Handwritten will

What is a handwritten will?

A testamentary disposition is an act of transfer of one's own property, which takes effect after the person's death. In order to have the right to make a will, the testator must have reached the age of majority and not suffer from mental illnesses that prevent him from making such decisions.

Form of the handwritten will

A handwritten will must be completely handwritten by the testator himself.

It has to contain:

• designation of the date when it was drawn up;

• names and personal data of the testator;

• names and personal data of the person to whom it is bequeathed;

• describe in detail what is being bequeathed

• a signature to be placed at the end.

Procedure performed by the testator in a manual will

One possibility is for the handwritten will to be kept by someone and after death to be presented to a notary who will declare it.

The other, more secure option is to hand over the handwritten will to the notary for safekeeping in a sealed envelope. The notary draws up a protocol on the envelope of the handwritten will itself, which is signed by the person who presented the will and by the notary and is filed in a special register.

Is it possible for the testator to take back the handwritten will?

A handwritten will handed over to the notary can only be withdrawn personally by the testator. In this case, the notary makes a note in the special register, which is signed by the testator, two witnesses and the notary.

Procedure carried out by the person to whom they bequeathed with handwritten wills

The person who has a handwritten will must, as soon as he learns of the testator's death, request its declaration by the notary. The law has not set a specific deadline.

Any person who has an interest in the bequeathed inheritance or property may request the district judge of the place where the testator died to set a deadline for the presentation of a handwritten will in order for it to be announced by the notary.

The notary announces the will by drawing up a protocol describing the state of the will and noting that it has been sealed. The protocol is signed by the person who presented the will and by the notary. Attached to the protocol is the book in which the will was written, signed on each page by the same persons.

If the handwritten will was handed over to a notary for safekeeping, then all actions to announce this handwritten will are performed by him.

It is important to know that regardless of whether the will is handwritten or notarized, it cannot harm the reserved part of an heir by law!