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Illinois Will Requirements
Support GuideIllinois16 min read

Illinois Will Requirements

Illinois will requirements: age 18 and sound mind, a signed writing, two credible witnesses, the 6-4 affidavit, plus electronic wills and remote witnessing.

By Settled Editorial

Illinois will requirements come down to a short list in the Probate Act of 1975, and most people want the bottom line first. To be valid in Illinois, a will must be in writing, signed by the testator (or by another person in the testator's presence and at the testator's direction), and attested in the presence of the testator by two or more credible witnesses. The maker must be at least 18 and of sound mind and memory. Illinois has no holographic will statute, so a handwritten will that nobody witnessed generally does not qualify, and Illinois has no ordinary spoken will. A separate act also allows electronic wills and remote witnesses, and it controls wherever it conflicts with the Probate Act. (See 755 ILCS 5/4-3, 755 ILCS 5/4-1, and 755 ILCS 6/1-15.)

Use this page as a planning map, not as a signing kit. Illinois courts apply these rules to the exact facts of each will, and one small signing mistake can put a will at risk once it reaches the Circuit Court. When real estate, a blended family, or a possible dispute is in the picture, talk with a licensed Illinois attorney before you sign.

This guide pairs with the Illinois probate guide for what happens after death, and with the Illinois intestate succession guide for who inherits when no valid will exists.

Who Can Make a Will in Illinois

Two capacity rules come first. Section 4-1 says every person who has attained the age of 18 years and is of sound mind and memory has power to dispose of real and personal estate by will. (Source: 755 ILCS 5/4-1.)

In plain terms:

  • Age 18. The maker must be at least 18. Illinois does not give minors a general path to make a will.
  • Sound mind and memory. The maker must understand, in a general way, that they are making a will, what they own, and who would normally receive it. Courts call this testamentary capacity. A will signed by someone who lacked sound mind and memory can be set aside.

Courts judge capacity at the moment of signing, not before or after. A later illness does not undo a will that was valid when the testator signed it.

Section 4-1 carries a second rule that the age-and-capacity summary can hide. Under Section 4-1(b), a rebuttable presumption treats a will or codicil as void when the testator executed or modified it after being adjudicated disabled under Article XIa of the Act and either a plenary guardian was appointed under Section 11a-12(c), or a limited guardian was appointed under Section 11a-12(b) and the court found the testator lacks testamentary capacity. Clear and convincing evidence that the testator had capacity at signing overcomes the presumption, and the presumption does not reach a will or codicil completed under Section 11a-18(d-5). It applies only to wills and codicils executed or modified on or after January 1, 2016. (Source: 755 ILCS 5/4-1.)

The Signing Rules Illinois Requires

Section 4-3 sets the execution rules for an ordinary Illinois will. The statute is short: every will shall be in writing, signed by the testator (or by some person in the testator's presence and by the testator's direction), and attested in the presence of the testator by two or more credible witnesses. Here is the same rule as a checklist. (Source: 755 ILCS 5/4-3.)

  1. Writing. The will must be in writing. Illinois has no valid oral will.
  2. The testator's signature. The testator signs the will. If the testator cannot sign, another person may sign for the testator, but only in the testator's presence and at the testator's direction.
  3. Two credible witnesses. Two or more credible witnesses attest the will, and they sign in the presence of the testator.

Section 4-3(a) is not the only way to satisfy the execution rules. Section 4-3(b) treats a will that qualifies as an international will under the Uniform International Wills Act as meeting every requirement of subsection (a). The Electronic Wills, Electronic Estate Planning Documents, and Remote Witnesses Act at 755 ILCS 6/ adds an electronic path and a remote-witness path, covered in the next section.

The two-witness rule is the part that trips up homemade wills. Section 4-3 requires each witness to attest in the presence of the testator, so on the ordinary paper path a witness who signs later, outside the testator's sight, puts the will at risk. Section 4-3 says nothing about whether the two witnesses have to attest at the same moment, so the cleanest signing keeps everyone present at once and watching. Pick adults who take nothing under the will when you can, and keep them easy to find later.

One point that helps homemade wills: the witnesses do not have to watch the pen touch the page. Under the proof rules below, a witness can attest either after seeing the testator sign or after the testator acknowledges an already-signed will as their own. That said, signing in front of both witnesses is the simplest way to avoid an argument.

