Importance of will and some essential points to be considered while making a will

POSTED BY Jagoinvestor ON November 14, 2010 COMMENTS (717)

We will learn about creating a WILL in India today, but before that you need to answer this question – “Do you want to leave your wealth and let your loved one’s fight with each other to get their shares (a la the Ambanis!)?” –

I guess not! . If you nominated some one in all the financial products you bought and thought that it will be passed to them legally without any issues, you are living in the world of fantasies (kind of :). It’s a common misconception). You need to create a WILL to distribute your wealth in the manner you want to, and having nominated someone ain’t the answer!

Lets fine out in this article, how to make a will in India ?

importance of will

What is a Will ?

A will can be made by anyone above 21 years of age in India. You can make the will on plain paper in India. It’s not legally necessary to make the will on stamp paper. It is advisable to write your will in your own hand writing, as the same can be verified later in case of any doubts raised by relatives.

It might happen that according to your family structure and your preferences, you want to divide your wealth unequally or make a provision for a close friend or a faithful servant. This isn’t possible if you die without a will.

A lot of us feel that talking about “Making a Will” is pretty morbid, and hence, we don’t look at it with right attitude.

“A will is a sensitive topic to open up to. People are not comfortable discussing a will in India. There is a misconception that if someone tells you to make a will, the person thinks that indirectly you are telling him that his end is near or that you are eyeing his property. However, all apprehensions disappear when I tell them the consequences of not making a will.”

– Says Shankar Pai, who has done some commendable work in area of spreading awareness on making wills.

How to make a WILL in India and its importance ?

A will is so important, that it should be your first step in your financial life. If your family structure is diverse, and you want to leave your wealth to different members of family like you want to, you should prepare your WILL today, not tomorrow, not later.

To wit, if you die without preparing a WILL in India, your wealth will then be distributed as per ‘Hindu Succession Law’ (Government rules, on how wealth should be divided among family members). A common misconception, is to believe that all the estate is automatically passed on to the spouse, because children and sometimes even relatives can stake a claim to the property.

Laws of inheritance and succession, are complicated and diverse in nature, and are different in case of Hindus and Muslims.

Inconvenience for the family members:

Another point you should consider, is the inconvenience caused to your family members because of your laziness, in not making a will for them. In case of a dispute, your family members have to produce the proof about their relationship with and also have to go helter-skelter to lawyers and spent money and energy.

Much better then, to gift them some time of yours, and creating a will! This will save them a lot of headache.

Watch this video to know why it is necessary to get a registered will:

How do you make a Will in India?

A will has several parts, which duly completed, make up a complete Will. Though there is no legal or defined format, there is a template, which has been generally used for ages. It’s simple, it’s very logical and derives from common sense. Let’s look the whole format and some important points while creating a will.

Step 1 : Declaration in the beginning :

In the first paragraph, you have to declare that you are making this will in your full senses and free from any kind of pressure. You have to mention your name, address, age, etc at the time of writing the will so that it confirms that you really are, in your senses 🙂

Step 2 : Details of Property and Documents :

The next step is to provide list of items and their current values, like house, land, bank fixed deposits, postal investments, mutual funds, share certificates owned by you. You must also indicate, where all these documents are stored by you. In all probability, these are in your bank safe deposit box.

Even the will should be stored in there! Make sure, you take the details from the bank manager, about the procedure and rules of releasing your will from the safe deposit after your death. Make sure you communicate it to the executor of the Will or your family members.

I am sure, they’ll be pretty interested in this 🙂

Step 3: Details of ownership :

At the end of the will, you should mention who should own your assets items and in what proportion, after you have gone.  If you are giving your assets to a minor, make sure you appoint a custodian of your assets till the individual you have selected, reaches an adult age. This custodian obviously, has to be a trustworthy person.

Step 4 : Signing the Will :

At the end, once you complete writing your will, you must sign the will very carefully in presence of at least two independent witnesses, who have to sign after your signature, certifying that you have signed the will in their presence. The date and place, also must be indicated clearly at the bottom of the will.

Make sure you and the witnesses sign all the pages of the will. One important point while choosing witness, is that they should be your friends, neighbors, or your colleagues and not the direct beneficiaries in the Will. They only certify, that you yourself have signed the will in their presence and are not a party in making the will in India.

The envelope has to be sealed after completing all the formalities and the seal must bear your signature and the date of sealing. The witnesses need not sign on the seal of the envelope.

sample of WILL in India

See another Template from Department of Stamp and Registration, Karnataka here, thanks to Babu .

Execution of Will in Court ?

When you are dead, there is someone called an “Executor” who will be responsible for dividing your wealth amongst the beneficiaries and he will make sure the whole process is smooth (You must have seen this in Hindi movies). It is not legally required to get the will executed in a court of law in presence of a judicial Magistrate in India.

However, if you wish, the will can be executed in the presence of Magistrate or the public notary, nominated by the government authorities and sealed in their presence.

Changing the WILL in India ?

You can change your will any time you want to. However, make sure that when you make a new will, you mention that this will is the latest and supersedes all earlier wills. If you don’t, it can complicate the situation, cause major confusion, make such matters go to the court of law and take several years before arriving at any final verdict.

Making a Will through Lawyer

Do-it-yourself” wills often do not contain all the necessary components as required by law and many times ruled as invalid by courts (for example no signatures from witness or no witness at all). Many a time,  it can happen that while creating the will, you use such ambiguous language that it results in lengthy legal battles (“My House should go to Sunita.”

Now if both mother and wife are called Sunita, which Sunita ought to get it?. Anyone who might benefit from the ambiguity of the will can jump in to claim a share! And if the courts decide in his/her favour, you wont like that situation 🙂 (not that, you’ll be around!)

What is a Probate and it’s importance?

A probate is nothing but a copy of will, certified under the seal of court. The executor (someone who is responsible to execute the will) has to file a probate petition in the court of law and if all goes well, the probate takes six months to a year. No right as executor or legatee can be established unless a court has granted the probate of the Will.

Probate can be granted only to the executor appointed by the Will. The cost of getting a probate includes legal fees as well as stamp duty on the value of the property being willed. The stamp duty varies from state to state. Probate is very important in case of Real Estate.

As per Sundar, a reader of this blog…

Legal heirs to get possession of the property from the nominees have to go through a legal process called probate. In Maharashtra this means, the will have to be submitted to Registrar and one will have to obtain a probate. The Registrar may ask the claimants to put an advertisement in newspaper to ensure that they will not be contested.

They may even ask the witnesses who have signed the will to come to their office and sign documents. After all this, and some court affidavits, the claimants have to pay the necessary tax to the state govt. which is hefty and based on property value. After Goverments takes its cut, then finally the probate order is given. Only then will the legal heirs get their property.

Note that, probate requirements differ from state to state. Hence even when making a will a Lawyer should be consulted. I know of fights between Nominees and Legal Heirs. Roadblocks put up by Goverment ( some times they ask for Registered Will etc.).

So just writing a will is not the end of the story. Better consult a lawyer before drawing a will.

Further please note especially in case of land or house property, the society will not transfer the flat without a probate and tax paid certificate. Many times, a prospective buyer will not buy a flat or land, if the holding is not clear and if the property had not been cleanly transferred and if there are disputes between nominees and legal heirs.

Flat may still stay in the dead person’s name till their heirs and nominees settle their disputes. Till then, the flat may be used by Nominees or any other person. But Society will not transfer the flat to prospective buyer till the process of probate is settled first. Hence such property cannot be sold easily.

Please proceed with great care in this matter.

Important points while making a Will

  • If possible, have the two witnesses be a doctor and a lawyer. A doctor signing a will, won’t raise any question of you, being of unsound mind. The lawyer, will vet the will and make sure you dont make stupid mistakes at the time of writing and signing it. 🙂
  • The attesting witness and his or her spouse should not be a beneficiary under the terms of your Will. This might create vested interests and some times make your will invalid. Also, make sure the witnesses are younger than you and not very old as your will might be in effect for several years! And you want them to be present in this world 🙂
  • Write your will on good quality thick white paper so it doesn’t get spoiled over a period of time. It should be stored in a plastic envelope in full size, without folds.
  • Note that you should keep just one more copy of will and stored separately from the original will. The will must be stored very safely in your bank, in safe deposit box. You must also inform your next of kin, as to where you have stored your will. Do not make many copies of your will.
  • In case of Hindus, it should be clearly stated if the property is inherited or not, because it makes a huge difference, as no ancestral property can be assigned to any person through a will. All rights on inherited property are acquired by birth. So if you inherited a property from your Father, you cannot say in a will, that you want to assign it to person X only! It will go to all your legal heirs as it is “Inherited”
  • A will must always be dated and if more than one will is made, the one with the latest date will nullify all the previous ones. In fact, there should be a statement in your will, nullifying all other previous wills. The pages should be numbered to avoid fraud.
  • The value of assets often fluctuates, so it is better to mention how much each beneficiary will receive, in percentage terms rather than absolute numbers. Unless it is pure cash.

So what appeals to you more ? Writing a will your self or hiring a lawyer for this and pay to him ? I hope you are clear about the rules and procedure for writing a WILL in India ?


717 replies on this article “Importance of will and some essential points to be considered while making a will”

  1. Sanjay Kumar says:

    Hi, My father has inherited property. My brother is trying to delay the division of asset. I would like to know how he can write a WILL for his portion of share from inherited property so that he can give his portion to anyone he wish and will not be equally divided after his death to his all children.

    1. Sanjay Kumar says:

      In addition to that, My father is based in USA and his inherited asset in in INDIA. Can he write a WILL without going to India.

      Thanks,
      Sanjay

      1. I am not sure on that. Please get in touch with a lawyer for this

    2. Hi Sanjay

      This is complicated and you should talk to a lawyer on this

  2. Bala says:

    Will is written and attested by Doctor and Lawyer in 1994. They are no more now. Note: Will is not registered. Does the will is valid for name transfer?

    1. I am not sure on this .

  3. harsh says:

    can an indian person make a will of a property he gets registered in claim of a property he left in pakistan during partition of india

    1. I am not sure on this . Talk to a lawyer for this

  4. Sir

    In case a will is signed and the attesting witnesses are attesting on two different time lines, ( both of them not being present at the same time), but the testator makes a claim to that extent of the two witnesses being present at the time of his/her signing the will, is it a valid will?
    also, if the witnesses sign on two different dates, does it require that the testator signs two times, the same will, each time in the presence of each witness and so records it in the will and mentions it explicitly?

    1. Please check with a good lawyer for this issue

  5. kumar says:

    Hi,
    i have property( two houses in Bangalore) and Mutual funds and bank deposits. i have a son who is not mentally stable . how do we take care of him by making proper will?pl help.thanks

    1. Jagoinvestor Admin says:

      Hi kumar

      Your cases is a bit complex and I think we are not the right people to comment on it.

      My suggestion would be hire someone who is professional in this area and consult them

      Manish

  6. Rita says:

    What is meant by INHEARITED PROPERTY. Grand father made property from his own earning and WILLED it to his four sons equalily. Can my father,one of the recepient,WILL this property to my brother only ignoring two daughters.(Hindu family)

    1. Jagoinvestor Admin says:

      Hi Rita

      No, it is still an inherited policy . Therefore ,you, your brother,and your sister all have equal rights.

  7. kalpana says:

    this webside is very good. I think I shall profitable through your valuable information.

    1. Jagoinvestor Admin says:

      Thanks for your comment kalpana

  8. Vijay says:

    Am serving in the Armed Forces, in my service document as per protocol,I have to name my wife as a nominee for my service benefits which I don’t want to do since I have a divorce case pending in the court. However ,I would like to make my old & helpless Parents as nominees. My will made from court be valid in the Armed Forces.

    1. Sir, for that you need to check with the concerned authority , Mention to them that you are not married or divorced !

  9. swayam says:

    how important it is to get the will registered ? what are its advantages in govt. organisations for transfer of name etc. ? & expenses involved in the court to get it registered ? if we consult a lawyer it seems getting will registered has become mandatory ? I shall appreciate your response please. thanx

    1. Registering is not mandatory, but registering the will helps a lot as it becomes validated and kind of certified

  10. Sandeep says:

    Hi Manish,

    To whom to contact to make a WILL and how much cost it needs ( approx) to make a WILL and Registered it.

    1. Contact a local Lawyer for that !

  11. Badri says:

    Hi Manish,
    I have properties located at four different SRO Zones within Tamil Nadu. I live in one of the SRO zones. So where should I be registering my Will if I were address all these properties in a single Will?
    I also want to address future constructions that might happen on one of the vacant house plot in the Will? Is it legally allowed to address such futuristic acquisition or construction in a current will?
    Appreciate your clarification in these two clarifications.

    1. I cant comment on that. A lawyer should be consulted for this matter!

  12. Pranay says:

    Dear Manishji,

    Thank you for the very informative article, but i needed some clarity as i was reading online about this topic in many places and in another blog (https://www.easylaw.in/articles/what-is-will-and-why-is-necessary-to-make-will) is said that when the testator of a will signs the will, this must be done in the presence of 2 witneses and they should have seen the testator sign or affix his mark to the will. Is this correct and can you confirm the same for me?

    Thanks for your help.

    1. Yes, thats true !

  13. ankur_eco says:

    Hi. There is a special case in which one of my friend’s grandmother had two properties on her name, one on freehold, and one of leasehold. But she passed away about 10 years back. Grandmother has 4 kids and she left a will (registered) that both the properties should be given to only 1 person (A) out of 4. But A has not done the transfer of title yet, means both the properties are still on A’s mother name (here means Grandmother’s name). Now A wants to draft his own will. Can A transfer these two properties to his heir, because as per Will, these properties belong to A but properties are still on A’s mother name? Is it possible? Jurisdiction: Delhi, India, Hindu

    1. I dont think its possible yet .. THe properties has to be on his name first . Anyways unless the person dies it will not come into effect. Check with a good lawyer on this

  14. Jennifer says:

    Hello. My husband is Indian and became a US citizen. I am not Indian I am Anerican and we have a 6 year old daughter. My husband inherited property a couple of years ago. Our question is, how do we protect ourselves in case of my husbands death down the line. Do we make a will in India and can I inherit the property or not? Thanks for your help.

    1. If your husband can make a WILL, then you can have all the property !

  15. Narider says:

    My father-in law expired in december,2015.My wife has one sister & one elder brother. His brother has cashed all assets( F.D’s) as he had nomination in his name. Now, i have come to know that there exists a “WILL” for equal distribution of these FD’s between all the three children . The WILL is stated to be not Registered.

    Whether my wife can claim her share of this assets.

  16. Mayank says:

    Hi Manish,

    I want to know some details about one family case…My Father passed away before 20 years and after that My grandpa gave us a shelter and since then my mother had taken care of my grandpa and grandma. so my grandpa had made a notary will of a 1000 sqft property (Its not a ancestral property, he bought it by himself) on a name of my mother before his death around 15 years back and my grandma had given sammatipatra (agreement) to the will And since 15 years the property is on the name of my mother but suddenly three sisters of my mother asking for property claim … so i just want to confirm what would be the predictions or end results if they go to the court..?

    Thanks..!!

    1. A property if not REGISTERED will obviously be liable for challenge. I think you need to meet a good lawyer in this case.

      Manish

  17. KISHORE says:

    HI,
    MANISH
    1-MY FATHER(AGE 75 HINDU) GETS TWO MARRIGES FROM FIRST MARRIAGE SHE HAS ONE GIRL CHILD(MARRIED) AND FROM SECOND MARRIGE ONLY SINGLE SON. THEY ARE SEPERATED TO US.
    2-THERE IS 32 YEARS OF BEING SECOND MARRIGE .
    3- MY FATHER HAS MAKEING AN REGISTERED WILL TO MY MOTHER.
    4-IS ANYONE CAN CHALLEGE THIS REGISTERED WILL AFTER THE FATHER.

    1. Hi KISHORE

      Your cases is a bit complex and I think we are not the right people to comment on it.

      My suggestion would be hire someone who is professional in this area and consult them

      Manish

    2. KISHORE says:

      THANKYOU

      IT WILL BE HELP FULL FOR ME.

  18. Namrata says:

    Hello Manish. My mom wants to make a will. We are two siblings me and my mom is staying with my brother. I m married. My father is expires in 2010. The properties has been transferred on my moms name. She wants to make a will. Is it ok if she writes a will on a plain paper and seeks the signature of 2 witnesses seal it and keep it in the locker informing the bank incharge. Or she has to register it.

    1. Namrata

      Writing a will on plain paper is totally fine along with 2 witness, however I strongly suggest that she registers it, because if its not registers, then it can be challenged very easily and things wrong drag in court for a long time. I suggest she meets a lawyer for this and done it properly!

      Manish

  19. Prabhakar says:

    Dear Mr. Manish Chauhan i have a question on behalf of a Muslim friend and his mother, she has two sons and two daughters and reside in Mumbai, my friend’s mother has two homes, one is 1 RK. in a building 250 sq. feet worth about 1 crore and a 150 sqf. room in a chawl close by worth about Rs. 40 lakhs which she wish to give to my friend only along with the bank FD. of about 50 lakhs and 250 grams of gold. her two daughters have disobeyed her and married against her will and the other son is a gambler and drunkard so she wants to pass all her belongings to the one son whom she trusts and he obeys her. can she will that under Indian law ? will that will be valid ?
    for your information, all the above mentioned assets were earned by my friend’s mother not a single rupee was inherited from any one including her deceased husband all the wealth was earned by her and her alone.
    is it possible to legally pass everything to her one son thru her will under Indian law ?

    1. Hi Prabhakar

      Muslim succession laws are different and not exactly like Hindu’s . I cant comment on this as I have very basic and limited knowledge on this. So I suggest that she contacts a good lawyer for this anyways.

      Manish

  20. rajesh says:

    Hi,

    My grandmother had acquired a property X from her mother when my grandmother was 17 years old at the time of 1957.So now she is a absolute owner of the property X and she has given a registered power of attorney to a builder for selling and promoting the Property X into a apartment complex 3 years back.In the power of attorney she has mentioned the builder cannot sell the land share and only after her signature a sale deed can be done for the Property X.

    Before 5 years she has given a Registered Will for his 4 sons stating that Property X rights only belongs to the 4 sons and nobody apart from them can claim rights to the property.Just 1 year back his 1 of the son (last of the 4 surving sons) died in an road accident.So after his son died my Grandmother gave a settlement deed for all his sons which 2 flats for each sons from the apartment complex built by the developers from Property X.

    The last son who died in a car accident is survived by his wife and 2 minor kids.

    Unfortunately my grandmother died 2 weeks back.She was the absolute owner of the Property X and she signed all the UDS document for the builders for the Property X.She has to to sign the last 2 UDS documents for the builder before which she died.

    My questions are.

    1.Who will sign the documents for the Property X for the 2 more UDS documents which needs to be signed for the builder.

    2.As per Registred Will the 4 sons can sign after her death.

    3.But since the 4th son is expired and who is survived by a wife and 2 sons.
    What will happen to the rights of the 4th sons.

    4.If the rights goes to the 4th expired sons wife Can she act as a gaurdian and sign the Property X.

    Kindly clarify,
    RAJESH

    1. Hi rajesh

      Its suggest to meet a property lawyer on this issue.

  21. Meenakshi says:

    Hi Manish,
    Thanks nice to know in the article everything about the will. I Have few queries
    1) My Father has made the will but its not been registered
    2) We are 2 Sisters and one brother. And will is been made on the name of one sister. Younger daughter of the family.
    3) She takes care of the Mother now we want to execute the will on her name. I have signed the NOC and even my Mom. We are only concerned my bro not signing the NOC as he is a legal hier. So in this case how we should go about
    4) Will is been made in front of 2 witness and been signed.
    5) On the will everything is on the name of my younger sister

    So need your guidance . How to go about.

    Thanks and Regards

    1. If father has made the WILL , then there should not be an issue.

  22. nilesh says:

    I am 65 yrs old man. Living with my wife, my only son, daughter in law and grand son. I have flat in Thane, Maharashtra. I want my son to be the owner of this flat after my death. During ownership transfer, will he have to pay stamp duty? According to new rule in Maharashtra, there will be no stamp duty on property transfer if it is transferred to close relatives, is it valid after death as well? Thanks

    1. No , he will not have to pay stamp duty if you prepare a gift deed properly. I suggest hire a lawyer for this matter

  23. Ayush says:

    Hi Manish,

    Great article. My grandfather died 2years back and at that time there was only my grandma with him. My grandma says that he didn’t wrote a will. We believe that she is hiding his will. Is there any way through which we can know if my grandpa has written a will or not. Also, if he has not written a will, does that make my grandma owner of all property and can she write her own will?

    1. There is no way to find if he had written will orn ot.

  24. Santhanam says:

    My wife is having three sisters and one brother. In the year 1994 when my mother in law discharged from hospital after taking treatment for her kidney problem in her house my wife*s brother got signatures from his 4 sisters in a blank paper and took my mother in law to Registrar office and prepared a Will on his (my wife* brother ) own wish and therby enjoying the house and land. But one of my wife*s sister was not signed in the blank paper. But their brother made forgery signature of her. Please let me know how I cancell the Will. After registering the Will my mother in law expired within a month. Please advise me the legal way of disproving the Will.

    1. Meet the lawyer in this case..

  25. va says:

    Thanks for this informative article. Can you please tell where can I find format of a joint will? Me and my wife want to make a joint will for our two children — a boy and a girl.

    1. va says:

      Kindly guide. Thanks.

    2. Its suggested to get in touch with a good lawyer on this

  26. GANESH says:

    Manish Sir,
    Please guide me how to make a will for a property which my dad has inherited through his father.There is a Land (Around 4 Acers) and a House.

    Please guide me for the same ASAP

    1. Hi GANESH

      Your cases is a bit complex and I think we are not the right people to comment on it.

      My suggestion would be hire someone who is professional in this area and consult them

      Manish

  27. Nav says:

    Dear Manish,
    My mother passed away and in her HINDU WILL she has left her flat to me. I am a NRI.
    (a) Can I set up a private trust in my mother’s name and have the Title of flat modified by adding Trust at the end of the name? (b) Can she be Trustee, posthumously? (c) will I be a beneficiary? along with one more person? (need 2 people for a Trust). (d) I wish to rent it from her Trust and use the money to pay utilities and balance remaining per year to donate in her name.
    Please help me. Thanks.
    Nav

    1. Hi Nav

      A CA is more qualified to answer you query, hence I suggest better get in touch one.

      We are not right people to talk on this

      Manish

      1. Nav says:

        Thanks Manish. It is a delayed thank you as I was out of country!

        1. Glad to know that Nav ..

  28. sandeep says:

    sir,
    I with my mother purchased a plot earlier(paid half of the money both). Now I can’t build house on that plot as its on my mothers name. My parent want me to make a house there. but as i have one brother and one sister. If i make this then they would share this after them or demand their part. When i said my mother that you will take balance money from me she denied and said i can transfer deed of that plot to you and you would be owner after her death. So I have make papers of transfer deed and got it registered with photo of me and my mother. Now Is this okay i want to know or my sibling still demand their part or not. Is it legally right or what. I belong to punjab. Coz my parents always hide their property and wealth from us. I insisted them to make a proper will. but all in vain. Kindly advice can i make a house on that plot now or not.

    1. Hi sandeep

      Your cases is a bit complex and I think we are not the right people to comment on it.

      My suggestion would be hire someone who is professional in this area and consult them

      Manish

  29. rao says:

    Very Nice information with subsequent information.

    1. Thanks for your comment rao

  30. ZealJadhav says:

    My mom got home from her father after his death according to his will. his father only wrote that i give my this house to my daughter. so now my mom’s brother my mama demands for the wealth that is kept inside the house.

    no discription of that wealth inside the house was written in grandfathers will. so do we have to distribute that wealth or it is legally only my mom’s

    1. Yes, the wealth inside the house will be shared with everyone . Only the HOUSE was given to your mother legally !

  31. Chacko says:

    IS IT COMPULSORY TO REGISTER THE WILL AND IF SO WHAT IS THE PROCEDURE AND COST OF THE SAME

    1. No ,its not compulory .. but suggested . Meet a lawyer for this .

  32. Surinder says:

    My father made a will while he was visiting us in the United States. He passed away in March 2015. According to his will everything will be divided between my sisters and me. The will was not registered. When I went to India a couple of banks asked me to get a registered will. How can I register it once he has passed away? The will was aposilled in the US. One bank asked me for a succession certificate whereas a copy of the will was provided to them along with a no objection certificate from my sisters.

    1. Tom says:

      So a will made in US cannot be executed in India?

    2. Yes, the second bank asking you for will along with succession certificate and NOC is telling you the correct thing.

  33. P D KAWAD says:

    Very nice infomation useful for every one THANKS

    1. Thanks for your comment P D KAWAD

  34. Sethi says:

    Hello Manish,
    Very nice article. My father has legaly inherited a house through his father’s will. Now he needs to make a will. Can he make a will of this inherited house. If not why? Please explain this point clearly? What should he do to ensure that this legal inherited house goes to the right hands after he is not in this world.

