Transferring the House to One Child and the Pflichtteil 2026

What happens without a Pflichtteilsverzicht?

Example: parents have three children. The house with a market value of EUR 600,000 is transferred to child A. Children B and C are appointed in the will as heirs of the remaining assets (bank accounts, securities) worth EUR 300,000.

On the parents' death:

• Estate: EUR 300,000 (B and C inherit together)
• Statutory share per child: 1/3 of the estate plus all Schenkungen
• Pflichtteilsergaenzung: where the Schenkung of the house was made less than 10 years ago, it is added to the estate on a sliding scale
• Pflichtteil claim of B and C: 1/2 × 1/3 × (300,000 + 600,000 − sliding-scale reduction) = 1/6 × value each

If the Schenkung was 3 years before death: creditable amount 70% = EUR 420,000 + EUR 300,000 = EUR 720,000. Pflichtteil for B and C: EUR 120,000 each.

But the gifted child A typically only has its EUR 300,000 share of the estate — the difference has to be paid from its own funds, which often means selling the house.

Step by step: transferring the house to one child without a dispute, in 7 stages

1. Hold a family meeting. Inform all children, exchange arguments. Silence is the start of every later dispute.
2. Determine the market value. Valuation report or estate agent offers as the basis for fair negotiation.
3. Choose the strategy. Pflichtteilsverzicht against a settlement payment OR Schenkung to all children with equalisation OR alternative assets for the siblings.
4. Notarise the Pflichtteilsverzichte. The siblings waive against a settlement payment — typically 50 to 100 percent of their Pflichtteil claim.
5. Draft the Schenkung contract. With reclaim clauses, if appropriate a care reservation, and a Wohnrecht (right of residence).
6. Notarial recording and execution. Schenkung, waivers, land-register entry in a coordinated single action.
7. Notification to the tax office. § 30 ErbStG for all parties within 3 months.

Pflichtteilsverzicht — how does it work?

§ 2346 BGB allows the Pflichtteilsverzicht — a notarised declaration by which the siblings waive their later Pflichtteil claim. Effect: 100 percent secure, no later dispute possible.

In practice the waiver is regularly declared against a settlement payment — that is, an immediate cash payment to the waiving person. The amount is freely negotiable, with 50 to 80 percent of the hypothetical Pflichtteil being market standard.

Advantages:

• Complete elimination of the Pflichtteil claim
• Clarity during the parents' lifetime
• Tax treatment: the settlement payment is a Schenkung within the meaning of § 7 ErbStG but falls under the personal tax-free allowances

Disadvantages:

• Siblings have to receive money now, not later
• Parents need liquidity for the settlement payment
• The waiver is irrevocable

Alternatives to the Pflichtteilsverzicht

If you do not want a Pflichtteilsverzicht for family or financial reasons, you have five alternatives:

In practice variant 1 (10-year clawback period) is the most common — but only works if both parents realistically still have 10 years of life expectancy.

Comparative calculation: with and without waiver

Starting point: parents have 3 children, house EUR 600,000, residual assets EUR 150,000. The house goes to child A.

The "waiver against settlement payment" strategy is usually the most stable. The parents need a one-off injection of liquidity (typically EUR 100,000 to 200,000) but get 100 percent certainty.

Frequently asked questions

Can I gift my house to one child and simply disinherit the others?

You can — but the others still have Pflichtteil claims under § 2303 BGB and can even demand Pflichtteilsergaenzung because of the Schenkung (§ 2325 BGB). Economically their claims change very little — they just appear in a different form on the calculation.

How much is the Pflichtteil of a sibling who was passed over?

Half the statutory share (§ 2303 BGB). With three children the statutory share per child is 1/3, so the Pflichtteil is 1/6 of the estate plus the creditable Schenkungen.

What does a Pflichtteilsverzicht cost?

Notarisation under GNotKG, scaled by the size of the settlement payment. For a EUR 100,000 settlement, typical notary fees are EUR 600 to 900 per waiver. Plus the settlement payment itself.

What period applies for Pflichtteilsergaenzung on a Schenkung to one child?

10 years from execution of the Schenkung (§ 2325 para. 3 BGB). For each completed year the creditable amount melts away by 10 percent. BUT: with a reservation of Niessbrauch the period regularly does not start to run.

What happens if I retain Niessbrauch?

The BGH has clarified, in settled case law (the so-called Genussverzicht doctrine): in the case of Schenkungen with a comprehensive reservation of Niessbrauch, the ten-year clawback period for Pflichtteilsergaenzung under § 2325 para. 3 BGB regularly does NOT start to run. Economically the donor retains too much control, so there is no real surrender of enjoyment. Pflichtteil protection is then lost. (Caveat: BFH II R 8/16 of 06.05.2020 deals by contrast with the tax-law value approach under § 25 ErbStG and the period under § 14 ErbStG, not the civil Pflichtteilsergaenzung.)

Can I revoke the Pflichtteilsverzicht later?

No. The Pflichtteilsverzicht under § 2346 BGB is final and irrevocable. What has been agreed stands. That is why the amount of the settlement payment has to be calculated carefully.

Are Schenkungen to a spouse subject to Pflichtteilsergaenzung?

Yes, but with a special rule. For Schenkungen between spouses the ten-year clawback period only starts to run with the dissolution of the marriage or on death (§ 2325 para. 3 sentence 3 BGB). In practice that means: spousal Schenkungen are always relevant for Pflichtteilsergaenzung.

What if I do not have the liquidity for the settlement payment?

Three options: (1) pay the settlement in instalments — notarised, (2) secure the settlement payment against the land register (mortgage), (3) provide the siblings with other assets (securities, life insurance policies).

More detailed answers

• Transferring a house in 2026: main guide with instructions
• Transferring a house and paying off siblings
• Transferring a house with a lifelong Wohnrecht
• Costs of transferring a house in 2026
• Transferring a house, the 10-year clawback period and care
• Disinheriting a child without Pflichtteil — is that possible?
• Topic hub Disinheritance

Lead magnet: structuring the Pflichtteil

• Pflichtteil protection — Strategies for legal reduction of the Pflichtteil.
• Erbschaftsteuer calculator — Calculation of Pflichtteil claims and tax burden.
• Book a first meeting — Individual Pflichtteil strategy for your family.

Authority sources

• § 2303 BGB (Pflichtteil claim)
• § 2325 BGB (Pflichtteilsergaenzung on Schenkungen)
• § 2346 BGB (Pflichtteilsverzicht)
• § 7 ErbStG (Schenkungen inter vivos)
• § 16 ErbStG (Schenkungsteuer allowances)
• § 1924 BGB (Heirs of the first order)
• BGH case law on the Genussverzicht doctrine for Vorbehaltsniessbrauch (suspension of the ten-year period § 2325 para. 3 BGB)
• BGH judgment of 13.04.2011 — IV ZR 204/09 (representation principle on disinheritance)