{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-json\/64.2-308.16.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-text\/64.2-308.16.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-xml\/64.2-308.16.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-html\/64.2-308.16.html"}],"law_id":79802,"edition_id":1,"section_id":79802,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.16","catch_line":"Rights in family residence","history":"2016, cc. 187, 269.","full_text":"Until the surviving spouse’s rights in the principal family residence have been determined and satisfied by an agreement between the parties or a final court decree, in cases (i) where the principal family residence passes under the provisions of \u00a7 64.2-200 and the decedent is survived by children or their descendants, one or more of whom are not children or their descendants of the surviving spouse, or (ii) where the surviving spouse claims an elective share in the decedent’s augmented estate under this article, the surviving spouse may hold, occupy, and enjoy the principal family residence and curtilage without charge for rent, repairs, taxes, or insurance. If the surviving spouse is deprived of possession of the principal family residence and curtilage, upon the filing of a complaint for unlawful entry or detainer, he is entitled to recover possession of such residence and damages sustained by him by reason of such deprivation during the time he was so deprived. Nothing in this section shall be construed to impair the lien or delay the enforcement of such lien of the Commonwealth or any locality for the taxes assessed upon the property.","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":285899,"text":"Until the surviving spouse’s rights in the principal family residence have been determined and satisfied by an agreement between the parties or a final court decree, in cases (i) where the principal family residence passes under the provisions of \u00a7 64.2-200 and the decedent is survived by children or their descendants, one or more of whom are not children or their descendants of the surviving spouse, or (ii) where the surviving spouse claims an elective share in the decedent’s augmented estate under this article, the surviving spouse may hold, occupy, and enjoy the principal family residence and curtilage without charge for rent, repairs, taxes, or insurance. If the surviving spouse is deprived of possession of the principal family residence and curtilage, upon the filing of a complaint for unlawful entry or detainer, he is entitled to recover possession of such residence and damages sustained by him by reason of such deprivation during the time he was so deprived. Nothing in this section shall be construed to impair the lien or delay the enforcement of such lien of the Commonwealth or any locality for the taxes assessed upon the property.","type":"section","prefixes":[""],"prefix":"","entire_prefix":"","prefix_anchor":"","level":1}},"ancestry":[{"id":12865,"edition_id":1,"name":"Elective Share of Surviving Spouse of Decedent Dying on or After January 1, 2017","identifier":"1.1","label":"article","depth":4,"order_by":1,"parent_id":12864,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:43:57","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:43:57","permalink":{"id":272983,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":12865,"identifier":"1.1","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1","url":"\/64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":12864,"edition_id":1,"name":"Rights of Married Persons","identifier":"3","label":"chapter","depth":3,"order_by":1,"parent_id":12863,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:43:57","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:43:57","permalink":{"id":272943,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":12864,"identifier":"3","token":"64.2\/II\/3","url":"\/64.2\/II\/3\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":12863,"edition_id":1,"name":"Wills and Decedents' Estates","identifier":"II","label":"subtitle","depth":2,"order_by":1,"parent_id":12723,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:43:57","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:43:57","permalink":{"id":272911,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":12863,"identifier":"II","token":"64.2\/II","url":"\/64.2\/II\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":12723,"edition_id":1,"name":"Wills, Trusts, and Fiduciaries","identifier":"64.2","label":"title","depth":1,"order_by":1,"parent_id":null,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:43:50","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:43:50","permalink":{"id":272781,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":12723,"identifier":"64.2","token":"64.2","url":"\/64.2\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}}],"structure_contents":[{"id":86374,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.1","catch_line":"Applicability; definitions","url":"\/64.2-308.1\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.1","metadata":false},{"id":57764,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.10","catch_line":"Sources from which elective share payable","url":"\/64.2-308.10\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.10","metadata":false},{"id":61941,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.11","catch_line":"Personal liability of recipients","url":"\/64.2-308.11\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.11","metadata":false},{"id":58055,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.12","catch_line":"Proceeding for elective share; time limit","url":"\/64.2-308.12\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.12","metadata":false},{"id":69369,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.13","catch_line":"Right of election personal to surviving spouse; incapacitated surviving spouse","url":"\/64.2-308.13\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.13","metadata":false},{"id":66052,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.14","catch_line":"Waiver of right to elect and of other rights; defenses","url":"\/64.2-308.14\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.14","metadata":false},{"id":53998,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.15","catch_line":"Protection of payors and other third parties","url":"\/64.2-308.15\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.15","metadata":false},{"id":79802,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.16","catch_line":"Rights