TSEM7602 - Deceased persons: absolute interests in residue - definition

There is a statutory definition of the term `absolute interest in residue' in ITTOIA/S650(1).

The `residue of the estate' is what is left after the personal representatives have paid or made provision for

• the deceased's debts and funeral expenses
• the expenses of administering the estate
• legacies or annuities
• in Scotland, the prior and legal rights of the surviving spouse or civil partner, and the legal rights of children.

Under the terms of a will or the rules of intestacy a beneficiary might be entitled to receive the whole or part of the residue. When the administration of the estate is completed the beneficiary will be entitled to a capital sum representing the residue or a share of the residue. A person who is entitled in this way has an absolute interest in residue.