Insights

Can Ningbo foster children inherit the inheritance of their adoptive parents?

Ningbo Author：LuXu WANG

Conclusion: As long as the adoption relationship is legally established, the adopted child enjoys full equality with biological children in inheritance matters and is a first-order statutory heir to the adoptive parents’ estate, entitled to inherit their property. However, if the adoption is not valid—such as when the adoption has not been registered, the adopter does not meet the statutory requirements, or the adoption itself is invalid—the “adopted child’s” status will not be recognized; and if the adoption relationship is subsequently terminated, the adopted child will also lose the right to inherit the adoptive parents’ estate. In Ningbo, many families in the past “adopted” or “took in” children as fosterlings, addressing them as “Mom” and “Dad” for years without ever registering the arrangement with the civil affairs authorities. Once issues arise concerning the division of property or savings, disputes often center on this very point. The following is a combination of the provisions of the Civil Code and the court's decision to clarify the establishment of the right to inherit children, the boundaries and evidence.

Why can the adopted children of 1. inherit the inheritance of their adoptive parents

The answer comes from two laws. The first is Article 111 of the Civil Code: from the date of the establishment of the adoptive relationship, the provisions of this Law on the relationship between parents and children shall apply to the relationship of rights and obligations between adoptive parents and adoptive children; the relationship of rights and obligations between adoptive children and biological parents and other close relatives shall be eliminated as a result of the establishment of the adoptive relationship. This article "fiction" the relationship between adoptive parents and children as a parent-child relationship-although the two parties are not related by blood, they are legally treated as biological parents and children. Accordingly, adoptive parents have the obligations to raise, educate, and protect their adopted children, while adult adopted children have the obligation to support their adoptive parents; both parties mutually enjoy inheritance rights.

The second provision is Article 1,127 of the Civil Code. The article stipulates that the inheritance shall be inherited in the first order (spouse, children, parents) and the second order (brothers, sisters, grandparents, grandparents), and it is clear that "children referred to in this part include children born in wedlock, children born out of wedlock, adopted children and step-children with dependency relationship". In other words, when listing the heirs, the law explicitly includes adopted children under the category of “children,” placing them on an equal footing with biological children, without distinguishing between primary and secondary heirs or specifying different shares.

the two articles together come to a conclusion: after the adoptive relationship is legally established, the adopted children are the legal heirs of the adoptive parents, ranking first, and participating in the inheritance division equally with the biological children and spouses. Article 1,130 stipulates that the share of inheritance of heirs in the same order is generally equal, and that adopted children are not underdivided because they are "not biological. This kind of kinship, which is conferred by law and is based on the template of blood kinship, is called "pseudo blood kinship" in theory ".

It should be noted that adoption is a “two-way substitution” mechanism: on the one hand, it establishes parent–child rights and obligations between the adoptive child and the adoptive parents; on the other hand, it terminates the rights and obligations between the adoptive child and the biological parents. Therefore, an adopted child’s right to inherit the estate of the adoptive parents comes at the cost of forfeiting the statutory right of inheritance from the biological parents; this point will be further elaborated on in the following sections.

The 2. premise is "legal adoption": registration is a hard threshold

There is only one premise of the right of inheritance of adopted children-the legal establishment of the adoptive relationship. Adoption cannot be established by "bringing the child in and raising" in private, and the law has clear requirements for formal elements. Article 1,105, paragraph 1 of the Civil Code provides: Adoption shall be registered with the civil affairs department of the people’s government at or above the county level, and the adoption relationship shall come into existence as of the date of registration. In other words, registration marks the inception of the adoption relationship; it is not a mere formality that can be dispensed with.

It is matched with Article 1113: There are situations where the civil juristic act is invalid in the first part of the Civil Code, or the adoption act in violation of the provisions of this part is invalid, and the invalid adoption act has no legal binding force from the beginning. In practice, failure to register an adoption or the adopter’s failure to meet the statutory requirements—such as age, number of existing children, or physical health standards—may render the adoption invalid. Once an adoption is declared invalid, the adoptive parent–child relationship never existed from the outset, and therefore the adopted child cannot inherit the estate of the “adoptive parents” in their capacity as an adopted child.

