Virginia: Will Execution Requirements
The short answer
To sign a valid will in Virginia you must be an adult of sound mind (an unemancipated minor cannot make one), put the will in writing, and sign it — and unless the will is entirely in your own handwriting, two competent witnesses must be present at the same time to watch you sign or acknowledge it and then sign in your presence. Notarization is not required, and Virginia does not allow electronic wills. Virginia recognizes a wholly handwritten (holographic) will with no witnesses, and if a will misses a formality a court can still uphold it on clear and convincing evidence you meant it as your will — though that harmless-error cure cannot supply a missing signature.
Ask Ezel about your situation
This is the general rule in Virginia. Ezel applies current Virginia law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law | Virginia Code Title 64.2, Chapter 4 governs wills; § 64.2-403 is the core execution statute. Virginia follows the common-law attested-will model (a written will signed before two witnesses) and also recognizes a wholly handwritten (holographic) will. It is NOT a notarial-will or electronic-wills state. § 64.2-401 sets who may make a will, § 64.2-404 supplies a harmless-error cure, and § 64.2-405 makes interested witnesses competent |
|---|---|
| Minimum age & capacity | Any individual may make a will EXCEPT one who is '(i) of unsound mind or (ii) an unemancipated minor' (§ 64.2-401(B)) — so 18, or an emancipated minor, and of sound mind. The statute does not define 'sound mind'; Virginia case law supplies the usual test. The self-proving certificate recites the testator was 'over the age of eighteen years and of sound and disposing mind and memory' (§ 64.2-452) |
| Writing & signature | Must be in writing and signed by the testator, 'or by some other person in the testator's presence and by his direction, in such a manner as to make it manifest that the name is intended as a signature' (§ 64.2-403(A)). No rule requires the signature to be at the end |
| Witnesses required | For a will not wholly handwritten, two competent witnesses 'who are present at the same time' must see the testator sign or acknowledge the will and 'subscribe the will in the presence of the testator' (§ 64.2-403(C)); 'No form of attestation of the witnesses shall be necessary.' An interested witness (a beneficiary) is fully competent and the gift is not void: no one is 'incompetent to testify for or against a will solely by reason of any interest' (§ 64.2-405) |
| Notarization & self-proving | Notarization is NOT required to sign a valid will — a notary is not a witness. A will may be made self-proved at execution or later by the testator's acknowledgment plus the witnesses' affidavits (§ 64.2-452) or acknowledgment (§ 64.2-453) before a notary or other officer, letting it be admitted to probate without live witness testimony |
| Handwritten (holographic) wills | Yes. 'A will wholly in the testator's handwriting is valid without further requirements, provided that the fact that [it] is wholly in the testator's handwriting and signed by the testator is proved by at least two disinterested witnesses' (§ 64.2-403(B)). No witnesses sign it and no date is required, but the entire will must be handwritten and two disinterested witnesses must prove the handwriting at probate |
| Electronic & remote wills | Not permitted. Virginia has not adopted the Uniform Electronic Wills Act — the most recent codification bill (HB 133, 2026) was defeated in committee, as were several prior attempts — and § 64.2-403 requires a physical writing signed before two witnesses present in person. A will signed only electronically or witnessed by video is not valid |
| Harmless-error / curative doctrine | Yes, but narrowed. A document not executed in compliance with § 64.2-403 is treated as if it were, if the proponent proves 'by clear and convincing evidence' the decedent intended it as a will (§ 64.2-404(A)). The cure may NOT excuse a missing testator signature (narrow exceptions aside), and the proceeding must be filed in a circuit court within one year of death (§ 64.2-404(B)) |
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Requirements one by one
Governing law
Virginia's will-execution rules live in the Code of Virginia, Title 64.2 (Wills,
Trusts, and Fiduciaries), Chapter 4. The core statute is § 64.2-403, which sets out
two paths to a valid will: a witnessed (attested) will and a wholly handwritten
(holographic) one. Section 64.2-401 says who may make a will, § 64.2-404 supplies a
harmless-error cure, and § 64.2-405 addresses witnesses who are also beneficiaries.
