Initially, under Spanish national law, the children of the deceased are appointed as heirs with equal shares. If one or more children are already deceased, their descendants step in and inherit through their respective tribe. If there are no children or other descendants, the parents inherit equally if they are both still alive. If one parent is alive, the other half will also pass to them. In the absence of descendants or parents, the previous ancestors inherit. If there is no spouse, collateral relatives of the deceased may inherit to some extent. If no spouse or entitled relatives exist, the Spanish State becomes the heir.
Before distributing the estate, the marital community is divided under property law. The community of acquisitions is the legal matrimonial property regime under Spanish law. Any acquisitions made during the marriage become the joint property of the spouses. If one spouse dies, the surviving spouse receives half of this joint acquisition, while the other half is forfeited to the estate. A similar situation occurs with community of gains, which exists under German law in the absence of a marriage contract.