What about the adoption formed before the implementation of the Adoption Law in 1992? This is a problem that many middle-aged and elderly families in Ningbo will encounter. Before the implementation of the Adoption Law on April 1, 1992, the law did not require adoption to be registered. At that time, Article 28 of the Opinions of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Implementation of Civil Policies and Laws stipulated that relatives, friends, and the masses recognized, Or if the relevant organization certificate clearly stipulates that adoptive parents and adoptive children live together for a long time, even if they have not gone through legal procedures, they should be treated as adoptive relationships. According to this, adoptions formed before 1992 that meet the conditions at that time can be considered "de facto adoption" even if they are not registered, and adopted children also have the right of inheritance.

But this "mouth" has a time limit. After April 1, 1992, especially after the implementation of the "Adoption Law" revised in 1999, all adoptions will be registered. Unregistered adoptions are not established, and there is no longer room for "factual adoption. In reality, the cases of non-registration mainly include: only the "adoption" and "adoption" ceremonies were held in the village and among relatives and friends, and the civil affairs bureau was not visited; Only moved the child's account to his own name, but did not register for adoption; At that time, I wanted to do it, but the materials were not complete and it was not settled. And mistakenly thought that "after so many years, it counts automatically". These situations will become the focus of controversy in inheritance disputes.

The difference between 3. adopted children and stepchildren

Many people confuse "foster children" with "stepchildren". In fact, the two have completely different legal bases and different inheritance rules. A stepchild is a child born to a husband or wife and a former spouse who forms a relationship with a stepparent as a result of the remarriage of one of the biological parents. Whether the stepchild can inherit the inheritance of the stepparents depends on whether the two sides form a "dependency relationship". Article 1072 of the Civil Code stipulates that the provisions of this law on the relationship between parents and children apply to the relationship between the rights and obligations between the stepfather or stepmother and the stepchildren who are raised and educated by them; Article 1127 also lists the "stepchildren with dependency" as the "children" of the legal heirs ". Therefore, only stepchildren who are nurtured and educated by stepparents and form a dependency relationship can inherit the inheritance of stepparents.

The key difference between the two is the relationship between the birth parents. Adoption has the effect of "breaking parents": the rights and obligations of adopted children and biological parents are eliminated by the establishment of adoption, and generally can no longer inherit the inheritance of biological parents. The stepchild and the biological parents are natural blood relatives, remarriage does not change this blood relationship, so the stepchild has a dependency relationship to enjoy the "double inheritance"-can inherit the inheritance of the stepparents, but also can still inherit the inheritance of the parents. The relevant judicial interpretation also makes it clear that if a stepchild inherits the estate of his stepparents, it will not affect his inheritance of his biological parents.

To put it another way, when determining whether a person can inherit, one must first clarify whether they are an “adopted child” or a “stepchild”: for the former, the key is whether there is a valid adoption registration; for the latter, the decisive factor is whether a support relationship has been established. The criteria for recognizing these two categories are entirely different.

4. foster children and biological parents: relationship elimination, generally can not inherit the inheritance of biological parents

The second paragraph of Article 111 is very clear: the relationship of rights and obligations between adopted children and their biological parents and other close relatives shall be eliminated due to the establishment of the adoption relationship. The so-called "elimination of the relationship between rights and obligations" includes both the elimination of the obligation of maintenance and maintenance and the elimination of the legal right of inheritance. After the establishment of the adoption relationship, the adopted child is no longer the legal heir of the biological parents and cannot participate in the legal inheritance of the biological parents' estate.

Can you "inherit from both sides"? Generally not. The reason is that adoption is a "replacement" rather than a "superposition": the law replaces the biological parent-child relationship with the adoptive parent-child relationship, and the adoptive child retains only one side of the inheritance rights. This is in sharp contrast to the "double inheritance" of stepchildren, and it is also the most misunderstood point in the issue of inheritance of adopted children.

