How to get Legal Heir Certificate/Waris Certificate? कानूनी उत्तराधिकारी प्रमाणपत्र/वारिस प्रमाणपत्र कैसे प्राप्त करें? I قانونی وارث کا سرٹیفکیٹ کیسے حاصل کیا جائے؟

When a person suddenly dies intestate i.e. without leaving a Will, then a Legal Heir Certificate is required for claiming the properties & assets of the deceased to his family members /legal heirs. 

 

A Legal Heir Certificate is also known as Waris Certificate or Family membership Certificate; and this Certificate certifies the rightful successor and establishes the relationship between the deceased and legal heirs.

Why a Legal Heir Certificate required?

A legal Heir Certificate is needed for the following purposes : 

➧For transferring the properties & assets of a deceased person to his legal heirs/successors.

➧For receiving dues such as provident fund, gratuity etc. from the government authority.

➧For claiming insurance

➧For sanctioning and processing family pension of a deceased employee.

➧For claiming employment on the basis of compassionate appointments.

➧For receiving salary arrears of a deceased state or central government employee

➧For claiming deposits, investments, shares etc. from the bank and private companies.

➧For Filing Income Tax Returns on behalf of the deceased under section 159 of the Income Tax Act,1961.

Who can apply for Legal Heir Certificate?

The following persons are considered as the legal heirs of a deceased person, and hence they can apply for getting Legal heir Certificate:

👉Spouse of the deceased

👉Children of the deceased

👉Parents of the deceased

👉Siblings of the deceased

 

Required Documents for applying for Legal Heir Certificate

The following documents are required for obtaining the Legal heir certificate:

➤Signed application form

➤Address & Identity proof of the applicant like, Aadhar Card, Voter Card, Driving license, Passport etc.

➤Death certificate of the deceased

➤Address proof of deceased 

➤Date of birth of all the legal heirs of the deceased

➤Self undertaking of the applicant

However, the documents also depend upon the person who has applied for getting Legal heir certificate.

If Applicant is Spouse of the deceased:

When the spouse survives then he/she can apply for obtaining the legal heir certificate after submitting the following documents:

👉Marriage Registration Certificate, Passport, or Voter Card, Aadhar Card for proving the relationship with the deceased.

👉Birth Certificate or School transfer certificate of children

👉Self declaration of the spouse indicating all other legal heirs (include mother-in-law if the application is wife of the deceased). 

If Applicant is a major child after the death of parents:

👉Death Certificate of parents

👉Birth Certificate /Aadhar Card /Passport /TC or employee service record of all the legal heirs including the applicant child. 

If Applicant is a minor child, then guardian can apply after the death of parents:

👉Death certificate of the parents

👉Birth Certificate /Aadhar Card /Passport /TC or employee service record of all the legal heirs including the applicant child.

👉Guardianship order issued by the Civil Court to prove relationship to the heirs 

If Applicant is Parents or siblings after the death of unmarried children:

👉Death certificate of the deceased

👉Any proof for establishing relationship with the deceased, like Birth Certifiate /Aadhar Card /Passport /TC etc.

👉Self declaration of parents/siblings 

 

Procedure to obtain Legal Heir Certificate

    A Legal heir certificate can be obtained after approaching the office of the Tehsildar or the Corporation /municipality office of the area where the deceased has taken his last breath. If the deceased person has resided that place less than 6 months only , then a report can be obtained by the Tehsildar from the Tehsildar where the deceased was resided for more than one year. 

➧After the sudden demise of a person, his legal heirs can approach the Tehsildar or the Corporation /municipality office after submitting an application with the required documents.

➧This application should include the names of all the legal heirs with their address, their relationship with the deceased. 

➧The official of the said authority can submit its report after conducting an enquiry as given in the application form and the submitted documents. 

➧The verification can also be done by the Village Administrative Officer and Mandal Revenue officer or any other authorities as appointed by the Tehsildar for the said purposes, and after the proper verification the said officials will submit their report to the Tehsildar. 

➧When the enquiry & verification completed successfully, then the official of the Tehsildar will issue a Legal Heir Certificate in which names of all the legal heirs will be mentioned. This Certificate is valid for lifetime.