    1. He cant make a WILL as per law for the property which has come inherited, so all his legal heirs will get it as per law

      Manish

  35. Kumar says:

    Hello Manish –
    Thank You for the information.
    I have a doubt, I have a property in my name inherited from my father (he earned himself, not inherited). I inherited it through a release deed signed by my mother, grandmother and my sister (legal heirs of my dad). Same way we (my granny, sis and me) released on more property to my mother.
    Since you said inherited property cannot be included in the WILL. Who will be my legal heirs after my life time (Im not married and not going to ). Since my mom, sis and granny already gave a release to my property (originally fathers), they can still be a legal heir for this one?
    Can I form a trust and assign someone to spend the income from this property for a good cause?
    Should I do this before I die? Or can I do this on my WILL?

  36. selvakumar says:

    dear sir,
    your replies are very nice and matured.
    I have a doubt. pl give me a solution.
    My father purchased a property 40 years back and registered on his father ie. my grand father. My grand father wrote a will on my father and died in 1982 and my father changed the patta in his name and he is enjoying it now. I have 3 sisters ( all of them married before 1987). My father created a will in 2008 that after my mother the properties has to come to me. ( both parents are alive and 3 sisters are alive)

    Now my doubt is that ;
    1. whether this property is ancestral / inherited property or not.
    2. whether the will of my father is valid or not?
    3. whether my sisters will get any share in this property? if so how much.
    4. if will is not valid, whether my father can make ”settlement” deed on my name?

    please give your valuable opinion.

    thank you.

    Selvakumar, Tamilnadu.

    1. 1. Because it was registered on grand father name, it will be considered as ancestral
      2. At first look, NO
      3. Yes, they will be legal heirs

      I think you should consult a legal advisor in this matter

  37. sanjay says:

    hello manish

    my parents stay in a rented (rent control act) room in mumbai, tenancy in name of father. for last 5 years there is a talk of the property going for redevelopment but nothing concrete has taken place. my father is very old and want to make a will. i have following questions

    a) god forbid, if something happens to him, what will happen to the tenancy rights? is tenancy rights also ancestral property or will tenancy rights automatically pass on to my mother who has been staying with him? or can my father bequeath tenancy rights?

    b) can my father bequeath t(thru will now) the flat which will emerge in future as and when the building goes for redevelopment ?

    1. Priyesh says:

      Tenancy is a right to use the premises which cannot be bequeathed. Consult a Law Firm for reconfirmation of the same as if you are living with your parents when they pass away the landlord may have to transfer the tenancy in your name.

  38. PranavPatel says:

    Hi Manish ,
    Really nice info i was looking for a good format and you have it.

    I have few questions ,

    My Dad expired around 20 years back , he didnt have any will. There are few residential land on his name and my mothers name (one on his own and one on mothers name). I have a sister.
    My questions are is who are the legal heirs of the property ( currently as i live and if i die) .
    Can i claim those lands on my name and if i prepare a will can i put the benefeciary as my wife.
    I have also a flat on my name and a bank accounts etc , can i put those in my will to my wife.

    Last question is if i die now without a will can my sister claim on any of my property or my dads property?

    1. OPSHARMA says:

      Kindly intimate in detail as to whether a person can made will of his ancestral property to his only sons leaving his daughters and what is the legal position/judgement of Hon’ble Supreme Court/High Courts etc.

      1. No they cant make a WILL for ancestral property

    2. Pranav

      Your mother, sister and you are the legal owners of all the properties which are in your father name.

      In your case, if you die, your mother and your wife will be legal heirs. Your sister wont be .

      Manish

      1. PranavPatel says:

        Thanks Manish for your prompt reply.

        So if i make a will now and the property directly on my name will be for sure will be transferred to my wife, if i say the same in my will. Since mother is getting old i want my wife to take the ownership , since my mother will be living with my wife, in case something happens to me. And the property on my fathers name only mother can decide what to do with it ( in case if i have will and i die).

        my last question when i prepare my will(in my handwriting) i have to get two witnesses/friends signature. But where do i keep the will , can i give it to my wife . And you also mentioned executor of the will , is he/he the one who will carrying the formalities. And who can be an executor , can he be one of the witnesses ?

        Please clarify ,
        Thanks
        Pranav

        1. Yes, you can do that

          Register it in sub-registrar office , that way one certified copy will be in court .

          Then you can give one copy to your wife .

          Take help of a good lawyer on this

          Manish

          1. Priyesh says:

            Mannish,
            In aforesaid Pranav Patels query his father passed away intested and the lands that are only in his fathers name will be equally divided between 3 Decedents Wife Son & Daughter. Mother is still living she can very well bequeath what she owns while she is alive.
            Please correct me if I have misunderstood.

            1. I am not sure on that. Its a lawyer issue .

  39. Rajesh G says:

    Does the “WILL” need to be registred with Govt? Is it mandatory?

    1. Its not mandatory , but its suggested !

      1. RajeshG says:

        thanks Manish

  40. JT says:

    Quick question – In Mumbai, property society is requesting the beneficiary to probate the notarized will (not registered in court) to transfer the property to the beneficiary of the will. There are two other legal heirs (died person’s husbands two sisters) who dont want to sign off a No Objection. Will the court wait for no objection from these Class II legal heirs (note the beneficiary is also class 2 legal heir husbands brothers son). Please help.

    1. Hi JT

      Its not a simple query . Better hire a lawyer for this

  41. santosh says:

    after going through some articles online, I came across this post and it states that the mutual fund or shares will be inherited to the nominee and not to the person who is in the will.

    In such case, instead of going for WILL can my mother put me as a nominee so that I shall inherit the MF’s and equities(if I buy any).

    http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-08-26/news/41455354_1_documents-guarantor-supreme-court-ruling/3

    1. Hi santosh

      Yes, thats the law, but we have seen courts giving the judgement against that. So the best case is that the nominee and person in WILL are same . Else there will be issues

  42. vishesh mudgal says:

    Hi manish,

    Its really amazing to read all the articles of yours.
    I have few querys regarding :-
    My grandfather died on 2007 and he has two son.The youger son say he have a will and in that base he have done a mutation in his name and the elder one i not aware of it.He had submitted an NOC letter also with a fake signature of elder brother.
    The elder brother is not aware about the will as of now also, nor he was present while will was made .As its told that you need two witness while the will is made if any of the witness died is the will valid?

    1. Hi vishesh mudgal

      So check the WILL first, were there any 2 witness or not ? Witness can be anyone ..

      I suggest catch a good lawyer in this case.

  43. Naresh says:

    My widow sister having no kids intended to make a will. I have got the will drafted from an Advocate.
    1. Please let me know the procedure for registering the same with Registrar in Mumbai.
    2.Is there any need to get a certificate from a medical practitioner certifying the sound mind of the person making a will and format thereof.
    3. Can a person who is direct beneficiary in the will can be appointed as the Executor of the will.
    4. Is it mandatory to get the will probated after the death of the person making will

    1. Hi Naresh

      Your cases is a bit complex and I think we are not the right people to comment on it.

      My suggestion would be hire someone who is professional in this area and consult them

      Manish

  44. vipul Pan says:

    My father can write in WILL that all my property after my death will goes to my 2 son equal divided? instead of giving all property detail.

    and regarding My mother she is having some property in her name, she need to make a will or after her death it’s automatically goes to his 2 son?

    Will can be on plain paper or Stamp paper is needed?

    reply..

    1. Vipul

      Yes WILL can be written such that only “All property” can be mentioned and not individuals

      Your mother should create A WILL so that there is no confusion as such

      Stamp paper is not required

      Manish

      1. vipul Pan says:

        You mean that there is no need to mention individual property detail, just to mention ‘All property’ word is enough, Am I right?

        And regarding Mother name property, does my sister has a right or not? in legal?

        One more question, my sister has a right on my father or mother property?

        Vipul

        1. Vipul

          1. Yes , mentioning “All property in my name” is good enough

          2. Your sister is a legal heir and will have a legal right. Only if a WILL is written, and she is not included, then she does not have the right

          3. Sister has all the rights

          Manish

  45. ravi says:

    Hi manish

    this is ravi from chennai. my grandfather had wrote a will in my name in 1994 and he dies in 1997 and in 2007 my grandfathers 3 daughters are asking for the rights. it is register will on 1994 my grandfather divided the whole properties into 2 equal paert and 1 parts is assign to my father in partion deed registed and another part is assign to him on th same day within 1 hour he made a register will in my name and at the time of writing the will my father and mother also present there. is there any problem that my father and mother are presented in the register office please explain

    1. Better catch a lawyer on this matter . This is not a generic topic

  46. Mani says:

    Thank You Sir…

    Appreciate your effort and giving a clear picture on the will process.

    Sir, I’ve a question, 11 years back my dad made a will. He went to a lawyer with 2 witnesses. He generally mentioned that all his properties will be shared among his 4 children excluding my last sister (he has 5 children). He mentioned that he has done enough for my last sister and she will not get any share. he passed away the very next year (he died 10 years already). Now my last sister filed a case against my mother and demands her share. the case is going for the past 2 years.

    My mother is about 77 years old and during the cross examine recently the opponent lawyer asked if she is willing to share the property with the 5 children, and without realizing the question clearly she said yes. Actually she is not in favor and wants to distribute the share as her husband’s wish.

    Please advice us on this matter, as my mother is put into stress by my last sister.

    Appreciate your time sir,

    Thank You Sir

    Yours sincerely.

    1. Hi Mani

      The question asked by you is beyond our scope. Its suggested that you hire an expert on the issue and pay them for the advice.

      Manish

  47. Neha Gupta says:

    Hi Manish,

    Very good article!

    I’m a 31-year-old woman. I, along with my husband, jointly own a 3 BHK house. We have put in our life’s savings into this house and still taking huge pains to repay the loan we took for it in the next five years.

    We have a two-year-old daughter. I want to write a will and declare our daughter to be the legal heir of the property. Obviously, since she is a minor, I also will have to nominate someone as the custodian.

    Can I do it alone or will I require my husband’s consent for it? I am the primary owner of this house and the reason why I want to write a will so early is because I don’t trust my husband’s folks. They are always hankering after money, which my husband doesn’t realise.

    Lots of people tell me that it’s too early to write a will. My question is: don’t we buy an insurance fearing the worst? Then, why not make a will? Please advise.

    Thanks,
    Neha Gupta

    1. Surely you should write a WILL in this situation. You can write the WILL solely for your part of the house. If its 50% : 50% sharing, then you can write the WILL only for the 50% part of it . I suggest get in touch with a good lawyer on this and get it done !

      Manish

  48. Padmavathy says:

    Hi Manish

    Thank you for the very informative writeup and answers to the various queries. They were also very informative.

    My husband and myself made a joint registered will in 2009. He expired in 2010.
    We have drafted the will with the help of a lawyer in Kerala. Both of us were government/PSU employees. He had retired and I had taken VRS . All the properties are in our joint names and there are no ancestral properties. All the properties were newly purchased during our lifetime and from the salaries/savings of both of us together.

    My husband has a daughter by his first marriage. His first wife was divorced and their daughter continued to live with my husband and after my marriage to him, with us along with my children. She was married off and after her marriage, her relationship with our family turned foul. Because of this, he gave a bulk amount to her and no immovable properties.

    Now in the will, the lawyer has mentioned that during my lifetime, I can take the benefit of the properties and the same will pass on to my children after my death. The amount to be given to my stepdaughter has to be shared by my children and my children will get right to the properties only after she executes a registered receipt after getting the amount.

    My question is:
    1) Can I make any change in the will, even though one of has expired, since it is a joint will?

    2) If my stepdaughter does not agree to take the money and issue a stamped receipt, how will the properties pass on to my children?

    As of now, even though she has got a copy of the will, she has not come forward to claim the amount. There is no time frame for payment for the money and as such, even after my death, my children need to pay only the amount mentioned in the will.

    Since I want to settle the matter during my lifetime itself, is there a way out for me from this situation? Since I have been put into this predicament by my lawyer himself, I have started having reservations about him.

    1. Hi Padmavathy

      The question asked by you is beyond our scope. Its suggested that you hire an expert on the issue and pay them for the advice.

      Manish

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  50. Arti says:

    Thank you for sharing knowledge on this important topic. Does Jagoinvestor has some recommendations for good lawyers for Will writing. Also interested to know about online will services?
    Thank You n Regards

    1. Arti

      We dont know any lawyers doing it, but we can recommend you a website where you can get will writing online. Just put a mail to us and we will connect you to them !

  51. rinosh says:

    What good are online will services? Could you make an article regarding them?

    1. Will write one soon ! . Are you looking for one ?

  52. ANONYMOUS says:

    Hi,

    I will be grateful, if you can please tell me the step by step procedure to register a will in Gurgaon. We live in sector 56 gurgaon.

    Thanking you in anticipation.

    Regards

    1. Hi Anonymous

      You have to visit sub-registrar office along with 2 witness . Make sure you also carry a camera to video record the procedure .

  53. ramkumar says:

    my grandfather had an immovable property after his death the property had transferred to grandmother”s name now after her death one of her son claims that mother has already given the property to him so other siblings have no rights on it Is it possible can u advice pl send me the answer in my email add

    1. If he can show the proof , then only he can claim the property ! .. ask him for documents ?

  54. bhavya82 says:

    ?????????????????

  55. bhavya82 says:

    Sorry, 585 question..

  56. bhavya82 says:

    hello Sir,,

    Looking for your reply for 584 question… pls..

  57. Niaz says:

    Can anyone fight my case. In reply opt mail ur id

  58. Niaz says:

    And 1 more thing my aunt took away my grand fathers gifted property which was given to my father when he(my father) was alive. They sold it and married their daughter with the money. can I file a cheating case against them and about the will which I wrote previously how to see the will

  59. Niaz says:

    Now I came to know that will was made by my grandfather not by granny who is alive and I asked them show me the will as they said the said property was given to my aunt and to my uncle then y r they afraid to show me y aren’t they showing me the will and both of them r saying it is not with them in that case wat to do next. As I have the full right to see the will. Isn’t it

  60. Prasad says:

    Dear Sir,

    Wonderful article, I have read all the points and FAQ. My question is that one of my friend he wants give his demat account amount to third party after his death. if he make nominee also then he has give back it to the legal heirs, if he makes joint also he has to give it to legal heirs. he is ready to make him as nominee or joint holder. But it is no use I hope. if he mention in one of the will about this case, is there any problem after his death. Will legal heirs put sue againist the beneficiary of the person ( third party ).
    What he has to like will deed or gift deed. I think gift deed works only in the livelihood. this should be happen after his death only.

    Kindly reply Sir. or put mail me your telephone Number.

    Thanks.

    1. In case of demat accounts, the nominee is the FINAL OWNER . Better make him nominee and also write a WILL stating that !

      Manish

  61. VikasB says:

    Dear Mr. Manish,

    Thanks to you for going through your How To Make Will In India (format).
    I want suggestion from you as bellow.
    Whatever my property’s now is gifted me by my father and elder brother(Tow ownership flat’s) and it is registered and paid stamp duty. Another one is a shop (Rental Paagadi System Tenant) of my mother given on my name by affidavit and a rent receipt is on my name.

    Now my problem is that my wife and my daughter (i have only daughter) and wife’s relative is pressuring me to transfer the property’s on there name’s and touche ring me every day or some.

    Making will by me if i want to give some of percentage of property to my nephew’s children’s and balance to make trust on my father and mother name to gate benefits to poor people of india.? Any person or my wife and daughter can challenge this will.?

    Awaiting your answer.
    Thanking You,

    1. No , if you want to make a WILL ,you can do that .. No body can challenge it if its your own property . Just make sure that the WILL is registered and properly drafted . Hire a good lawyer on this

      We can also help you get the WILL created for a fee . Let us know if you are interested

      Manish

      1. VikasB says:

        Yes . if you help me to make a proper will of me it is grateful.
        Creating will is it free or with fee ? and what is the charges for making will.

        Regards .

        1. It will take around 10-12k for making the WILL

  62. Niaz says:

    And wat r the proofs to show if my granny doesn’t include my mom means her sons widow in property share. Can I challenge them in this matter.

    1. You cant challenge . She can create WILL as per her wish . WILL is exactly that, you divide property as per your own wish .

  63. Niaz says:

    My father Mr.X died when I was 2 months old and than my grand father died. My paternal uncle drew my granny out of the house and now she lives with my aunt. My granny said My grand daughter also should get a share in her property but my uncles says who is N(thats me). So can my Granny make a will and make her daughter and her one son who drew her out of the house but than to she loves him alot can be her legal heirs if so can I Challenge the case but how? And whom shall I sue uncle or my granny. And can I file suit(N) or my mom who is widow shall do so…

  64. Dilip patel says:

    Dear manish
    Earlier I have already sent my problem to you in this blog on 6th November. Having no reply I repeat for your consideration, pl.help me.
    My father has made a WILL of land before public notary. Matter is physically he
    was not able to sign,hence he had put his thumb impression on every page of the WILL,and I have confirm his thumb impression,stating that the impression of so and so is put before me.My father is dead. My query is as I the beneficiary also have put my signature along with my father the testator’s thumb impression,
    whether this WILL can sustained if it is challenged by remaining heirs,my sisters?
    Thanks

    1. The WILL is genuine , but its not registered, which means that surely it can be challenged and now its up to prove that its genuine one !

  65. veenu says:

    hi manish

    My father age 80 yrs wants to do a will , he stays in south delhi and owns a house and some investments. we r three brother sisters. i have few queries if u can help me ??

    1. is will need to be registered??
    2. Is Will can be registered at home only becoz he can not move out???
    3. which lawyer can make proper will, any suggestion becoz in todays world difficult to trust ???
    4. how many days the full process takes, can you provide me some sample for will??

    thanks

    1. Dilip patel says:

      Dear Manish My father has made a WILL in his survival in my favour. It is made before a public notary. Physically my father was not able to make signature so he had put his thumb impression on all the pages of the WILL,and the thumb impression has been confirmed by me,stating that the thumb impression is put before me.My query is as I the beneficiary have also put my signature along with thumb impression of the testator,my father,whether this WILL can sustained if it is challenged by my father’s remaining heirs my sisters ?

    2. 1. Its not mandatory by law, but registering it the best thing .. Otherwise there are complications later

      2. Yes it can be done , Talk to a good lawyer

      3. hmm.. I have no suggestions as such , if you are fine with a online will , then we can help you contact me jagoinvestor.com/contact

      4. I am not sure of the number of days it can take . Depends on case ..

  66. My father have prepared a WILLof agriculture land which he had purchased from a tanent (under tanency act) alongwith some other land which are purchased by him . Can I chalange this WILL to considered as void ?

    1. By how is the WILL void ? On what grounds ?

  67. Venu says:

    Advice on distribution of house property owned by mother. We are two daughters and two sons (Son + Daughter + Daughter + Son) in the family. First son, both daughters were married and second son is unmarried. Our father passed away and the current house property was owned by mother with all legal documents. We have given enough dowry and gold for both the sisters marriages.

    Now our mother planned to give her house property to both the sons ONLY. Please clarify the below questions. Help is very much appreciated.

    Note: We hold from the sunny Muslims family. Seeking for advice as per Muslims law.

    Queries: House Registration

    1) Will our mother have full rights to give her property to both the sons ONLY ?

    2) During house registration from mother to two sons, do we need signatures of both the sons ?

    3) During house registration from mother to two sons, do we need signatures of both the daughters ?

    4) During house registration from mother to two sons, If first son is not present, Is there any procedure that second son can become temporary holder of the house until first son claims his property in the house ? In this situation how to manage the signatures?

    5) Once mother registered the house to both the sons, will both the daughters and brother-in-laws have rights to put the case against mother (before or after death) and on sons ?

    Queries: Will on house

    1) Can our mother write a will papers on the name of both the sons instead of registration the house ?

    2) Is will papers are valid as per sunny Muslims law ?

    3) Can both the daughters have rights to put the case against the mother’s will papers before or after mother’s death?

    1. This is a complicated case, please meet a lawyer for this.

  68. vijay srivastava says:

    d/s
    my mother younger sister is written a ragisterd will in my fever my maase is died when i go nager palika transfer the property officer says when will is prove then property transfer u he say its s.c. ruling under awc 4027 Indian succession act 63 2013(4) what is means and what i m going plz. advice me legal and other
    thanks

    1. Consult a Lawyer on this

  69. BC says:

    Dear Manish

    I have some property of my own and few joint with my husband. I would like to create a personal will. Can I mention in the will the nominee for the properties that I own jointly with my husband(for my share of the property).

    1. Yes you can do that. Let me put an email to you on this

  70. Deepak says:

    Hello Manish,

    Very good article.

    I am 32 yrs old working in Bangalore. Below are some questions i have on writing a will.

    1. If some thing happens to be at this stage, my nominee (spouse) will get the insurance amount only. Can i mention the distribution of this money in the will??
    like: clear the loans first, next 30% deposit for my parents, remaining 70% for kid education and daily expenditure etc… If yes, let me know how can i??

    2. Currently, the flat and plots on my name are with back loan. How can i mention the same in the will.??

    Regards,
    Deepak Gudla.

    1. Yes, you can mention that in WILL . Just make sure you are very clear about the distribution else there will be hassles later !

      Make sure you meet a good lawyer who works on estate planning !

  71. Tripta says:

    Hi Manish,

    Please advise if its possible to write a will at the age of 76 or 77. Is it valid as per Indian law?

    Thanks
    Tripta

    1. Anytime after 18 is possible

  72. B R. says:

    Dear Sir,

    My query is that after my mother died, the flat was transferred in the name of my brother, as she had filled the nomination form, in the society,in my brothers name
    do i have right to claim the share of the flat, or can the flat be sold without taking my consent.

    1. I think you have a 50% share legally . The nomination is more of a formality to get custody of the flat !

  73. ganesh says:

    i am ganesh kolhatkar
    i am alone son and one married sister,my father wish make will of our residing flats after his death i am only owner of such flats where we leave and my sister will not claim for such flats.
    can i make will with 2 witness and registered with out getting help of advocate
    so i can save huge advocate fees.
    just make will on rs.100 stamp paper and make registered office along with 2 witness father will sign will on will in front of registered.
    i have do more any formalities?
    is necessary to get notary if i registered will ?
    please help and give me advice

    1. Your father has to make the WILL , not you .. yes it can be done without advocate, but then it might have the risk of being unambigous !

  74. akanksha says:

    hey manish
    my query is is it necessary to mention your family tree ie mentioning how many sons daughters you have in your will…if you are a father!secondly if it is mentioned that person who is making the will is identified through voter id card,but the details in voter id card ie DOB and spelling of name is wrong then can the will be challanged as a wrong one?

    1. Its not mandatoy, but you do not mention it, its going to create the confusion , if you are fine with that, then do not mention !

  75. Ganapathy says:

    Dear Manish,

    Thank you for the excellent article about the fundamentals of a will. It clarified a lot of things for me.

    I have a query which I hope you can assist with.

    I legally transferred ownership of a flat I owned ( and had bought outright with my money) to my mother some 20 years ago. The flat is currently unoccupied pending demolition and a new development. My mother lives with me in another house that I own. Recently she advised me that she wishes to will the flat back to me ( and nominate a fixed sum of money to be given to my two sisters). My query is whether my sisters can lay claim to share in the property (the above mentioned flat) if a) my mother dies without leaving a will and b) my mother dies after leaving behind a will.

    Also does her will ( when she writes one) need to be registered and what are the advantages of registering.

    Regards

    Gana.

    1. First, if the flat is transferred to your name , after that nothing matters , because then its your property and not your mother’s property . A will defines only things which she owns . Yes a registered will is a good option

      Manish

      1. Gana says:

        Many thanks Manish

  76. NALIN says:

    Dear Manish,

    My Sister had a maiden name property in Mumbai, which was purchased before marriage(1984) with the help of my father & elder sister,my sister married in 1989 to my brother in law, who have two children (Son & Daughter Married) from his first wife.

    My sister expired in 2013 with out having her own child and there is a no will from her side & brother in law expired in 2011

    Should my sister step children are eligible in my sister’s pre marriage property?

    How her brother & sister can be eligible to her property?

    Thanks

    Nalin

    1. Hmm.. Its a bit technical and complicated. I think only a good lawyer will be able to comment on this !

  77. Sunita says:

    Dear Sir

    One query – Is it mandatory to have an executor of a will ? If so what are the powers of the executor and in case it is not mandatory what is the process to be followed in both making the will and how will my successors claim the willed items ?
    :
    Thanks in advance for any guidance on this.
    :
    SS

    1. No , its not mandatory . It can be mentioned if you want a specific person to implement it , otherwise not . If Executor is not there, then any person can go ahead and execute the WILL

      1. Sunita says:

        Thank u Sir.

  78. Nisha gupta says:

    Dear Mainish,

    My father who owned a flat with his own savings wished that after his death the flat should be transferred in my mothers name, for which we(me and my elder sister did it. The flat is completely transferred in my mothers name and my mother has nominated me and my sister for 50% each. This was 10 years back.
    Now my mother has made a WILL and nominated my son for her 100% share in the flat after her death. She also registered the WILL as she is staying with us for the past 10 yrs since my sister is illtreating her. After my mothers death, when the WILL is opened, can my sister challange the will? How authentic is the will?Do we need to take a NOC from my sister when the flat is transferred in my sons nam?

    1. Your mother WILL is 100% correct and will be valid, but the only problem i see there is the 50% nomination she has done to both of you, what is the reason for that now . Ask your mother to change that in Property document to have your son name as nominee . Otherwise this is delay things later.

