Almost any adult can witness your will, as long as they can see you sign and don't inherit anything under it. You need two witnesses, both in the room with you at the same time (Wills Act 1837, section 9). A friend, neighbour or work colleague is usually the safest choice.
Key Takeaways
- You need two witnesses, present together, who watch you sign or acknowledge your signature.
- A beneficiary, or their husband, wife or civil partner, shouldn't witness. If they do, the will still stands but the beneficiary loses their gift.
- Executors can witness your will, as long as they don't also inherit under it.
- Witnessing by video call is no longer allowed. It ended on 31 January 2024.
- Lasting Powers of Attorney have different witnessing rules from wills.
This guide covers wills made under the law of England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own rules.
Who can and can't witness a will?
The two things that matter are whether the witness can see you sign and whether they benefit from the will. A witness doesn't need to read the will or know what it says. We do recommend that your witnesses know it's a will they're witnessing, and that you understand it and are happy with it, so they can confirm this if the will is ever questioned. In that case they may be asked to give a sworn statement (an affidavit) about the signing. This can include questions about how you seemed at the time and whether you appeared to understand what you were doing.
| Person | Can they witness? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Friend, neighbour or colleague | Yes | Ideal, as long as they don't inherit anything |
| Executor | Yes | Allowed by law, unless they also inherit |
| Family member who doesn't inherit | Yes | Allowed, though an unrelated adult is safer |
| Beneficiary | No | The will stands, but they lose their gift |
| Beneficiary's husband, wife or civil partner | No | The beneficiary loses their gift |
| Unmarried partner of a beneficiary | Best avoided | The gift isn't cancelled by law, but it can invite challenges |
| Under 18 | Best avoided | The law sets no minimum age, but an adult is far safer |
| Someone who is blind | No | A witness must be able to see you sign |
| Someone who can't understand what's happening | Best avoided | They may not be able to confirm what they saw |
| Someone on a video call | No | Video witnessing ended on 31 January 2024 (2022 amending Order) |
Executors are specifically allowed to witness (Wills Act 1837, section 17). Executors are the people who carry out your will, so many people name a friend or relative they trust. If that person also inherits, choose someone else to witness.
What happens if the wrong person witnesses a will?
If a beneficiary (someone who inherits under the will), or their spouse or civil partner, witnesses it, the will is still valid but their gift is cancelled (Wills Act 1837, section 15). The rest of your wishes still stand. The gift is only saved if two other witnesses who don't benefit also signed (Wills Act 1968, section 1). The person who loses out is usually the very person you wanted to provide for.
If the witnessing itself goes wrong, the whole will can fail. That happens when there's only one witness, the witnesses aren't both present when you sign, or one of them can't see you sign. In that case your estate may pass under the intestacy rules, as if you'd left no will at all. Read what happens if you die without a will.
How do you sign and witness a will correctly?
Signing a will takes about five minutes, but every step matters. Here is the order to follow:
- Gather everyone together. You and both witnesses should be in the same room, with nobody leaving until all three have signed.
- Sign the will in front of both witnesses. If you signed earlier, you can instead tell both witnesses together that the signature is yours.
- Each witness signs in front of you. They don't need to sign in front of each other, but it's simplest if they do.
- Witnesses add their full name, address and occupation. This makes them easy to trace if the will is ever questioned.
- Date the will. A missing date doesn't make a will invalid, but it can make it hard to prove which will is your latest.
- Keep the pages together. Don't unstaple, add notes to, or attach anything to the signed will. Then store it somewhere safe that your executors know about.
A will can't currently be signed electronically in England and Wales. Use a pen on a printed copy. The same witnessing rules apply to a codicil, a short document that amends a will. Our guide to making your will legal sets out the exact wording of the law.
What witnessing mistakes do we see most often?
Most of the problems we see come from signing in a hurry, not from choosing the wrong witness. These are the mistakes that come up time and again in our experience of checking wills since 1997.
- Witnesses who weren't together, or weren't even in the room. We've known of a handwritten will, made under pressure, where the witnesses signed separately and not in the presence of the person making it. A will signed like that is very likely to fail.
- Missing signatures, dates or witness details. A page left unsigned, or a witness who forgets their address, can cause delays and questions later.
- Pages unstapled or altered after signing. If staples have been removed, the Probate Registry (the court office that deals with wills after a death) may ask for evidence that no pages were swapped. Any change made after signing has no effect unless it's signed and witnessed in the same way as the will (Wills Act 1837, section 21).
Loose pages are easy to remove, swap or lose. That's why our Superior upgrade binds your will with tamper-proof rivets, so its pages stay together. It's also printed on quality watermarked paper, with printed signing instructions for the day.
Who can witness a Lasting Power of Attorney?
The witnessing rules for a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) are different from those for a will. An LPA is the document that lets someone you trust make decisions for you if you can't.
- Your signature as the donor (the person making the LPA) must be witnessed by someone aged 18 or over. Your attorneys can't witness your signature.
- Each attorney's signature must also be witnessed by an adult. You can't witness your attorneys' signatures.
- The certificate provider's signature doesn't need a witness. The certificate provider confirms that you understand the LPA and aren't being pressured into it.
- Witnessing must be in person. Video witnessing isn't accepted.
These rules apply to the current paper LPA forms. The Powers of Attorney Act 2023 is bringing in a new digital process, which may change how signing works. In our experience, even a small signing or witnessing error can get an LPA application sent back, and the standard registration fee is £92 per LPA. Find out more about Lasting Powers of Attorney.
Frequently asked questions
Can a family member witness a will?
Yes, a family member can witness your will as long as they don't inherit under it and aren't married to or in a civil partnership with someone who does. In practice, close family are often beneficiaries, so a friend or neighbour is usually a safer choice.
Can an executor witness a will?
Yes. The law specifically allows an executor to witness a will. The only problem arises if the executor is also a beneficiary, because they would then lose their gift.
Does a witness need to read the will?
No. Your witnesses don't need to see what your will says, and you can keep its contents private. We recommend that they know it's a will you're signing, so that they can say you appeared to understand it and were happy with it. That matters if the will is ever challenged, because the witnesses may be asked to confirm what happened in a sworn statement.
Can a will be witnessed over a video call?
No, not any more. Video witnessing was allowed temporarily during the pandemic, but it ended on 31 January 2024. Wills witnessed by video during that period remain valid. Today both witnesses must be physically present.
What happens if a witness dies?
Nothing changes. Whether a will is valid depends on how it was signed, not on whether the witnesses are still alive. The law also says a will isn't invalid just because a witness later becomes unable to give evidence (Wills Act 1837, section 14). A proper attestation clause, the wording above the witnesses' signatures confirming they saw you sign, usually means the Probate Registry won't need to hear from the witnesses at all.
Can the same witnesses sign both Mirror Wills?
Yes. Couples making Mirror Wills can use the same two witnesses for both wills at one sitting. What you can't usefully do is witness each other's wills, because each of you is usually a beneficiary of the other's will.
The short version: who should witness your will
Choosing your witnesses is simple once you know the rule: two adults, together in the room, who don't inherit anything. Our Will Team checks every will we prepare, and we're happy to answer questions about signing. Contact the Will Team, or see how much a will costs.
About this guide
This guide was written and checked by the Downloadawill Will Team. Downloadawill is a trading style of Direct Wills, a member of the Society of Will Writers. We've been writing wills for people in England and Wales since 1997. Read more about us.
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