This study investigates how institutional resilience facilitates successful intergenerational succession in Chinese family firms. Drawing on institutional resilience theory and socioemotional wealth (SEW) theory, we employ fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to explore configurational causal pathways. Based on a sample of 20 Chinese family firms, we identify four core conditions (pre-succession planning, multi-dimensional governance structure, professional tool empowerment, cultural spirit inheritance) and one contextual condition (institutional environment adaptability). Results show that cultural spirit inheritance is the only necessary condition for successful succession, while five equifinal configurations of institutional resilience are sufficient to achieve effective succession. By contrast, weakness in any two core institutional resilience dimensions significantly increases the likelihood of succession failure. This study advances contextualized family business research by unpacking the combinatorial mechanisms of institutional resilience in an emerging market context and provides actionable implications for family firms and policymakers.