  79. pradeep says:

    Hello Manish,

    My parents jointly owned 2 acres land and made a joint WILL to give the ownership to me and my wife 1 acre each and even the boundaries are marked in the WILL.
    Now my father is dead and my mother want to change the will (or write a new one) to give her share to my 2 sisters. Is it possible ? if possible which part can be taken??

    thanks in advance

    1. Yes, your mother can give her part anytime to anyone else she wants . She is free to make the change in the WILL

  80. govardhana says:

    hi, i have a doubt about hindu succession law.

    my father was married twice ( second marriage was after the death of first wife) .from first wife he had two male children & from second marriage one male child.

    one son of first wife is owning a self earned agricultural property ( which is self purchased & he is the only owner of that agricultural property). he is not married & want to write a will to give this agricultural property to his own brothers minor son.

    how to execute the will for a minor ?
    if will is not written, then who are the successors of that property ? will the half brother get any right ?

    the owner is not married, has one own brother, father, step mother, one half brother from step mother .

    he wants to give his property only to his own brothers minor son, whether will is required or automatically it will go to that minor ? what are the rights of step mother & half brother in the property ? what are the rights of his paternal & maternal relatives ?

    doubts are 1.) who are all the heirs in the absence of a will ?
    2.) how to execute the will to a minor ?

    thanks & regards,

    govardhana,
    coorg

  81. shubhash says:

    my mother signed a will for a house.after one year she signed another will for his agriculture land.Are both the wills valid?

    1. Only the latest WILL is valid, all past are VOID (provided they are DATED, so that one can prove which one is latest)

  82. shubhash says:

    can there be two seperate wills for two seperate immovable properties ?

    1. No , only one will has to be valid ..

  83. Prashant Das says:

    Hello Manish !

    My father has joint property with two of his brothers.One of my uncle has divorced his wife with all the settlement.He is staying with me since long.He wants to go for a will for all his undivided property in my name.He is 62 and healthy.
    Will it be possible to go for a will.He is not interested for any partition right now.
    Please advice.

    1. Yes, he can always prepare a WILL for his own share and give it to you ..

  84. vivek says:

    Hi Manish,

    My grandfather passed away without a will. He was survived by his wife( grandmother) and 2 children( my father and my aunt). My understanding is that his assets are then equally divided (1/3) among his legal heirs( my grandmother, dad and aunt). My aunt also passed away subsequently leaving behind two children( married) and her husband.My grand mother passed away recently and left a ‘registered will’ devolving her share to my father. How would my aunts share of property be divided? Does my aunts husband have any legal claim over my aunts share or will her share be equally divided among her 2
    children?
    My uncle ( aunt’s husband ) is claiming 50% share of the original property left by my grandfather, are there any legal grounds for this claim?

    1. Your Aunt property will be divided equally between all children and husband equally !

      1. vivek says:

        What about the uncle’s claim to half the property left by my grand father? Does he have any legal standing for such a claim?

        1. Only aunt children can have a legal standing , not her husband!

  85. Suhas Sahasrabudhe says:

    I own an independent bungalow (not a part of a society). It is registered in joint names with my wife, though funds for purchasing it were contributed solely by me only. My wife has always been a housewife with no source of income. I have other assets like Bank FD, PPF which are in my single name only. How can I make will in such a case? Is appointing an executor compulsory? Is it true that probate is not required if the will is registered? I wish to donate all my cash assets to charitable institutions and not to my wife. I also have one son for whom I do not wish to leave anything at all. In case I die before my wife, she may continue to live in the house; but after her death the house should be donated to charitable institution. How do I go about making such provisions?

    1. You can make WILL for all the things in your name, but for 50% part of house which is in wife name, you cant – because its her now . It does not matter from where the funds came, just because its now registered on her name, its her’s !

      Manish

  86. mohit kalra says:

    thanks sir

  87. mohit says:

    Thank u sir for this answers par muje ek cheez ka jawab de ki supposo karo ki ek pati patni hai unke 4 bache hain pati ki apni kuch personal property hai. Achanak pati ki death ho jati hai aur pati will likhe bina hi mar gya kya uski patni uske marne ke baad uski saari personal property ki leagle hire hai ya us property mein sabhi baacho ka b koi hiss. Hai.

    1. pradPradeep says:

      Hi Manish,

      hi want 1 clarification,

      i have a Uncle(fathers brother) wants to write will to my brother now ,how to do this,

      20years back he was mentally sick now he is fine and his another brother is trying to get share in his praperty by using cirtificate that he was mentally sick(got when he was admited to hospital 20 years back) but my uncle dont want this to happen, he wants to give his praperty to my brother since we looked him.

      1. First point is that a person can write his WILL anytime he wants. So his brother asking or trying to do something has no meaning . Your Uncle can now write the WILL and get it registered, there will be no issue. Just catch a very good lawyer !

    2. Mohit

      Sabhi bacho ka barabar ka hakh hai !

      1. pradPradeep says:

        thanks sir…..

  88. mohit kalra says:

    and mah second quest. is my mother make a will with the help of notary in URDU and that will is register with sub registrar and in will there are two witnesses who is not the benificries and the will is made in my favour i m not the witness but i have signe on will is that will is valid will ? i m the resident of j & K plzzzzz guide me i m adult.

    1. I think you should reach out of a lawyer now , why did you sign something which you dont understand ?

  89. mohit kalra says:

    manish g i have one brother and two sisters who is married and my father has make a property and my father died intestate without making a will?
    is my mother is the leagle hire of the property?and she makes a will ?

    1. Yes, your mother is a legal heir as per law. She can only make a WILL for her own share, not others ! .

  90. Joshin says:

    Hi Manish!

    My father passed away a few years back. He was married to my mother (first marriage) for 14 years in which they both had two sons; me and my older brother. During this marriage, my dad purchased land and received land through dowry. After their 14 year marriage, my dad remarried to a woman for a few years. She ended up stealing money from my dad so he divorced her. He married his third wife and they were married for 12 years. He left a WILL that was signed by him and witnesses. In the WILL, it states my step mother can enjoy or live off the revenue of the property and enjoy/live in the house built on property until she passes away. However, it does not give ownership of the property and house to her. It states in the WILL that me and my brother are ultimately owners of the property and house. The WILL was not registered. Can me and my brother sell the house and property before our step mom passes away? Or, must she be allowed to benefit from the land her whole life? Is there anything my brother and I can do? Would intestate succession plays into this? Please let me know your thoughts.

    1. If the WILL mentions that your step mother can live in the house all her life, then legally you are stopped from selling it, If you try to sell it and get her out of home, then she can surely move to court showing the WILL and you will not be able to contest it . I think its better to do a settlement with her and pay her some money and then sell the house . Do not get into legal tangle otherwise it will drag for years and life and you will not get anything out of it .

      Its better to get 80 lacs NOW , rather than 2 crores after lots of headache and 20 yrs later !

      Manish

  91. Mica says:

    Very good article yaar.

  92. Harsha Vardhana R says:

    Dear Manish,

    Thank you for the informative details.

    Can I make a WILL in favor of any trust (registered), school, NGO?

    With respect to insurance policies/bank-accounts with a nominee (already mentioned as per company/bank) – in case of a dispute, which one would get the precedence? WILL or nomination?

    Regards,
    Harsha

    1. Sure why not . You can give your wealth to anyone you wish , even ME 🙂

      WILL is supreme in case of bank accounts and Insurance policies, but having a different nominee other than person mentioned in WILL can create the confusion and will delay things .

  93. Vaibhav Sanghvi says:

    Dear Manish,

    In case the person has donated a fixed deposit under the will to an old age home, how do you as a representative get that transferred in your name? what is the procedure ??

    Vaibhav

    1. Vaibhav

      The money will be handed over to the old age home when the original owner dies. The old age home has to make the claim to get the money

  94. If he has not shared where it is , there how do you know where it is ? I mean he might have kept it with someone , but if he didnt tell you about it , then you cant do much ! .. Check with Sub registrar office if there is any WILL registered with them ?

    Manish

  95. kirti says:

    dear manish,
    thank you for reply. for point 1 you have said yes for whom – a, b or both. a) we brothers being beneficiaries can be executors also or b) my friends can be executors and witness both.
    regards

  96. kirti says:

    dear manish,
    we are joint family – parents and 2 brothers both married all staying together.
    1) for my mother / father individual Will, we 2 brothers and father / mother are beneficiary, can we 2 beneficiary brothers be Executors also. if yes ok. if no, can our same 2 trusted family friends be executor as well as witness also?
    2) if suppose out of 2 executors, one is not alive can single executor also execute WILL.
    3) we have native home purchased by my father with his own funds in rajashthan. how it can be transferred to we 2 brothers name? similar for present home in mumbai where we all stay together. can by WILL clause it will be transferred or stamp duty has to be paid.
    advance thanks

    1. 1. Yes, you can do that, but its good to do, only if both people are good to each other and no fight will happen

      2. Not sure on this

      3. The problem in these cases is that in reality , one house cant be divided into HALF 🙂 . so later it will be problem , so its always better to give 1 house to one person and second to another 🙂

      Manish

      1. kirti says:

        dear manish, thank you for reply. for point 1 you have said yes for whom – a, b or both. a) we brothers being beneficiaries can be executors also or b) my friends can be executors and witness both.
        regards

  97. Jinisha says:

    Hi Manish,
    Thanks for this informative post. I have a question as to your 3rd last bullet point.
    “* In case of Hindus, it should be clearly stated if the property is inherited or not, because it makes a huge difference, as no ancestral property can be assigned to any person through a will. All rights on……………….”

    What if a real uncle who is unmarried & childless wants to will his inherited share of property to his real niece? Does the above point still applies?
    Because if it does, then it does not make sense as he is denied his right of willing his share of property to his chosen successor.

    Waiting for your reply.
    Thanks.

    1. In this particular case, he can do that, because there is no legal heir like wife or children . So you are anyways one of the closest legal heir

  98. Kavitha says:

    Hi Manish,

    Mr A has his own flat , some amount in FDs , all the account is joint and flat is in joint with his wife, he has some insurance polices also, can he write a joint will to get all he owns to his child?

    Does the Will needs to be registered ? Or a simple WILL with all details can be written and witnessed on a plain paper .
    He is survived by his mother, 2 brothers who are already married and a sister who is also married.

    Pls advise.

    Rgds
    Kavitha

    1. Yes a joint WILL is possible , while registraiton is not mandatory , but registering it is recommended because that proves that WILL is correct only , if its on plain paper, it can be challenged by anyone saying its FAKE !

      Manish

  99. RAJ KUMAR CHAUDHARY says:

    HI.LOT OF THANKS FOR PROVIDING SUCH VALUABLE ADVISES U R PROVIDING TO US,HERE I WANT TO KNOW ONE OF MY BEST FRIEND DESIRING TO DECLARE HIS WHOLE PROPERTY TO ME ,EVEN HE IS NOT INTERESTED TO GIVE HIS SHARES TO HIS CHILDREN AND BROTHERS TOO,HIS MOTHER FATHER AND WIFE ALL ARE NO MORE.I WANT TO MANISH WHETHER HE CAN MAKE A WILL FOR ME ONLY.

    1. Surely he can .. If all the wealth is earned by him only then he can give all of it to you through a WILL , make sure the WILL is registered /

  100. Melvin D'mello says:

    Hi Manish,

    I belong to a catholic family. I have three brother and I am the eldest. My father has expired. Ours is ancestral house of four bedrooms, hall, kitchen, store room. After my father’s death my two younger brothers have constructed on top, while the youngest brother has occupied the ground floor, due to family problems I shifted my residence which is purchased by my wife and we have been staying there for last 10 years. Now when I asked my share in the property my mother has refused to give me my rights.

    Please guide me.

    Thanks
    Melvin

    1. Is your mother the owner of the property ? If not , then who is ? If your father didn’t leave a will , then you can challenge it in court and get your share thorugh legal means . I suggest share with them about this and try to settle it out of court first !

  101. Srinivas says:

    Hello Manish,
    One father died intestate. His properties are pending for partition among his children.
    1. Can one right a will for her share?
    2. Will this property be considered as ancestral if one child is a daughter?
    3. Significance of Section 14 of Hindu succession Act 1956?

    Thanks in advance.

    1. 1. Yes
      2. No , there is nothing like this . Ancestral property means its coming from 3-4 generation without partition
      3. Not sure on that . What is section 14 ?

      1. Srinivas says:

        Thanks for the quick reply Manish. I was refering to the Section 14 of HSA 1956 which is “Property of a female Hindu to be her absolute Property”. However, your reply answered my query.

        I have another question Manish, please answer. If a mother makes a WILL this year in favour of her son, will her daughters can claim right on property according to “Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005 Empowering Women” later?

        1. No . If the WILL mentions that property should go to SON , then no body can change it

          1. Srinivas says:

            You are are awesome.

  102. Gaurav Agarwal says:

    Can a leasehold property currently being jointly owned by 2 people be passed on the will. Is NOC required from the other owner and will only mention of 50% of property being passed on suffice ?

    Any recommendations of a good lawyer/legal service in Delhi who can advice on will related matters/help in drafting will ?

    1. Gaurav

      Only when both the parties are clear and ready, then only you can pass it on with WILL

  103. TB Pal says:

    Dear Manish
    Your articles are wonderful. One can never get such detailed information from any damn lawyer. I’m going to buy a flat from one Mr. Haq (junior). His father senior Haq had bought the said flat and made a will in his son junior Haq’s name. Junior has transferred the society share certificate in his name. My questions are:
    1. How to check the authenticity of the will?
    2. If junior Haq has another brother/family member and demands the property after I buy it then what will happen? Will I be in lengthy legal battle?
    3. What if somebody of the family claims that the property was bought by selling an ancestral property and therefore they have a claim on this flat because they had a claim/share on the ancestral property? It is my general question regarding any resale flat.
    4. Lawyers say that before buying a property the buyer should publish a notice in newspaper and in no claim pops against the notice, then it is safe. Is it true? Somebody may pop up and claim that he does not read that news paper or even he is illiterate. What is the legal implication in such case?

    Thanks

    1. All you have to do is check that on whose name is the FLAT ? If you are buying from the same person, then only buy it else there are chances that it will go into legal tussle . Involve a lawyer !

  104. kinney galani says:

    Hi Manish
    I live in usa My younger brother has forged my fathers signature on his will after his death and He has had my sisters husband sign as a witness and also my brother has had his wife’s brother sign as a second witness on the will. This forged will grants my brother the administrator and all my father’s assets worth 30 Cr and my sister gets 10 lacs and I get 10lacs worth of dad’s factory. I hear he is going to get a will probated. How should I stop him and what are my rights as challenging the authencity of this will. I have had the will checked out by forensic dept. in newyork which declares it is 100 % forged signature.

    1. In that case, all you can do is file a case against your brother and get things dragged in court . I am sure if things are forged, then you will win, but may be the battle will go for some years. But worth it. Hire a good lawyer in India and pursue it !

    2. sonia says:

      well its very pity that a greedy brother has palyed such a game i urge you to fight with all your might. i am also fighting such case in india.and we have won in lower court .please fight and expose such greedy MCPS TO societ.women are equal its its for their financial independence

  105. S.VENKATA RAMANI says:

    Adding the description of the executor of the will ( ie. his/her name, passport No/ Driving licence No/Permanent Account Number of Income Tax/EmplOYEE id nO/ DOB/Place of Birth/) should mention all the details as above of the executor and the beneficiaries so that there will be no confusion after his death.

    Can the executor obtain signatures and details of more than 2 witnesses or is there any restriction that only 2 persons should witness:

    1. As per rules, only 2 witness should be there

  106. TB Pal says:

    Very informative indeed

  107. sa says:

    is it necessary to get a lawyer involved in making a will? You have given such detailed information, I can make one myself and put it in safe deposit and inform my heirs where it is. What do you say?

    1. I dont think its a good idea . The article is just for knowledge, you should hire a lawyer because the will draft with more better language .

  108. Srinivas says:

    Awesome Manish, I am completely satisfied the way you have clarified my questions regarding ancestral property of a mother and its details.

    Many thanks,
    Srinivas

  109. Srinivas says:

    Hello Manish,

    I missed out on another question. Here is it… Is there anything like only daughters are eligible for mothers property (ancestral).
    Thanks,
    Srinivas

    1. Definately they are ! . Both children and husband are eligible !

      1. Srinivas says:

        Thank you once again Manish. I conclude that if a mother has an ancestral plot of 800 Sq.Yds. with 6 children and husband and in case if it has to be partitioned between all member of the family then it will be as follows: 800/8= 100 Sq.Yds each ie, Mother 100 Sq.Yds, 6 children each 100 Sq.Yds and Husband gets 100 Sq.Yds. Finally your confirmation would be of great help.

        Cheers,
        Srinivas

        1. Srinivas says:

          Oh! Manish pls answer 465 & 468.

          Best Regards,
          Srinivas

        2. No , When women gets it from her parents, its not considered ANCESTRAL , because women family is seperate from the original parents family (beti is paraya dhan)

          So its women property. and Only when she dies, it will be divided equally 1/7th here) . But she can also WILL it to anyone she wants .

          Manish

  110. Srinivas says:

    Hello Manish,
    If a person does not want his share or give his share to his siblings of an ancestral property, can he give an NOC stating the same. If so will it stands legal ?

    Thanks for your time,
    Srinivas

    1. Yes, You can always give NOC for any reason , but you have to give it when ASKED .

  111. Srinivas says:

    Hello Manish,

    Q1. Can a mother(having 5 daughters and a son) gift ancestral property to her son. As per the judgement “Father can gift ancestral property to daughter” in sone north india court.

    Q2. Can a mother write a WILL on her share of ancestral property which is pending in court of law?

    1. You can only write the WILL which you actually own . Not for something which is yet to come to you like in ancestral property

      1. Srinivas says:

        Thank you so much Manish. Your reply is appreciated.

  112. Manojkumar Patil says:

    Dear Mr:Manish,

    Now my father is no more and in his will he has left all his own earned property to my mother’s name. And he has three sons & one daughter to whom he has not mentioned any thing. In this case wheather all such property goes to my mother only and not to his sons & daughter. Is there any chance for we ( sons & daughter ) to fight in the court of law to earn our share since we were not informed about the will. Hence can we fight by mentioning that the will is bogus since it is not registered.
    Also as we are still holding our possession in the same property physically, is there any right for my mother to ask us to vacate the property.

    1. Your father if has earned all the property and money by himself, then he is free to give it to anyone. So if he has written a WILL in favour of your mother, then she is bound to get it all . However if you can prove that the WILL is bogus, then you can get the property distributed as per law and then you will get a share in that. but the onus of proving the WILL fake lies on you. Just because you are not aware about it, does not make any proof that its fake . If its really fake, only then you should try that. If you know already that its a authentic WILL , then better think about it .

      just because the WILL is not registered , does not mean that it can be challenged . A unregistered WILL is valid . Just that its a weak point in itself .

      1. Manojkumar Patil says:

        Thanks Manish for your clarrification.

        But I & my only sister both married being one of son and daughter of my mother, we both are not living in the said property and we both have settled on our own. My 1 st elder brother(married) aged 51 yrs is also living away from past 14 yrs as of now but he is also showing greediness to get possession of some corner of the property as he also believes in physical possession to get hold on the property. His financial condition is also not so good to lead his life even though he and his wife together are earning some where about Rs 10000/- per month.
        But one of my 2nd elder brother(married) aged 49, who lived with my parents from begining & now with my mother, is the one who is resisting to leave the said property since he has asked my mother to do so because of his bad behaviour with mother from past 8 months. Only reason for his resistance is, he is not confident on his own earning from beginning as well as now also to live on his own, as his earnings from past 20 yrs was & is between Rs 2000/- to 5000/- max.
        If at all my brother still resist to leave the physical possession, then is it enough for my mother to give police complaint & get it vacated for herself, because this caution is just to avoid worst incident from my brother in angry as he has already lost confidence in him. Or else is it necessary to send a advocate/court notice only to my brother for getting vacated as it becomes civil matter in which case my mother may not get help from police.
        On other side such kind of wordings from my brother might be to maintain the advantage of physical possession by keeping my mother always afraid of such worst incident.
        My mother has decided to leave on her own with the help of paid maid servant to assist in future for her remainig days of life. She has mentioned this new arrangement to my brother repeatedly. She is already 74 yrs old.

        1. This does not look like a simple case. Its better to discuss with lawyer on this .

          1. Manojkumar Patil says:

            Hi Manish,

            As you suggest i am ready to discuss with lawyer. But before i do this, i wish you can comment on the pros & cons on the approach mentioned by me. So that i can take a good decision which should be helpful to my mother as she do not have any alternative shelter other than this. As for as i being the son my first duty to choose top priority to Mother. Then it comes to my brother since he is still in good health to earn & live on his own. Request you to give your feedback.

            Manojkumar Patil

            1. Hi Manoj

              I personally have limited knowledge on that, so dont want to comment on something I am not sure about .

  113. Bhimaji Dhamale says:

    Dear Mr Manish,
    In one of your replies you have stated that quote “A will do not need to be on a stamp paper, it can be on a simple paper also .. however its always suggested that a WILL is registered , when you might need to get it on stamp paper !” unquote. Sorry but this is sort of confusing. Are you saying that if the will has to be registered then it has to be on stamp paper?

    1. If its to be registered, then it has to be on stamp paper, but if you dont want to get it registerd, then it can be on simple paper . Whats the confusion here ?

      1. Bhimaji Dhamale says:

        Sorry Mr Manish, but I think you’re giving half knowledge to folks. Please get it consulted from some of your lawyer friends. No stamp paper is required even if you wish to have the will registered.

        1. Sorry it was my bad . I cross checked and I had read about something else (mostly in case of power of attorney) . You are correct in this. My apologies for putting the wrong comment .

  114. Bhimaji Dhamale says:

    Dear Mr Manish,
    In several of your replies to different queries to different readers you had advised the readers to go for the transferring of the real estate property in the lifetime of the person itself (by means of ‘gift deed’), instead of going for a will. But as I consulted more than 2-3 lawyer on this case, I understand that this option (gift deed) will attract a lot of stamp-duty to be paid, whereas transfer of the property after the person’s death (by nomination and/or will) will not attract any such hefty expenses. Please clarify on this. The reason I am asking this is, I have bought one flat in Mumbai – all payments from my own savings – but got it registered in the joint names of my parents and myself (33% each). When I did this I didn’t realize the hassles of transferring this flat in my sole name later on (after my parents’ demise). Therefore, I consulted some lawyers and they advised me to get my parents to write a will (specifically for this flat as my only name as beneficiary and rest of their properties in the names of all three sons of them) – My parents and brothers are aware of this or even for transferring the flat in my name now itself. In this scenario, please advise if it’s better to go for a ‘gift deed’ or ‘transfer deed’ or simple a ‘sales deed’ – so that the flat gets transferred to my name immediately or just to have the will prepared for my parents so that the flat gets transferred to my name after their demise. I am fine with either, but obviously don’t wish to pay the stamp duty – if it’s applicable in only the former option and not in the latter option. However, if it’s applicable (same amount) – as you have mentioned – in either case, then I may rather opt for getting it transferred now itself. Please clarify if my lawyers were wrong in saying that the latter option (will) won’t have any stamp duty implications?

    1. Remember that stamp duty has to be paid always if the name gets changed. But if the name is not to be changed then stamp duty will not be paid. So in your case, if you can get it transferred, then better do that !

      1. Bhimaji Dhamale says:

        Dear Mr. Manish, Again this is not true. Stamp duty is required to be paid only if the property title has to be changed – in the lifetime of a person, i.e. by gift deed or transfer deed. No stamp duty is required for transferring the property to the names of legal heirs or nominees of the person, after the death of the person (if or even if he has not left any will).
        I have done a lot of research on it and hence request you not to misguide people unless you’re sure of something. Thanks.

        1. Let me check it out . As far as I had read at some places . When the name changes on property, the stamp duty has to be paid , but it doesnt need to be paid if the WILL is there.

          Have you experienced this in real life ? Can you share that ?

  115. Bhimaji Dhamale says:

    Thanks Mr Manish for your prompt response.
    May I please request you to further clarify on the requirement of the probate and the requirement to pay stamp duty. If there is a registered will, then neither the probate nor the stamp duty is required, am I right?
    I am confused because in your article on top you have mentioned quote “A probate is nothing but a copy of will, certified under the seal of court. The executor (someone who is responsible to execute the will) has to file a probate petition in the court of law and if all goes well, the probate takes six months to a year. No right as executor or legatee can be established unless a court has granted the probate of the Will. Probate can be granted only to the executor appointed by the Will. The cost of getting a probate includes legal fees as well as stamp duty on the value of the property being willed. The stamp duty varies from state to state. Probate is very important in case of Real Estate. As per Sundar, a reader of this blog…
    Legal heirs to get possession of the property from the nominees have to go through a legal process called probate. In Maharashtra this means, the will have to be submitted to Registrar and one will have to obtain a probate. The Registrar may ask the claimants to put an advertisement in newspaper to ensure that they will not be contested. They may even ask the witnesses who have signed the will to come to their office and sign documents. After all this, and some court affidavits, the claimants have to pay the necessary tax to the state govt. which is hefty and based on property value. After Goverments takes its cut, then finally the probate order is given. Only then will the legal heirs get their property. Note that, probate requirements differ from state to state. ” unquote.

    If the will is not registered but only ‘notorized’, then what happens to this requirement (of probate and stamp duty)
    Does a will must have a medical certificate? If so, has it got to be part of the will document itself or would it be a separate attachment to the will?

