If you die without a will in Hawaii, the state's intestate succession law divides your property between your surviving spouse and other relatives using specific dollar thresholds rather than flat percentages. Whether your children are also your spouse's children, and whether your spouse has children of their own from elsewhere, both change the outcome.
If you do not want Hawaii default rules to decide who gets your property, you can put a valid will in place in a short online session with the FastWill will builder, covered in detail near the end of this guide.
Key Takeaways
- Hawaii's intestacy statute at HRS section 560:2-102 uses dollar-amount allowances that change based on your family structure.
- A spouse with only shared descendants, and no other descendants of their own, inherits the entire estate.
- Descendants outside the marriage reduce the spouse's share to a set dollar figure plus half of the remaining balance.
- Section 560:2-103 sets the distribution order when heirs other than a spouse are involved, such as children alone.
For the broader picture beyond intestacy, see our Hawaii estate planning guide and our overview of how to make a will in Hawaii.
How Hawaii divides property when there is no will
HRS section 560:2-102 lays out several distinct dollar-based formulas for a surviving spouse, depending on who else survives you.
Spouse and only shared descendants
If your descendants are also your spouse's descendants, and your spouse has no other descendants from a different relationship, your spouse inherits your entire intestate estate.
Spouse with descendants from another relationship
If you and your spouse share descendants, but your spouse also has descendants from a different relationship, your spouse receives the first three hundred thirty thousand dollars of your intestate property, plus one-half of whatever balance remains. The rest passes to your descendants.
Spouse and descendants not shared with the spouse
If one or more of your surviving descendants is not your spouse's descendant, meaning children from a prior relationship, your spouse's allowance drops to the first two hundred twenty thousand dollars plus one-half of the balance. Your descendants from outside the marriage take the rest.
Spouse and parents, no descendants
If you have no descendants but a parent survives you, your spouse receives the first four hundred thousand dollars of the intestate estate plus three-quarters of the balance, with your parent or parents receiving the remainder.
No spouse and no descendants
With no surviving spouse, children, or parents, HRS section 560:2-103 directs the estate further out to siblings and more distant relatives.
What about unmarried partners and stepchildren
Hawaii's intestacy law extends the same rules to reciprocal beneficiaries and civil union partners, but an unmarried partner outside those legal categories, or a stepchild you never adopted, inherits nothing without a will.
What assets fall outside the dollar formulas
HRS section 560:2-102 only applies to property titled solely in your name with no beneficiary listed. Life insurance, retirement accounts, and payable-on-death bank accounts pass directly to the named beneficiary regardless of the intestacy formula, and jointly titled property with survivorship rights passes automatically to the surviving co-owner. Checking that those beneficiary designations are current, especially after a divorce or remarriage, matters just as much as the will itself.
Does the estate still go through Hawaii probate
Yes. An intestate estate in Hawaii still proceeds through the probate court under the statutory heirs rather than your own instructions. Smaller estates may qualify for a simplified process, covered in our guide to the Hawaii small estate affidavit. For realistic timing, see how long probate takes in Hawaii.
Why write a Hawaii will instead of relying on the dollar formulas
These dollar thresholds were set by the legislature for a generic family, and they do not account for what you actually want for a blended family, a partner, or specific heirlooms. A will lets you set exact amounts, name a guardian for minor children, and choose an executor instead of leaving the outcome to a statutory formula.
Given how much real estate values in Hawaii can affect these calculations, a family with a modest home and a family with significant Hawaii real estate can end up with very different practical outcomes under the same dollar-threshold statute, which is exactly the kind of variation a will lets you address directly. For a broader look at what is at stake, see the consequences of dying without a will.
You can put a signed Hawaii will in place with the FastWill will builder instead of leaving your family's inheritance to the dollar-amount allowances in HRS chapter 560, which were never written with your specific family or property in mind.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my spouse get the entire estate if I die without a will in Hawaii?
Only if all of your descendants are also your spouse's descendants and your spouse has no other descendants of their own. Otherwise your spouse receives a set dollar amount plus a share of the balance, not the whole estate.
What happens if my spouse has children from a previous relationship?
If your spouse has descendants outside your marriage, in addition to descendants they share with you, your spouse's share is capped at three hundred thirty thousand dollars plus half of the remaining balance.
What if I have children from a prior relationship?
Your spouse's allowance drops to two hundred twenty thousand dollars plus half of the balance, and your children from that earlier relationship receive the rest.
Can an unmarried partner inherit under Hawaii intestacy law?
Generally no, unless the relationship is a legally recognized reciprocal beneficiary or civil union arrangement. An informal unmarried partnership has no automatic inheritance right.
Is probate required if I die without a will in Hawaii?
Yes. The estate still goes through Hawaii probate court, applying the statutory dollar formulas instead of your own instructions.
Do the dollar thresholds in HRS 560:2-102 ever change?
The legislature can amend these figures over time, so the exact dollar amounts your spouse is entitled to should be confirmed against the current statute rather than assumed to stay fixed indefinitely.
What happens to a Hawaii home without a will if there are stepchildren?
An unadopted stepchild has no automatic inheritance right under HRS 560:2-102, so a Hawaii home titled solely in your name would pass under the dollar-threshold formula to your spouse and your legal descendants only, not to a stepchild.
