Short answer. Everything except the legitimes. Article 842 lets a person with compulsory heirs dispose of his estate provided he does not contravene the Code's provisions on their legitime. The size of that free portion is not fixed — it depends on which compulsory heirs survive him, and in what combination.

What the law says

One who has no compulsory heirs may dispose by will of all his estate or any part of it in favor of any person having capacity to succeed. One who has compulsory heirs may dispose of his estate provided he does not contravene the provisions of this Code with regard to the legitime of said heirs.

Civil Code, Article 842 — The Limit of Testamentary Freedom. Read the full provision →

Two regimes in one article

Article 842 divides testators into two classes: One who has no compulsory heirs may dispose by will of all his estate or any part of it in favor of any person having capacity to succeed. One who has compulsory heirs may dispose of his estate provided he does not contravene the provisions of this Code with regard to the legitime of said heirs. A person with no compulsory heirs has complete testamentary freedom. A person with children does not — his freedom is whatever remains once the reserved portions are set aside. Note that the article does not prohibit him from disposing; it conditions the disposition.

Why no one can give you a single fraction

Readers usually want a number, and the honest answer is that the number is an output rather than an input. The Code assigns legitimes according to who actually survives — legitimate children and descendants, illegitimate children, ascendants where there are no descendants, and the surviving spouse — and the combination changes the arithmetic. So the free portion cannot be stated until every compulsory heir is identified. Anyone who quotes a fraction without first asking who survived, and in what capacity, is guessing. That identification is the first thing a lawyer will do, and it is not always obvious.

It is computed on a net estate, not on what you can see

The base matters as much as the fraction. What is divided is the estate as it stands at death, after the obligations of the estate are accounted for, and with lifetime gratuitous transfers brought into the computation — Article 1061 requires a compulsory heir who succeeds with others to bring in what he received from the decedent by donation or other gratuitous title, so that each legitime can be determined. A parent who has already advanced a house to one child has therefore already spent part of what he is now planning to dispose of, whether or not he thinks of it that way.

Drafting for the line rather than against it

The safe structure is simple. Name every compulsory heir in the will, even those who will receive only their legitime, because omission carries a far worse consequence than a small share — Article 854 annuls the institution of heir where a compulsory heir in the direct line is passed over in silence. Then dispose of the free portion expressly, and add a clause covering anything left over. If the gifts turn out to exceed the free portion, they are reduced rather than the will being thrown out; a valuation of the estate before signing is what avoids that.

Cases citing this provision

These Supreme Court decisions cite the provision above. We list them so you can read them yourself; the summaries of what each decided are not ours to give.

Related provisions

Note. Statute text quoted on this page is reproduced from the official enactment and is linked to the full provision. The explanation around it is general legal information from Vivas & Nobles Law Office, not legal advice. Whether it applies to your situation depends on facts only a lawyer reviewing them can assess.