How to Register a Will in India?

Table Of Content

• Does a Will need to be registered in India?
• Is it mandatory to register a will in India?
• How to write and register a will in India?
• How much does it cost to register a will in India?
• Is probate necessary for a registered will?
• Why is Will called a Secret Document?
• Can a foreigner register a Will in India?
• Frequently Asked Questions

As already mentioned in one of our earlier blogs. Will is a document that someone makes when he/she is wanting to distribute the assets & property. Though everyone has a mentality or say bollywood thinking that a Will can be prepared when a person is in his aging days but it is not true. A person who is young and fit can also write his own Will but he/she should be an adult above 18 age. Will can keep changing throughout lifetime as many times as you want, you can add and subtract contents in it. Even you can make more than one Will. But just by making it can you label it valid? Don’t think so right! You have to register a Will in India to declare it valid.

Does a Will need to be Registered in India?

If you want a Will to get accepted legally then eventually it has to be registered in court.  

You know if you get your Will registered then after your death the executor does not have to go through the rough process of probation. Let’s dig into the procedure to probate a Will: 

After the death of the concerned person  both the executors along with the legal heir need to visit the nearby district court to probate the Will. The Will will be put on display on the Notice board of the District Court for 3 months. If someone objects within the tenure period of 3 months then other proceedings will be held which would be a hectic one. 

Now, what does probate mean? If you don’t have registered a Will in India then you need to probate it. Probate means after all the proceedings are done and  when the judge puts his stamp on it and it is declared as legal. 

Is it Mandatory to Register a Will in India?

It does depend upon the personal choice of the person who is writing the Will. But it would be a lot beneficial for you if you get your Will registered in India since the Will registration fees are also quite low though it depends upon the person who is making the Will. If you Register a Will in India then your document will be legally valid and no objections will be turned up against it. 

How to Write and Register a Will in India?

Writing a Will is much easier. All you need to do is write all the contents related to the executors & assets on a blank paper and get it registered to make it valid. Since you register a Will then you don’t have to take the long process after the testator’’s demise. The Will can be prepared by both Online and Offline mode. But in Online mode only the draft is given as there are very few states where Will online registration is done.

The steps are as follows:

1. The testator needs to visit the local district court for the proceedings.
2. Get your Will drafted by an advocate or deed writer.
3. At last Register your Will at sub registrar office,

How much does it cost to Register a Will in India?

Basically the cost of registering a Will in India can be quite expensive depending upon the requirements of the testator or executor. And if your requirement is for draft only then the costing is usually from ₹500-₹1000. A testator can register only a single Will which is labeled as ‘last and final Will’ and the Will registration fee varies from State to State. In general the amount of ₹10,000 to ₹15,000 a testator needs to pay including the Will registration fees. Will registration online is also applicable to State to State whereas the costing of registering a Will in India is done offline. 

Is Probate necessary for a Registered Will?

Certainly not, when you register a Will in India it automatically represents a legal Document. That this Will can not be denied now in any case or circumstances occur in that point of time. Plus probating a Will only occurs when the certain person who wrote that Will is dead then this probation process will be taken up by the Witnesses and legal hear in the local district court.

Why is Will called a Secret Document?

The contents of a Will is not disclosed to anyone, not even the family members. The reason behind this is just to avoid the disputes that occur after getting to know about contents inside that Will. 

 For example, if a father distributes his assets between his three sons and the youngest one gets the most of it then it might happen that the bonding between the sons can disrupt which leads to a big hole in the family itself. That is why a Will is called a Secret Document.

Can a foreigner Register a Will in India?

A person who does not live in India but has assets & properties in India can register a will in India. Although, it would not be possible if he/she is not present in the sub registrar office for the registration. He/she has to go through the same process as the native people of India. There is no different procedure for foreigners. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)