Yes, a wife can challenge a will of this kind in both England and Wales and in Hong Kong, though the routes and rules differ between the two jurisdictions.

In England and Wales, the main tool is the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, which allows a surviving spouse to apply to court for reasonable financial provision from the estate if the will fails to make adequate provision for her [1]. A spouse has stronger rights than most other claimants: the court's assessment is not limited to bare maintenance but is broader, and the court may consider what the wife might reasonably have received on divorce as a cross-check [2]. So even though the will leaves the house to the wife, a court will look at the whole picture — her financial needs, her health and age, the size of the estate, whether she has her own income or assets, and whether she can realistically maintain herself without access to the liquid money that went to the nephew [3][4]. If the answer is that the will does not make reasonable provision, the court can order additional provision from the estate. Importantly, a successful claim does not usually strike down the whole will; the court instead varies the financial outcome to give the wife more, leaving the rest of the will intact [4].

A wife can also challenge the will's validity on separate grounds — lack of testamentary capacity, undue influence, fraud, forgery, or failure to comply with formal execution requirements [5][6]. These are harder to prove and require specific evidence, but they remain available routes. One important practical point: if the house was owned jointly as joint tenants, it passes to the wife automatically by survivorship outside the will entirely, which changes the analysis of what the estate actually contains [6]. Claims under the 1975 Act must generally be brought within six months of the grant of probate, though the court has discretion to allow late claims in appropriate cases [4]. The 1975 Act applies only in England and Wales; Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate regimes.

In Hong Kong, a very similar framework exists under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Ordinance, Cap. 481 [7]. A surviving spouse is an eligible applicant and can ask the court for reasonable financial provision if the will leaves her inadequately provided for [7][8]. Hong Kong's courts have also applied a divorce-standard approach when assessing what is reasonable for a spouse [9]. The ordinance has a connecting-factor requirement: it applies where the deceased was domiciled in Hong Kong or had been ordinarily resident there during the three years immediately before death, so the husband's connection to Hong Kong matters [10]. The time limit for bringing a claim in Hong Kong is also generally six months from the grant of representation, subject to the court's discretion to extend [10]. As in England and Wales, the wife could also challenge the will's validity on grounds such as lack of capacity or undue influence [8][11].

Across both jurisdictions, the fact that the wife receives the house does not automatically mean the will makes reasonable financial provision. Courts look at the totality of her situation: whether the house is mortgage-free, whether she needs liquid funds for upkeep or living costs, her age, health, and earning capacity, and the overall size of the estate. The outcome is highly fact-specific in both places.

In summary, the wife has realistic legal avenues to challenge this will in both England and Wales and in Hong Kong, particularly through a family provision claim. She should seek specialist legal advice promptly given the time limits that apply in both jurisdictions.