Electronic Wills and Remote Witnesses

Illinois opened a second execution path in 2021. The Electronic Wills, Electronic Estate Planning Documents, and Remote Witnesses Act sits at 755 ILCS 6/, and under Section 1-15 its requirements control wherever they conflict with the Probate Act or the common law. Two routes reach wills:

  • An electronic will. Section 5-5 validates a will executed by the testator, or by another person in the testator's presence and at the testator's direction, and attested in the testator's presence by two or more credible witnesses who sign with electronic signatures after seeing the testator sign or acknowledge the signature. The Act defines an electronic will as one created and maintained as a tamper-evident electronic record. (Source: 755 ILCS 6/5-5.)
  • Remote attestation. Section 15-10 validates a will attested through audio-video communication by two or more credible witnesses located in the United States at the time of attestation, where the will names Illinois as its place of execution. The Act's definition of presence reaches a witness in a different physical location who can tell in real time, over audio-video, that the person is signing. Where the will carries separate signature pages, attestation clauses, or affidavits, the signed page is attached to the paper document within 10 business days of the attestation. (Source: 755 ILCS 6/15-10 and 755 ILCS 6/1-20.)

Each route carries its own formalities, and a signing that mixes paper and electronic steps can raise questions at probate. Talk with an Illinois attorney who handles electronic execution before you sign a will this way.

Handwritten and Oral Wills Under Illinois Law

A frequent question: does Illinois accept a will you wrote out by hand and never had witnessed? Generally no. Illinois has no holographic will statute. Section 4-3 requires that every will be attested by two or more credible witnesses, so a handwritten page signed only by the maker, with no witnesses, does not qualify when it is executed in Illinois. (Source: 755 ILCS 5/4-3.)

One door runs the other way, and it matters to families who move. Under Section 7-1, a will signed by the testator may be admitted to probate in Illinois when the will has already been admitted to probate outside Illinois, or when it was executed outside Illinois in accordance with the law of Illinois, of the place where it was executed, or of the testator's domicile at the time it was executed. An unwitnessed handwritten will that was validly made in a state that recognizes holographic wills can reach an Illinois court through that route. (Source: 755 ILCS 5/7-1.)

Illinois also has no ordinary spoken will, sometimes called a nuncupative will. The same statute requires a will to be in writing, so a verbal statement of your wishes, a note left in a drawer, or a text message cannot stand in for a signed, witnessed document. A handwritten will can be perfectly valid in Illinois, but only when two credible witnesses attest it the same way they would attest a typed will.

Proving the Will: the Witness Affidavit

Getting a will admitted to probate is its own step, and Illinois makes it easier when you plan ahead. Section 6-4 says that when each of two attesting witnesses states that the testator signed the will (or acknowledged it) in the witness's presence, that the witness attested it in the presence of the testator, and that the witness believed the testator to be of sound mind and memory, the execution is sufficiently proved to admit the will, unless there is proof of fraud, forgery, compulsion, or other improper conduct that in the opinion of the court is enough to invalidate or destroy the will. That last phrase is a catch-all, so the grounds a court can act on run wider than the three named ones. Those statements can be made three ways: by live testimony, by an attestation clause signed by the witness as part of the will, or by an affidavit the witness signs at or after the time of attestation. (Source: 755 ILCS 5/6-4.)

That third option is what many people call a self-proving affidavit. Here is why it matters:

  • A sworn affidavit from the attesting witnesses, signed when the will is executed or later, lets the court admit the will without pulling the witnesses back into a hearing.
  • The affidavit does not replace the witnesses at signing. It is an extra sworn statement by the same people who attested the will.
  • With the affidavit attached, an executor can usually open the estate even if a witness has since died or moved away.

Adding the witness affidavit under Section 6-4 is the single easiest way to help an Illinois will move through probate without a hunt for the witnesses years later.

Witnesses Who Also Inherit

Here is where Illinois protects the will but can shrink a gift. Under Section 4-6(a), a beneficial legacy or interest the will gives to a person who attests its execution, or to that person's spouse, is void as to that beneficiary and anyone claiming under them, unless the will is also attested by enough other credible witnesses on its own, without counting the attesting person. Even when the gift is void, that beneficiary can still receive an amount up to the share of the estate they would have taken had the will not been established, meaning their share under intestacy. (Source: 755 ILCS 5/4-6.)

The spouse half of that rule is easy to miss. Having a beneficiary's husband or wife witness the will can void the gift to the beneficiary just as surely as having the beneficiary sign. The same section also protects other roles: under Section 4-6(b), an individual or corporation is not disqualified from acting or being paid in a fiduciary capacity merely because an employee, partner, or shareholder attested the will, and the same holds for an attorney or a partnership of attorneys. Under Section 4-6(c), a creditor whose debt the will charges against the estate may testify to the will's execution.

The safer move is to use two witnesses who take nothing under the will and are not married to anyone who does. Two disinterested witnesses remove the forfeiture question and cut off any later argument about pressure or bias.