    1. A notarized WILL is not same as registered one . Registered WILL is in sub registrar office and has the stamp of court on it . One copy is with them . If its properly registered then probate is not required. NOte that stamp duty will still be paid if the name on the property is to be changed !

  116. Bhimaji Dhamale says:

    1. Executor of the ‘WILL’ – Is it mandatory for a ‘WILL’ to have an executor? Who could be the executor? Could one of the beneficiaries of the ‘WILL’, himself be the executor or could one of the witnesses be the executor? Could there be more than one executor (in case the first is unwilling or unavailable?
    2. Probate – One of my friends (who is not lawyer, of course) informed me that despite of having a ‘WILL’, the property will not be directly transferred in the name of beneficiary after a person’s demise – but the executor has to file for a probate petition in a court and also the stamp duty has to be paid to the government on the value of the property being willed.
    Is this true? Is it manadatory to go through the process of Probate or only in the case of disputes? Also, has the stamp duty must be paid before the transfer of the property in the name of beneficiary? If this process is so tedious, and one has to pay the stamp duty that time anyway, then wouldn’t it be just better to have the property transferred in the name of beneficiarry in the life time itself by means of gift deed/ sales deed etc.?

    3. Nomination Forms – If the person has submitted duly signed nomination forms to the housing society for his share of the property, would the ‘WILL’ still be required? Would the probate formalities (mentioned above) be same in either case and would the stamp duty still be payable at the time of transfer of the property after their demise?

    1. 1. Yes

      2. No , probate is required only incase of missing “registered WILL” . If a will is not registered, then probate is required

      3. Yes, nomination is not the full thing in itself !

  117. Komal says:

    Manish,

    I like the article and I really feel the need to raise more awareness not just about digital assets but about planning well for any unfortunate incident in life.This also includes financial planning. I would like as many like minded people to join me for this cause. I am hosting an un-conference in Bangalore for people to come and share their thoughts and experiences. Let me know if you would like to be part of it.

    Regards
    Komal Joshi

    1. Where is the conferance ?

      1. Komal says:

        It is an ‘Unconference’ 🙂 and is in Prestige Tech Park, Bangalore. I will set it up on event brite soon and share the details for people to attent. I have a vision that we should be more comfortable and talking about the only certainity in life. We do not want to leave a mess behind for our family.

        1. thanks for sharing that !

  118. Ashish says:

    Hi
    I want to make a will in delhi NCR
    if any one can help

    1. You need a lawyer in that case . HOw can someone help here ?

  119. Bhaskar Chakrabarty says:

    I want to make a Will. Is the will valid if it is signed by a notary public ? How can I make an undisputed Will and what is the approximate charge of the lawyer ? Thanks.

    1. You need to get it registered with sub-registrar . I am not sure of lawyer charges .

  120. KUMAR says:

    Sir I want Ask To u One Question Please Understand This Matter.
    One property around 5680 square feet Registered to 3 person Ramlal Shyamlal and mohanlal…(purchased in 1920 Raja Saahi Patta) in Patta There is No information about personal Partition …..but they equally divide This Plot on oral basis …So My Grandfather Ram lal Part is 1893 square feet{5680*1/3=1893} My Grandfather Ramlal is /died in 1955. My Grandfather Ramlal had 3 sons {Including My Father} and No Daughter.After My Grandfather Death his Sons Divide Property On Equal Basis No Written Document only oral partition . So My father Get 631 Square feet {1893*1/3=631} My father Build a home in 1970 on this 631 square feet plot… My father had only 1 Son (only me) and Four Daughters ……. In 1997 My Father Give This Home To me (Write on 100 rupees Stamp with Thumb impression and two witness Notary attested) he write that in whole 1893 square feet plot My Part 631 Square feet owner is my son….unfortunately My Grand father Expired in 2008 ….my question is that in Future can My 4 Sister object on this home and go to court …..and Demand For Partition. and also tell me How can I Register This Property from Rajasthan Goverment. when I Go To Lawyer they tell me that” if you want to registered this property to own name ” To Tumhe Ramlal and mohanlal ki sabhi bete betiyo ko registrar office me lana padega agar bete beti jinda nahi hai to unke bete beti ko lana padega aur tumhe apni sister ko bhi lana padega” I am Shocked its impossible when i make list then its around 26 relative (son and daughter of shyamlal and mohanlal Son’s ) some Of them is out of rajasthan…some of them did not want to come some of them say “why u want register this Property ” kisi ko koi objection nahi hai faltu registry ka paisa mat lagao……how can i tackle this situation i hope i get right answer from all of you…..sorry for my bad english

    1. The registration has to be done else legally you cant sell it to someone else legally, tell them that when you sell it others buy it only when its registered !

  121. Shirish says:

    Hi Manish
    Very good article ‘how to make a will ….I have two daughters only and want to make a will of all my investment including one flat to go to them with equal sharing. Is executor necessary? Can one of the beneficiaries or both jointly be executor?
    -shirish

    1. Yes, they can be executor , However check that you hire a good lawyer for this !

  122. Jignesh says:

    Hi Manish,

    Thanks for such useful information.

    Would like to know if there is any process to find a will for a paticular person. For e.g my grand father expired 5 yrs back but we ( me & my father) are not sure whether he had made any will of his property. Currently my aunt is stayin on the property which was owned by my grandfather. I have checked for 7/12 details of the property and found it still to be on my grandfathers name only.

    Please advise if we can find/search for any will made by him in any govt offices.

    Thanks & Rgds,
    Jignesh

  123. shikha jain says:

    hi Manish,
    I have few questions related to will,
    what strong steps you should take to make a strong will so that nobody can challenge in future .
    For Example My Aunt (Father sister ) is a widow having no children .She treats my father as her own child and want to make everything in his name so that nobody can’t claim on that property .Will which is registered already made in the name of my father but we want that nobody can’t challenge this in future .
    2) one thing one witness which is doctor is older than papa

    1. All you need to make sure is the lawyer is hired for this , and the WILL is registered and also video graphed if possible !

  124. Abhilash says:

    Hi Manish.. Just came across the article while reading through an article about retirement planning..!! Good Post..!! I’m 32 now. I always thought we can do this when I become old. Some examples in this post shows it’s importance.

    I have few questions: 1. What if something happens to all beneficiaries and creators of the will? Whom will the property go? Will it go to my family? or my wife’s family? 2. What if my wife was gifted some properties from her family (assume it’s registered on her name)? Who can claim this property? 3. Myself and my wife are earning and bought couple of flats so who has the right to acquire it in case none of our family survives? My family or my wife’s family? How do I write a will in a ethical way?

  125. ASHOKA SHENOY says:

    Hi Manish,

    It is a good article about the will and It is very informative. I was reading this topic because I came across a situation where my father wrote will before he died on my name. I have got two sisters but he did not mention anything about them in the will. But the problem is he doesnt have any nominee on his bank account or equity shares. In that case how the will is going to work?? All the accounts were joint account before on my father and mothers name. My mother passed away 2 years back and father passed away last year. I want to close all the accounts and sell all the equity shares and clear everything. How would you think it is possible without having any nominee.

    1. If nominee is missing, then its going to be very tough process . YOu need to now bring something called as “PROBATE” from court and also succession certificate and it might be required that you get NOC from other possible legal heirs . If the WILL is not registered, then again its going to be very tough , because if other stake holders claim that WILL is fake and was made in pressure ! . Then what will you do ?

      Manish

      1. ASHOKA SHENOY says:

        WILL is registered already and my sisters know that it was made from my dads own will and not under pressure. But why NOC I dont understand because only person who can take objection is my dad since he wrote his own WILL. After having a registered will I have to get NOC from everybody?? It doesnt make any sense. But I dont have choice if system needs it.

  126. sunil says:

    sir,
    my name is sunil,my grand mother have 3 acre land,the land is in the name of my grand mother,my grand father passed away. if my gandmother write a will of their 3 sons to share the land equally,then , is there any rights to have a share of the land of her 4 daughters…
    please suggest me.

    1. If will does not say so , they cant claim anything

  127. Subhash says:

    Dear Manish,

    many thanks for sharing your concern over the queries of various readers.

    please advise me over the BEST DISPOSITION OF THE PROPERTY ( Moveable or immovable)….in percentage… (share to Mother,father,wife,sons,daughters) for a normal hindu family..looking in to present scenerio of indian culture.

    please provide some samples of the wills ( if you have ) so that i can take best decision incorporating the mentioed concernd.

    MANY THANKS

    1. Hi Subhash

      I am not sure how my disposition would work for you , its so much a personal thing . I would divide things equally , will you ?

  128. nidhi shah says:

    My father in law was the owner of the flat. He passed away in 2004 leaving back his wife and two sons and one daughter all married and well settled.When alive he had nominated my mother in law for 100% of the flat. The flat was transferred in my M-I-L’s name. Then she nominated my husband and his brother for 50% share each. After few days my mother in law made a deal and gave a suggestion of purchasing the flat by any one of the nominees. The one who will purchase a flat will have to pay half the price of market value of the flat to my mother in law which she will give it to her son who is the nominee of the flat. Both the parties agreed and my husband paid 11 and half lakhs (half the amount of the flat at market value ) to my mother in law.
    Now as per the law the flat belongs to us. The flat is still in my MILs name. We have not transferred the flat in my husbands name. Only nomination is changed to 100% in my husbands name. We thought that after her death the flat will automatically be transferred in my husbands name, but we got to know that even after her death the legal heirs can still claim the flat. In that case what should be done? Do we need to take NOC from the other siblings. In case of NOC what is the procedure? Is nomination safe?

    1. I dont think its the right way, when you already paid the money ,the flat should be transferred to your husband name , Its the right way of doing it . if your personal relations are good and you are confident that there will be no issues later, then go ahead with this arrangement

  129. Nalini says:

    Dear Manish,
    My husband purchased agricultural property in my name in delhi. I want to make a registered will to give this to my daughter and not to my son. I wish to know:-
    1. Can this property, willed by me in this manner be challenged by my son as a “joint family property” and seek a share in it.
    2. Is my daughter obliged to get a probate from the court to get the will executed.
    3. Is my daughter or the Court obliged to inform all heirs about the probate/ execution of the will.
    4. Is there a time frame within which all the legal heirs have to be intimated or give their consent.

    1. 1. NO

      2. No , if its registered

      3. No

      4. No .

  130. LAXMI says:

    SIR,
    MY GRAND MOTHER(FATHER’S MOTHER) HAS SOME LAND PROPERTY AND WRITTEN A “WILL” FOLLOWED BY A GIFT DEED (REGISTERED) TO HER ELDER SON’S (my father’s elder brother) SON. As my father died in 2006 & she is dependent on his Elder son, taking the advantage, got the property transferred on their name. This property was bought by my grand mother’s husband and it is on her name.

    We are two sisters for my father and my mother is alive.

    Please tell me whether we can get any share of the property.
    Regards,
    laxmi

    1. Only if you can prove what you said ,you can file a case !

  131. Vikas says:

    My father has made the will on my mothers name.In witnesss category its signed by me and my brother as that time we didnt took it so seriously.Now sisters are asking for their rights .what should we do?

    1. You have Nothing to do here , the WILL is on mother name, so she will decide what is to be done ! . Everything is of MOTHER as per WILL

  132. Suresh Kumar says:

    Hello,

    My father left behind some property (agricuture land and house) without a will. My sisters have no objection to get the property transfeered to my name being a only son. Could you please advise the legal procedure to get this done.

    thanks.

    1. For this , you will have to meet a lawyer.

  133. S Sahu says:

    Sir,
    A close friend of mine is the only son of his parents. His father has purchased a house after retirement and the family resides there, and has registered the house in his name only. Unfortunately, his father is dead against writing any will despite all persuations. Incidentally, the father has only a sister who is dead and is survived by her children. Please advise as to the consequences of his father dying without any will, survived by his wife and son(my friend).

    If his father, the present owner of the house has any ulterior motive of giving the property to any other person through a will, secretly made, will the same have the consequence of his wife and child getting dispossed of the property after his death? Please advise.

    1. Finally it all boils down to one question , is there a WILL or not , If WILL is there, then whatever is written in that will happen, else his legal heirs will get it .

  134. sarika says:

    sir, iwud lyk to know the rights about my share on mothers property. my mother died in 2000 without making any will on commercial open plot &in 2002 my father mutuated his name without taking any noc from us (his children)as i was unaware abot my share. but my elder brother made a will from my fatheron this property. father is alive & willing to give me my share 1/3th .my brother is nt behaving properly with my father in this case what cud u suggest me? can i suit a partion in the court. thanks!

  135. Harsh says:

    There is a family of 4 – Man M, Wife W, Daughter D and Son S.
    M and W have been married for 40+ years. Using the savings, they build a house and the house is under the name of M. M dies some years after retirement. M and W have written registered wills. M’s will transfers property to W. Property owner is changed to W. W dies after some years and in W’s will, she passes property to S.
    With the registered will of W, the property ownership can simply be transferred to the name of S. Is this correct?

      1. Harsh says:

        Thanks, one clarification I need based on what you mention in the article regarding inherited property.

        When M passed away and transferred the property via registered will to his wife W, is this property now considered inherited? Can wife W leave property through registered will to only one child (S in this case), or is the property considered inherited and consequently has to be shared amongst all children regardless of what W’s will states?

        I guess the definition of what “inherited” property means is significant here. The property is clearly not ancestral, since the man M bought it with his savings. Does that mean M (and later his wife W) have full freedom in passing on the property to whoever they wish to?

        1. This is not inherited property example . Its when the property is transferred from 3 generations and is undivided

  136. Kiran says:

    Hi,

    My mother got her will registered in court with my agreement few year back. As per will all my father’s property( who was expired 10 years back) will go to my brotherand I gave in writing that I don’t need any share in this property. The agreement
    to sign this will by me was that my brother and his wife will take good care of my mother but now she is maltreated
    by my brother and his wife. I asked my mother to write a new will or threaten my brother of possibility of new will if she don’t get good behavior in his late age of 85 years but problem persist. Can I override my concent in previous will and ask for a share in property now? All this property is inherited from my father.

    Thanks
    Kiran

    1. Yes Kiran

      The WILL Can be changed anytime ,just make sure its DATED with new date and registered also . Meet a lawyer I would say !

  137. Saibal says:

    Hi Manish

    I am the only son of my parents. He owns a house at Guwahati. My parents live there. I have a sister who is mentally retarded. I do jobs outside Guwahati and I can manage myself well. Can my father write a will to distribute the assets with my sister, who is mentally challenged or he can write a will in favour of me to take care of my sister and mother..something like ?

    Thanks in advance

    Saibal

    1. Yes, he has option to do both , infact he can do anything with it ,. He can even give it all to your sister also .

  138. Chakravarthy says:

    I am a resident in the USA. I have a will that states that my wife initially will get all the property and has a blanket statement saying
    “I give, devise, and bequeath all the rest, residue, and remainder of my property,
    whether real, personal, or mixed, wherever located…”

    Is this will valid in India if at some point I acquire a residential property? If such a will is valid does theproperty have to be explicitly mentioned with address etc?
    If valid does it have to be registered? It is drawn up by my lawyer and his associates are the witnesses.

    Thanks

    Chakravarthy

    1. Is it registered in India ? I mean if its not, and if the language used in that WILL is not much familiar to indian mindset , you can assume how many issues will crop up later. Better to re-write a WILL and get it registered with a good lawyer in India

  139. Pooja chaubey says:

    Help I am looking for is making and registering a will for me once I am back to India. All details pertaining to my wealth properits are back in India. Is that possible.

  140. M PURANIK says:

    Sir,
    My Grand father has made will (Not registered) in favour of my father & my uncle. Now all three has expired. My Grand mother is alive.
    Should we have to ask our Grand mother for new will ?
    Also the property is in MP where as my Grand mother lives in Maharastra & is unable to come to MP? Can she make will in Maharastra before Registrar & willb be acceptable later on in MP ?
    Please advise
    Regards

    1. Yes, that should be fine . But your grandmother can make WILL for only those things which she owns !

  141. Pooja CHaubey says:

    i have made the entire list of my mfs, fd, ppfs, demats, shares, jewellery etc to whom is to go but all are back in India in my locker. I have been wanting to make a will but need help as to whom to approach and can make one. Plus i would like to give some of my investments and jewellery to my neices and nephews. pls help

    1. What help we can give you ?

  142. Rajesh says:

    Hello Manish,

    you have mentioned that inherited property cannot be assigned by WILL. My mother, myself and my sister have share in inherited property acquired by my grandfather along with my uncles. My Father is no more and did not write any WILL. My Father also held in his name two Flats in Delhi. He died without writing a WILL. My mother wants to write a WILL to distribute her share in properties even though she does hold title in any of them. Will she be able to do it for all three properties I have specified or she does not hold the right to distribute her prospective share in them?

    Thank you very much. Regards.

  143. MalikMan says:

    Hello Manish, Nice article and even nicer of you to entertain everyone’s questions here – much appreciated.

    Can I ask a question too please?

    My father has 3-4 different properties and a couple of FDs etc. and out of them, he has given a separate will to my brother for one of the properties (we all are OK with it) and he has given another will for another property to me. Both these separate wills make a mention of only the property in question for example my will say all the moving property in such n such area …(there is only one in that area). My brother actually suggested that such wills may not really be valid like that as there should only be one single will from one person stating all his properties in that will and mentioning what goes to whom?

    Do you know if what’s right please? Can my father write wills for individual properties? Are they valid or does it have to be one single will?

    To explain a bit better, the land that I’ve got the will on my name is a agriculture land and I bought it with an NRI status. So as an NRI I couldn’t buy an agriculture land on my name hence put that on my father’s name and got a will made of that.

    Please comment on it.

    Thanks.

    1. It does not work like that , only a dated will is valid and the most recent dated will will be the final one .

      1. MalikMan says:

        Hello Manish, Both these wills are dated.

        The will given to me is the latest one and is also registered in the local tehsil office too. So are you saying that now is the only valid will now and the last will that he had given to my brother is now invalid (even if my will doesn’t mention anything about the property whose will is given to him) ?

        Thanks.

        1. Yes , the most recent WILL is the right one .

          1. MalikMan says:

            Thanks Manish!

  144. Sunny Raj says:

    Dear Mr. Chauhan,

    Could you please let me know your expert thoughts about the following question?

    A person bought all the properties (houses, land, financial instruments) entirely from his job earnings but during the purchase and registration of these properties he included his wife’s name as co-owner in each of the property agreement. His wife has not contributed a single rupee towards the purchases of these properties.

    Now this person wants to write a “Will” as per his preference and register it. My questions are:

    1. Can he write a “Will” for the entire property because the entire property was bought by his earnings?

    2. If he cannot, then can he write a “Will” for his part? In this case how much will be his part? Will it be 50% or more than that?

    3. How can the “Will” be executed in such a case if the legatee of that part of the immovable property owned by the testator is not his wife? Does this mean the property has to be sold before this part can be given to the legatee?

    4. In this case when the legatee of this part is not the wife who is the co-owner of the property, my last question is will the “Will” supercede the automatic transfer of ownership of the property to the co-owner upon the death of the testator?

    I hope I was able to make myself clear. If not, please let me know..I will try to clarify.

    Looking forward to your reply.

    Thanking you

    Regards
    Sunny

    1. 1. No , he can only write for his part

      2. His part will be defined as per the registration document

      3. Yes, the co-owner has to either pay the agreed price or they have to sell the property .

  145. Navin Erampann says:

    Hi Manish,

    Got a question. Father would like to write a WILL for a property which will go to one son after Mothers death with she not having any right to sell it (Son, need to pay 70% to other members). Is this could be a valid WILL. What all possibilities for Mother to sell this property after Father death. Need to know the risks involved in paying the 70%

    1. I am not clear about your question ,you have complicated it , please ask it again with simple points

  146. Prem Pratick Kumar says:

    Hi Manish,

    Very good article. It creates awareness among People.

    Thanks,
    Prem Pratick Kumar

  147. JAYDEVSINH says:

    MY MOTHER HAS GOT LAND PROPERTY FROM HER MOTHER(MY GRAND MOTHER) BY WILL IN 1954 AND NOW MY MOTHER MAKE A WILL OF THIS PROPERTY AND GIVE ALL THIS PROPERTY TO MY ELDER BROTHER.MY QUESTION IS MY MOTHER IS ABLE TO MAKE WILL OF ABOVE PROPERTY.WHICH IS SHE GOT BY WILL?

  148. vijay says:

    Can a handwritten will be laminated and preserved. Will it be equally considered as a non laminated will. Kindly advise. thank you

    1. More than lamination, you should get it registered ! .. what is lamination to do with anything ?

  149. PRASHANT G KULKARNI says:

    I wish to make a will & register it how to make it. send me a format of will.

    1. Meet a lawyer for this, do not do it without help of lawyer !

  150. SAM THOM says:

    My parents have some partiality with my elder brother. My elder brother is a govt employee so my parents love him more. They registered a will 2/3 portion to him. My parents also Retd. employees. How I will get equal portion.

    1. Sam .

      I assume you are christian .. Right ?

      If thats the case, then whatever is discussed in this article is not applicable in your case as its for HINDU’s . Here are few rules you can refer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Law_of_Succession_in_India . And better check with a lawyer on this . However I suspect that there wont be much of your help , because a person is free to WILL all his assets to anyone he/she wishes !

  151. Gulzar says:

    Can Survivor of Joint Will change the distribution of the beneficaries.

    1. Only for the part he/she owns !

  152. Patrick fernandes says:

    My grand father given custody of mentally deprived daughter to my father (elder son of grad father) with some property in her name. Recently my father passed away ; from then onwards we two brothers looking after her. Presently, my father’s siblings are alive (one brother and two sisters and they are married) and they not eager to take responsibility of their sister; but they may interest in property after her death.
    Q1: Is it mentally deprived can do a WILL that after her death the property should be divided between two of us.

    Q2: Is that WILL will be sufficient to tackle other siblings claim.

    1. I think its a unique situation .. better talk to a lawyer on this kind of situation !

  153. Anil Shah says:

    My mother want to make a will for her property. Is it necessary Or advisable to make WILL on stamp paper? Is it necessary or advisable to get WILL Notarized?

    What are advantage of will on stamp paper and notarized WILL?

    Anil Shah

    1. Anil

      A will do not need to be on a stamp paper, it can be on a simple paper also .. however its always suggested that a WILL is registered , when you might need to get it on stamp paper !

      1. Anil Shah says:

        Thanks Chetan.

        What is WILL registration procedure?

        1. Meet a lawyer , he will do it for you …

          OR

          Go to sub registrar office with 2 witness and a Will copy !

  154. Chetan Shah says:

    Dear Manish,

    Please clarify that if there is a second holder in any investment and the same investment is allocated to a third person in the WILL, then who is the legal heir?

    1. The second holder will be the legal heir , Legal heir is one who is the potential owner incase of an “idle” investment . With joint name, its already someone else !

      1. Chetan Shah says:

        Thanks for the updation Manish.

  155. pratap says:

    Hi Manish,
    My father has bought one land on my brother’s name,when i was not born. Now he wants to make a will for land ,so that i can also get the share of that land. If he writes a will ,can i get a share for that land.what could be the solution for this?

    Thanks
    Pratap

    1. How can your father write a WILL for something which is on your brother name ? How will father prove that its his property. Actually its not. If the brother is now major, its already his property.

  156. Prakash kumar Routaray says:

    Hi Manish,
    I have one query regarding a Will made by my father ? The Will is written in 100rs stam paper and 1rs stam paper attached to it. Will it be a vaild one?Can i go to court with the power of this Will for my share?

    Thanks
    Prakash

    1. Hi Prakash

      Yes, it should be valid, its anyways not required to be put on stamp paper, it can also be done on a plain paper.

  157. Ajay says:

    Hi Manish,

    Is the registration of Will is must in Maharashtra? Can we do Will on stamp paper with two witnesses but without registration. Does such Wills consider valid Will after the death and will not cause any trouble to my dependents?

    1. Will registration is not compulsory, you need to register is in the office of sub registrar, just putting it on stamp paper is not enough . If will is not registered, its still valid, but there are many places where a registered WILL is required and hence you will have to bring PROBATE from court. That will take a lot of time, Why dont you meet a lawyer and get it registered !

  158. yogesh says:

    sir i want my marriage certificate where i willget

  159. kd says:

    dear sir,
    If will is registered or notorised, will probate be required at time of claim (example – flat transfer). what will be difference between registration & notorization with respect to 1) cost involved 2) is it to be registered like flat
    thanks

    1. Registration is required for the WILL . Notarised is not a solution . If its not properly Registered with the Sub registrar , then probate is required

  160. Vijay says:

    Hi Manish

    You article is very informative and gave a good insight of why a will is important.
    My father wants to re-wirte his will and he has few queries.

    1. If my father is declaring his assets in the will, is it important to declare the same in detail E.g. if he only mentions that ” all mutual funds investment in Private and Govt. org ” rather then mentioning the name of each and ever mutual fund company where the invetment is done. Is this type of declaration OK.
    2. Do we need to mention the amount against each of the declaration ? Is it important?

    Regards
    Vijay

    1. Vijay

      1. He can just mention “All Investments in Mutual funds on my name” . In this way, it becomes general declaration and all the future mutual funds which he buys also gets included. If he mentions the name, then incase he wants to buy something else in future, that will not be considered in WILL .

