Freely disposable share (quotité disponible)

The freely disposable share (quotité disponible) is the portion of a French or Swiss estate that a testator may bequeath freely to any person — the complement of the hereditary reserve (réserve héréditaire / Pflichtteil). In France, the freely disposable share equals 50% of the estate with one child, 33% with two children, and 25% with three or more children. In Switzerland (after the 2023 reform), it represents at least 50% of the estate, giving Swiss testators substantially more freedom than French law.

In a business succession context, the freely disposable share determines how much of the business can be transferred to a specific heir (the successor) above and beyond their statutory share without triggering a hereditary reserve claim from other heirs. If the business value exceeds the freely disposable share plus the successor's own statutory share, the excess must be compensated with cash (soulte) or structured through a Pacte Dutreil and Pacte successoral combination. This calculation requires a defensible and precise business valuation.

A testator may use the freely disposable share to make specific legacies — bequeathing a particular asset (a business, real estate, a portfolio) to a specific beneficiary — or a universal legacy to a single heir, with the reserve being protected by a statutory reduction action (action en réduction) available to protected heirs. In practice, a harmonious succession requires balancing the successor's need for the full business against the other heirs' financial expectations, with the business valuation serving as the common reference point.

At Hectelion, we value businesses to determine the freely disposable share and the compensation owed to non-successor heirs in our valuation and estate structuring mandates.