The Inheritance Rights Of A Spouse Married By An Imam
The Turkish Civil Code regulates and limits who can be heirs to a deceased person. The law accepts the class system in determining heirs. Accordingly, the heirs of the deceased are those in the first, second, and third classes, as well as the surviving spouse. The first class includes children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. The second class includes the deceased’s parents, siblings, and their descendants. The third class includes the deceased’s grandparents. The surviving spouse of the deceased is an heir in all three groups, but the proportion of the inheritance they receive varies. The spouse who is an heir in the first group is entitled to ¼ of the inheritance, the spouse who is an heir in the second group is entitled to ½ of the inheritance, and the spouse who is an heir in the third group is entitled to ¾ of the inheritance. If there are no heirs in any of the three groups, the spouse is entitled to the entire inheritance.
When the decedent dies, it is first determined whether there are any heirs in the first group. If there are no heirs in the first group, the heirs in the second group become heirs. If there are no heirs in either the first or second group, the heirs in the third group become heirs.
An important consideration regarding the spouse’s inheritance rights is how the status of spouse is acquired. According to the provisions of the Turkish Civil Code, marriage is established by official marriage, and the status of spouse is acquired with official marriage. Thus, with the acquisition of the status of spouse, all the rights granted to spouses by law can be exercised. However, due to social values and customary traditions, relationships outside of official marriage are still common in society. These relationships sometimes take place through an imam marriage, which has no legal validity. Sometimes they take place without even an imam marriage.
In such a situation, if one of the persons in a de facto relationship without a formal marriage dies, the question arises as to whether the surviving person is an heir as the surviving spouse.
A person who is not listed in the law can only be an heir through a will or another disposition dependent on death. In other words, the testator can designate their unmarried spouse/imam-married spouse as an heir through a will or inheritance contract. However, in this case, the inheritance of the unmarried spouse/religiously married spouse stems from the disposition upon death, and the unmarried spouse/religiously married spouse is not a reserved heir. Since they are not a reserved heir, their right to inheritance ceases to exist in the event of a possible revocation of the will or inheritance contract. There is no other way for an unmarried spouse/religiously married spouse to become an heir.
Although an unmarried spouse/religiously married spouse/life partner is not a legal heir, the Supreme Court has ruled that compensation for deprivation of support may be awarded in their favor.