      2. No its not important and also does not make sense, mutual funds value will keep on changing anyways . He can mention number of units which he wants to give.

      Manish

  161. Saroj Mohanty says:

    Dear Sir,
    After love marriage, my only son has been staying separately and frequently threatening me to claim 50 % share from my property. As far as I know, he can get share on the ancestral property only. Can he demand share on my self acquired property ?
    Will it be wise to make a WILL to the effect that my wife will be the sole owner of the house and the Bank Deposit in the event of my death ? My son has been serving in a private company as Manager and till date he has not supported us financially at our old age. We are managing our bread and butter and medicines by giving some part of our house on rent.
    Please advise.

    1. Saroj

      Yes, your understanding is correct . There is no way, your son can ask for the things which you have self acquired. Even for the ancestral property, it depends from which generation you have acquired it. If you just got something from your parents, does not mean its called “Ancestral property” . If you do not want to give away any part of ancestral property also, better sell it off and take out the money and keep it in your name , like some property .

      Few things you should surely do is

      1. Make a WILL and clear write down who should get what and why your son should not get anything.
      2. Register the WILL
      3. Make sure nominations are correctly placed in the financial instruments.

      Manish

  162. ksp102 says:

    Hi Manish,

    A very well written article, to enlighten people like me.
    I have two queries for you if you can help me out…

    1. My Grand mother (mother’s mother) has property on her name (From her father’s side); GOLD and some hard cash.
    My Grand Mother has two children (One son and One daughter) – daughter being my mother.
    She has not written any will and her physical and mental condition is unstable. In such case if she dies, who are all entitled for the property?

    2. My Grand Father (Mother’s father) had property on his name (Ancestral and self acquired). He died 7 years back without a will. My Grand father is survived by his wife, one son and one daughter(my mother). The legal heir was acquired and my uncle has got some signatures and got all the property transfered to his name. My mother being uneducated, has signed on the papers unknowingly. Is ther any chance/way to revoke the signature and get my mother’s share back if she is entitled to get any?

    Help on this is highly appreciated.

    1. 1. Your mother and your her brother both will be legal heir and will get 50% each

      2. I think its too late now . Things are completed and she has also put the signatures. I doubt if there is any way out now other than to forget it !

  163. Raj says:

    My father left the house to my Mom in his will. The will was not registered. My mom wants to transfer the property to her name now. What is the procedure and how much will it cost (she lives in Panchkula, Haryana).

    1. As the WILL was not registered. She will now have to bring a probate from court . This is one small mistake people do and their families have to suffer due to this .

  164. Karunakaran Nambi says:

    Hi Manish, it is a very useful information and thanks a lot for providing so much of information at one place. I would like to know whether the property has to be divided only to the relatives such as spouse, children etc., What if they all of them have abandoned me and I do not want to give them any of my hard earned property, other than the inherited property. Is there a provision that I can give my hard earned property to the one (who is not a relative) who has really helped me in times of acute crisis and taken care of me when I was in need. If it is possible, is there any special precaution to be taken while preparing such a WILL. Please help. Thank u in advance.
    Karunakaran N

    1. There is no compulsion like that , you can WILL everything to a third party if you wish , Just write a WILL and mention the person name and if possible better mention the reason for abondoning the relatives so that eveyrthing is black and white and there is no second guess on the authenticity of the WILL . Mention why you feel the person you are giving the money deserves it 🙂

      Manish

      1. R. Anthony says:

        There is no compulsion like that , you can WILL everything to a third party if you wish , Just write a WILL and mention the person name and if possible better mention the reason for abandoning the relatives so that everything is black and white and there is no second guess on the authenticity of the WILL . Mention why you feel the person you are giving the money deserves it.

        Dear Sir,
        I would like to know whether this type of WILL will be valid to a Roman Catholic person who is 54 years old and being ill treated from his wife and wife’s family wants to do this as the husband and wife are not living with good mutual understanding the wife and son and wife’s brother are living in the house since it was constructed in 2007 and the husband does not want her to have his hard earned property which he as earned for the passed 17 years abroad right now for the past 2 years and 7 months he is living with his sister away from his wife and son who is 22 years old now,Is there a provision that he can WILL the house and 20 cents land which is located in Karnataka.
        Please help. Thank u in advance.
        R.Anthony

        1. There are seperate WILL rules for christians in India, you will have to meet a lawyer for this .

          1. R.Anthony says:

            Manish sir. Thanks a lot I will meet a lawyer.
            My Best wishes to you and the site.
            R.Anthony

  165. sharad says:

    thank you ..sir

  166. Vancheeswara Iyer says:

    an excellent guide written in simple words which can be understood by a layman. Great

  167. Vancheeswara Iyer says:

    Can the will be written in such a way that the sons can only possess and enjoy the property and disposing off the property can be done only by all the grandsons of the executor jointly, when the sons of the executor is yet to get married. In other words, grandsons are not born on the day of writing of the will. Your advice is solicited in this regard. The assets are located in Kerala and the executant resides in Kerala.

    1. I think you should talk to lawyer on this , Its not a usual thing required. lawyers will find a way , but I think its possible

      1. Vancheeswara Iyer says:

        thank u very much Mr. Manish Chauhan.

  168. Swaminathan Subramanian says:

    Thanks Manish Chauhan.

  169. Swaminathan Subramanian says:

    Hi , Iam swaminathan from chennai,

    Iam taking care of my relative daughters for past 6 years (one is major and other minor) . Iam a frequent travellor , i know the risk involved in day to day life, keeping that in mind , I have taken Life insurance from HDFC for 1 crore and corporate life insurance policy for 50 lacks and I own one house on my name, and cash in my bank accounts.

    I wish to write will / nominate all my assets and insurance , PF amount to my daughters. Is it possible to write will / or nominate my daughters . to get above benefit incase of my death.

    Kindly help me how to do legally.

    1. JUst meet your lawyer and tell him you want to write a WILL , the will should say which of your property should go to whom . Also better put the same names in nominations also !

      1. sharad says:

        hia ,i m sharad from delhi.
        sir i want to know that what is the execution time of a will in india .
        the case is that my my grandmother has 5 childrens and she died in 2005 ,,so his one son is claiming on her all property by showing a will ..in which the whole property was given ti him …will is registered in 2000 so i want to know that there is any time limit to present the will infront of others or not ,,,,
        kindly answer me ..

        1. There is no time limit like that , it can be executed anytime .. but longer the gap , your chances of claiming that its fraud increases. You can ask him why he didnt bring it for last 7 yrs !

          Manish

  170. Krishna Dasi says:

    Hello Mr. Chauhan,
    Thank you for the wonderful services you are doing.

    I have read your comments around having a “No Objection” affadavit from the siblings so that hopefully there are no issues in the future. My father is in the process of making his Living Will. His question is that if he includes a statement in his Will that he is asking signatures from all his 3 children in the Will document as their consent for the contents of the Will. The signature of the 3 children will be in addition to the 2 witnesses. The question is would this serve similar purpose as “No objection” affadavit from his children i.e. my siblings. Would it help in the future in case there are issues at the time of execution of the Will. Thank you so much in advance.

    1. I dont think it works that way, but better confirm it with a lawyer on this . If you get a WILL and get it registered, then I guess even NOC is not required !

  171. rajeev says:

    sir,
    we are 6 brothers and 3 sisters. all r married.1st no. sister and 5th no. brother is dead.my father and mother live with me.my father make a will in 2002 in the favor of all 6 brothers and mother in 7 equel share. but in 2011 my fathers angioplasty operation was done.till now 3 angioplasty operation and pacemaker implant was done.but my 4 brothers not ask father wellness and not give any money.i and my 3rd no. brother manage all the hospital bills.my father want to give his self accqured property by settlement deed in sept. 2012.we go to court and my father give his statement.but my brothers make a objection in court thay file a application in court that we want to grab their share.truth is that this property is self accqured by my father and he wants to give this to us only.case is in court.now in oct. 2012 my father changed his will in this will he give his anestrial property to all of brothers and my mother in 7 shares equilly.but he gave his self accqured property to my mother and me and my 3rd no. brother.is this will legelly valid.my lawer give this will copy also in court record. please help me.

    1. Yes, the latest WILL will be final now . As your father is Alive right now , he can change the WILL anytime . Your brothers can not challenge it . I am wondering on what basis they have filed a case against you

      1. rajeev says:

        sir,
        my father was expired on 19 december 2012.now what i do. please help me. my brothers are trying to excute old will in sub division.

        1. File a case against them then ! . the new and latest will has to be the FINAL one !

        2. rajeev says:

          sir,
          my mothers are 2 sisters only.my mother and sister 100 yards plot is on mg. gurgaon main road.near to metro station.but my mothers uncle make a hotel on that.they earn five lakh rupees per month.we get nothing.total plot area 500 yards.my mothers fathers r 5 brother.my mothers father expired before 10 years.so in govt. documents owner is my mother and her sister.so in this case what can we do.my mothers share is around 50 yards.

          1. File a case for getting it back , meet a lawyer now !

  172. karamjeet singh says:

    manish jee very much thanks,can u help me by providing a copy of gift deed. my mother is in ludhiana & property is also in ludhiana .

    1. I am not sure if I can get it for now right now !

  173. josan says:

    My parents have a 1 bhk in a good locality in mumbai & a bunglow in our native place. I got married in a quite wedding & because of this my mother felt insulted , she wanted something dhoom dham. now she wants my father to make a will and give everything to my brother. what can I do? I am a christian

    1. What can I say , Its purely your family decision now !

  174. karamjeet singh says:

    sir , i am 43 , my mother wants to give me the property . can my mother make a WILL DEED or GIFT DEED.which one is good .

    1. Better she makes a GIFT DEED and give the thing to you right away !

  175. Anubhav says:

    Thanks a lot… Thats fine, as per Sec. 63 of Indian Succession Act, signature of 2 witnesses is must. But if after the death of a person, his Will is opened for execution, and then it is found that its signed by only one witness. Then in that case, will the weightage be given to the last wishes of the testator or the requirement of 2 signatures will be upheld.?

    1. It will just be a INVALID WILL .

  176. Anubhav says:

    Sir, Iwant to know what would be the fate of a will if its signed by only one attesting witness.? Is it just a technical error or whole will be declared void?

    Thanks

    1. Its a INVALID WILL in that case, signature of 2 witnesses is the core rule !

  177. abdula says:

    Will in Muslim law…

    I have will of my brother agriculture land (full), he not have any children’s.

    It possible to execute? or only 1/3 of agriculture land?

    1. From what I know , only 1/3rd property can be WILLed as per Muslim Law of succession !

  178. dinesh says:

    I am not execute will after death of my brother…now 6 years over..

    It possible to execute now?

      1. dinesh says:

        It need to go court for execute will (6 years old) in Karnataka…or direct sub register office?

        1. From what I know, execution of will does not mean a legal procedure , its just an act of doing what is mentioned in the WILL . The executor is appointed so that the WILL is enforced asap after death and no one waits for years !

  179. Aditya says:

    I am 32 year old indian expat lady can i write my will now iteself mentioning something like all my properties (even which will come to me in furture like from my father and all ) will be given to my only duaghter and she do what ever she want with the same once she become major.Secondly can i mention any one as per my wish (other than my husband ) as the care taker of my dughter and my properties

    1. Yes, you can do all this !

  180. Krishna Dasi says:

    Hello Mr. Manish,
    Thank you so much for the insights on the subject of “Wills”. Much appreciated. I had so many questions that got clarified after reading your responses including information on Joint Wills. Could you please elaborate more on Joint Will vs. Individual Wills. Pros and Cons for both or when should one consider Joint Will?

    Best Regards,
    Krishna Dasi

    1. Joint will can be written jointly by two people , nothing big difference !

  181. Parthajeet Sarma says:

    I and my wide own some properties (real estate) jointly…how do I divide in my will what is already partly owned?

    1. You can WILL only your part !

  182. ProActive says:

    Hey Manish,

    Am working on a will for my parents to make an amicable settlemnet of their property between me & my elder sis. We are all on good terms with each other. Just that I have a finance bckgrd and was keen this happens in everyones presence. We have a flat on “paghdi” basis. We have been occupants since 1960’s. Here the occupants on sale have to give an x% of the proceeds to the trustee and the balance remains with them. We are all emotionally attached to this house and therefore its sale seems to be a distinct reality.. So parents have already sent a request to the trustees to add my and my sis’s name as legal heirs to this flat. HOwever, we havent yet heard from them so far. (its been about a year that my dad has applied for the same) While preparing the will how can i take care of this house’s clean title. (My grand dad left this house to my dad.. and another ownership flat to my uncle. We are all on amicable terms with each other. Therefore this flat remains with my dad.. \to be passed on to me and my sis).

    1. I really dont have idea on this PaGDI system and if things are different here. better catch a good lawyer for this

  183. rushak says:

    My name is Rushak….my father friend landed his 2 fix deposit n his savings account on my father name….my father is a joint accout holder in this 2 FIXES DEPOST and SAVINGS ACCOUNT…..after my father friend death can his legal hair can claim this fixed deposit and saving account…..is it necessary to make a WILL

    1. I dont think legal heirs can claim it , your father should be the legitimate owner of those accounts now .

      1. rushak says:

        Is it necessary to make a will for a safe side…..

        1. Dont you think so ! .. obviosuly !

  184. Rashmi Rao says:

    Dear Manish,
    My father passed away 8years back leaving back me and my elder sister( both are married).He had some Fixed Deposits in his and my mothers name. Later on my mother deleted his name after his death and equally divided between me and my sister putting her name first as my mother is uneducated and blind. My fathers flat is also transferred in her name and she has nominated equally both of us(me & My Sister). my mother is staying with me for the last 8 years and sometimes she stays with my sister (for about a week in a year). Now my sister is harrassing my mother as she feels that my mother is favouring me and she is insisting her to rent that flat so that the monthly amount can be again divided further. Now my mother doesnot want to rent the flat. She is harrassing somuch that now my mother feels that she should make a will and in that she wants to give 100% share of the flat to me. Is it possible. she cannot change the nomination on the shre certificate as this certificate is with my sister and she may not give my mother. Can a will be useful in that case. If my mother wishes to give me the flat after her death then will that WILL be ok or my sister can again claim for her rights?

    1. The problem is that the flat should ideally be divided between all you 3 people after your father death, if it was originally his property . You guys have doen something between yourself and put the flat name in your mothers name, so currently its hers . So yes, she can make a WILL on the property .

      1. Rashmi Rao says:

        Thanks, Mr. Manish.
        My query was something different. We have no issues if the flat is in her name as we feel itwas my fathers wish that the flat should be transferred in my mothers name after his death.I just want to know now that she has nominated me and my sister for that property equally after her death and the share certificate and a copy of the nomnation papaer is with my sister Now if my mother wants to change the nomination can she do it now? I hope I am right. Now my sister is not ready to give her the original papers. In that case can she make a WILL and nominate the person she wishes to give the flat after her death? Will that WILL be liable or even after making a WILL the other daughter can claim for that flat?

        1. Yes she can do that, she will have to take support of the society and a lawyer , who can draft the new nominations . Just because its in someone possession does not mean she cant do anything .

          1. Rashmi Rao says:

            Thanks a lot. Your info really relievedme and my mother.

            1. Rashmi Rao says:

              Just one query sir,
              Since my mother is partially blind and she is not able to sign properly, and whenever she signs there is a variation so can we take her thumb impression on the WILL? She has a very sharp mind and physically fit. She will ofcourse make a WILL in presence of two witness and has a sound mind and physical health,but later on when the WILL is opened after my mothers death, will my sister claim for her share as she may say that we had forcibly taken her signature on the WILL against her wishes as she is partially blind. In that case what is the solution?

            2. Rashmi Rao says:

              Sir i have asked you one question. can u help me?

            3. this will not happen . Take one of the doctors as the witness and other one as lawyer, hire a lawyer for this and make him one of the witness only . This will make sure problems dont arise , you can also make a recorded oral will

            4. Rashmi Rao says:

              THANK YOU SO MUCH

  185. psrajvanshi says:

    sir,i want to know if i can will a land property ,which has been inherited by me from my father,to my sons as i wish.also can i will a part in it to my wife also?

    1. You can WILL it to anyone you want

  186. Vijay says:

    Dear Manish,

    As far as bank FDs are concerned, who decides the beneficiary? Is it the law, WILL or nominee mentioned on the FD ?

    Thanks in advance.

    1. If will is present then thats final, else the succession laws will do that – check this – http://jagoinvestor.dev.diginnovators.site/2012/04/hindu-succession-law-no-written-will.html

  187. Vijay says:

    Dear Manish,

    Thanks for the good article. I have one query on the same:

    Is it mandatory to disclose the WILL to all stake-holders (both beneficiary and non-beneficiary) ? Can anyone challenge the WILL in the court just because the person was not aware of the WILL ?

    For example, can a SON challenge a WILL made by his father in which he is not mentioned as a beneficiary party and the he was not aware of the WILL before it was opened ?

    Thanks in advance.

    1. Not being aware is not a ground of rejection or raising any issue . He cant do it

  188. Rimzim says:

    I’ve given a cash gift (as an FD) to my father so that he can meet his living/medical expenses with the interest it earns. My father wishes that the FD (principal amount) should go back to me after he is no more. Can he make a specific bequest in his will so that the FD comes to me, and not the other legal heirs? Can the other legal heirs contest this? My father has already made me the nominee on the FD but I don’t know if that gives me the right to the money after his death. What would be the best way to avoid problems? Thanks!

    1. Yes a WILL saying that it should come to you is a good option , but the best option is more simpler , just make the FD as a joint FD and the account from which its opened , ask your father to make it as joint account with you as second holder .

  189. Jagan says:

    Nice to see the article. Thanks for it. Currently i’m in US and have properties in India. I can write a WILL here in US and get witness signature, but my question is how do i register and where to handover the WILL for everyone’s safety. Thanks for your response

    1. You can write the WILL , but you will have to be present in India to register it .

  190. uday sawant says:

    Manish sir, plz answer one query… my party gave me cheque only with sign & date …he has not mentioned ..amount & my name on cross chq….if i will deposit it in bank …. putting my name & amount in my own handwritting & if chq bounces due to NO FUND, then can i file froud/ cheating case against him .. or court will not agree with me as handwritting difference ..in this case ..can I type it on the said chq..plz guide me

    1. I am not sure on that actually ,discuss it on forum http://jagoinvestor.dev.diginnovators.site/forum/

  191. D Mahesh says:

    Dear Mr Manish,

    Two questions…..
    1) Supposedly there is a registered will dated 30th Sept 2012 ; and an unregistered will dated 3rd Oct 2012 (prepared on a plain piece of paper but complete in all respects)- which one will be considered final and conclusive

    2) Is a doctor’s certificate necessary to certify that the person making the will is in sound mental and physical shape to make the will ?

    Thanks……D Mahesh

    1. 1. The registered will is final

      2. NO , but its a good practice to have it, does not create confusion. Now the question will be if the second will is genuine , why didnt the guy register that one too , when he knows that the first will is registered ?

      1. D Mahesh says:

        Thx manish

        1) I have read in quite a few cases on the websites that the final will even if unregistered will be considered supreme.

        2) Hypothetically if he does not get chance to register the 2nd will or simply he does not do it.

        1. I think this can only be confirmed by a lawyer .. these things are very complex to conclude on forums like this

  192. Sandeep says:

    hi Manish,

    My granny (Mom’s mother) is been living with us from almost 7 year. she was living alone for while after my Mama’s death as Mami ji decided to move back with her paretns after his dead. anyhow their family property is dived to into 3 parts, one goes to my granny and other two goes to her son’s (both passed away) and now to their sons/daughters/wife. now granny wants to transfer her part to my mother. we did consult with few people but consufessed. wot is the best way to get that transfer done? granny already made a will and she have given all her property to my mom in her will but is that something can be changlleged by my granny’s legal heirs?? or as suggested by local lawyer that we should get this registered to my mom’s name from granny as blood relation trasfer.

    please advise.

    many thanks

    1. Sandeep

      Better transfer the property in the life time of granny itself . Dont go through WILL , transfer it now

  193. B S Shah says:

    I am 65 years old. We are five brothers (out of which 3 are expired and one is stayed in USA). We have joint property including land and houses. Some of the land was purchased by my father and some of them are purchased by my grand father. Now the problem is that there is dispute in the distribution of property. My elder 2 bothers have 3 sons each and other 2 brothers have 1 son each. I have one son. If the property is not distributed until I expire so what share my son will get after my expiration 1/5th share or 1/9th share? Please suggest my as I am very much worried about my son.

    1. Each of you brother have 1 share (20%) , so your son should get 20% share and why wait till your death, you can divide the things now itself !

      1. B S Shah says:

        Thanks for your prompt reply and suggestion.
        The problem is, my brothers’ sons are, not ready to divide. So I doubt, they are thinking that after my death they will get more share. So they are waiting for my death. Is it true they will get more share and my son’s share will reduce from 1/5th to 1/9th share?

        1. No , even in your death , your son will get 1/5th only . But why are you guys waiting, better file a legal case now

  194. SIVARANJANI.S says:

    Dear Manish,

    My grandfather owns a property of agricultural land. He wants to assign it to my father & me & he likes to execute a WILL . He doesn’t know to write the WILL. can we get the assistance of lawyer to prepare a WILL???. I mean can i ask the lawyer to prepare the WILL & get sign (including thumb impression) from my grandfather and two witnesses not related to our family. What are the procedures to be followed after WILL preparation? Is it necessary to file the above WILL under any law of court? can we leave the above WILL with the lawyer itself? or else when can we get the copy of it? Now or later??

    Thanks in advance.

    Sivaranjani.S

  195. Pradip says:

    dear Manish

    I have already paid the booking amount for a property on resale. The property is jointly owned by mother & minor son.

    What can be the legal problem if I proceed to buy. The bank from which I have asked loan has asked for clearance from court from the seller as this is a property jointly owned by a minor.(50:50 stake). What is the time priod required for this clearance? is it worth the wait?

    What do u suggest? I am keen to buy this property as this is at a prime location.

    1. Pradip

      This will require more deep discussion , please open a thread on http://jagoinvestor.dev.diginnovators.site/forum/

  196. veekay says:

    Hi Manish,

    Mine is a Hindu undivided family. I, my brother and my sister are the three children to my father. All are well settled and has properties of their own.
    Two years ago my brother died.
    My father has purchased one site in my name(when i was 20 years) and this site was in GPA, so i have registered this site into my wife’s name in the year 2005.
    Can my sister-in-law can claim on this site?
    Kindly answer to my queries.
    Based on your replies, i can go to a lawyer.
    Thanks in advance

    1. No if the property is already registered on your wife name, then there is no question of giving it to someone else

      1. veekay says:

        Thanks a lot for your reply.

  197. veekay says:

    Hi Manish,

    Mine is a Hindu undivided family. I, my brother and my sister are the three children to my father. All are well settled and has properties of their own.

    Two years ago my brother died.
    My father has purchased one site in my name(when i was 20 years) and this site was in GPA, so i have registered this site into my wife’s name in the year 2005.
    Can my sister-in-law can claim on this site?
    Kindly answer to my queries.
    Based on your replies, i can go to a lawyer.
    Thanks in advance

  198. k.k. sharma says:

    Sh. Manish Chauhan ji,

    My wife is the only daughter of her parents, her father has died 11 years back ( without any will ) and her mother is alive, but she is also ailing now-a-days. We have two daughters and two TWIN sons . Daughters are now married ( 9 yrs back ) and our one son has been married few months back and second son is unmarried.
    My mother-in-law has one house( in the name of my father-in-law) in Ldh and a plot ( purchased by my father-in-law in instalments when he was in service, but in papers in the name of his wife ) in Ldh. Now, we have come to know that my mother-in-law has created a WILL and the entire above property has been given ONLY to one of my son ( who is married ) and even not to her daughter ( my wife ) and not to my second son. We are serving mother-in-law during her illness, as she is living with us.

    Can my wife claim the property in her name as his father has purhased/owned this property himself from his salary during his service. but father-in-law had never created any WILL.

    Mother-in-law is still alive, & my wife is in the favour that it should be given to her being the only daughter, so that my wife will divide the whole property among two sons alongwith with her own share in the father property.

    would by pl advise the legality of the above case.

    1. IDeally she should be able to claim the proerpty for her share, but now so much time has passed , i think you should talk to lawyer now !

  199. Roop says:

    What are the charges, if any, for getting the will registered in a court of law ?

    Is there a specific court which one needs to go to for registration of a will ?

    1. You have to go to the sub registrar to register the WILL and you have to go with 2 eye witness who are not beneficieries , it would take some Rs 200 to register a WILL

  200. Raminder says:

    Please answer the query of my earlier question i.e.
    One of my relative (Mr ‘A’) had made a will in his minor grandson aged 8 years ( whose mother had expired and father is remarried).Now he(Mr ‘A’) has expired in 2011leaving behind a son , a daughter and wife. He had made will for his acquired house and ancestral agricultural land.My question is:
    1. What is the time frame to execute the WILL? Can it be executed when the child becomes major (18years).

  201. Raminder says:

    My another query is: Can an executor (someone who is responsible to execute the will) be appointed from the beneficiaries. For Example: If I make a will in favour of my Son. Can my son be appointed as Executor.

