With Netflix's 'Love is Blind' releasing its first UK season of the hit series, you may find yourself wondering about the implications of spontaneously marrying someone and how this may impact the succession of your estate on death. In the show, individuals date behind a wall 'blindly', get engaged before ever seeing one another, and walk down the aisle in a staggeringly short amount of time – 38 days to be exact!
Despite the entertainment value of watching two strangers fall in love on the show, it is best not to blindly ignore the off-screen legal implications of succession planning with a new spouse. The participants may have said 'I do', but have they thought about the interest in their inheritance that they are giving to someone, who, only six weeks prior, was a total stranger? What would happen if they unexpectedly passed shortly after entering the marriage?
Prior Rights
Where no will is in place, the deceased would be considered to have died 'intestate'. In this case, the surviving spouse would be entitled to the following under their 'prior rights':
- Up to £473,000 of the dwelling house in which the surviving spouse also lived in.
- Up to £29,000 of the furniture/furnishings in said dwelling house.
- Up to £50,000 in cash where there are surviving children and £89,000 where there are no surviving children (which is the case for most of the couples on the show).
Therefore, it is possible that once a spouse's rights are accounted for, little or none of the deceased's estate could remain for their relatives. The likelihood of this happening has been further increased because of recent changes brought about by the Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024. Now, where there are no surviving children, the spouse is next in line to inherit the entire free estate rather than close blood relatives such as parents or siblings.
Legal Rights
Perhaps they do have a will in place which excludes their spouse. In Scotland that would not be enough to guarantee protection of their entire estate. In Scots law, the existence of 'legal rights' entitles a spouse to one half of the deceased's net moveable estate (which excludes heritable property) where there are no surviving children, and one third of the net moveable estate where there are surviving children.
Where there is a will in place that provides for the surviving spouse, they must choose whether to claim their legal rights, or to accept what is provided for them in the will – they cannot have both.
Exemptions and Allowances
One benefit to the surviving spouse is the 'spouse exemption' which allows for any estate passing to them to be exempt from inheritance tax, regardless of the value. On the death of the second spouse, their executors would be able to claim the pre-deceasing spouse's unused nil-rate-band (£325,000), which is the amount of their estate that can be passed on free from inheritance tax. The executors of the surviving spouse would then be entitled to claim the deceased's own nil-rate-band and the percentage of the pre-deceasing spouse's unused one, known as the transferable nil-rate-band, meaning they could potentially pass on up to £650,000 free from inheritance tax.
In addition, the surviving spouse could be entitled to the deceased's unused residence nil-rate-band (£175,000), which is the amount of the value of the residential property that can be passed on free from inheritance tax, when certain conditions are met. The surviving spouse may be able to utilise their own residence nil-rate-band, alongside the deceased's unused one, allowing for up to £350,000 of the residential property to be free from inheritance tax, subject to it being passed on to a direct descendant.
Therefore, it is possible for up to £1 million to be passed on free from inheritance tax on the second death of a married couple.
'Love is Blind' centres around the possibility that one can fall in love with someone sight unseen, but it is crucial to keep both eyes wide open at the possible consequences for your estate resulting from impulsive marriage. Scots law grants spouses an automatic, significant interest in the other spouse's estate on death. To ensure your assets have the best chance of being distributed in line with your wishes, we recommend putting a will in place.
If you are recently married or considering getting married and would like more information on putting a will in place, please get in touch.
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