Nevada Intestate Succession: Who Inherits

When a Nevada resident dies without a will, the state's succession statutes decide who inherits. This guide answers one question: who gets what. Nevada is a community property state, so the answer turns on two bodies of law working together. Community property passes one way under NRS 123.250, and the decedent's separate property descends under NRS Chapter 134. The short version: the surviving spouse keeps all of the community property, while separate property splits among the spouse and other relatives by the share tables below.

This is the distribution side of intestacy, not the court process. Dying without a will is called dying "intestate." In Nevada, an intestate estate is administered in the district court, with papers filed at the office of the county clerk, who serves as clerk of the district court. The state has no separate probate court. For the steps that come first after a death, read the what to do first guide. For the full no-will path through the court, see the Nevada probate guide.

Community Property Comes First in Nevada

Most states use a single separate-property share table. Nevada does not, and that changes the math for married decedents. Here is why. Under Nevada law, property a married couple acquires during the marriage is usually community property, with each spouse owning an undivided one-half. Property a spouse owned before marriage, or received during marriage by gift, will, or inheritance, is that spouse's separate property.

When one spouse dies, NRS 123.250 controls the community property. The surviving spouse already owns one undivided half outright, and that half is not part of the estate. The decedent's other half is subject to the decedent's will. With no will, the decedent's half also goes to the surviving spouse. So a married Nevada decedent who dies intestate leaves all of the community property with the surviving spouse: the half the spouse already owned, plus the decedent's half by intestate descent.

That leaves the decedent's separate property to pass under Chapter 134. The share tables in the rest of this guide apply to that separate property, not to community property. Sorting assets into community and separate property is the first step in any married Nevada intestacy. (Source: NRS 123.250.)

What Intestate Succession Covers

Intestate succession reaches only probate property, meaning assets that pass through the estate. Assets with a named beneficiary, a payable-on-death or transfer-on-death tag, survivorship rights, or trust ownership pass outside intestacy and do not follow these rules. So a life insurance policy with a named beneficiary, or a joint account with survivorship, goes to that person no matter what Chapter 134 says.

Two filters apply before the share tables. First, separate the community property from the separate property, because the surviving spouse takes all the community property as described above. Second, separate probate property from assets that pass by beneficiary, survivorship, or trust. What remains is the decedent's separate probate property, and that is what the following sections divide.

The Surviving Spouse and Separate Property

When the decedent leaves a surviving spouse, the spouse's share of the separate property depends on who else survives: children, parents, or siblings. Let's break it down. The community property already went to the spouse in full, so these fractions apply only to separate property.

Family situation	Surviving spouse (separate property)	Others
Spouse and one child (or the issue of one deceased child)	One-half	One-half to the child or that child's issue
Spouse and more than one child	One-third	Two-thirds in equal shares to the children and the issue of any deceased child by representation
Spouse, no issue, both parents living	One-half	One-fourth to each parent
Spouse, no issue, one parent living	One-half	One-half to the surviving parent
Spouse, no issue, no parents, but siblings	One-half	One-half in equal shares to the brothers and sisters
Spouse, no issue, no parents, no siblings, no children of issue	All of the separate property	None

The child rules come from NRS 134.040. With one child, the separate estate splits one-half to the spouse and one-half to the child. With more than one child, the spouse takes one-third and the children share the remaining two-thirds. The no-issue rules come from NRS 134.050. Subsection 1 gives the spouse one-half and splits the other half between the decedent's parents. Subsection 2 gives the spouse one-half and the other half in equal shares to the brothers and sisters when no parent survives. Subsection 4 gives the spouse all of the separate property only when no issue, parent, brother, sister, or child of issue survives. (Source: NRS 134.040 and NRS 134.050.)

When There Is No Surviving Spouse

With no surviving spouse, the separate estate descends through a fixed order of classes. Each class must be empty before the next inherits.

Issue. Children, grandchildren, and more remote descendants take the whole separate estate under NRS 134.090. If all the issue stand in the same degree, such as all children, they share equally. If they stand in unequal degrees, the more remote take by representation under NRS 134.100.
Parents. With no issue, the estate passes to the decedent's surviving parent or, if both survive, in equal shares to the two parents, under NRS 134.050.
Siblings and their issue. With no issue and no surviving parent, the estate goes in equal shares to the decedent's brothers and sisters and the lawful issue of any deceased sibling, under NRS 134.060.
Next of kin. With none of the above, the estate goes to the next of kin in equal degree under NRS 134.070. When two or more collateral relatives sit in equal degree but claim through different ancestors, those who claim through the nearest ancestor are preferred.

If a class has living members, the search stops there. The estate does not skip a living parent to reach a sibling, and it does not skip a living sibling to reach a cousin.

When an heir who would have inherited dies before the decedent but leaves descendants, those descendants step into that heir's place. Nevada calls this right of representation, often described as per stirpes, meaning by branch of the family. Under NRS 134.090 and NRS 134.100, the descendants of a deceased child or other heir divide the single share that heir would have taken.

Quick example. Say a decedent with no spouse had two living children plus a third child who died first, leaving two children of their own. The separate estate divides into three equal shares. The two living children each take one-third. The deceased child's one-third passes to that child's two children, who split it, so each grandchild takes one-sixth. The grandchildren do not each take a full child's share. They divide the single share their parent would have received.

Half-Blood Relatives Inherit Equally

Some states cut the share of a half-blood relative, such as a half-sibling who shares only one parent with the decedent. Nevada does not. Under NRS 134.160, kindred of the half blood inherit equally with kindred of the whole blood in the same degree. So a half-sibling and a full sibling who inherit together take equal shares. There is no ancestral-property reduction against half-blood relatives in Nevada.