    1. Yes this can be done , the executor is a person whom you think is the trusted one !

  202. Raminder says:

    One of my relative (Mr ‘A’) had made a will in his minor grandson aged 8 years ( whose mother had expired and father is remarried).Now he(Mr ‘A’) has expired in 2011leaving behind a son , a daughter and wife. He had made will for his acquired house and ancestral agricultural land.My question is:
    1. What is the time frame to execute the WILL? Can it be executed when the child becomes major (18years).
    2. Can his son , daughter or wife can challenge the WILL?

    1. A will can be challenged for the ancestral property part , but anything which was self acquired will go to the grandson only.It depends how the will was prepared and the nitty gritties in it , Was it prepared with a lawyer help or not ?

    2. Raminder says:

      What about query No. 1
      1. What is the time frame to execute the WILL? Can it be executed when the child becomes major (18years).

      1. No , the WILL has no time frame to execute ! ..

  203. Nisarg says:

    Sir,
    i have an query. According to my knowledge, if a will is made on a plain paper and is not registered, then still it is valid. But the question is, what if the will is signed by the testator and the witnesses only at the end of the will and not on all pages? Is it still valid?

    1. Yes i think there is no need like this , that it should be signed on all pages .

  204. Vijinder Saini says:

    I have one house,one plot and some bank accounts on our joint name with my wife.I have two sons .I want to bequeath the above mentioned assets in equal shares to both of my sons.How should i proceed?Should we make separate WIILS or should we go for a joint WILL ?Pls Suggest me the correct and the appropriate procedure.

    1. Incase of your death without WILL , your wife will own things like bank accounts , but the house and plot , your children will have share on your part . But if you create the Will , then only you can give it to them , you should create a WILL or a joint will , meet a lawyer i would suggest!

  205. surya says:

    Thanks a lot to you sir, for making a wonderful and informative site for us. I have two queries. I want to give nothing to my wife and my child. I am fed up with them and I am going through a tremendous mental torture they specially my wife is giving to me. They have somehow get information of my money, I am now fifty and I may not live long as so many diseases have attacked me. I have retired from my service (VRS) four years back and the employer has given me a good sum of money as retirement benefit, and I am getting, not so bad, pension also. My wife is a nominee of my pension. Now questions are :
    i) Can I relinquish her from nominee of my pension (after my death) through a WILL ?
    ii) I have a flat. If I give all my properties, assets etc to someone else through a WILL, then will all the immovable and moveable properties like flat and the belongings of all items in the flat, to that persons whom I like to give, though there are some goods like almirah, sarees, ornaments etc. belonging to her (though there has no proof of document we have).
    Please satisfy me.

    Thanks a lot.

    1. Surya

      1. You can change the nominee of your Pension now itself before your death and also through your WILL you can decide who should get it .
      2. Yes you can give everything to someone else . Regarding other things , you need to prove that its yours , only then you will be able to give it to someone else!

      1. Bhaskar Chakrabarty says:

        Thank you for your instant and supportive reply. Long live Manishji.

      2. Bhaskar Chakrabarty says:

        thank you for your instant and helpful reply. Long live Manishji.

  206. santana biswas says:

    My father want to make will that all property onto my name. Is there is any required to put my other family members name onto will. mail me the solution urgently required.

    1. No , its not required

  207. santana biswas says:

    My want to make will that all property onto my name. If there is any required to put my other family members name onto will. mail me the solution urgently required.

  208. veekay says:

    hi Manish,
    ours is a hindu undivided family. I, my brother and my sister are the three children to my father.
    My brother was taking care of family real estate business and all our properties (lands) was in his name. Two years ago my brother died, and my sister-in-law has transferred all the property in her husband’s name to her name.
    All the investments by brother made was from the father’s money. Now can we file a case against my sister-in-law’s property?

    My father has purchased one site in my name(when i was 20 years) and this site was in GPA, so i have registered this site into my wife’s name in the year 2005.

    One more question is, can my sister-in-law can claim on this site?

    Kindly answer to my queries.
    Based on your replies, i can go to a lawyer.
    Thanks in advance

    1. If a site is on someone’s name already , then its there property , so your sister in law is the valid owner of that site along with your mother , but if the name transfer has happened , then it will get more ugly situaiton now !

  209. Vishakha says:

    Hi Manish,

    This is a very good article. I have been planning to chalk out a will since quiet some time, but have been postponing it.
    I am a mother of small kid (a daughter) and I wish her to inherit everything I own. I wish to make my sister or my father, guardian(in case if I die earlier than she becomes 25 years old). I wish my daughter to handle all the money passed on to her only after she is 25. Also, I wish to give some share to orphanages, but do not have any specific in my mind. I stay with my husband. But I do not wish him to have anything that I have earned in a very hard way

    I have following queries;

    1. In case if I have clearly mentioned that 80% of all my assets shd go to my daughter and 20% to orphanage(enlisting all the assets), can my husband claim anything? Can he create any problems later on.
    2. Currently we stay in United States. If I have made will in another country, will it be valid?
    3. I have some jewellery, which was given to me by parets at the time of marriage. If I pass on the same to my daughter, can my husband claim that?
    4. If my sister is a Guardian, can by husband (who is very much sane and shrewd), contest the guardianship.

    Awaiting ur reply

    1. You can assign all the things you own by a WILL to your daughter, but if you do not mention it in WILL ,then it will be claimed by your hudsband + daughter both. So better put everything in WILL . You can make the WILL outside india, that should be valid, but its always suggested to register it , else there can be many issues later.

      Regarding your 4th point, your husband might be able to take the custody of daughter if she is minor , being a FATHER .

      manish

  210. Anurag kumar says:

    Hello Sir
    I want to know about legal heirs of a particular an ancestral property (a home)…..

    From my father’s first marriage he had 1 son, after the death of his first wife, he remarried, from second wife he has 2 son and 1 daughter..

    His first son from his first wife is also died in 1998.Son’s widow is not staying with us form 1999, she staying in her parent’s home and not remarried .

    Now my father is died last year. My questions are…

    1- ) who are the heirs of this property in this list (Widow of first Son, Second wife, her 2 Son and 1 daughter)?

    2- ) How much in % they get?

    3-)My father get this property form his father through “Hindu Registered Batwara in 1960” at that time he was unmarried, 1 lawyer told me, because he was unmarried and minor at that time, this his own property not an ancestral property.is it right?

    Pls guide me…..

    1. It will be his own property , but even the first son is a legal heir and now as he is dead, his wife is also a legal heir now . So it will be divided among you all in equal parts

      1. Anurag kumar says:

        thank you Manish Sir ,for clarification

        1 more n last question…..

        My father want this property to divide in two equal parts with me and my brother,he doesn’t want give any thing to first son’s wife because of her bad behavior ,can he “WILL” this property in our favor……

        Thank you

        1. I dont think your father can WILL it , as its a ancestral property , then it has to go to even the first son wife !

  211. amit k gupta says:

    Hello Manish sir

    Thanks for the informative article, I have few queries regarding WILL…..

    My father died in July 20011 ,he made a registered Will in June 2010.he stated following thing in his WILL .he has a 1 house(ancestral) which he divided between us (2 brother),he stated that my mother will stay in this house as long as she live, and we brothers cannot partitioned the house till she alive.

    He also stated the all his movable property (FD, Saving, Ornaments) to my mother’s name.
    Now my elder brother wants 50% of all the movable property (father’s own earning) from my mother. I am unmarried n my mother is 64 and staying with me, she is heart n BP patient; they are not taking care of her at all. She is not willing to give him anything, because of his harsh behavior toward her.my query is…….

    1)-Can she make a new WILL for all her movable asset that she possesses, to me after her death?
    2)-Can this registered WILL be challenged by my brother in future?
    3)-We have 10 old glass paintings, which has a market value of 50000/- each, are these paintings come under movable asset? Can she mention it to her WILL?
    4)-what is legal action she can take against them, because they are mentally harassing, taunting, abusing her regularly because they didn’t get any money in my father’s WILL?
    so sir please answer n advise me……..
    thank u Sir 🙂

    1. Amit

      First thing is whatever is written in WILL will be final and you are pretty safe , as its registered.

      Now your mother has final ownership in all the movable properties. She can do whatever she wants from it . so the answers to your questions are

      1. Yes
      2. No, no one can stop him from challenging it, but eventually nothing much will happen , few months will be wasted
      3. Depends how the WILL wordings are , if it mentions “All the movable properties” then those old glass painting will be considered, but if he has mentioned items one by one , then those glass paintings will not be counted as part of WILL , then it will be of all 3 people.
      4. Just file a policy complaint of harrassment . Your mother can file a case against police on mental harrasment and abuse , he will get in jail

      Manish

      1. amit k gupta says:

        Thank you Sir for ur guidence……….:-)

  212. Jagdish Gupta says:

    Manish Chauhan Sir,

    Many thanks for your reply. I would like to know that in case a will is not made in such cases where the couple is issue less and their parents have already expired who will automatically inherit this property. We both have brothers & Sisters. Will they be our automatic successors in the absence of will ?
    Should we Register the will ? We don’t want to disclose to the beneficiary in our will that he is the beneficiary, to avoid what is usually happening to old couples for property.Pl. tell the remedy.

    Jagdish Gupta

    1. Jagdish

      If will is missing, then your legal heirs as per hindu succession law will be considered as your legal heirs . In that case your (husband) brothers will be considered as the successors , read this – http://jagoinvestor.dev.diginnovators.site/2012/04/hindu-succession-law-no-written-will.html

  213. Jagdish Gupta says:

    Manish Chauhan

    Many thanks for your reply. I would like to know that in case a will is not made in such cases where the couple is issue less and their parents have already expired who will automatically inherit this property. We both have brothers & Sisters. Will they be our automatic successors in the absence of will ?
    Should we Register the will ? We don’t want to disclose to the beneficiary in our will that he is the beneficiary, to avoid what is usually happening to old couples for property.Pl. tell the remedy.

    Jagdish Gupta

  214. Jagdish Gupta says:

    We are an issue less couple in our late sixties. We have two houses on each of our names & have got two plots also. We have also got good amount of money in banks as Fix Deposits .We are retired government employees and draw good amount of pension . We have tested on many occasions that none of our relatives can care for us in case we need. As such we have no one who can be of any use to us. We have ,therefore, decided not to give any thing to any of our relatives. I have read your article and have decided to draft a will but are puzzled whom to give as we are not associated to any particular organisation. Our money is very hard earned money and we can’t just throw it as we may need it at any time in our old age. Can you please advise ? Can we draw a joint will that after our death only this money may be given to the beneficiary whom we will select?. An early reply will help us to take an early decision.

    1. Jagdish

      Yes you can make a joint will, where you can mention that only after both husband and wife, the property should go to someone. You can choose someone who is your friend, some needy person , or someone in your life whom you feel a good person.

      Manish

  215. Mukesh says:

    Hi,

    I just wanted to know, if it is possible/valid for a person to mention the financial assets, that he/she may own in future (after the will is created) in his will.

    To be precise, I was about to create a will and I am quite young. So, I am likely to buy more assets in the future. The question is, whether I will have to recreate my will each time I buy a new asset or I can mention in my will, the current assets and the assets which I may hold in the future.

    Secondly, Can I mention my digital assets in my will (For eg: the website hosting spaces I own, my email accounts, my social networking accounts etc.).

    Thanks,
    Mukesh

    1. Mukesh

      Yes you can mention “All assets which belong to me legally on my name” … Like this .. But if assets are mentioned name wise , its always better. Do one thing, create one right now and later after 10-15 yrs , change it .

      Manish

      1. Mukesh says:

        Many thanks for the reply, manish.

        Also, I would like to know if Digital assets – like ( any online hosting or cloud spaces that I purchase, email accounts, social networking accounts or anything else, like purchased music or apps on iTunes or android market etc) can be mentioned in my will.

        1. Komal says:

          Mukesh,

          I think you raised a good point about digital assets. There is not much awareness about these assets. You can explore plannedDeparture.com for this.

          Thanks & Regards
          Komal Joshi

          1. Thanks for sharing that . We will look into it !

  216. Shashi says:

    Dear Manish,

    Thanks for giving useful informations on WILL thru this site. This alerts me to keep all our financial transactions and assets properly assigned to the right family members. I have a query to you which am facing now,

    Background : We are family of 5. Parents : Father-78Y, Mother-72Y, 2 Sisters and I the last son, all in 40’s. Recently, since 2010, family asset dispute has cropped up and my sisters are asking for share in the property. My father has to make a will for a house which is in his name and all the 5 have agreed for the same. After the natural death of my parents, it is agreed to get 50% for me as son (Because, I don’t own a house and not well off) and 25 % each to my two elder sisters.

    My question to you is

    1. Once the will is written, (in consultation with lawyer, witnessed, registered in court with a mention of an executor, and in our prescence ) can it be altered or changed in my absense/without my knowledge

    2. In case of such fresh WILL (without my knowledge), which WILL will be effective, the one registered with the court or the one made with latest date (with or without register in the court)

    3. Can, I as son take loan on the WILL on my share to make property elsewhere in Bangalore,

    4. Any other precautions/documents I have to take since, I have managed to get 50% with lot of discussions and taking my relatives into meetings and confidence,

    Best regards,
    Shashi

    1. Shashi

      1. The WILL is written by your father, and he has 100% right to change it whenever he wished, so it can be altered by him , you are not related here at all.

      2. The latest WILL , but if its not registered, the authenticity of it will have to be proved. It will get complicated.

      3. No , the WILL is a document which comes into picture only after the death of the WILL maker, else its just a document .

      4. WILL is the final thing . Whatever it says will happen .

      1. Shashi says:

        Dear Manish,

        Greetings. Thanks for the reply, I feel having a WILL written immediately is better than not having at all.

        Thank you once again for your time.

        Best regards,
        Shashi S Jois

        1. Yes .. better hire a lawyer and please register the WILL

  217. Sridhar says:

    Thanks for the nice article. I have a question. My father passed away 2 years ago and a couple of months after his death we came across a will (typed, signed and with 2 witnesses, but not registered. he passed away in 2010 but the will was dated 1992.

    We had a property which in the absence of a will was registered in the name of the legal heirs – our mother and three children (myself and 2 siblings). When the will was found it says he leaves the entire property to our mother. However as of today there are equal co-owners of the property.

    Since two of the 3 of us live overseas, the 2 of us have given her a general power of attorney to manage the day to day affairs of the property including sale/lease. But the third sibling does not want to sign the GPA as she does not want to give up her share.

    A couple of questions:

    1) Does my mother need to probate the will or is the will in its present condition give her the full power to sell the flat etc
    2) Since she has the general power of attorney from the 2 of us have we given away our right?

    1. Sridhar

      Truely speaking I am not sure of the answer . I think you should consult a good lawyer on this.

  218. Muthu Krishnan V says:

    the will clearly states that the flat is not to be sold until your mother is alive. So the 10% payment does not arise now.

    If however your sisters need money, transfer the property with you and your mother as joint owners. Ask your mother to make a will and transfer her ownership to you after her death. You can take loan on the flat for 30% of the market value and give your sisters their share. ensure that you get their signatures on a legal document that they do not have any more share of the property.

    This is a clean transaction and will keep everybody happy.

    1. Xavier Dsouza says:

      Thank you very much sir.

      Best regards
      Xavier Dsouza

  219. Xavier Dsouza says:

    Dear Manish,

    My Father has left a will in which he has bequeathed his flat (self earned) in my name with a few conditions.

    a) Flat not to be sold so long as my Mother is alive and well and

    b) After my Mother, if I ever sell the flat, I have to give 10% of the value to each of my three sisters (i.e. 30% of sale value).

    Now, my mother lives with us and is reasonably well. In the housing society, I am my Mother’s nominee. However, my sisters are asking me what do I intend to do about their individual 10%?

    Everybody needs money. So my objective is to sell the flat after my Mother’s time and give my sisters their share as stated in my Father’s will.

    Please advise how do I go about the same? I need to give assurance to my sisters that I shall be doing as promised. Can we enter into a family agreement? Or is it possible to pay my sisters right away at current market value? Can i get a loan to do so? Will there be any tax implications?

    Kindly advise.

    Best Regards
    Xavier

  220. CHANDAN ACHARYA says:

    Dear Manishji,
    Around one year back my uncle used to give 14 kattahs plot to my father through ‘Will’, but unfortunately last 4 months ago my father was died due to some reason.
    Now, I want to know that “Will” is still valid..??
    I mean, do we need to remake that ‘Will’ to my mom’s name, or the previous one will be automatically transferred to her name.
    Your valuable suggestion is appreciated.
    Thanks,
    CHANDAN

    1. Chandan

      Is your uncle alive or not , if he is alive ,then the WILL is not valid because WILL gets valid only on the death of the maker (your uncle) , If your uncle is dead , then the WILL is valid

      Now as per WILL , your father was the owner of the property , but he didnt have any will of his own , so things will be divided as per hindu succession law

      Manish

      1. CHANDAN ACHARYA says:

        Dear Manishji,
        Thanks for your quick reply.
        My uncle is still alive, so probably we need to make a new ‘WILL’ right!
        Thanks,

        CHANDAN

  221. Priya says:

    Mr. Manish,
    Thank you for a very detailed article explaining all the intricacies of a Will.

    I lost my hubby a few months back. He was just 33. I know how much a Will would have helped me while sorting out all his papers.

    I have just one query. We had purchased a house on our joint name a year back. We have no kids. His father is alive and he had 2 brothers, one of which them is severely mentally challenged and the other is age 20 and studying. They were not dependant on us. Still can they claim for the ownership of the house as there is no will?

    1. Priya

      Actually I know your story already and read your blog article on your blog http://thingslearntaftermithun.blogspot.in/2012/04/few-things-i-learned-after-mithun.html . I tried to contact you on facebook also , but never got a reply

      Coming to your query , No one can claim that house from you . The reason is simple , for the 50% part you are the owner, its 100% yours . For another 100% part , it will go to his legal heirs only, Now you have not mentioned if your husband’s mother is live or not . I am assuming not .

      Hence there is no one in Class 1 other than you , hence you only have 100% right on that part . Even if his father and his brothers were financially dependent on you, still they could not claim the property legally . you might get into the legal battle , but catch a good lawyer . I will send a message to you on your email

      1. Priya says:

        Thanks a lot Manish… Some peace of mind…

        1. I emailed you on your indiatimes and gmail id , can you reply please .

  222. Gautam says:

    Dear Manishji

    The article, when read along with your patient answers to queries, is very helpful. I am going to engage a lawyer for help in writing my will but I can see that all this information will help in improving the quality of discussions with him.

    Two small queries:
    1. If I keep the registered original copy of my will in my bank locker how will it be produced in court by the executor for getting a probate? The bank will probably not allow him access.
    2. For a person who has never dealt with lawyers before, what is the best way of choosing one for making a will? I know this is an unfair question but is there a trusted body that lists lawyers with their special expertise in any region? I live in Gurgaon (Haryana)

    1. Gautam

      1. One copy is always with the sub registrar/court , after your death , he can show your death certificate and access the WILL copy .

      2. No readymade solution , but you need to enquire in your trusted group of some lawyer , you can also choose – http://vakilsearch.com/

  223. lokenrc says:

    P.S. In case u post a reply here, can u pl send me an email with the URL? I can’t see any link here, whereby I would be automatically notified

  224. lokenrc says:

    We are a retired couple. Both of us were in service. We have no children. My wife draws a pension, I none. Both my wife’s parents are dead, my mother lives with us. We have 2 interconnected flats in legal jurisdiction N24 Parganas, WB. One flat is mine, the other my wife’s. Both of us have bank a/c, investments, ornaments etc. Her only sister shares with wife ½ & ½ their mother’s house & land in Nadia, WB (there is no will, mutation not done yet). We wish to make reciprocate wills. In case of demise of one of us, we wish to bequeath all moveable & immovable property to the spouse, subject to the following terms :
    1. If my mother outlives me, she will have living & sustenance rights in our combined flat as long as she lives and be cared for by my wife.
    2. After demise of both, our combined flats will be bequeathed to Ramakrishna Mission, Belur Math, WB. (Note : in case 1 of us falls seriously ill & expenses skyrocket, we may be forced to put the 2 flats in ‘Reverse Mortgage’ with some bank. The bank will get the flats when both die). Of all our moveable household goods, furniture, books etc. 1st claim will be wife’s nieces, of balance 2nd claim by children, grandchildren of other flat owners in this building, balance to be used / sold as scrap by Ramakrishna Mission / mortgage bank.
    3. After demise of both, all my cash, shares, FD, MF etc. (I shall attach lists) will go to Ramakrishna Mission. All wife’s cash, shares, jewellery etc. (she will attach lists) will be shared between her 2 nieces. If the financial condition of 1 niece deteriorates, she may be given a bigger share of cash & investment wealth.
    4. After demise of us both, wife’s inherited house + land in Nadia will be bequeathed to her 2 nieces, in equal share.

    What all special precautions need we to take?

    1. this is a complicated situation actually.. better meet a lawyer for making a WILL

  225. Tarun says:

    Sir, Congratulation for such valuable article and commets.
    Can you tell me please that Provisions to make/register Will/codocil are governed by which Law?

    1. Meet a lawyer directly i would say !

  226. rahul says:

    Sir
    PROPERTY PROBLEM : IS DAUGHTER HAS EQUAL SHARE IN FATHER PROPERTY ?
    her brother is not ready to give equal share for her
    they are 5 member 3 boys & 2 girls
    2 ladies & 2 gents got married
    Mother & Father passed away last may 2012
    2 house of value 50-60 lakhs each
    and some amount cash Rs.10 lakhs .
    HER BROTHER’s are PLANING TO MAKE WILL ON their NAMEs & ASKING TO SIGN ON PAPER & GIVE NOC
    they are NOT READY TO MAKE WILL ON ALL 5 MEMBERS NAME
    Kindly sir can you please give us solutions for this Problem

    1. Yes daughters have equal share in the property . How can brothers make WILL ? They are liable for 20% share each ! .. ask the daughers to file a case , they will get their share !

  227. Sobha says:

    Hi Manish

    I have gone thru your blog.
    I have some Queries, request if you can resolve:

    We are 04 Sisters. My Father expired in 1993, during which my mother adopted a Son due to my father Brothers pressures.
    But due to his bad behaviour, my mother asked him to go after 1 month of Adoption. We dont have any legal papers, and till now the Adoption Deed is not cancelled.
    Please advise, if my Mother can prepare a WILL on White Paper and place the same in Bank Locker, or do we need to consult a lawyer.
    Looking forward for your advise.

    1. Better consult a lawyer . Note that legally he is eligible to get a 20% share (1/5th) .

  228. kishor Pitroda says:

    Sir
    My Father has made registered will on the name of my mother transfering all property to her. My younger brother generated a notorised will stating all property to him and remaining share of factory to her wife. Nothing given to my mother and other heirs ( son and two daughter). The signature seems daubtfull against natural signature.
    At the time of making the will my father’s both kidney were failed and he was under weekly dialisis process and also under heavy dose of drugs.

    Please advise me
    1 If one will is registered, does it require next will register by law?
    2 When person having both kidney fail and having weekly dialisis does elegible medically to make the will?

    thanks

    1. 1. If a will is already registered, then the next will not be recognised that way , it can only be changed at court or extended through Codocil

      2. Yes he is still eligible . Just that he should be of sound mind

      1. Kishor Pitroda says:

        Manish

        Thanks for reply.

        Would you please advise me that if one will is registered and the next will is just notorised and not registered, any reference to submit in court that it can be changed at court or extended through codocil.

        When person both kideny fails the hemoglibin level goes down 7.4 and cretine level goes above 4.5. The mind can not work as sound as normal.

        Is there any criteria for disease where doctor’s permission require to make will when person has cronic disease like both kidney failure and abnormal life with low hemogline and high cretenine.

        1. If the will is registered , then yes , any extention has to be registered to or added through codocil , else anything else will not be valid . I am not sure what can be done if the perosn is not in his sound mind , consult a lawyer !

  229. Swati Aiyer says:

    Hi,

    I read something the other day which did not make sense to me. I read it in a chain mail. Here are the contents:

    I learnt that other than your house – your land, your car, your bike are also your property… So what if you are the joint owner of the flat, you don’t become the owner just because your hubby is no more. So what if your hubby expired in the bike accident and you are the nominee but if the bike is in a repairable condition, you have to get the bike transferred in your name to claim the insurance. And that was again not easy. The bike or car cannot be transferred in your name without going through a set of legal documents. Getting a Succession Certificate is another battle all together.

    I have always been under the impression that being joint owner of any property (movable or immovable) implies that if one is no more, then it automatically goes to the co-owner. Can you please clarify this?

    1. Swati

      That Chain mail was from a blog which was written by a lady Priya who lost her husband named Mithun 🙂 and how she went through after that . I read it too

      Swati, you are living in myth and your ignorance can cost you a lot like it happened with Priya and happens with many people . You need to be clear with some of the legality issues so that you can be prepared.

      Being a co-owner in a immovable property like Land or Flat means that you two people have your seperate share . So incase of flat or land , you have your 50% share and your husband has another 50% share , if husband is no more , then his part will not go to you , It will go to the person he has mentioned in his will or to his legal heirs . Now his legal heirs can be WIFE (You) , children , Mother . So if you are the only legal heir , you will get it , else it will be shared.

      What you were assumuming in start is true for Bank accounts , Fixed deposits – if its jointly held , then you become the FULL owner , but in case of real estate , it does not happen like that .

