Inheritance Rights of Children to the Conjugal (Family) Home in the Philippines
(Updated to the Family Code as of April 2025)

1 | Overview

In Philippine law the “conjugal house” is usually the dwelling the spouses call their family home—the shelter where the family actually resides. Whether the children can inherit it, and in what proportion, depends on:

The spouses’ property regime (Absolute Community of Property vs. Conjugal Partnership of Gains, or a valid Separation of Property).
When and how the marriage was celebrated.
The classification of the land and building (exclusive, community, conjugal, paraphernal, or capital property).
The type of succession (intestate or by will) and the identity of compulsory heirs.
Special statutory protections granted to the family home.

Because the Philippines follows forced or compulsory heirship, a testator may not freely dispose of the entire property; the legitime of compulsory heirs—including legitimate, illegitimate and adopted children—must always be reserved.

2 | Property Regimes and the Status of the House

Marriage date	Default regime	Nature of the typical family home
Since 03 Aug 1988 (effectivity of the Family Code)	Absolute Community of Property (ACP)	The house and residential land form part of the community, co-owned 50-50 by the spouses from wedding day, unless expressly excluded (e.g., by donation with exclusive stipulation, or property acquired before marriage by gratuitous title and with no written inclusion).
Before 03 Aug 1988	Conjugal Partnership of Gains (CPG)	Property acquired during the marriage with onerous consideration becomes conjugal; whatever each spouse owned before marriage remains exclusive. A house built during the marriage on conjugal land is conjugal; a house built on the husband’s exclusive land becomes conjugal by right of accession while the land remains exclusive.
Any date, with valid marriage settlements	Separation or modified regime	The house follows the stipulations, but the family-home rules below still apply.

Key effect:
Before inheritance can even be discussed, the property relations must first be liquidated on the death of a spouse, determining which portion forms part of the deceased’s estate and which already belongs to the surviving spouse.

3 | Liquidation Step-by-Step

Inventory & valuation. All community/conjugal assets and obligations are listed.
Payment of debts. Community/conjugal debts are settled from community assets; personal debts of the deceased are chargeable to his/her share.
Delivery of the surviving spouse’s share.
- ACP: ½ of the net community.
- CPG: Return of each spouse’s exclusive property plus ½ of the net conjugal gains.
The remainder constitutes the decedent’s estate to be inherited.

Until liquidation is completed the children and the surviving spouse hold the property in pro-indiviso co-ownership; no heir may unilaterally sell or mortgage a specific aliquot share of the house or lot.

4 | Who Are the Compulsory Heirs?

Heir category	Right	Notes
Legitimate children, legitimate descendants	Primary compulsory heirs. They succeed in their own right and exclude collateral relatives.
Legitimate surviving spouse	Always a compulsory heir; never excluded.
Illegitimate children	Compulsory heirs since the 1987 Constitution; each receives ½ of a legitimate child’s share (post-2022 amendments removed the “discriminatory” ½-share rule prospectively for intestacy but jurisprudence remains mixed—seek bespoke advice where dates straddle the effectivity).
Adopted children	Treated as legitimate (“full” adoption).

Grandchildren inherit by right of representation only if their parent (a child of the decedent) pre-deceased or repudiated the inheritance.

5 | How Much Do the Children Get?

A. Intestate Succession (no valid will)

Under Articles 960–1016 Civil Code (as amended):

Estate = decedent’s ½ of the community/conjugal property + exclusive property.
Legitimate children + surviving spouse inherit in equal shares.
Example: Estate ₱6 million; 3 legitimate children + spouse → ₱1 million each.
If there are illegitimate children, each normally gets ½ of a legitimate child’s share (subject to note above).

B. Testate Succession (with a will)

The legitime may never be impaired.

Heirs present	Legitime of children	Legitime of spouse	Free portion
Only legitimate children (no spouse)	½ of the estate, divided equally	—	½
Children and spouse	Children: ½ of estate, divided equally with spouse	Spouse: share equal to one legitimate child (comes out of same ½ legitime pool)	½
Only illegitimate children	½ of estate, divided pro rata	—	½
Spouse alone (no descendants, ascendants)	½	½	½

A will attempting to donate the entire conjugal house to someone else is void pro tanto insofar as it encroaches on the legitime of children and surviving spouse.