There is one exception though. Article 1,191 of the Civil Code stipulates that persons other than heirs who rely on the support of the decedent, or persons other than heirs who support the decedent more, may be given appropriate inheritance; the corresponding judicial interpretation It is further clarified that if the adoptee has fulfilled the obligation to support the adoptive parents and at the same time supports more biological parents, in addition to inheriting the inheritance of the adoptive parents according to law, the inheritance of the biological parents can also be appropriately. Please note that the “appropriate share” referred to here is not based on statutory inheritance rights, but rather on a discretionary allocation determined by the fact of providing support; in nature, it differs from statutory inheritance. In addition, if the biological parents have made a will before their death and clearly leave the property to the adopted child, it will be dealt with according to the will, which belongs to the category of freedom of will, which is another matter.

After the 5. adoption relationship is dissolved, can it be inherited?

The adoptive relationship may be dissolved. If the relationship between adoptive parents and adult adopted children deteriorates and they are unable to live together, they may be dissolved by agreement or by litigation; if the agreement is dissolved, they shall go to the civil affairs department to register the dissolution of the adoption relationship (Article 1,116 of the Civil Code). How to go after the dissolution of the inheritance right depends on two sides.

For the adoptive parents: According to Article 1,117, after the adoptive relationship is dissolved, the rights and obligations between the adoptive children and the adoptive parents and other close relatives will be eliminated. Since the relationship of rights and obligations is eliminated, the adopted child loses the legal right of inheritance to the adoptive parents-the dissolution occurs before the inheritance begins, and the adopted child can no longer inherit the inheritance of the adoptive parents.

For the biological parents: the same article also stipulates that the rights and obligations between the adopted children and their biological parents and other close relatives should be restored on their own; but whether the rights and obligations between the adult adopted children and their biological parents should be restored or not can be determined through negotiation. This means that the rights and obligations of the minor adopted children with their biological parents will be automatically restored after the dissolution, and they will regain the qualification to inherit the inheritance of the biological parents; the adult adopted children will depend on whether the two parties have reached a consensus to restore, and only after the negotiation can they become the legal heirs of the biological parents again. The legislative intention of this distinction is to prevent a "vacuum" in the relationship between minors, while respecting the independent choice of adults.

In addition, the dissolution of the adoption does not mean "one shot and two scattered". Article 1,118 of the Civil Code stipulates that after the dissolution of the adoption relationship, adult adopted children raised by adoptive parents shall pay living expenses to adoptive parents who lack the ability to work and the source of income; if the adoption relationship is terminated because the adopted children maltreat or abandon their adoptive parents after they reach adulthood, the adoptive parents may require the adopted children to compensate for the maintenance expenses incurred during the adoption period. It can be seen that the corresponding economic obligations may still remain after the discharge, but such obligations are not the same thing as inheritance rights.

6. three types of common disputes

1. An “adopted child” who has not been registered claims inheritance rights.

The most common dispute is that one party asks for inheritance as an adopted child, and the other party questions that "there is no adoption procedure at all". The key to the referee is the timing of the adoption formation. If the adoption took place before April 1, 1992, the court will examine whether there are such facts as "long-term common life with adoptive parents and children and recognized by relatives and friends" and determine that the adoptive children have the right of inheritance after the adoption is established. The court often confirms it by visiting the village committee, obtaining household registration data, and taking witness testimony. If the adoption took place after 1992, the adoption is not established without registration, and it is generally difficult to obtain support for claiming inheritance. At this time, the plaintiff may retreat and invoke "discretionary inheritance", but that is no longer the inheritance of adopted children, but the appropriate distribution based on the fact of support.

2. When the biological parents are old, the adopted children come back to fight for the birth.

There is also a situation where, as a minor, a person was adopted by another family and had no contact with their biological parents for many years; after the biological parents’ death, the individual returns to claim inheritance of their estate. According to the aforementioned rules, once the adoptive relationship is legally established, its rights and obligations with the biological parents have been eliminated. In principle, it does not enjoy legal inheritance rights. Only when it is true that the biological parents have more support, can it be properly divided into part of the estate. Conversely, if the “placement for adoption” at that time was not accompanied by formal adoption registration and no adoptive relationship was established, the biological kinship between the child and the birth parents remains intact, and the child may still inherit the estate of the birth parents as a biological child.

