Will drafting with clear bequests and a signing that holds up
Create a legally valid will to protect inheritance and family property under Indian succession law.
- Price
- From Rs 10,000, fixed; no stamp duty on a will
- Turnaround
- Draft within 2 to 3 working days of the call and complete papers
- Delivery
- By email, with signing, attestation and registration instructions
- Revisions
- One round included
- Law
- Indian Succession Act, 1925, Sections 59 and 63; Registration Act, 1908
On this page
How to make a will in India: what the law requires
A will is a legal declaration of how you want your property dealt with after your death. Under Section 59 of the Indian Succession Act, any adult of sound mind can make one. Section 63 sets out how it must be signed: by you, or by someone in your presence at your direction, before two witnesses who each see you sign, or hear you acknowledge your signature, and who each sign in your presence.
The law asks for nothing more. There is no prescribed format and no stamp paper, the will can be typed or handwritten, and it can be in any language you understand. A will obtained by fraud, coercion or pressure that takes away your free choice is void under Section 61.
Personal law still matters. Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs and Jains can will away their self-acquired property and, under Section 30 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, their share in coparcenary property. A Muslim's will is governed by Muslim personal law, which generally limits bequests to one-third of the estate and restricts gifts to heirs unless the other heirs consent.
Can you make a will without a lawyer in India?
Yes, and many people do. Will writing at home fails for predictable reasons: a flat described only as "my flat in Vashi", no clause for the residue, a beneficiary used as a witness, or a gift of ancestral property the testator did not fully own. A lawyer's real value is in the asset check before the will is written, not the typing.
What a will can pass, and what it cannot
A will can pass only what you own at death, and only to the extent you own it. Several common assets come with their own rules.
| Asset | What the will does | What we check |
|---|---|---|
| Self-acquired flat or land | Passes fully under the will | Title documents, society share certificate, property card or 7/12 extract |
| Jointly owned property | Passes only your share | Whether the deed creates shares or a right of survivorship |
| Coparcenary or ancestral property | Passes your interest only | How the property came to the family and whether it was partitioned |
| Bank deposits, shares, mutual funds with a nominee | The will generally prevails; the nominee collects but holds for those entitled | That nominations and the will point the same way |
| Life insurance with a spouse, parent or child as nominee | The nominee usually takes beneficially under Section 39 of the Insurance Act, 1938 | Whether the nomination matches your wishes |
| Housing society flat with a nominee | The society transfers to the nominee; the will decides who finally owns it | Nomination on the society record |
On shares, the Supreme Court held in Shakti Yezdani v Jayanand Jayant Salgaonkar (2023) that a nominee does not become the owner over the heirs. So the will, not the nomination form, settles the question; but mismatched nominations still cause delay and litigation.
Executor of will: choosing the right person
The executor is the person you appoint to carry out the will: collect assets, pay debts and taxes, and hand over what each beneficiary is to receive. An executor can also be a beneficiary, and often is.
Choose someone younger than you, organised, trusted by the family and reachable. An executor who lives abroad can act, but every bank and society visit then needs a power of attorney. We usually suggest naming a substitute in case the first choice cannot act, and spelling out the executor's powers to sell, let or hold property so that nobody has to apply to court to find out.
What is included in will drafting
- A consultation on your family, your assets and what you want to happen.
- An asset-by-asset check: title, joint holdings, nominations and anything you may not fully own.
- A will with specific gifts, a residuary clause, alternate beneficiaries and an executor with a substitute.
- A guardian for minor children where needed; for Hindu parents under Section 9 of the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, 1956.
- One round of revisions.
- Signing and attestation instructions, with advice on registration and safe keeping.
Alternate beneficiaries matter more than people expect. Under Section 105 of the Indian Succession Act, a gift to someone who dies before you usually lapses and falls into the residue, unless the will says where it should go instead.
What you send us
- Your PAN or Aadhaar, and full names, relationships and dates of birth of the people in your will
- A list of assets: flats, land, bank accounts, deposits, demat and mutual fund holdings, policies, lockers, vehicles, business interests
- Title papers for each property, and the society share certificate for a flat
- Current nominations, if you have them to hand
- Any earlier will or codicil
- Your choice of executor and substitute, and of a guardian if you have minor children
An incomplete list is a normal starting point. The asset check usually turns up something, such as an old deposit or a plot bought in a parent's name.
