The figures on this page are general estimates. Laws, fees, thresholds, and prices differ by state and change often, and your own situation may change the result. Before you act, confirm the current numbers and rules for Maryland with a licensed professional — an attorney, tax advisor, or licensed agent as appropriate. Reading this page does not create a professional relationship.
How intestacy works in Maryland
When someone dies in Maryland without a valid will, Md. Code, Est. & Trusts §3-101 et seq. decides who inherits. The statute orders potential heirs by their relationship to the deceased — spouse and children first, then parents, then more distant relatives — and specifies exactly what share each one receives.
Maryland is a common-law (separate property) state, so there is no community-property split; the shares above apply to the whole probate estate.
What happens when there’s a surviving spouse only (no children, no parents)
With no surviving descendants and no surviving parents, the spouse inherits the entire estate. Since October 2023, the spouse also takes the entire estate when the decedent leaves parents but no descendants (Est. & Trusts §3-102).
What happens when there’s a surviving spouse and children
This is the most common situation and where Maryland’s rules get specific:
If there is a surviving minor child, the spouse takes one-half and the children share one-half. If there is no minor child but there is a child who is not also the surviving spouse's child, the spouse takes the first $100,000 plus one-half of the remainder and the children take the rest. If all surviving children are also the spouse's children (and none are minors), the spouse takes the entire estate (Est. & Trusts §3-102, as amended in 2023).
For families where everyone is from the same marriage, the spouse generally gets a meaningful share. For blended families — where one or more children are from a prior relationship — many states change the math substantially. If your situation might fit that, the section above is exactly the rule that applies.
What happens when there’s a surviving spouse and parents (no children)
If the decedent leaves a spouse and parents but no descendants, the surviving spouse inherits the entire estate — the 2023 amendment removed the older rule that split the estate with the parents unless the marriage had lasted at least five years (Est. & Trusts §3-102).
What happens when there are children but no spouse
The entire estate passes to the children equally; a deceased child's share goes to that child's descendants by representation (Est. & Trusts §3-103).
What happens when there’s no spouse and no children
Order: descendants → parents → siblings and their descendants → grandparents and their descendants → great-grandparents and their descendants → more remote kindred → and, if no heirs exist, the estate escheats to the county board of education (or to the Maryland Department of Health if the decedent was a recipient of long-term care from a state facility) (Est. & Trusts §3-104, §3-105).
This is where intestacy starts producing results that often surprise people — distant relatives the deceased may not have been close to can end up inheriting, and a long-time unmarried partner inherits nothing.
A Maryland-specific quirk
Maryland overhauled its spousal-share rules effective October 1, 2023: a surviving spouse now takes the entire estate when all of the decedent's children are also the spouse's children, or when the decedent leaves parents but no descendants — replacing the older formula that gave the spouse a set dollar amount ($40,000) plus a share alongside adult children or parents.
What intestacy can’t do (and why it usually fails most people)
Even when Maryland’s intestacy rules produce a result close to what someone would have chosen, the rules can never:
- Leave anything to an unmarried partner — intestacy doesn’t recognize unmarried partners regardless of relationship length
- Leave anything to a step-child you didn’t formally adopt
- Leave anything to a friend, charity, or specific person outside your family
- Name a guardian for your minor children — a Maryland judge picks
- Specify who handles your estate — a court appoints an administrator
- Identify specific items for specific people
- Account for blended-family dynamics in nuanced ways
- Reduce probate costs and time — intestate estates still go through full probate
For most Maryland families, a basic will — costing $300 to $1,500 with a local attorney, or $50 to $300 with an online service — is meaningfully better than the default rules.
What probate looks like in Maryland when there’s no will
If someone dies intestate in Maryland, the estate still goes through probate. A court appoints an administrator (rather than an “executor” — the title is different for intestacy) to:
- Inventory the estate’s assets
- Notify creditors and pay debts
- Identify legal heirs under Maryland’s intestacy statute
- Distribute remaining assets to heirs according to the statute
For details on what probate costs and how long it takes in Maryland, see:
- How Much Does Probate Cost in Maryland?
- How Long Does Probate Take in Maryland?
- How to Avoid Probate in Maryland
What to do this week if you don’t have a will
The most useful single move for any Maryland adult without a will:
- Write a basic will. Either through an online service ($50-$300) or a local attorney ($300-$1,500). Name an executor, name a guardian for any minor children, and specify who inherits what.
- Update beneficiary designations on retirement accounts, life insurance, and POD/TOD bank accounts. These pass outside both the will and intestacy.
- Sign a financial power of attorney and a healthcare directive. These handle incapacity (not death) and prevent your family from needing court-appointed guardianship.
For a Maryland family with a typical estate, this whole package usually costs under $1,500 and takes a couple of weeks of intermittent work. It’s substantially cheaper and less stressful than what happens if you don’t do it.
Related reading
- Do I Need a Will? — the honest decision
- How to Write a Will (and What Makes It Valid)
- What Is Probate?
- How to Avoid Probate
- Estate Planning Checklist
- Beneficiary Designations
- Power of Attorney Explained
This page explains Maryland intestacy law in general terms as of 2026. It is not legal advice; intestacy provisions, dollar thresholds, and statute citations can change. Confirm current rules with a licensed Maryland attorney before relying on this page. Sources: Md. Code, Est. & Trusts §3-102 (share of surviving spouse), Md. Code, Est. & Trusts §3-103 (division among descendants), Md. Code, Est. & Trusts §3-104 (distribution when no surviving spouse), Md. Code, Est. & Trusts §3-105 (escheat).