3. Share when adoptive parents have other biological children

If the adoptive parents have both adopted children and biological children, both of them are the first order heirs, and their shares are equal in principle. In the specific division, the court will take into account such factors as the duty of maintenance to the decedent, the situation of living with the decedent, etc., and may appropriately divide the heirs who have fulfilled the main duty of maintenance or live with the decedent, and may divide less or not divide those who have the ability but do not fulfill their obligations. In practice, the adoptive children of long-term care for adoptive parents tend to have an advantage in the share, but this is a discretionary adjustment at the time of division and does not change their basic status as "equal heirs.

7. litigation and proof: what to prove "I am an adopted child"

In inheritance disputes, identity is spoken by evidence. The party asserting inheritance by virtue of being an adopted child shall organize evidence centering on the establishment of the adoption relationship; common types of such evidence include:

  • Adoption registration materials: the adoption registration certificate and adoption registration files issued by the civil affairs department, which are the most direct and effective evidences;
  • Household registration and archival materials: the relationship between parents and children, the registration form of resident population, the kinship certificate issued by the public security organ, the registered residence of the adoptee, etc., which are stated in the household registration book;
  • Evidence of facts: certificates issued by village committees, communities or original units, testimonies of relatives, friends and neighbors, photos of long-term living together, letters, payment vouchers, records of joint farming or receiving subsidies, etc., to prove "long-term living together with parents and children";
  • Evidence of relationship interruption: the records of the adoptee moving out of the household from the biological parents, the testimony of the relatives and friends of the biological parents, etc., are used to prove that the relationship of rights and obligations with the biological parents has been interrupted.

What needs to be reminded is that only vague facts such as "verbally calling parents" and "living together for several years" are often not enough to support the inheritance claim alone, especially the adoption after 1992. The sooner the evidence is fixed, the better: while the old man is alive and the insider is alive, notarization of kinship or adoption can be handled in time, which can save the trouble of a large amount of proof in the future. For the defendant, if the claim of adoption is not established, the focus will be on whether the adopter has been registered, whether the adopter has met the legal conditions, and whether the two parties have really broken the relationship with the biological parents.

Two Common Mistakes 8.

Misunderstanding 1: "I haven't registered it, but after calling my parents for so many years, I'm sure I can inherit it"

Not necessarily. For adoption after April 1, 1992, registration is a requirement for establishment. Without registration, the adoption relationship is not established. The title of "parents" and the fact of living together cannot replace registration. Only a de facto adoption formed before 1992 and in accordance with the provisions of the time may be found to be an adoptive relationship upon proof. Therefore, "how many years of support" itself does not solve the problem, "whether there is legal adoption" is the key.

Misunderstanding 2: "If you are put out for adoption, you can never inherit the inheritance of your biological parents"

Not necessarily. After the legal adoption is established, the adopted child does in principle lose the legal inheritance right to the inheritance of the biological parents, but there are two ways out: one is to support the biological parents more, can be appropriate to share the appropriate inheritance. In addition, if the adoption was not registered and the adoption relationship was not actually established, the blood relationship with the biological parents still exists and can still be inherited by the living children. It can be seen that between "adoption" and "loss of inheritance", there is also a gap between "whether the adoption is legally established.

Class Case Reference: In the case of Fan A v. Fan B and Fan C's legal succession (Case 1 of 2025 Cases of Chinese Courts-Marriage, Family and Inheritance Disputes), the party claims inheritance on the grounds that a factual adoption relationship has been established. After examination, the court found that it did not establish a legal factual adoption relationship with the decedent, so it did not belong to the legal heir and the inheritance claim was not supported. This case underscores that, to claim inheritance as an adopted child, one must first prove that the adoption relationship was legally established. Trial Court: First instance—Tongzhou District People’s Court of Beijing; Second instance—Beijing No. 3 Intermediate People’s Court. Case Number: Not available; Source: Knowledge Base, “China Courts Annual Cases 2025: Marriage, Family and Inheritance Disputes.”