How will drafting works with us
- You send your asset list and family details by email or WhatsApp.
- We discuss your wishes on a call and raise any problems the papers show.
- The draft will reaches you within 2 to 3 working days of the call and complete papers.
- You read it, ideally with the executor, and we make one round of revisions.
- You sign before two witnesses, following our instructions, and register it if you choose.
We work from our office in Sanpada, Navi Mumbai; clients in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai are welcome to meet us there, and everyone else is served online. An NRI can sign the will abroad before two witnesses. Registration in India needs the testator before the Sub-Registrar, so it usually waits for a visit.
Will registration, stamp duty and probate
A will carries no stamp duty in any state. Registration under the Registration Act, 1908 is optional: you present the will before the Sub-Registrar with two identifying witnesses and pay a modest registration fee. You can also deposit a will with the Registrar in a sealed cover under Section 42 and withdraw it later.
Is a registered will better? It proves the date and that you appeared and admitted signing it, and a certified copy is available if the original is lost. It does not prove that you were of sound mind, and a later unregistered will still revokes an earlier registered one. For elderly or unwell testators, a doctor's certificate on the signing day often does more than registration.
Probate changed recently. The Repealing and Amending Act, 2025, which received assent on 20 December 2025, omitted Section 213 of the Indian Succession Act, so probate is no longer compulsory for wills of Hindus and others covering property in Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. Executors may still apply, and some societies and banks may ask for it until practice settles. For probate and estate disputes, see our will drafting and probate services.
Mistakes that start will disputes
- No residuary clause. Anything not named passes as if there were no will at all.
- Witnesses who benefit. A gift to an attesting witness or the witness's spouse can be void.
- Leaving out a child without a word. One sentence explaining why makes a later challenge much harder.
- Gifting property you do not fully own. Joint and ancestral property pass only to the extent of your share.
- A will nobody can find. Tell the executor where it is kept.
- Never updating it. A flat sold, an executor who has died or a new grandchild can be dealt with by a codicil to your will rather than a new one.
For the rules that apply if there is no valid will, see inheritance without a will. If you want property managed for children over many years rather than handed over outright, a family trust deed may sit alongside the will.
Frequently Asked Questions
Still have a question?
Speak with our legal team about your matter with clarity and confidence.
No. A will that is properly signed and attested is valid whether or not it is registered. Registration helps with proof: it records the date, shows you appeared before the Sub-Registrar and keeps a copy on record. It does not stop a challenge on mental capacity or undue influence, and a later unregistered will revokes an earlier registered one.
There is no stamp duty on a will. If you register it, the Sub-Registrar charges a modest fee set by the state. The main cost is drafting: our fixed fee starts at Rs 10,000. A larger estate with business interests, property in several states or a trust alongside the will takes more work, and we quote that before starting.
Any adult of sound mind who sees you sign, or hears you acknowledge your signature, and signs in your presence. Do not use a beneficiary or a beneficiary's spouse. Choose witnesses who are younger than you and easy to trace, because one of them may have to give evidence that the will was properly signed.
Yes. The usual grounds are improper signing or attestation, lack of mental capacity, fraud, coercion or undue influence, and suspicious circumstances such as the main beneficiary arranging the will. Courts look at who drafted it, who was present and whether the gifts make sense. A well-drafted will, independent witnesses and a doctor's note close most of these doors.
Not as a legal requirement. Section 213 of the Indian Succession Act, which made probate compulsory for certain wills covering property in Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata, was omitted by the Repealing and Amending Act, 2025. Executors can still apply for probate, and it remains useful where a will is likely to be disputed or an institution insists on it.
Generally no. A nominee of a bank account, shares or a society flat collects the asset, but holds it for the people entitled under the will or the succession law. The main exception is life insurance, where a spouse, parent or child named as nominee usually takes the money beneficially under Section 39 of the Insurance Act.
Yes. An NRI or OCI cardholder can make an Indian will covering property in India and sign it abroad before two witnesses. For property abroad, a separate will under that country's law is usually wiser, and we will tell you when that question needs a lawyer licensed there. An executor based in India makes the estate easier to administer.
Review it after any major event: marriage, divorce, a birth or death in the family, or the purchase or sale of property. Otherwise every few years is enough. Small changes can be made by codicil, while a change to the main beneficiaries or the residue calls for a fresh will that revokes the old one.
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