Forced Heirship Claim Simulator | Did a Will or Gift Leave You Short of Your Reserved Portion?
Enter the estate value, the heirs involved, the claimant's relationship, and the amount they actually received, and this free simulator instantly calculates the forced heirship claim (Article 1046 of Japan's Civil Code).
The reserved portion (Article 1042 of Japan's Civil Code) is the minimum share of an estate guaranteed to statutory heirs other than siblings — that is, the spouse, children, and lineal ascendants (parents, grandparents, and so on). If a will or lifetime gift leaves an heir with less than that guaranteed share, the heir can bring a forced heirship claim (Article 1046) to recover the shortfall in cash.
Simulate from the estate value, the heirs involved, the claimant's relationship, and the amount actually received
Tips
- A forced heirship claim is legally valid even if made verbally, but sending it by certified mail is recommended so there's a clear, documented start date for the statute of limitations.
- The overall reserved portion is either one-half or one-third depending on who the heirs are, so check first whether lineal ascendants are the only heirs in your case.
- If there's even one child, lineal ascendants aren't entitled to inherit, so entering a number of ascendants won't change the result.
- A forced heirship claim isn't available to someone who renounced the inheritance, or who lost their inheritance rights through disqualification or disinheritance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Side Note — Why the claim was renamed from a "reduction claim" to a "forced heirship claim"
Before Japan's Civil Code reform took effect in July 2019, this right was known as a "reduction claim." Under the old rules, when an heir whose reserved portion had been infringed brought a claim, the default outcome was "in-kind restitution" — the real estate or company shares that had been given away or bequeathed would end up co-owned between the claimant and the original recipient.
That co-ownership created real problems: selling the property, or exercising control over a company, now required the consent of every co-owner, which often caused serious trouble in business succession cases. So the 2019 reform consolidated the right into a purely monetary claim and renamed it the "forced heirship claim" to match.
Today the right is understood simply as a claim for cash, so the person on the receiving end doesn't have to give up real estate or company shares — they can resolve the claim by paying money instead. In exchange, the claimant no longer has a right to the property itself, but is guaranteed to be paid in cash.