Short answer. Yes, and it runs both ways. Once an adoption is final, the adopter and the adopted child have reciprocal rights of succession without distinction from legitimate filiation. The adopted child inherits from the adoptive parents as a legitimate child would, and the parents inherit from the child on the same footing.
What the law says
the adopter(s) and the adoptee shall have reciprocal rights of succession without distinction from legitimate filiation
RA 8552, Section 18 — Succession Rights. Read the full provision →
Inheritance flows in both directions
Adoption is not a one-way gift of a surname. In legal and intestate succession, the law says the adopter(s) and the adoptee shall have reciprocal rights of succession without distinction from legitimate filiation. Reciprocal means the right runs each way: if the adoptive parents die, the adopted child inherits from them; if the adopted child dies first, the adoptive parents inherit from the child. The phrase without distinction from legitimate filiation is the heart of it.
What 'intestate' means here
This reciprocal rule is written for legal and intestate succession — that is, where a person dies without a valid will, and the law itself decides who inherits and how much. In that situation the adopted child stands among the compulsory heirs and takes the share the law assigns, and the adoptive parents likewise take their lawful portion from a child who dies without a will. It is the default the law supplies when the deceased left no instructions of their own, and it is the setting in which the equality between adopted and legitimate children is most visibly applied.
When a will exists, the will governs
The equality of shares is not a licence to ignore a will. The same provision adds that if the adoptee and the biological parents had left a will, the law on testamentary succession shall govern. Where a valid will exists, the rules on wills take over: the estate is distributed according to its terms, always within the limits the law sets to protect compulsory heirs. So a person who wants to depart from the default cannot simply hope it happens — they must make a valid will. Without one, the reciprocal, no-distinction rule quietly does the work.
Why this matters when an estate is settled
In practice, disputes arise because relatives forget that an adopted child is a full heir, not an outsider to be paid off. That misunderstanding can stall the settlement of an estate for years. If you are the adopted child, keep the adoption papers safe; they are your proof of standing when the estate is divided. If you are an adoptive parent planning ahead, understand that your adopted child already inherits by law, and that a will is the tool if you want a different arrangement within legal limits. Bringing the documents to a lawyer early usually prevents a fight later.
Important: this law has been replaced
Republic Act No. 8552, the Domestic Adoption Act discussed above, was repealed in full by Republic Act No. 11642 (2022), the Domestic Administrative Adoption and Alternative Child Care Act. Domestic adoption is no longer a court petition but an administrative process before the National Authority for Child Care. An adopted child is still treated as legitimate, but the procedures — including who may rescind or contest an adoption — now come from Republic Act No. 11642 and its rules, not from the article above. Check the current law before acting.