in family residence","url":"\/64.2-308.16\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.16","metadata":false},{"id":80426,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.17","catch_line":"Statutory rights barred by desertion or abandonment","url":"\/64.2-308.17\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.17","metadata":false},{"id":72651,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.2","catch_line":"Dower or curtesy abolished","url":"\/64.2-308.2\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.2","metadata":false},{"id":57125,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.3","catch_line":"Elective share amount; effect of election on statutory benefits; non-domiciliary","url":"\/64.2-308.3\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.3","metadata":false},{"id":56825,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.4","catch_line":"Composition of the augmented estate; marital property portion","url":"\/64.2-308.4\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.4","metadata":false},{"id":75341,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.5","catch_line":"Decedent's net probate estate","url":"\/64.2-308.5\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.5","metadata":false},{"id":73894,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.6","catch_line":"Decedent's non-probate transfers to others","url":"\/64.2-308.6\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.6","metadata":false},{"id":68829,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.7","catch_line":"Decedent's non-probate transfers to the surviving spouse","url":"\/64.2-308.7\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.7","metadata":false},{"id":54460,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.8","catch_line":"Surviving spouse's property and non-probate transfers to others","url":"\/64.2-308.8\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.8","metadata":false},{"id":80125,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.9","catch_line":"Exclusions, valuation, and overlapping application","url":"\/64.2-308.9\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.9","metadata":false}],"previous_section":{"id":53998,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.15","catch_line":"Protection of payors and other third parties","url":"\/64.2-308.15\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.15","metadata":false},"next_section":{"id":80426,"structure_id":12865,"section_number":"64.2-308.17","catch_line":"Statutory rights barred by desertion or abandonment","url":"\/64.2-308.17\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.17","metadata":false},"metadata":false,"official_url":"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/64.2-308.16\/","history_text":"

This law was first created in 2016. The record of its establishment is cataloged in chapters 187<\/a> and 269<\/a> of that year\u2019s edition of \u201cActs of Assembly,\u201d the annual state publication listing all changes made to the Code of Virginia in that year.<\/p>","references":false,"refers_to":[{"id":63124,"section_number":"64.2-200","catch_line":"Course of descents generally; right of Commonwealth if no other heir","order_by":null,"url":"\/64.2-200\/"}],"permalink":{"id":273013,"object_type":"law","relational_id":79802,"identifier":"64.2-308.16","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.16","url":"\/64.2-308.16\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/64.2-308.16\/","token":"64.2\/II\/3\/1.1\/64.2-308.16","dublin_core":{"Title":"Rights in family residence","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 64.2-308.16","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

Until the surviving spouse’s rights in the principal family residence have been determined and satisfied by an agreement between the parties or a final court<\/span> decree<\/span>, in cases (i) where the principal family residence passes under the provisions of \u00a7 64.2-200<\/a> and the decedent is survived by children or their descendants, one or more of whom are not children or their descendants of the surviving spouse, or (ii) where the surviving spouse claims an elective share in the decedent’s augmented estate under this article, the surviving spouse may hold, occupy, and enjoy the principal family residence and curtilage without charge for rent, repairs, taxes, or insurance. If the surviving spouse is deprived of possession<\/span> of the principal family residence and curtilage, upon the filing of a complaint for unlawful entry or detainer, he is entitled to recover possession<\/span> of such residence and damages<\/span> sustained by him by reason of such deprivation during the time he was so deprived. Nothing in this section shall be construed to impair the lien<\/span> or delay the enforcement of such lien<\/span> of the Commonwealth or any locality for the taxes assessed upon the property.<\/p><\/section>","plain_text":" CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\nRIGHTS IN FAMILY RESIDENCE (\u00a7 64.2-308.16)\n\nUntil the surviving spouse’s rights in the principal family residence have\nbeen determined and satisfied by an agreement between the parties or a final\ncourt decree, in cases (i) where the principal family residence passes under the\nprovisions of \u00a7 64.2-200 and the decedent is survived by children or their\ndescendants, one or more of whom are not children or their descendants of the\nsurviving spouse, or (ii) where the surviving spouse claims an elective share in\nthe decedent’s augmented estate under this article, the surviving spouse\nmay hold, occupy, and enjoy the principal family residence and curtilage without\ncharge for rent, repairs, taxes, or insurance. If the surviving spouse is\ndeprived of possession of the principal family residence and curtilage, upon the\nfiling of a complaint for unlawful entry or detainer, he is entitled to recover\npossession of such residence and damages sustained by him by reason of such\ndeprivation during the time he was so deprived. Nothing in this section shall be\nconstrued to impair the lien or delay the enforcement of such lien of the\nCommonwealth or any locality for the taxes assessed upon the property.\n\nHISTORY: 2016, cc. 187, 269.","edition":{"id":1,"name":"2025","slug":"2025","date_created":"2026-06-21 22:39:22","date_modified":"2026-06-21 22:39:22","current":1,"order_by":1,"last_import":null}}