Does an Illinois Will Need a Notary

Illinois does not require a will to be notarized to be valid. A will in writing, signed by the testator and attested by two credible witnesses, is valid with no notary at all. A notary comes in only for the witness affidavit under Section 6-4, since an affidavit is a sworn statement made before an officer authorized to administer oaths. That affidavit speeds probate, but it is not part of what makes the will valid. Skipping the notary does not void your will; it only means the witnesses may have to prove the will in person later.

How an Illinois Will Is Revoked

A valid will can be undone, and the method matters. Section 4-7 says a will may be revoked only in one of four ways: by burning, cancelling, tearing, or obliterating it (done by the testator, or by someone in the testator's presence and at the testator's direction and consent); by a later will that declares the revocation; by a later will to the extent it is inconsistent with the earlier one; or by a separate instrument that declares the revocation and is signed and attested with the same formalities a will requires. A stray note in the margin or a spoken change of heart does not revoke an Illinois will. (Source: 755 ILCS 5/4-7.)

One revival rule is worth knowing. If a will is partially revoked by an instrument that is itself later revoked, that revoked part of the will is revived and takes effect as if there had been no revocation. Because these rules are technical, the safe path when your wishes change is to sign a new will, with the same two-witness formality you used the first time, rather than crossing out lines by hand.

Divorce Revokes Gifts to a Former Spouse

Divorce rewrites part of your will by operation of law. Under Section 4-7, a judgment of dissolution of marriage or a declaration that the marriage is invalid revokes every gift, interest, power of appointment, and fiduciary nomination the will gave to the former spouse, when the will was signed before the judgment. The will then takes effect as if the former spouse had died before the testator. The rest of the will stays in force. (Source: 755 ILCS 5/4-7.)

Because a divorce cuts an ex-spouse out on its own, review your whole plan after any divorce. Your will, your beneficiary designations, and any trust may each follow different rules, so confirm that each one names the people you want. See the Illinois surviving spouse rights guide for how a current spouse's protections fit alongside these rules.

After You Sign: File the Will With the Circuit Court Clerk

The original signed will is what the court needs, so store it where your executor can find it and tell them where it is. Illinois also puts a duty on whoever holds the will. Under Section 6-1(a), immediately upon the testator's death, any person who has the will in their possession must file it with the clerk of the court of the proper county, and the court can compel production. That duty is subject to Section 5.15 of the Secretary of State Act. Under Section 6-1(b), anyone who wilfully alters or destroys a will without the testator's direction, or wilfully secretes it for 30 days after the death is known to them, is on conviction sentenced as in cases of theft of property classified as a Class 3 felony under the law that applied at the date of the offense. The 30-day period does not apply to the Secretary of State acting under that same Section 5.15. Do not sit on the original. Deliver it to the clerk soon after the death. (Source: 755 ILCS 5/6-1.)

What This Means for Your Plan

If you want an Illinois will that holds up, the clean version usually looks like this:

  1. Confirm the maker is at least 18 and of sound mind and memory.
  2. Put the will in writing and have the testator sign it, or have someone sign for the testator in the testator's presence and at the testator's direction.
  3. Have two credible witnesses attest the will and sign in the presence of the testator, and use witnesses who take nothing under the will.
  4. Add a sworn witness affidavit under Section 6-4 so the witnesses do not have to appear at probate.
  5. Store the original where your executor can reach it, and have whoever holds it file it with the Circuit Court clerk soon after the death.

A will is one piece of an Illinois estate plan. Many people pair it with documents that work during life and with tools that skip probate. See the Illinois power of attorney guide and the Illinois health care directive guide for the lifetime documents, the Illinois guide to avoiding probate and the Illinois estate planning basics guide for the wider plan, and the Illinois executor duties guide for the job an executor takes on once a will is admitted. When a signing formality is missed or a will is signed under pressure, these same rules become the grounds to challenge it. See how to contest a will in Illinois for the dispute side, and the Illinois intestate succession guide for what happens when no valid will stands. For the full path an estate takes through the Circuit Court, start at the Illinois probate guide or the Illinois county probate directory.

This guide is general information about Illinois wills, not advice for your situation. Confirm anything that affects your estate with the clerk of your Circuit Court or a licensed Illinois attorney before you sign or rely on a will.

Sources:

It is not legal advice.

Prefer to talk it through? Connect with an estate-planning attorney

Settled Estate is not a law firm and does not give legal advice.

Information current as of July 18, 2026

Settled Estate is not a law firm, and this content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Probate laws and procedures in Illinois can change. Consult with a qualified attorney for advice specific to your situation. Full disclaimer.

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