      Manish

  230. Aasha says:

    Manish, My husband bought a house in my name 30 yrs ago by selling my jewelry. Now he lives with another woman – He sold off 2 other houses in his name and has been loaning the money (approx 40 lacs) for interest. He claims no one is giving the money back and so has nothing to give me. Also, he claims that since he spent some money (10K/-) on my house for repair and upgrades, he is part owner of my house. I would like to know what am i legally eligible for? i have 3 children who are supportive of me. What are my legal options if i wanted to get as much as i am eligible for? I live with my son and visit my daughters when i can and living off of them.

    Aasha

    1. Aasha

      Did you get divorse from him or not ? Are they living in your own house ? DO you have the documents with you for the house ?

  231. sheetal says:

    Hi Manish,

    Thanks for this article. I had one query though. If incase a father who owns a flat (self acquired property) and he has 3 children and if he wants to make a will so to transfer his flat to only 1 of them (after his death), then how do we go about this?

    1) Is an NOC reqd from rest 2 children that they are ok with their father transferring the falt in the name of 3rd child?
    2) After the father’s death will the society transfer the flat in the one son/daughter named as per the will? At that time is it possible that rest 2 children can claim over property even if their name is not mentioned in the will.
    3) Will there be any stamp duty applicable to be paid and how much during transfer of flat after father’s death?
    4) Which is the best option so to save on stamp duty? Whether to transfer flat in 1 childs name when father is alive or make a will in the name of the 1 child whom father has chosen?

    Thanks and pls suggest.

    1. Sheetal

      1. No

      2. Yes, but make sure WILL is there and its registered also

      3. Yes. it will be same as regular one

      4. It would be best option , if father can transfer the flat on one of the child during his living years itself, will save the child from lot of hassles later !

      1. sona says:

        what if the father has died and the will is not registered? how will the property get divided then?

        1. As per HINDU SUCCESSION LAW

      2. sona says:

        what if the father has done the nomination on the 3rd child’s name along with the transfer of shares too on his name, with an unregistered will too in his namethen will the flat be under the 3rd child’s name? or it has to be divided among all 3 equally? what if the society does not permit to do so along with one of the child i.e the daughter claiming for her share?

        1. In case of Real Estate also, a WILL will be final, else hindu succession act will be final . I suggest you better consult a lawyer in this .

  232. pradeep says:

    Dear sir,

    I have a few few queries regarding the will and its execution

    1. Since my hand writing is not good, Can I type the will and sign on both the pages ? the witnesses can sign on the last page ? will that be ok
    2. How quickly the will should be executed after a person’s death ? does the will get invalidated if it is not executed with in one year of death.
    3. do we need to submit photocopy or original of the will to the registrar office ? what if i have two properties – one in chennai and other in mangalore, and both are mentioned in the will .

    Thanks and appreciate the effort.
    Pradeep

    1. Pradeep

      1. Yes

      2. There is nothing like that, but lawyer can answer this properly

      3. Yes you need to produce a copy of WILL in registrar office , one copy will always be there.

  233. Mahesh says:

    Is it necessary to list out all the properties in a will if I desire to bequeath them? If I mention in the will that- ” In case I own anything movable or immovable properties other than mentioned here- I bequeath to Mr. X” will those go to Mr X or legal hires?

    1. Mahesh

      You you can mention it like this, but its always better to very clearly list down things .

      1. Mahesh says:

        Thank you dear Sir

  234. Mahesh says:

    If 4 properties are mentioned in a will, and if one of them is sold before death, will the other three go as stated in will?

    1. Yes rest 3 will go as per property

  235. Vikal Arora says:

    Dear Manish,
    Thanks for the faboulos articles.I have one query regarding Will.One of my unmarried hindu friend died Leaving a Will in her Mother’s name.He has father,3 sisters & a brother in family.Sisters all married & settled while brother is unmarried.The deceased had purchased a flat on loan & the Mother repaid the Loan ,taking help from Assets of His Deceased Son & his Surviving Son.My query is
    1-If the Property Mother got is Treated as Inherited Property??
    2-If the Mother can make a Will & transfer the property in her Son’s name??
    3-If the Mother has a right to make a Will of Such Property?
    4-If in case the mother has no right to make a Will,should the said flat be transferred upon her demise by getting a Relinquishment deed signed by Sister’s in Brother’s name?
    I am very positive i have approached the right place to submit m query & would get right answer..
    Regards
    Vikal

    1. Vikal

      1. No , it will not be treated as inherited property

      2. Yes, because its her property now

      3. Yes

      4. Yes to all the children

  236. Ashish says:

    very informative and comprehensive article on the subject. i have few queries regarding the same as my father is planning to draft a will:
    1. My father has few properties in our native place in Bihar, however due to his illness, he has been staying with me in delhi for last few years, can he make and if possible register a will in delhi.
    2. One of the the propoerty is leasehold industrial propoerty through a proprietorship firm where he is a proprietor, can he will the same to my mother (whether any special care needs to be taken).
    3. One property is a inherited property and he wants to will it to his two sons (myself & my brother) and our sisters have no objection in same..can he do that.
    4. As he is unable to write or sign due to his disease…whether a thumb impression can be taken…whether it can lead to complications later as he is well qualified person.
    5. whether a Will also requires a photogrph..

    1. Ashish

      1. No , he has to register it there only . however registration is not compulsory but SUGGESTED

      2. Not sure on this

      3. No , inheritance can not be willed, but if the legal heirs have no issue , then he can write it in WILL

      4. No , that is valid

      5. I am not sure

      Better meet a local lawyer to discuss these as the issue is more than a normal case .

  237. terry says:

    besides the witnesses & doctor the lawyer has asked to appoint an administrator. What does that mean? What are the implications if a person id appointed an administrator? Are there any legal issues?

    1. I think you mean executor , it means the person who will execute the WILL . The person who will be responsible to make sure the seperation of assets happen properly as per WILL

      1. terry says:

        if it means executor what are the implications of being made one? Are there any legal complications if a person is an executor?

        1. Terry

          If the executor is not there, what if there is a delay in execution of the WILL , one party can say we will take custody of WILL and see what happens , the weak side may suffer , having an executor means after you death someone will take care of division just like you would have done !

  238. Vikal Arora says:

    Dear Sir,
    My Unmarried Brother working with a Pvt. Company died due to illness last year.
    Prior to his death,he has Booked a Flat in His Name from a Pvt. Builder in NOIDA & had taken Loan for financing the Flat & was paying EMI for the same.
    The Builder himself was developing Property on 90 years lease.Under the Builder-Buyer Agreement on Rs.100 stamp paper(Not Registered with Sub-Registrar),
    regarding Terms of Allottment,the Builder had assured handing over possession of Flat after completion of Flat,which will be completed in 2014.The Property had to be registered with Sub-Registrar after getting possession,ie Sub-Lease Deed had to be executed in my brother’s name.After his death,My Mother paid all Outstanding Loans of Bank & got NOC from Bank.The Builder is asking for a Succession Certificate/Unregistered or Registered Will/Legal Heir Certificate to get the Allottment of Flat Transferred in Mother’s Name.
    I consulted a Lawyer who said,
    1-Succession Certificate is for Movable assets Only,so it will Not Make Sense.
    2-Fortunately,my brother had Executed a Will in Favour of His Mother.But The Lawyer says,Since the Deceased was not Absolute Owner of Property at the time of making Will or at the Time of His Death & hence cannot Bequeath it to Mother.
    My Father is ready to give NOC to Builder,but Builder is Reluctant saying if allottment of Flat gets transferred in Mother’s name in a Invalid Way,The Noida Authority may create hurdles at the time of Registraton of property in Mother’s name & may impose a hefty penalty on both builder & Buyer.Kindly Guide as how to come out of this Puzzle,as Mother is already disturbed a lot after this Unfortunate Death.
    Awaiting Good Guidance
    A Human Being in Distress

    1. Vikal

      I think builder is right in what he is saying , when a person dies without WILL, then you will have to show SUCCESSION CERTIFICATE , atleast in case of property as far as I know. So its better to get it asap , apply right now so that you can get it in few months . It will be required at many places

      Manish

  239. sabrunnisa says:

    Dear Sir,
    My Father dead on 3rd April 2011 by an attack. he have a property, but he did,t made a will. we are four member like my mom ,elder sister elder brother & myself. my brother & sister get married and well settled. I am working as a clerk after my dads death, bcoz we dont have any income. my brother went with his family to his wifes native place, he is not with us.My mother & grandmother is with me. we dont have any other income. i am unmarried my age is 24 running.
    know my brother & sister want a shares of my dad property. they want equal shares. they r not taking any responsible for my mother or not for my marriage.
    What should i do for it. please suggest me. my mother is suffering from jaundice.
    Waiting for your reply

    Thanks
    Sabrunnisa.

    1. Sabrunnisa

      The sad truth is that they are not bound by any law to take care of you not your mother, its a moral responsibility which they should understand.

      From division of property point of view .. yes they are very much right in claiming the share in property . Your father should have taken care of this division

      Manish

  240. Neil says:

    Can a non beneficiary request a copy of the will? My father passed away and now my older brother is refusing to show me the copy of the will on the pretext that his lawyer has advised him that he cant give me a copy of the will as I am not the beneficiary. is that true? who can receive a copy of the will?

    1. Obviosuly you are one of the party who can file a case and demand for the WILL . You are a legal heir as per succession act and you need to see the WILL to see what it contains . So get a lawyer , you are 100% right in seeing the WILL

      1. Neil says:

        Thank you

  241. vikusa says:

    If the house is given to the brothers as per the father’s wish,based on the will he has left behind,and the living mother also agrees, do the sisters have a right to the land on which the house stands or can land and house be treated as separate entities.
    In the event the brothers sell the land can the sisters have a share in the sales amount?
    You have stated in earlier reply that the father can decide to whom the house goes and not decide to whom the house can subsequently go. In that case can the living mother will the house to all the brothers and sisters in the manner she likes although father has wished that after mothers death house should go to only brothers.
    Also if mother does not get the house transferred on her name can it be inherited equally by all the children.
    Thank you in advance.

    1. If its clearly not written in WILL that land + house should go to brother, then only house part should be with the brother.

      1. vikusa says:

        a) Can a beneficiary also be nominated as the executioner of a will ?

        b) A father wills his house to his wife and furthur wills that it should go to his sons after her death.In such case can the mother make a will to dispose her house as she pleases and give share of house to both sisters and sons.Will it be a valid will?

        Thanks for your replies.

        1. Vikusha

          1) Yes, it is allowed and desired also , but make sure the person choosen is trusted 🙂

          2) Yes , After its willed to mother , now its mother property and she can will it in whatever way she wants .

          1. vikusa says:

            Thank you for your replies.
            a) If a will is made 30 years ago and is not executed so far. The wife is the beneficiary and executer and husband has willed property to her,but it is still in his name. If the mother passes away without executing the will and father has written in his will that after mothers death it should go to the sons only, in such case will the property go only to sons or also to daughters as per present legal provisions that daughters also have a share in fathers property. Pl clarify & many thanks .

            1. If the WILL clearly mentions that incase mother has not taken any decision on how she wants to distribute it , then as per WILL it will go to SONS only . but if it only says that property should go to wife and he just “wishes” that it should go to sons , means he is expecting it .. then daughters stand a chance to get their share too ..

              I would suggest you anyways need to get a lawyer on this who can study the wordings of the will ! . Do that

            2. vikusa says:

              a) Can the writer of will, state the place of legal jurisdiction in the will itself, in case the will is challenged after it becomes public?

              b)If the willed property is in Delhi and the will is written in Mumbai, can it be legally challenged in Delhi, Mumbai or any other place?

              c) Can a beneficiary, who is yet to receive the possession title to the willed property, in anticipation of receiving it,make a will on this yet to be recd. property. Is such a will valid.?
              Thanks for your valuable answers.

            3. 1) NO

              2) The jurisdiction will be the place where the property belongs

              3) NO , the property should be yours / in your name .. there are two things – one is yet to be recieved property , but what if you just have not got the possission , but it is on your name ./. thats a different hting

            4. vikusa says:

              a) Could you pl elaborate the answer to point no 3 a bit in more detail.
              b)What is the procedure to get a will probated. Which legal entity has the executioner to go to, in Delh?
              c) After will is probated, where does the beneficiary go to get willed property transferred to one’s name, in Delhi?
              Thanks for your answers.

            5. a) I am saying that if you have not yet acquired a property , then it does not belong to oyu , you can not write a WILL on that

              b) Probate is a copy of a WILL certified by court , you need to talk to lawyer for this

              c) Delhi Municipal Corporation , your lawyer will guide you on this

  242. vikusa says:

    My father in law made a will, but did not appoint a executor. He gave the ownership of his house (created from his earnings)to his wife and willed that after her death it should be divided equally between his two sons. It is more than 25 years since his death and the house has not been transferred to his wife. Now as there is no executor,and 25 years have lapsed, is the will valid? Also do the other four sisters raise a claim on theeir fathers property along with the brothers. Kindly advise. Thank you.

    1. Does the WILL mention that the house will be divided between 2 sons , but only after death of the wife ? If thats the case then why will the house be transferred to her name ? Was it to be done ?

      Sisters cant claim their share in it if as per will , its mentioned in the WILL

      1. vikusa says:

        Thank you. We have been advised that in the will, he has not written, that he wills the house but wishes that the house go to his wife and after her equally to the two brothers and thus it is not enforceable because a wish is not binding. Is it right interpretation?
        Secondly the ownership papers are still with the corporation and they are asking sign of all children, some of whom are not signing, before they release the papers. The loan amount is paid in full. Therefore ownership is still not transferred to his wife who is still living.Can this be a problem?
        Can the wife in this case make a will to dispose her house as she wishes to?
        Lastly does a will have a time period within which it can be executed or there is no time limitation for execution?
        Thanks in advance for your point wise reply.

        1. Vikusa

          Yes “wish” is the problem, “wish” is something which can happen if all agree . the problem is the use of words , its not clear .

          Also he can only say to whom it goes, he can not decide what happen on death of the person to whom he has written the property because once the property goes to a person, he/she can decide what to do with it.

          Wife can dispose the house as she wants , and the WILL has no time limit for execution , but earliar is better .

          Manish

  243. AK Mangal says:

    Dear Shri Manish Chauhan, please advise:
    1. I am 65 yrs and wish to make a part will in (i.e., some of assests, not all). it is permissible?
    2. Can I will the contents of a bank locker (ornaments, pre-reciepted NSCs, KVPs , FDs etc) as well?
    2. Is it a must to name an executor? i do not have any one on who i can lay this responsibily. Can’t the benefiaries be given a copy of the will that i make and let them implement when the time comes?
    3. Can one of the beneficiaries or a heir-claiment (who is not the benefiacry) dispute the will and obstruct the implmentation of will?

    Thanks, AK Mangal

    1. 1. Yes you can do that , but why do you want to do that . If you do not want to will something , what do you want to do it ?

      2. Yes

      3. No , its not mandatory , but its suggested else in future it will get complicated

      4. No , he can not , however make sure the ancestral property is not into WILL , else it can be disputed . Ancestral property is one which you have not earned yourself and the person who has transferred it to you

      1. AK Mangal says:

        Thanks for your prompt reply.
        1. I wish to will important assests right now, and would like to will the rest of assets later. Hence the next question: can I make 2 valid wills independently for separate asests?

        1. I think you can make a WILL right now and get it registered . Later when you want to add anything , there is provision to add it in the previous will . Get a lawyer for doing this . However one point is that please be clear about what will happen to the assets not willed in case there is no WILL , do you know who will get it and how ? What are the rules ?

  244. sastri ram says:

    the topic has nicely been explained and very enlightening answers have been made in the discussion that follows.
    I would like to know that can there be a will of a trust i.e can a beneficiary under the trust or the person who has formed a trust make a will relating to trust ???

    1. Thats more than a common question . I am not sure on this , better see a lawyer for this

  245. rajjat says:

    Dear sir, my mother willed me a property last year, i hav now learned tht probate is required after her death, and my brother is already threatning for a court case after her death. my mother even gave him some lands so he does not fight with me and he wrote in a stamp paper tht he has got a land and now he will not claim for this house. but still he threatens. Can i tell my mother to make a gift deed? so tht i am safe in future? will it create a problem in future in case of will and gift deed made both?

    1. Till the time your mother is alive , you should not assure that she has willed it , because she can change it anytime ,ask your mother to register the WILL in court and also give a copy to you . In which case your brother can just threathen, but finally he will not get anything .

      The best thing your mother should do is that she should transfer the property in your name if she is fine because that is the most smooth transfer , because she is there for all the formalities , obiously if she can trust you that you will not kick her out of home , most of the parents dont transfer the property because of this fear only

      Manish

  246. Saket says:

    Manish
    1. Is it legally necessary to have an ‘Executor’? Can I not simply write a will with adequate clariy and keep safely for my family? Will a Will without an Executor be deemed legally invalid by law?

    2. My Investements / F.D.s/MF Portfolio keep on changing every year (value-wise as well as composition-wise). How can I keep amending my will every year? Instead of this can I simply write as below?
    All my holdings with HDFC AMC at the time of my death shall go to my wife…..
    or
    All my F.D.s with SBI shall to … so and so….?

    Will writting is my next Action-item. Hence your view is important.

    1. 1. NO its not legally neccessary, but when you register a will , i think it can be in that case, not sure though

      2. You can just say 100% of my MF and Shares should go to ….

      Better meet a lawyer in WILL writing , you should spend few thousands on this important exercise

      Manish

  247. Argie says:

    Liked your article very much. My mother ,a widow made her will and got it registered too.She got it done when she was around 70years old.By Gods grace she is now more than 85.But she still wants to hold the same will.She gave roof rights to two of her children and already constructed area to the other three of her children.Those who were given roof rights have got it constructed since then.Her oldlocker mentioned in the will has been replced by anew locker near her home.All the children are aware of the facts.She has emptied the oldlocker but has allowed one child to use it for personal use,who was the joint operater of the same.
    Does she need to write a new Will ,or the old one still holds good.As writing a new will entail too much effort on her part.

    Please do reply.Thanks

    1. NO there is no need to write a new will , if the old will is good enough and holds what she wants , then its fine

  248. shirish vora says:

    Hi

    We have two flat one in surat and and another in Mubai. No inheritage propety. My
    two daughter live in USA. We want to pass both property as well as all saving pass to my daughter after our death. I want to make my will.
    I want to make my wife as excecuter and one of my daughter alternate excecuter in case both are not survive.
    What is best idea
    My both daughter will have 50% interest in each flat or one flat to onr daughter
    and another to second daughter. I want to consider stamp duty to remove interest
    from title or taxes, transfer to their name. prepare for power of attorney. any one daughter want to sale flat and another do not want to sale etc

    shirish

    1. Shirish

      You should be meeting a good lawyer in this matter . also if you have faith in your daughters I would suggest better put the flat on your daughter’s name now itself .

      1. shirish vora says:

        Hi Manish

        You mean I have to put the flats (two) on my two daughter’s name, not on my wife name. We have full trust on my daughters. What is advantage to give to my daughter and not to my wife. My daughters are USA citizen and they do not have OCI card. They may apply for OCI card.

        shirish

        1. I was saying because I thought you want to transfer the properties finally to your daughters only , so you and your wife stay in the house till the life allows you , after that your daughters can get hold of the property without much legalities . thats all .. else writing a WILL is a good solution .

  249. Naresh Gadi says:

    Hi,

    I have a question. I have property which is on my and my Fathers name located in Delhi. This was financed by bank. My father died 6 years back. We all brothers and sister made a affidavit the do not have any objection in transferring all right of my fathers property to my Mother.

    Now when I have repaid the full loan and asked for my property paper, Bank is asking for one of the following document.

    1) Will
    2) Succession Certificate
    3) Court Order

    My father did not left any will.
    I do not want to go for succession certificate as this is very long and expensive process.
    How I should get court order and what that means.
    Who all need to be present to get that.
    If this can be taken from any city or city where property is located.
    How much time it can take.
    What are expenditure involved in this.

    1. Naresh

      Believe me , This is exactly what I say all the times , not having any idea about estate planning is an issue with Indians . Bank is very much right and as per the procedure you will have to produce one of these documents . Because bank do not know who are the legal heirs of your father . So as WILL is not there, then you will have to bring succession certificate. Now one big issue , as your house is in Delhi , as per Delhi muncipal corportation rules you will also have to pay 4% of Property price as fee for getting succession certificate . I know this is really frustrating , but this is how things work .

      Manish

  250. Sanjay says:

    Hi Manish,
    I just want to clear one doubt. If a person makes a handwritten will duly signed by 2 witnesses, in which he clearly mentions that nothing should go to his wife, and all his owned and his inherited assets should go to his mother and sister only; then in this case can this still be challenged by his wife in the court as per Hindu Marriage act or Succession act, whether they are staying together or are separated [not divorced]. what are the complications in this. Please reply
    Sanjay

    1. Sanjay

      NO , it can not be challenged by Wife because of a written will . Only if will is missing, she will get 50% .

      Note that its suggested that the WILL is registered . Because being a WIFE , in real life a lot of things will be in her favour and if a pucca will is missing or anything ambigous is there , then things can be challenged ,so make sure who ever is writting this will , he should meet a good lawyer and spend some money on making the WILL full proof !

  251. Sridhar says:

    Manish,
    Wonder piece of infomation. Well articulated.
    Can an individual write a will only for part of the properties in one will and the balance thru another will. Will it be valid if it is prepared on the same and if it is prepared on different dates. Please advise

    1. Sridhar

      there should be just 1 will for clarity sake , you never know which one is taken as final one .. Why do one want to create 2 wills ?

  252. Mahadeo says:

    My bro died without a will. He has two flats which his wife wants to have in her name.
    There are Two children,one dauther and a Son. Alos My parents are alive.
    He was working in PSU having good Salry and a scheme for employess died at young age after completing min 15 years of service. Under The schem employess PF and gratuaity is hold as deposit by PSU and alost equivalent amount is paid to emplyees Dependent.
    Inform what can be done if the pension under scheme is taken by only wife. She does not have faith in any one and do not even wants to have a recurring deposit in Son/dauthers name. Does not want to give any thing to the Parents. What options the aprents ahve and the children.

    1. Mahadeo

      Things can not move just because she does not want to give anything to anybody , as the WILL is not written , legally , Mother of the dead person , wife and children get equal share . So wife is entitled to just 1/4th of everything , 1/4th goes to mother and 1/4th and 1/4th goes to two children . Its better that she understands this and settles the matter inhouse , else it will take years in court etc to get things done (which I am sure will happen at the end)

  253. Swati says:

    Hi Manish,

    My father has been ill for the past 10 years. He also retired from his job. People advised that we have a will created to avoid the hassles getting it transferred to my mother. He has trouble walking and writing in his own handwriting.
    Is it alright to have it printed and read it out to him. He can then and put his thumb impression. We can attach the doctors certificate also as he will not be able to make a personal appearance in the court.

    Please advise if making will is really of help and also the procedure for doing it for my father who will be unable to make a physical appearance in the court.

    1. Yes there are alternatives to this situation , Meet a lawyer for this who will take you through the whole procedure in correct way

      Manish

  254. Gopal says:

    Hi Manish,

    If a person does not create a WILL, according to the the law of succession, is it only the spouse and kids who might have to fight, or other relatives could also seek a share in the property?

    Gopal

    1. No gopal

      there different classes of relations in succession law and first class is called class A , which consists of Spouse and Children , only they are entitled to the share, not the relatives .. incase class A is not present , then class B comes and then class C . etc etc

      Manish

  255. Shonali says:

    How can 1 obtain a CERTIFIED COPY of the will (made some 20 years back)???
    The originals lie with one of the beneficiaries and the other 2 sisters have only photocopies of the will and there is a scope of some litigation on the matter of the WILL. Can the other 2 obtain CERTIFIED copies now from somewhere?

    1. Shonali

      Only if it was registered one , then a copy must be there in the court .. you can get it from there !

  256. kirti says:

    sir, my query is slightly out of topic but I feel you will be able to help us. My grandfather died a few months back. after some time, my father came to know that the intkaal(mutation register) of our ancestral house has not been done. it’s leading to a lot of tension as the patwari is engaging us in a lot of legal procedures to do the intkaal which are time as well as money consuming. What is the simplest procedure of to do the intkaal?

    1. Kirti

      Actually I really have no idea on the words and topics which you are talking about , what is meant by intkaal here ? What is the exact issue you are facing ?

  257. vinod says:

    sir i wish to buy a land from latha,whose husband is dead.she has a unmarried daughter aged 25yrs and a son aged 17yrs. her husband expired before 7 months and she applied for change in land ownership. to her surprise brother of the expired came and told that your husband has made registered will transferring all his properties to his name and showed the registered will. this will was made before the birth of the son and main content was that husband was not happy with latha and she was harassing him and was behind his wealth so he has made a will making his brother his inheritor. but after making the will after 2 years a son was born to them and all of them stayed together until his death. now after his death they dont have anything in there name and if they dont get justice all will become care of footpath. so please advise me how they can claim there right over the property. my cell no is 09342187746. thank you

    1. Vinod

      If the will is really genuine you cant do anything , how do you know that the WILL is fraud or fake ? If he troubles the lady , she can fight the case in court !

