Making a will: key steps for UK residents

Why putting a will in place matters

If you die without a valid will in England and Wales, the intestacy rules decide who receives what — and they may not reflect your wishes. A surviving spouse or civil partner inherits the personal possessions and the first £322,000 of the estate, plus half of anything above that, with the remainder held in trust for the children. If you have no children, the spouse takes most of the estate, but parents, siblings and other relatives can still claim a share.

Cohabitants receive nothing under intestacy, no matter how long you have lived together. Neither do stepchildren, close friends or unmarried partners. A will is the only reliable way to provide for the people you actually care about, name a guardian for young children, and spare your family months of uncertainty. It is also a chance to reduce the inheritance tax bill and to record who should sort everything out.

Making sure the will is legally valid

In England and Wales, a will must meet the formalities set out in the Wills Act 1837. It has to be in writing, signed by you (or signed on your behalf in your presence and at your direction), and signed or acknowledged in front of two witnesses who are both present at the same time. Those witnesses must then sign in your presence. Two witnesses at once is not optional — a will signed in front of one person and then another may be invalid.

A witness cannot be a beneficiary under the will, or the spouse or civil partner of a beneficiary. If they are, the will usually remains valid but their gift fails. You also need the mental capacity to make a will, meaning you understand what you are doing, the extent of your property, and the moral claims of those who might expect to benefit. Marriage or entering a civil partnership automatically revokes an existing will unless it was written in contemplation of that event.

Choosing your executors

Executors are the people who administer your estate. They obtain the grant of probate, value the assets, settle debts and tax, and distribute what remains. Up to four can act, and they can be beneficiaries themselves.

• Appoint more than one. Two is common, so that if one is unable or unwilling, the other can act alone.
• Name substitutes. Add a reserve executor in case your first choice dies or moves abroad before you do.
• Think about suitability. Family members know the background but may find the paperwork taxing during a difficult time. A professional executor can help with complex estates, business interests or disputes.
• Talk to them first. Nobody should discover their role at the funeral, and they should know where the original will is kept.

Executor duties are onerous. They can be held personally liable for mistakes, and inheritance tax often has to be paid before probate is granted, sometimes from their own funds temporarily.

Appointing guardians for children under 18

If you have children under 18, naming a guardian in your will is one of the most important steps you can take. A guardian appointed by will acquires parental responsibility for the child, and the courts will give real weight to your choice. Discuss it with the person beforehand, and consider naming a substitute.

Guardianship and money are separate questions. A child is generally entitled to inherit at 18, which can be a great deal to manage at that age. You can use a trust in your will to hold their inheritance until, say, 21 or 25, with the trustees able to release funds for education, housing or maintenance in the meantime. A letter of wishes alongside the will can set out your intentions on schooling, religion and contact with relatives, though it is not legally binding.

What to include, and the tax points to watch

Most wills deal with specific gifts (a sum of money, jewellery, a property), then leave the residue — everything left over — to chosen beneficiaries. A survivorship clause, requiring a beneficiary to outlive you by 30 days, avoids assets passing twice in quick succession.

On inheritance tax, the nil-rate band is £325,000 and the residence nil-rate band can add up to £175,000 where the family home passes to direct descendants. Both are transferable between spouses and civil partners, potentially sheltering up to £1 million for a couple. Leaving at least 10 per cent of the net estate to charity can reduce the rate on part of the estate from 40 per cent to 36 per cent. Pensions and nominated life policies usually sit outside the estate and are not governed by your will.

Getting help, storing it safely, and reviewing

You can write a will yourself, but mistakes are common and often only surface when it is too late to fix them. A solicitor or other regulated professional can check capacity, capacity-adjacent risks such as undue influence, and drafting traps that could cost your family thousands.

Sign and date the will with your witnesses present, then keep the original somewhere findable — with the firm that drafted it, with a bank safe deposit, or with a will storage service. Tell your executors where it is. Review your will after marriage, divorce, a birth or death in the family, a significant change in your finances, or a move abroad, since Scotland and Northern Ireland have different rules and foreign property may need a separate will. Consider lasting powers of attorney at the same time; they cover decisions a will cannot.