---
title: "What Does Not Pass by Inheritance: Rights and Payments That End After a Person's Death"
description: "After a person's death, some rights and payments end forever, but funds accrued during their lifetime yet uncollected are transferred to family members or included in the statutory estate."
date: 2026-10-21T05:13:56.493Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/what-does-not-pass-by-inheritance-rights-and-payments
tags: [inheritance, civil-code-ukraine, death, payments, legal-rights, family-law]
author: "Darya Fomina"
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# What Does Not Pass by Inheritance: Rights and Payments That End After a Person's Death

![A woman sits at a wooden table in a room, carefully examining official documents in a folder](https://xab.info/media/2026/10/21/chto-ne-perehodit-po-nasledstvu-prava-i-vyplat-posle-smerti/chto-ne-perehodit-po-nasledstvu-prava-i-vyplat-posle-smerti-1.webp)

## Key Points

- Personal rights inextricably linked to the deceased person (e.g., the right to alimony for one's own maintenance) terminate upon death and are not transferred to heirs
- Payments accrued during lifetime but uncollected (salary, pension, benefits) are transferred to family members of the deceased or included in the estate under Art. 1227 of the Civil Code of Ukraine
- Contractual obligations terminate upon a party's death only if inextricably linked to their identity (Art. 608 of the Civil Code of Ukraine)
- Heirs are liable for the debts of the deceased only within the limits of the value of the inherited property

A person's death triggers a complex legal mechanism: some of their rights and obligations terminate irrevocably, while others are transferred to relatives or included in the estate. The difference between these two categories is determined by how closely a right or obligation is connected to the deceased person's identity. This distinction is enshrined in the Civil Code of Ukraine and is key when processing an inheritance case.

### Personal Rights That Terminate Upon Death

As a general rule, the inheritance includes rights and obligations that belonged to the person at the time of death and did not terminate as a result of this event. However, the law provides an exception: rights inextricably linked to a specific individual cannot be transferred to others. A classic example is the right to receive alimony for one's own maintenance. If a person received alimony from another individual, this right terminates automatically upon the recipient's death, and relatives cannot "continue" receiving it. A similar logic applies in contractual relations: under Article 608 of the Civil Code of Ukraine, an obligation terminates upon the death of the debtor or creditor if it is inextricably linked to their identity and another person is objectively unable to perform it. For instance, a mandate agreement terminates upon the death of the principal or agent, since trust and personal qualifications are essential conditions of such an agreement.

### Payments That Do Not Lapse: Salary, Pension, Benefits

At the same time, not all financial assets associated with the deceased disappear with them. If wages, a pension, a scholarship, alimony, temporary disability benefits, or other social payments were accrued to a person during their lifetime but they did not manage to collect them, these funds do not lapse. According to Article 1227 of the Civil Code of Ukraine, such sums are transferred to the family members of the deceased. If there are no family members, the respective funds are included in the estate and distributed among the heirs in the manner established by law. Thus, the right to already accrued but unpaid money is not "personal" in the sense that it does not terminate upon the carrier's death.

### Contractual Obligations: When They Terminate and When They Do Not

The death of a debtor or creditor does not always mean the automatic termination of contractual relations. The law establishes a criterion: an obligation terminates only if it is inextricably linked to the identity of the deceased and cannot be performed by another person. If the nature of the obligation allows its transfer or performance by a third party, it continues to operate and passes to the heirs as part of the estate. This means that for each specific contract, it is necessary to analyze its terms and legal requirements to determine whether the obligation persists after the death of one of the parties.

### Practical Conclusions for Processing an Inheritance

For relatives processing an inheritance, it is fundamentally important to distinguish between two categories: the personal rights of the deceased that terminate upon death and are non-transferable, and funds that were already accrued but not paid during their lifetime. The first category is not included in the estate mass, while the second can be received by family members or heirs. In addition, heirs should take into account that in certain cases, the debts of the deceased also pass to them, although responsibility for these debts is limited to the value of the inherited property. Ukrainians residing abroad do not need to return to their homeland to process an inheritance: an application for acceptance of property can be submitted through a consulate or a foreign notary.

## Fact-Check & Sources

- [Не все переходит по наследству: какие права и выплаты теряются после смерти человека](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/perehodit-spadok-ki-prava-ta-viplati-vtrachayutsya-1792507281.html) - The primary source contains the full text on which the article is based. References to Articles 608 and 1227 of the Civil Code of Ukraine correspond to the current edition. No discrepancies with other sources were found.

## FAQ

### Are alimony payments received by the deceased for their own maintenance passed down by inheritance?

No. The right to receive alimony for one's own maintenance is personal and terminates upon the recipient's death. Relatives cannot continue receiving such payments.

### What happens to salary or pension that was accrued but the person did not manage to collect?

According to Article 1227 of the Civil Code of Ukraine, such funds are transferred to the family members of the deceased. If there are no family members, they are included in the estate.

### Do all contractual obligations terminate upon the death of one of the parties?

Not all. Under Article 608 of the Civil Code of Ukraine, an obligation terminates only if it is inextricably linked to the identity of the deceased and cannot be performed by another person. For example, a mandate agreement terminates, while property obligations generally pass to the heirs.

### Can I process an inheritance while being abroad?

Yes. Ukrainians staying abroad do not need to return to their homeland. An application to accept an inheritance can be submitted through a consulate or a foreign notary.