      Manish

      1. sushma says:

        Dear Manish ,
        Hi as I was reading all your answers given out here feeling that you may give the right answer to me ,as we were having one brother who was married, he has passed away 3 years back, and my sister in law has left my parents that same movement, they are very old and now would like to know that is their daughter in-law and grand son are authorized to ask their share in will as if he don,t even nominate them.
        Due to her this unfortunate behave he don,t want to give such a single thing to her. as she brothers them a lot .

        hope you getting my point. can i have the suggestion on it.

        1. Hi Susham

          Does a WILL exist ? Is it written by the husband ? Because whatever is legal share of Son (his personal owned and whatever he deserves from father through ancestral property) will be legally be shared between mother, wife and son .

          So yes, she can take her share legally !

  258. Shree says:

    Dear Manish,
    Thanks for such informative and useful article
    I need your advice : I had helped financially my aunt ( my mother’s sister) and uncle to buy a property where they stay now. (The agreement is in joint name of my aunt, uncle and myself). They do not have any children. After them , they wish to give this property to me. They have not yet made any “will”. Will it be advisable if they make “gift deed ” or make “will” for property in my favor. I understand that there will be expense of stamp duty for “Gift Deed” but in case of Probate of “will” also similar expenses are invloved. So which option is advisable ?

    1. Shree

      Yes , WILL is really advisable , Understand that right now the house is in name of 3 people and mostly its in equal share at the moment , 33% on your uncle name, 33% on your uncle wife name and 33% on your name , so this 33% is always yours , no one can take it from you . ONly the rest 67% is on their name and incase they do not leave any WILL , then their son/daughters can claim it and can get a share in it , but if they dont have legal dependents , then all 100% house will be yours . However it would really be a 100% full proof thing to meet a good WILL expert and make the will .

      Manish

      1. Shree says:

        Dear Manish,

        Thanks.

  259. Saurabh says:

    Nice article Manish, thanks for this info.
    Would like to get your advice for my case as-
    My maternal Grandpa(Nana) has expired with no will, now is my Grandma(nani) eligible to make her will for the property owned by Grandpa. The concern property is inherited by my Grandpa from his forefathers.

    Thanks

    1. Saurabh

      NO , Why do you think she is going to get 100% of the properties . The property etc will now be divided as per Hindu succession law, so gradma and all the sons/daughters will have equal share in the property

      Manish

  260. Nilanchal Sahu says:

    I am an adopted son, and my father who adopted me has three daughters and no son so he adopted the youngest son of the eldest daughter.
    He made a will way back in 1992 where he has shared his property with all his daughters and myself and he has given me a bit extra as I am his adopted son.
    How one of his daughter is claiming that she does not believe on this and no initial has been taken from her when this will was prepared and she is fighting for all properties to be divided equally.

    1. Nilanchal

      Tell her there is no compulsion like that .. is the WILL executed ?

  261. mrs s says:

    hi. my mother has an ownership property which she wants to give to us (2 daughters). we have another brother who stays abroad and has taken a share while my father was alive, can he demand his share as a legal heir even if she makes a will and appoints us as the executors. pls guide. if u want i can call u and take ur advice. my phone no is 9970657685. thanks

    1. No , if your mother makes a registered WILL (and she should) , then by no chance your brother can claim anything . Better meet a good lawyer and do all pucca work

      Manish

  262. CS says:

    Hi, this is one of the most comprehensive articles about WILL i found on internet. I have a query can you please help me out?

    Background: My father made some fixed deposits with my mother as joint holder (with either of survivors) and each one of his sons and daughter as nominee for each FD. He passed away recently and the bank is asking the death certificate and signature of my brother (who is a nominee) so that they can remove my father’s name from the FD.

    Query: will my mother be able to make changes to nomination without the consent of the nominees? Is it better to remove nominees for FDs and write a WILL? After her how can the WILL be executed?

    1. CS

      Your mother being the joint holder is now the sole and final owner of the FD’s … Nominee has no role in anything before the death of the account holder (in this case your mother) , how come bank is asking nominee’s for any documents , it should not be the case .

      Yes ,your mother can do whatever she wants here in this case . Incase of her death , the bank will hand over the money to nominee’s , but incase there is a WILL where its written what should happen to the FD money , it will be final . However incase the WILL is absent , the division will happen as per hindu succession act .

      Manish

  263. Girish says:

    Hi Manish,

    Thanks for the response.
    Regarding point#2, there are some ornaments which rightfully belong to my wife (Got during marriage) and there are some which we have bought post marriage and paid by me. In such cases, how do we differentiate?

    Also is there a necessity to get a doctor’s certificate to endorse the sanity of the person making the will? If so, does this need to be taken from the family doctor or an authorized doctor? Can you provide any sample format for the certificate if any?

    1. Girish

      You shoudl then mention in the WILL about those ornaments which was bought by you .. and that it should go to person XYZ only .

      Also as a good practice .. one of the witness must be a doctor and other once a lawyer , if possible for you .. there is no need to put a seperate declaration from doctor in this ..

      Also make sure you register the WILL , better meet a lawyer on this

      Manish

  264. Girish says:

    Hi Manish,

    Very informative article which I came across when I was specifically looking for info on making a will. A couple of recent incidents with my friends and relatives has actually forced to me rethink on the issue of making a will, I have already started drafting one.
    A couple of questions –
    1) Do we need to mention Insurance policies since every policy has a nominee requirement. Will the “Will” be required by insurance co upon my demise for settling the claims?
    2) How do I account for Gold which are in the ornament form? Or do I assume that it does not need any mention since it is already with my wife.
    3) If I mention a legal guardian for my minor son, Should the legal guardian also endorse the will? In this case where will the “Will” reside?

    1. Girish

      1. Nominee has just an authority to recieve the money , it can finally go to the legal heir or the person mentioned in the will . So if you have put your brother as NOMINEE , the insurance company can pay the money to brother , but finally it will go to your legal heir (WIFE) . If you want a person XYZ to be the final owner , then mention it in WILL .. NOMINEE is not always the final OWNER 🙂 : http://jagoinvestor.dev.diginnovators.site/2010/10/will-your-nominee-get-the-money-on-your-death.html

      2. NO , what are you saying .. You are again putting confusion . Who owns that ornaments ? Wife or you ? Because if its your WIFE legally , then its fine ,but if you own it , then it has to find place in WILL , else incase of division of money ,they will also be divided .

      3. This is tricky .. You have to make sure the legal guardian is extremelly trustworthy and some one really close to you who does not have vested interest in your wealth . All you need to do is put his name as guardian and let him know about it , he does not have to sign anywhere .. The WILL has to be with you and also a copy should be registerd in court (optional , but recommended)

      Manish

      1. Chaitanya says:

        Manish, I read in someother forums that registering the Will happens in Sub-registrar office, not court. Can you pls double-confirm where it should be registered? Do you know someone who has registered it, if so where – court or sub-registrar office.

        1. Its sub registrar office only.

  265. KGS says:

    The advise regarding writing a will is of immense use and very user friendly [understandable]. May i please be advised on the following issues:
    1. It is usual to say that the wife will inherit all the assets and the property after the death of a person writing the will. Then it is the wife who will write the will according to her thinking and the situation after the death of testator. That means there is no use of writing the will when the wife is alive. Or we can say that will should be written by the surviving parent.
    2. You wont like to give just a share of your property to the wife and rest of it to the children until she is living.
    Regards

    1. KGS

      Why will wife inherit the property if WILL is written ? If one wants to give all his wealth to His son or friend and nothing to his wife , its possible . If one does not write a will , then wife will have her share in property

      Manish

  266. Capt Rakesh Bakhshi says:

    Hi !Manish,

    I was looking for good guidence to make a will till I came across your article -THANKS

    I bought a Flat which I got converted to HUF since I had used a small portion of funds from the sale of a piece of land in my name which my father had bought for me from the HUF funds. I am taking all benfits accordingly
    I have a wife and two sons ,please adivice in which manner I can make a will

    Warm regards
    Rakesh

    1. Rakesh

      This is not a simple thing to be adviseed . meet a lawyer

      Manish

  267. Ritu says:

    Manish a very well written article!
    My parents who reside in India, while all of the kids are in US. They are in process of drafting Will working with their lawyer.

    Could you please enlighten me on over all how the transfer will work:
    1. Out of 3 siblings only 1 in Indian citizen rest of us are US citizen. Does that have any effect on the will? How the process of transfer of their assets would work in case something happens to both of them.
    2. My dad has an HUF(Joint Hindu Funds), he is the head of the family. Does the asset from fund get transfer automatically to my mother or does she needs sign from others (kids) to transfer all the asset to her name? We would like to have her as a beneficiary in an event something happens to my dad.

    Appreciate all your time and help!

    1. Ritu

      its important that the WILL is registered . If its registered then there is no confusion and things will be smooth , but if its not registered , then things can get complicated and incase one of the party gets nasty, the complications can go on for years .

      1. there should be no issue just because the 2 parties are in US ,all a WILL does is ASSIGN the assets to a person , thats all .. now if some thing is assigned to people in US , all they need to do is claim it . For that people in US might have to travel down to India to complete the formalities .

      2 . there has been some confusion on this from banks . when a KARTA dies , the new head is the biggest BOY in the family ,not the mother . the coparancers can ask for their share in HUF incase you need the division of the HUF . that would be better idea incase all the 3 people are leading a seperate like now ..

      Manish

  268. Sumit says:

    Fine!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    But not so much user friendly.

    1. Sumit

      Can you explain what you want to say ?

  269. Subrata Dutta Chaudhuri says:

    Hello Manish,
    Thanks for the informative article. As a retired couple, most of our savings and investments are in joint holding, having first holder’s name inter changed in different assets. We urgently need to make a Will soon. Is it possible to make one jointly?

    1. Subrata

      Yes , you can ..

      Joint Wills A Joint Will is a testamentary instrument whereby two or more persons agree to make a conjoint Will. Where a Will is joint and is intended to take effect after the death of both, it will not be enforceable during the life– time of either. Joint Wills are revocable at anytime by either of the testators during their joint lives, or aster the death of one, by the survivor.

      A Will executed by two or more testators as a single document duly executed by each testator disposing of his separate properties or his joint properties is not a single Will. It operates on the death of each and is in effect for tow or more Wills. On the death of each testator, the legatee would become entitled to the properties of the testator who dies.

      Manish

  270. Anupam Mishra says:

    Hi.. thanks for the very informative article!!

    But one query here. Who can be a good choice for a good executor ot trustee and witnesses ?? in a nuclear family setup, is it not difficult to find one? also let me know for people like me, who have been changing locations, due to job compulsions, what should be the location for writing a will? home town or current location?. what if, the witnesses are not available at the time of need or turn hostile ? just a hypothetical question..

    thanks

    anupam

    1. Anupam

      Yea those are the concerns .. Make sure you choose some friends who are there at the time your require them , Talk to lawyer on this, he will tell you the nitty gritties

      Manish

  271. aleem says:

    Glad I got an Idea of making a will in future,thanks for the same. My question is as I am a Muslim does the system followed for making a will remain the same?please reply .

    thanks Aleem

    1. Aleem

      Yes , the will creation rules are same .. But note one point .. incase the will is not present , the wealth will be divided as per Muslim law principles , not HINDU SUCCESSION ACT

      Manish

  272. minus says:

    Great article with example! Realy informative.
    I have one query on the subject.

    My aunt has written her will and now she wants to get this registered. What is the procedure for this?

    Thanks in advance.
    Minus

    1. MInus

      the best thing for her would be to talk to a lawyer and get it proofed by lawyer incase she wants to register it /

      Manish

  273. Anoop says:

    I have a peculiar query. I am stuck with the first paragraph of the will. I do not have a domicile currently. I have a lot of cash in terms of FDs and savings accounts and assets. How do I go about this? Your help will be highly appreciated. A telephone number would be of immense help.
    Thanks and best regards,
    Anoop

    1. Anoop

      Its suggested that hire a lawyer for this .. Make sure you register it

      Manish

  274. M says:

    If the Will is laminated then can it is contended while probating from other shareholders and on what grounds and also give the related cases regarding laminated will in India ?

    1. I really dont know the answer in this case . try asking it on our forum : http://jagoinvestor.dev.diginnovators.site/forum/

  275. Mithun says:

    Excellent article Manish!
    My brothers(2) have already filed a petition in the court saying that my WILL is fake. My father willed his totally self-acquired property, totally to me. The WILL is registered and completely genuine.
    I have filed a counter, and I am taking the services of a lawyer. Can my brothers drag this case unnecessarily, just to cause me trouble??
    Thanks once again.

    1. Mithun

      Well if everything is genuine , then finally the thing will come to you . But you know our legal system , things can drag a bit as in these kind of cases it happens that one really fakes hte bill (like you can do it). So things will go in investigation ! , but if you are right , dont worry

      Manish

  276. kumar says:

    Your article had this point in the last- “In case of Hindus, it should be clearly stated if the property is inherited or not, because it makes a huge difference, as no ancestral property can be assigned to any person through a will. All rights on inherited property are acquired by birth. So if you inherited a property from your Father, you cannot say in a will, that you want to assign it to person X only! It will go to all your legal heirs as it is “Inherited”

    Kindly let know, I’ve a son & a daughter and inherited properties from my father. Sometime back my daughter filed a suit in the court asking for her share and we settled it amicably in the court by a decree where my daughter was paid money, my son some part of the inherited property and another part to me. Now based on the court decree,can i make a will to give all the properties i had got in court partition to my son & daughter in law,even though it is a inherited property

    1. Kumar

      Yes , I think you are talking about the situaiton when then partition has already happened , so your daughter have got their respective shares now . So now what you have is yours only and you should be free to assign it to anyone as you wish .

      Manish

  277. Anita says:

    Do the witnesses and the writer of the will need to sign each and every page of the will, if so, what should be the format of the same. OR should they all sign only on the last page. Please guide. Thanks.

  278. andy says:

    nice article..very helpful

  279. T.S.ASHOK says:

    Manish,

    Thank you very much for giving such a wonderful article. I am aged 31. I am sure that i will convince my wife and I will try to write a WILL as soon as possible.

    1. TS Ashok

      Thats great 🙂 . Go ahead

  280. M.Aditya says:

    Thanks for a very informative and clear article. I have a small doubt.
    My father has made a WILL giving me his house(constructed fully with his own money), and the plot on which the house stands. He has given me “Absolute rights” to this house. This is the only property he had. He died a couple of years back.
    I have four siblings(2 brothers+2 Sisters. All married more than 30 years ago)
    Can they contest the WILL successfully?
    Thanks.

    1. M. Aditya

      No , they cant contest the will . Only if they are able to prove that the will was prepared with undue influence or forcefully, there will be some issue . but thats extreme !

      Manish

      1. Aditya M says:

        Thank you Manish! One more query please:
        I want to construct a house along with two of my friends in the plot of land that my father willed to me with absolute rights. Some people I have come across say that it is better to get a Caveat from the court to prevent my siblings from getting an Injunction stopping my work. Can they really do that? If that can be done, what are the preventive measures I should take?
        Thank you very much once again:-)

        1. Aditya

          They can intrude in between , but only for a temporary period ,as the title of the land is in your name. With everything in your name with clear will , you dont have to worry

          Manish

  281. bharat shah says:

    @manish chauhan
    even repitation i like to bring following information for execution of will:
    i come to know from a reliable law related web site that a probate is not always required for execution of ‘will’ except in metro/presidency towns. it could be by ‘mutation’.

    As per sec.57 of Indian Succession Act if the will is executed only at metro cities like bombay,madras and calcutta,the probate is required,otherwise probate is not required.

    As rightly said will has to be probated if executed in Presidency towns. U can go for mutation basing on inheritance by will.
    so, i think, for average person , not so wealthy and having normal family, the ‘will’ is not required to get rgistered, nor its execution requires court involvement

    1. Bharat

      Thanks for info , can you explain in detail what is this “mutation” ?

      Manish

      1. bharat shah says:

        @manish chauhan
        i am also not clear about it ,so i asked the same in our forum. however i guess, it would be a joint application of the beneficiaries with copy of the ‘will’ to the concerned authority , such as revenue authority/gramapanchayat/mnc/bank/insurance company /mfamc/depository , as the case mat be, for transfer/transmission. i may be totally wrong in guessing. some should enlight.

        1. I am not sure . Lets see if some one can help

  282. Prabhakar says:

    Informative article. Will it be legally correct to make a WILL in favour of X and state in the same WILL how at the end of X’s life the assets will get distributed between Y and Z. This is in the context of property NOT inherited and say X is the wife and Y and Z are children.

    1. Prabhakar

      You cant make a will in fovor of someone , the person has to sign it himself and it front of two witness after understanding the will

      Manish

  283. deepak says:

    original flat of my grndfather moved to grnadma;s name as per nomination in 73 and as per her nomination in 73 flat transfered to my dad in 2004 on death of grandma.now in 2011 dad’s younger brother cliams to have a will of 2002 signed by my grnadma to create partition of flat in 3 equal portions between dad and 2 brothers.nobody aware of the presence of will till date.can he probate this will now and force us to act accordingly???
    can nominee create will? legally does it go back to grandfather property and gets divided equally in legal heirs being 3sons 2 daughters and widow,thereby 1/6th to all?
    grandma can WILL only her share of 1/6th? pls suggest? its urgernt? with ur wide knowledge on subject trust u could provide solution to his?

    1. Deepak

      this is enough complicated for me to give any comments . I dont think it should hold any value now when time has passed . Let me check with some one more knowledagble and get back to you

      Manish

  284. Kantilal says:

    Father, in his will, gives the house he built to his two sons. Following father’s demise one son buys out the share of the other to become sole owner of the property. Can the the sole owner in his will assign the house to any one of his relatives or is assigning not permitted on the grounds that the house was ‘inherited’ ?

    1. Kantilal

      He has paid the price for the house also , so he can assign it to anyone !

      Manish

  285. bharat shah says:

    @manish chauhan,@sunder and other knowledgable friends,
    for further knowledge and information, i like to have following information:
    1. which govt. taxes are required to be paid for transfer the immovable and movable property on account of a ‘will’ ? could it be different than if the same would transfer as per law of Laws of inheritance and succession, in case a person died without making ‘will’?
    2. is normal transfer stamp duty (for gujarat, now 6% as per my information) as required for sale of residential property , payble in case of transfer of the same on account of a ‘will’ or heritence/succession?
    3. in case of a person dies without making ‘will’,and if all eligible family members jointly apply the to transfer the property to one of members to the concerned local authority, what documents are required for such application?

    1. Bharat

      I would say better ask this question on forum , it would get a better eye there and would help in resolving it faster : http://jagoinvestor.dev.diginnovators.site/forum/

      Manish

  286. RaagVamdatt.com - Financial Planning Demystified says:

    Hi Manish,

    An excellent post (as always!) covering all aspects of making a will… The sample will is especially very useful.

    I have recently written an article about Codicils, which is like an addendum to a will for making minor changes. Since it has not been covered here, your readers might want to have a look at it at http://www.raagvamdatt.com/Codicil-An-alternative-to-writing-new-will-for-minor-changes/300/

    1. Raag

      Great 🙂 . I will also go through it

      Manish

  287. shashank kashettiwar says:

    Manish,
    Coverage of a very important topic and in a detailed fashion with so many appropriate links! It is of great value to the planners/advisors like me alongwith lay persons. Keep up the great work!

    shashank

    1. Shashank

      Thanks , can you share what kind of understanding and expectations clients have in today’s India regarding estate planning . As per my experience with my clients , I never see anyone raising these concerns !

      manish

  288. Rakesh says:

    Manish,

    Thanks, Very informative article.
    Got a fair idea about will. I think it makes sense for all to create a will.

    Rakesh

    1. Rakesh

      Nice to know that 🙂

      Manish

  289. jay says:

    good article with the sample was very helpful. What happens if one of the witnessess passes away before the will maker or post the will maker

    1. Jay

      I dont think anything will happen in this case ,because one can not just update his will everytime some one passes , but its a good idea to make some young person as a Witness

      Manish

  290. Sathish says:

    Can you review Future Generali Smart Life Insurance – Online Pure protection policy?

    1. Satish

      No idea on that , but I think its fine if one of the witness passes away as they have to be there are the time of making the WILL

      Manish

    2. Sathish , you can ask from other members about it on http://jagoinvestor.dev.diginnovators.site/forum/ .

  291. Kathy says:

    Gud one. This will be very useful for my grandma..who is in plan of preparing a will!!!

      1. Smriti Jain says:

        Hi Manish

        Very useful information. Am in my early 30s and planning to write a will only for the sake of my infant !

        I have a ques, what do we do about assets held jointly, like house owned by both husband and wife.. in that case, does the will needs to be signed by both.
        Can both husband and wife make a common will listing their individual as well as jointly owned assets.

        please advice
        Thanks in advance
        Smriti

        1. Smriti

          You can write a joint WILL , but if you want to write seperately , then you can only assign your part/share to some one , not the full 🙂 . Meet a good lawyer for this .

  292. R.B.Gupta says:

    Its an informative and beneficial article which could be of help to many people who want to do it.

    1. R.B Gupta

      Thanks 🙂 , can you share what were the new learnings for you ?

      Manish

  293. Mitr Singh says:

    Hi,

    What will be charges/Fees of a Lawyer if the Assest Cost is 20 Lacs.

    1. Mitr

      I am not sure about fees , but it would depend from lawyer to lawyer , it should cost few thousands I suppose ?

      Manish

  294. babu says:

    good article. keep the good work going.
    here is another sample will format

    1. Babu

      Thanks for the link , I have added it in main article with thanks to you 🙂

      Manish

      1. sanjay says:

        ths is Goodone ………
        must need some details…………?

  295. Vikas says:

    How does one account for changing assets. In a particular year I may acquire some MF units and sell some (ditto for FDs). Does this mean that a new will has to be made every time / periodically? Can I have the asset details as per a separate list if liquid assets (like FD / MFs / etc.) have been divided in % terms between heirs?

    1. Vikas

      You can assign some beneficiary to the whole demat account , so what ever lies in the demat account can go to some one ! . Same case with FD , instead of amount , you can assign the whole account to some one .

      Incase there are changes which really needed to be incorporated, better change the WILL in some years only .

      Manish

      1. Ram says:

        Manish,
        Do you mean to specify in the WILL that the amount in demat account/FD should go to the specific person? Can we also distribute it in % terms to more than one person? Also, how to accommodate for SIP investments?

        Thanks,
        Ram

        1. Ram

          Yes you can do that , you can mention that all the investments should be liquidated from demat account and 40% goes to A and 60% goes to B , however if your investments are not continuing , you can mention in absolute terms like 500 shares of Reliance should go to A and rest to B

          Manish

          1. Chaitanya says:

            Please note, as per below article in EC, “When it comes to shares in a demat account, it is the nominee in the account who inherits them, not the person named in the will, as per a Bombay High Court ruling. The case dates back to 2008…”

            http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/personal-finance/savings-centre/analysis/10-common-legal-myths-busted/articleshow/22024215.cms?curpg=4

            1. Right . Its correct

  296. Venshu says:

    Good one Manish. Quite detailed and informative.

    1. Venshu

      thanks , so are you going to make a will ? how ?

      Manish

  297. Hemant B says:

    Manish

    I think you have very well covered all points related to will.

    It’s not that tough to create a will but still hiring a professional will be a better option.

    1. Hemant

      Thanks , yea I accept that hiring a lawyer would be a good option , But I wonder how many people still want to pay a lawyer , we generally dont see people wanting to pay for services !

      What do you say ?

      Manish

      1. Hemant B says:

        Ya Manish I agree – paying for advice or service LOL

        Making a will is very important – I am quoting a very small instance(financially very big) that happened with one of my know.

        This guy(Raja – fake name) is in late 40s & don’t have much assets to make his retirement.

        His father gifted all his properties to Raja’s sisters in last few years & kept saying that I will give parental house(1 CR) to you. Few days back Raja’s father expired(without writing a WILL) & now his sister’s are saying that we want share in parental house(Raja will be left with 1/4 house).

        Now you can imagine Raja’s Condition 🙁

        1. Hemant

          Yea .. This is what I tried to communicate in the article, WILL is to make sure that what one wants really happen after someone is dead .

          But , in your case if its parental house (I assume that Raja’s father got it from his forefathers) , then he cant assign it to anyone , the children get its right by birth only) . Am I mistaken ?

          Manish

          1. Hemant B says:

            No.. his father builded that house & even other properties from scratch 🙁

            1. Poor chap !

              Ab pachtate hot kya jab chidya chug gayi Khet !

              manish

          2. Ankur says:

            Hi Manish,

            Great article. We are working on solving this same problem and offer a Will making service at an affordable price.

            http://www.akosha.in/products

            You can even see a sample Will here

            http://www.akosha.in/content/sample-last-will-and-testament

            Cheers,
            Ankur

            1. Ankur

              Thats great .. I checked your site . Looks good to me 🙂

            2. suhas says:

              sir, i want information about willdeed.
              my father made willdeed,he gave his house to my brother.in this willdeed my brother signeture on it for ”likhker lenewala”and sign .and not sign my father evry page. is this will deed valied in court?
              please give me answar.my brother is benifisary.

            3. Hi suhas

              Your cases is a bit complex and I think we are not the right people to comment on it.

              My suggestion would be hire someone who is professional in this area and consult them

              Manish

            4. suhas says:

              ok thanks

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