Adopted Children, Posthumous Children, and Advancements

A few more rules can change who counts as an heir or how much an heir receives.

Adopted children. A child adopted in conformity with Nevada law is treated as the child of the adopting parents for succession, and inherits from and through them. Confirm adoption status before treating any child as an heir.

Stepchildren. A stepchild is not an intestate heir in Nevada unless legally adopted. Check adoption status first.

Posthumous children. A child of the decedent conceived before death but born afterward inherits as if born during the decedent's lifetime, under NRS 132.290, which provides that a posthumous child is deemed living at the death of the parent. So a child in utero at the decedent's death is counted as an heir.

Advancements. A lifetime gift counts against an heir's intestate share as an advancement only when the decedent declared it an advancement in the gift, charged it in writing, or the heir acknowledged it in writing, under NRS 151.120 and NRS 151.130. An advancement reduces what that heir receives at distribution.

Slayer rule. A person who feloniously and intentionally kills the decedent is treated as having predeceased the decedent and cannot inherit, under Nevada's slayer statute at NRS Chapter 41B. This is a civil forfeiture rule and runs separately from any criminal case.

What Happens If No Heir Exists

Nevada's succession statutes reach a wide circle of relatives, so an estate rarely has no heir. If no surviving spouse and no kindred entitled to inherit can be found, the estate escheats to the State of Nevada for educational purposes under NRS 134.120. Escheat is the last resort, not the default. Dying without a will does not send a Nevada estate to the state in the ordinary case. It sends the estate down the family tree first.

How the Pieces Fit Together

Use this sequence to read a Nevada intestate distribution:

Sort the assets into community property and separate property. The surviving spouse takes all the community property under NRS 123.250.
From the separate property, set aside assets that pass by beneficiary, survivorship, or trust. Only separate probate property follows Chapter 134.
Apply the spouse share to the separate property: one-half or one-third with children under NRS 134.040, or one-half with parents or siblings and everything with none of them under NRS 134.050.
For any separate property not passing to a spouse, run the class order: issue, then parents, then siblings and their issue, then next of kin.
Apply representation by right of representation for any deceased heir who left descendants, and remember the half-blood equal-treatment rule.
Adjust for adopted heirs, posthumous children, and advancements if they apply.

If the separate probate estate is small, the family may be able to collect it with a small estate affidavit rather than full administration, though the same shares still decide who collects. Once you know who inherits, the will requirements guide explains how to make a valid will and avoid intestacy next time. To find the Nevada filing office and the right starting paperwork, use the probate forms finder and the district court directory.

When to Get Help

Some intestate distributions are simple to map from the statute. Others need a licensed Nevada attorney, especially when:

assets are hard to classify as community or separate property
a child from a prior relationship changes the separate-property shares
a deceased heir's branch raises a representation question
half-blood and whole-blood relatives inherit together
an heir cannot be located or the family tree is unclear
an advancement or a posthumous child affects the math

This guide helps you organize the source-backed shares and the right questions. A lawyer can advise on rights, disputes, and signing decisions for a specific estate.

This guide is general information about Nevada estates. It is not legal advice. Confirm anything that affects your situation with the county clerk acting as clerk of the district court, or with a licensed Nevada attorney.

Sources

Title: NRS 123.250, Vesting of community property upon death of spouse. Publisher: Nevada Revised Statutes, Nevada Legislature (leg.state.nv.us). Accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-123.html
Title: NRS 134.040, Descent of separate property when decedent leaves surviving spouse and issue. Publisher: Nevada Revised Statutes, Nevada Legislature (leg.state.nv.us). Accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-134.html
Title: NRS 134.050, Descent of separate property when decedent leaves no issue. Publisher: Nevada Revised Statutes, Nevada Legislature (leg.state.nv.us). Accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-134.html
Title: NRS 134.060, Descent to brothers and sisters and their issue. Publisher: Nevada Revised Statutes, Nevada Legislature (leg.state.nv.us). Accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-134.html
Title: NRS 134.070, Descent to next of kin. Publisher: Nevada Revised Statutes, Nevada Legislature (leg.state.nv.us). Accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-134.html
Title: NRS 134.090, Descent of separate property to issue when no surviving spouse. Publisher: Nevada Revised Statutes, Nevada Legislature (leg.state.nv.us). Accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-134.html
Title: NRS 134.100, Distribution among issue by right of representation. Publisher: Nevada Revised Statutes, Nevada Legislature (leg.state.nv.us). Accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-134.html
Title: NRS 134.120, Escheat to State for educational purposes. Publisher: Nevada Revised Statutes, Nevada Legislature (leg.state.nv.us). Accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-134.html
Title: NRS 134.160, Kindred of the half blood inherit equally. Publisher: Nevada Revised Statutes, Nevada Legislature (leg.state.nv.us). Accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-134.html
Title: NRS 151.120 and 151.130, Advancements (when a lifetime gift is an advancement; computation of share). Publisher: Nevada Revised Statutes, Nevada Legislature (leg.state.nv.us). Accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-151.html
Title: NRS 132.290, Right of representation (a posthumous child is deemed living at the death of the parent). Publisher: Nevada Revised Statutes, Nevada Legislature (leg.state.nv.us). Accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-132.html
Title: NRS Chapter 41B, Civil liability and forfeiture relating to homicide (slayer statute). Publisher: Nevada Revised Statutes, Nevada Legislature (leg.state.nv.us). Accessed 2026-06-22. URL: https://www.leg.state.nv.us/nrs/nrs-041b.html