9. Frequently Asked Questions

Question 1: Can there be as many adopted children registered for adoption as biological children?

Yes. Adoptive children and children born in marriage are the first-order legal heirs, and their shares are generally equal. The law allows for an appropriate multiple division only if the individual heirs have fulfilled their primary maintenance obligations or live with the decedent, which is an adjustment at the level of division, not a distinction in status.

Question 2: Does it count as adoption if you only leave your child's registered permanent residence in your own name without registration?

Not counting. After 1992, the adoptive relationship is established from the date of registration with the civil affairs department; mere household registration cannot substitute for adoption registration. Judicial practice also emphasizes that even if there is household registration, if there is no actual living together and no parent-child relationship, adoption may still be deemed invalid.

Question 3: Can foster children inherit the inheritance of both foster parents and biological parents?

Generally not. After the adoption is established, the rights and obligations of the adopted child and the biological parents are eliminated, and only the right to inherit the inheritance of the adoptive parents is retained. Exceptions are those who have more support for their biological parents, who may, at their discretion, receive part of the estate or acquire property in accordance with the will of the biological parents.

Question 4: After the dissolution of the adoptive relationship, can the inheritance of the adoptive parents still be inherited?

No. After the dissolution of the rights and obligations of the adopted children and the adoptive parents, the relationship is eliminated, and the legal inheritance rights are lost. However, adult adopted children raised by adoptive parents should still be paid living expenses to adoptive parents who lack the ability to work and the source of livelihood.

Question 5: Can the inheritance of the birth parents be restored after the dissolution of the adoption?

Depending on age. The rights and obligations of minor adopted children and their biological parents are restored on their own, and they can regain their inheritance status; whether the relationship between adult adopted children and their biological parents is restored is determined by both parties through negotiation, and only those who are restored through negotiation become the legal heirs of the biological parents again.

Question 6: Can adopted children inherit if they do not fulfill their obligation to support their adopted parents?

Still eligible for inheritance, but shares may be affected. If an heir who has the ability and conditions to maintain fails to fulfill his duty of maintenance, the distribution of the estate shall be divided separately or less; if the circumstances are serious enough to reach the level of abandonment or abuse, he may also lose the right of inheritance.

10. Practical Legal Insights

Many families in Ningbo were "adopted" and "adopted" children at that time. They called their parents verbally for many years, but they never went to the civil affairs department for adoption registration. Once such families are involved in the distribution of property deposits, the first question to be asked is: does the law recognize the identity of this layer of adopted children? The conclusion is clear: in a legally established adoption relationship, adopted children and legitimate children are completely equal in inheritance and are the first-order heirs; but adoption is not established, for example, if the adopter is not registered and the adopter does not meet the conditions, the identity will not stand. Therefore, the root of the inheritance right of adopted children is not "how long have you been calling your mother" but "whether you have registered or not".

To prove that you are an adopted child, the key is the adoption registration certificate and the materials that can prove the establishment of the adoption relationship. In the early years, there was no standard registration, or the fact that the adoption took place before the implementation of relevant laws and regulations, but also in combination with household registration, common life, relatives and friends witness to form a chain of evidence. The rights and obligations of adopted children and biological parents are eliminated by the establishment of adoption. Generally, they cannot go back and inherit the inheritance of the biological parents. This point should also be clarified in advance so as not to cause conflicts between both families. If the adoptive relationship is later dissolved, the right of inheritance to the adoptive parents will also be lost, and the certificate of dissolution should also be kept well.

When talking about inheritance in families with foster children, it is best to straighten out the adoption relationship and property arrangement while the old man is still alive, and use the will to clearly write the status and share of the foster children, so as to avoid being questioned by the blood relatives behind him that "they are not biological and have no share". If there are defects in the adoption and registration of the early facts, it is more stable to make up the certificate or notarize the identity as soon as possible and fix the identity than to turn over the old materials decades ago after the incident. In the negotiation stage, the adopted children and their parents and daughters can also be treated equally or arranged differently and discussed in writing, which will not only protect the adopted children, but also reduce the resistance of other heirs and reduce the emotional pull of property division.