the spouse takes one-half and the descendants split the other half per stirpes. Illinois gives the spouse no preferential dollar amount, so the math is simply half and half.
- Write a will if this is not your plan
These shares are only a default. A valid Illinois will replaces them, which matters most when you want your spouse to take everything, since intestacy gives descendants half whenever they survive.
- Check the small-estate affidavit
Illinois allows a small-estate affidavit for personal property up to $150,000 as of 2026, which can avoid full probate. If the estate is within that limit and has no real estate to transfer, ask a legal aid office whether the affidavit fits.
- Get free Illinois estate help
Illinois Legal Aid Online explains intestacy and the small-estate affidavit, with forms. For a larger estate or one with real estate, a probate attorney can confirm the shares and handle the filing.
To settle an estate with no will, or to plan your own, start with the probate court or a legal-aid resource. This link explains the process.
→ Illinois Legal Aid OnlineThis is general legal information, not legal advice. Adoptions, half-relatives, and a prior will can change who inherits, so confirm your situation before relying on the default shares.
What people get wrong in Illinois
Illinois has the cleanest intestacy rule of the group: no preferential dollar amount, just a straight split. Under 755 ILCS 5/2-1, when a person dies without a will and leaves a spouse and descendants, the spouse takes one-half of the estate and the descendants split the other half per stirpes. Unlike New York or Pennsylvania, Illinois does not give the spouse a lump sum off the top, so the answer is simply half and half whenever children survive. When a spouse survives and there are no descendants, the spouse takes the entire estate, and the decedent’s parents inherit nothing. Parents and siblings share the estate only when there is no spouse and no descendant, with a lone surviving parent taking a double portion. One practical update for 2026: the small-estate affidavit threshold rose to $150,000 in personal property, which lets more families settle an estate without full probate. The shares themselves have not changed, and a valid will still overrides all of them.
Common questions
Who inherits if you die without a will in Illinois?
If a spouse and descendants survive, the spouse takes one-half and the descendants split the other half per stirpes. A spouse with no descendants takes the entire estate. Descendants with no spouse take everything. Parents inherit only when there is no spouse and no descendant.
Does a spouse get everything in Illinois with no will?
Only when there are no descendants. If children or grandchildren also survive, the spouse takes one-half and the descendants take the other half under 755 ILCS 5/2-1. Illinois gives the spouse no extra dollar amount off the top.
Does Illinois give the spouse a preferential amount like other states?
No. Unlike New York’s $50,000 or Pennsylvania’s $30,000 preference, Illinois gives the surviving spouse a clean one-half when descendants survive, with no lump sum off the top. It is simply half to the spouse and half to the descendants.
What is the Illinois small-estate affidavit limit?
As of 2026, a small-estate affidavit can be used for personal property up to $150,000, which lets many estates avoid full probate. It does not transfer real estate. The intestacy shares are the same whether or not the affidavit is used.
What if there are no relatives in Illinois?
The estate goes to parents and siblings in equal shares, then to grandparents and more distant kindred. If no kindred can be found, real estate escheats to the county and personal property escheats to the State of Illinois. A will avoids that outcome.
Not legal advicePlainStatute provides plain-language summaries of public law for general information only. This is not legal advice. Statutes change; always confirm current requirements with the official source linked above before acting.