Art. 1151 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation affects the fate of property that remained after the death of a person, and the heirs did not appear or lost their right. Such cases are not uncommon. The law describes the procedure for escheating property.
Legislative regulation
Art. 1151 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation contains the main provisions on the rights of the state to inheritance.
In the list of regulatory acts, you can make the corresponding letters of the Federal Tax Service, acts of the Federal Tax Service explaining the procedure for registration.
The Civil Code says that the procedure for accepting inheritance and accounting is regulated by law, but it has not been published.
Part of the regulation is ensured by by-laws, in particular, regulations on the bodies of municipal structures and regional authorities on property and land issues. What is noted in Art. 1151 of the Civil Code with comments? What is she talking about? The fact that the powers of the aforementioned bodies regarding escheat property have not been spelled out in detail and much remains at the mercy of chance. This is confirmed by judicial practice, which is not numerous and gives so far few answers to existing questions.
The emergence of state rights
Previously, the state actively took property to the treasury. Now his rights are limited. It enters into them when:
- citizens with inheritance rights abandoned them;
- citizens lost them by court order.
Who is responsible from the state? In cities of federal significance issues of escheat are resolved by the authorities responsible for property and land affairs.
Municipalities and cities are given land and housing or shares in them. Rights to other objects are transferred to the federal government. Accordingly, the Federal Property Management Agency and acts affecting issues of escheated property come into effect here.
Practical nuances
Within six months, the heirs have the right to declare their rights or waive them. The law stipulates that the acceptance of property may be actual without paperwork. For this reason, officials do not pay attention to real estate, seemingly left without a landlord.
In addition, if someone dies, the relevant information is not automatically entered into property registries due to a gap in Art. 1151 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation.
Some citizens are recognized as unworthy heirs. But in the event that the sole person acts as the heir, there is no one to file a lawsuit, with the exception of egregious cases when the prosecutor’s office comes in, but there are few of them.
Other difficulties
Skipping the deadline for acceptance of the inheritance does not automatically lead to the loss of all rights of the potential acquirer. He has the right to file a claim in order to restore the term.
In addition, the notary may receive sufficient evidence of the actual acceptance of the property. And in the judicial procedure, there is no need.
The heir, taking even one thing, becomes the owner of the entire property and is responsible for debts within its price.
State position
The state is interested in having someone inherit. After all, the owner maintains the property and pays taxes for it. Therefore, officials and seek to evade recognition of property escheat. Even if there is information that the owner has no heirs, no one reacts. An exception is things whose circulation is limited, for example, weapons, narcotic drugs, etc. The legislation establishes a list of such things.
It is possible to create a special registry for escheated property, but how can one not violate the rights of other citizens? And the law strictly protects notarial secrets; access by outsiders to it is limited to a short list of officials.
Clearance procedure
Art. 1151 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation does not establish a different procedure for registering property. Representatives of the municipal administration or the Federal Property Management Agency contact a notary public. A notarial case is opened, documents are collected confirming the fact of the death of a person, the presence of property. Paper requires a notary public.
The process of registration does not take more than 6 months, because all the deadlines have passed, and the property becomes the property of the state.
However, some notaries refuse to register the property, due to the fact that there is no evidence of the failure of the potential heirs, there is no evidence that someone did not accept the property in fact.
How in this connection judicial practice is formed under Art. 1151 of the Civil Code? How does this happen? Authorities go to court in order to establish the fact of escheating property. Then, having received the decision, the officials turn to the notary public. Based on the collected documents, a certificate of inheritance is issued.
Then it is registered in the register of rights to real estate, if we are talking about real estate and other property, in particular, cars.
The state pays the debts that remained with the deceased within the price of the property received.
Finally
P. 2, Art. 1151 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation is a particularly important point in the legislation. Why? It clearly distributes the state’s rights to escheat property. Further, problems remain with the lack of a specialized law prescribing the procedure for accounting for property and the nuances of registering state rights.
Questions remain with the timing, protection of the rights of potential or actual heirs who do not formalize their rights. How in this situation to make sure that someone did not accept the inheritance?
What to do, for example, with citizens who have a share in such property, do they have preferences?
Apparently, the authorities are waiting for sufficient judicial practice to accumulate before issuing a special law that would provoke indignation in society. And the position of the authorities is ambiguous. Thus, the topic raised raises more questions than gives answers.