6 | Special Rules on the Family Home

Articles 152–162, Family Code; RA No. 8533 (1998):

Automatic constitution. Once a family dwelling, rural or urban, is occupied by the spouses and their family, it becomes a family home by operation of law.
Beneficiaries. Surviving spouse, children (regardless of age or legitimacy), and ascendants who live in it.
Exemption from execution except for (a) non-payment of taxes, (b) debts contracted before 15 August 1950, (c) debts secured by the same property, and (d) laborers’ claims for materials of construction.
Alienation or encumbrance during the marriage requires the written consent of both spouses; after one spouse’s death the written consent of all heirs who are of age. Minors must be assisted by their legal representative.
Surviving spouse’s right of occupancy. Even after liquidation, the spouse and beneficiaries may continue residing in the family home until they unanimously agree to partition or it is judicially ordered sold.
Value ceiling (currently ₱1 million in rural areas, ₱2 million in urban areas under Article 157 in relation to the Consumer Price Index; courts have flexibly adjusted these ceilings for inflation).

Practical result: Children do inherit the title to the house together with the surviving spouse, but none of them can force an eviction or a sale so long as the family-home character subsists and co-heirs willing to remain have not consented.

7 | Procedural Pathways

Scenario	Typical settlement route
No debts; all heirs of age & agree	Extrajudicial settlement (EJS) under Rule 74 Rules of Court → Deed of Settlement, Affidavit of Self-Adjudication or Partition, publication once a week for three weeks, BIR clearance, transfer to heirs.
Estate has debts, minors, or disputes	Judicial settlement (Special Proceedings) → court-approved project of partition, administrator’s sale if required.
Family home to be sold	Petition for approval of sale if minors; written concurrence of all beneficiaries if of age; annotation of the release of family-home protection on the title.

Failure to include an heir (e.g., an illegitimate child) renders an EJS voidable; omitted heirs may file an action for reconveyance within the prescriptive periods.

8 | Common Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

Skipping liquidation. Transferring the title directly to heirs without first assigning the surviving spouse’s share is null and void ab initio.
Ignoring illegitimate or adopted children. Their omission invites annulment of deeds and tax penalties.
Premature sale of an undivided share. A buyer acquires only what the seller may ultimately receive after partition; often worthless until court settlement.
Assuming widow(er) may unilaterally mortgage. For a family home post-1988, the written consent of all beneficiaries is still required.
Failure to pay estate tax within one year (now extended to two years under the 2023 Ease of Paying Taxes Act) accrues surcharge and interest; transfer cannot be registered without an Electronic Certificate Authorizing Registration (eCAR).

9 | Special Cases

House standing on exclusive land of one spouse. Land is exclusive, house is conjugal; upon death of the land-owner spouse, the foreign half of the house belongs to the surviving spouse yet the land passes to heirs. Courts often decree legal easement of support allowing the spouse to stay until reimbursed or until partition.
Void or bigamous marriage. Property acquired in bad-faith unions is governed by Articles 147–148 Family Code: a co-ownership exists; biological children share equally with the common-law spouse in proportions fixed by jurisprudence.
Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who build or buy the family home while abroad. Unless a prenup provides otherwise, remittances are deemed conjugal/community funds; classification follows the default regime.
Home acquired through inheritance by only one spouse but improved during the marriage. Land remains paraphernal/exclusive; the improvements become conjugal/community. Children inherit only the decedent’s participation as limited by accession.

10 | Checklist for Heirs Planning a Settlement

Secure documents: death certificate, marriage certificate, children’s birth/adoption certificates, certificate of no marriage (if needed), land title, tax declarations, tax-clearances.
Engage a licensed appraiser to establish fair market value for estate tax and partition.
Obtain BIR estate tax clearance and pay estate tax (graduated up to 6 % of net estate).
Draft deed of extrajudicial settlement or file court petition.
Publish the EJS in a newspaper of general circulation.
Present all heirs (or guardians) before the registry of deeds for transfer and annotation of the new Transfer Certificate of Title in their names.
Annotate the family-home claim if you wish to keep the protection.
Update the tax declaration at the local assessor’s office.

11 | Take-Away Principles

Children—legitimate, illegitimate, or adopted—cannot be deprived of their legitime in the conjugal or community share of the house.
Surviving spouses always co-inherit and cannot be ousted during the family-home period absent judicial order or consent.
Actual division (partition) can be postponed indefinitely by mutual agreement; the house remains co-owned.
No document is valid if it violates compulsory-heir portions or ignores liquidation rules; courts will nullify such conveyances.
Proper tax compliance and registration are crucial; estate taxes remain a primary lien on the property.

Disclaimer – This article summarizes Philippine statutes and jurisprudence in force as of 24 April 2025. It is for general information only and is not a substitute for personalized legal advice. Always consult a Philippine lawyer for situations involving specific facts, foreign elements, or potential litigation.