Virginia uses the traditional common-law attested will — a written document the
testator signs before two witnesses — and is not a civil-law "notarial will" state.
It has not adopted electronic wills.
Minimum age & capacity
Virginia states the rule as an exception rather than an age floor: "any individual
may make a will," but a person "is not capable of making a will if he is (i) of
unsound mind or (ii) an unemancipated minor" (§ 64.2-401). In practice that means you
must be 18 — or a minor who has been legally emancipated — and of sound mind. The
statute does not define "sound mind"; Virginia case law supplies the familiar test
(understanding that you are making a will, knowing the general nature and extent of
your property, and recalling the natural objects of your bounty). The self-proving
certificate form in § 64.2-452 assumes a testator "over the age of eighteen years and
of sound and disposing mind and memory."
Writing & signature
The will must be in writing and signed — either by the testator, or "by some other
person in the testator's presence and by his direction," so long as it is done "in
such a manner as to make it manifest that the name is intended as a signature"
(§ 64.2-403(A)). That covers a testator who physically cannot sign: another person may
sign the testator's name, but only in the testator's presence and at the testator's
direction. Virginia has no rule that the signature appear at the very end of the
document.
Witnesses required
An attested Virginia will — one not entirely in the testator's own handwriting — needs
two witnesses. The testator must either sign in front of them or acknowledge the will
to them, and the two witnesses must be "present at the same time" and then "subscribe
the will in the presence of the testator" (§ 64.2-403(C)). "Present at the same time"
is the key phrase: both witnesses have to be together with the testator for the signing
or acknowledgment. The statute adds that "No form of attestation of the witnesses shall
be necessary," so the witnesses need not use any particular wording — they just have to
sign. A beneficiary may serve as a witness: § 64.2-405 provides that "No person is
incompetent to testify for or against a will solely by reason of any interest" in the
will or estate, and Virginia has no "purging" rule that voids a gift to a witness.
Notarization & self-proving
A Virginia will does not have to be notarized to be valid — a notary is not a witness,
and notarizing a will does nothing to satisfy § 64.2-403's two-witness requirement.
What a notary can do is make the will "self-proved." Under § 64.2-452 the testator and
the two witnesses swear affidavits before a notary (or other authorized officer), and
under § 64.2-453 they instead acknowledge the will before the officer; either way the
officer's certificate is attached to the will. A self-proved will can be admitted to
probate without tracking the witnesses down to testify. Self-proving is optional and
can be done at signing or any time afterward.
Handwritten (holographic) wills
Virginia recognizes a holographic will. Under § 64.2-403(B), "A will wholly in the
testator's handwriting is valid without further requirements, provided that the fact
that [it] is wholly in the testator's handwriting and signed by the testator is proved
by at least two disinterested witnesses." Two points matter. First, "wholly" means the
entire will must be in your handwriting — a printed form with handwritten blanks does
not qualify. Second, although no one witnesses the signing, two disinterested witnesses
(people who inherit nothing) must later confirm at probate that the document is in your
handwriting. No date is required.
Electronic & remote wills
Virginia does not permit electronic wills. It has not enacted the Uniform Electronic
Wills Act, and § 64.2-403 requires a physical writing signed before two witnesses who
are present in person. The legislature has considered adopting electronic wills several
times and declined each time — most recently HB 133 in the 2026 session, which was
defeated in committee, and HB 210 in 2024, which the Senate voted down. Until that
changes, a will that exists only as a computer file, or that is "signed" by typing a
name or clicking a button, or witnessed only over video, is not valid in Virginia.
Harmless-error / curative doctrine
Virginia has a harmless-error rule, but a narrower one than many states. Under
§ 64.2-404(A), a document not executed in compliance with § 64.2-403 is still treated
as a valid will if its proponent proves "by clear and convincing evidence" that the
decedent intended it as a will. The important limit is in § 64.2-404(B): the rule
"may not be used to excuse compliance with any requirement for a testator's signature,"
except in two odd situations — two people who mistakenly sign each other's wills, or a
person who signs the self-proving certificate instead of the will itself. So harmless
error can rescue a witnessing problem, but it cannot supply a signature the testator
never made. And the cure is not automatic: someone must bring a proceeding in circuit
court within one year of the death, with all interested persons joined.
What trips people up
Notarizing a will is not the same as witnessing it. Taking a will to a notary and
stopping there does not create a valid Virginia will. Section 64.2-403(C) requires two
witnesses; a notary's acknowledgment satisfies nothing in that subsection. Notarization
matters only for the optional self-proving certificate attached to an already
properly witnessed will.
"Wholly" handwritten really means wholly. A holographic will is valid only if the
entire document is in your handwriting (§ 64.2-403(B)). People often fill in a
store-bought or downloaded will form by hand and sign it without witnesses — that is
neither a valid attested will (no witnesses) nor a valid holographic will (the printed
form text is not in your handwriting), and it can leave no valid will at all. A
holographic will also needs two disinterested witnesses to prove the handwriting later,
so choosing people who inherit nothing under it matters.
Harmless error will not save a will you never signed. Virginia's cure under
§ 64.2-404 can excuse a witnessing defect on clear and convincing evidence of intent,
but by its own terms it cannot excuse a missing testator signature (with two narrow
exceptions). Do not rely on it as a backstop; sign the will, and have two witnesses
present at the same time sign in your presence.
Common questions
Does my Virginia will have to be notarized? No. Virginia requires two witnesses,
not a notary (§ 64.2-403(C)). A notary is only used for the optional self-proving
certificate that lets the will be admitted to probate without live witness testimony
(§§ 64.2-452, 64.2-453).
Can I write my will out by hand instead? Yes. Virginia accepts a will that is
"wholly" in your handwriting and signed by you, with no witnesses at the signing
(§ 64.2-403(B)). But the whole thing must be handwritten, and after your death two
disinterested witnesses must prove to the court that the writing is yours.
Can I sign my will online or over video? No. Virginia has not adopted electronic
wills, and the most recent bill to do so was defeated in 2026. Section 64.2-403 still
requires a physical signed writing witnessed by two people present with you. Remote or
electronic-only signing does not make a valid Virginia will.
Can a person I'm leaving something to be one of my witnesses? Yes. Virginia is
unusual in that an interested witness is fully competent and the gift is not reduced or
voided (§ 64.2-405). Even so, using two witnesses who inherit nothing avoids questions
if the will is ever challenged.
Statutes and sources
- Va. Code § 64.2-401 — who may make a will: any individual except one of unsound mind or an unemancipated minor.
https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title64.2/chapter4/section64.2-401/ (accessed 2026-07-11) - Va. Code § 64.2-403 — core execution rule: writing and signature (A); wholly handwritten (holographic) wills (B); two witnesses present at the same time who subscribe in the testator's presence (C).
https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title64.2/chapter4/section64.2-403/ (accessed 2026-07-11) - Va. Code § 64.2-404 — harmless-error cure on clear and convincing evidence, and its limits (may not excuse a missing signature; circuit-court proceeding within one year of death).
https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title64.2/chapter4/section64.2-404/ (accessed 2026-07-11) - Va. Code § 64.2-405 — interested persons are competent witnesses; interest alone does not disqualify.
https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title64.2/chapter4/section64.2-405/ (accessed 2026-07-11) - Va. Code § 64.2-452 — self-proving a will by the testator's acknowledgment and the witnesses' affidavits before an officer.
https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title64.2/chapter4/section64.2-452/ (accessed 2026-07-11) - Va. Code § 64.2-453 — self-proving a will by acknowledgment of the testator and witnesses before an officer.
https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title64.2/chapter4/section64.2-453/ (accessed 2026-07-11)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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