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How to make a will in Ireland

Last reviewed 3 November 2026

A will is the only way to decide for yourself who inherits what you own. The rules for making one in Ireland are short, but small mistakes can make a will invalid or leave a gift that fails. This guide walks through the formal requirements, what a will usually contains and the family rights that a will cannot override.

Do you have to make a will?

No. Nobody in Ireland is obliged to make a will. If you die without one (known as dying intestate), your estate is shared out according to fixed rules in the Succession Act 1965. Those rules may or may not match what you would have wanted. A cohabiting partner, a stepchild, a close friend or a charity gets nothing automatically under the intestacy rules, for example. The guide on what happens to a will after a death sets out how the intestacy shares work.

The formal requirements for a valid will

Irish law is strict about the way a will is signed. According to Citizens Information, a will is only valid if:

• it is in writing (handwritten, typed or printed are all acceptable);
• the person making it, called the testator, is over 18;
• the testator is of sound mind;
• the testator signs or marks the will at the end, or confirms the signature, in the presence of two witnesses who are present at the same time;
• both witnesses then sign the will in the testator's presence.

The witnesses do not need to read the will. They are only confirming that they saw the testator sign. Someone who cannot write can make a mark instead of a signature, and a person who is physically unable to sign can direct someone else to sign on their behalf, in their presence and with the two witnesses there.

Choose your witnesses carefully

A gift left to a witness, or to a witness's spouse or civil partner, is not valid. The will itself still stands, but that particular gift fails. The simple rule is to use two independent adults who receive nothing under the will.

What "sound mind" means

To make a valid will you need the mental capacity to understand what you are doing: broadly, what you own, who might reasonably expect to benefit, and the effect of the document you are signing. If there is any doubt, for instance in the early stages of dementia or during a serious illness, it is sensible to ask a doctor to assess and record your capacity at the time the will is signed. That record can be important if the will is later challenged.

What a will usually contains

There is no set form for a will in Ireland, but a clear will normally includes:

• Your name and address, so there is no doubt about whose will it is.
• A revocation clause cancelling any earlier wills and codicils.
• The appointment of one or more executors, the people who will deal with your estate after your death. An executor can also be a beneficiary.
• Specific gifts, for example a house, a sum of money or a named item.
• A residuary clause that says who gets everything not specifically mentioned. Without one, anything left over passes under the intestacy rules.
• Guardians for children under 18, if you have them.
• The date and an attestation clause, the short paragraph recording that the will was signed and witnessed properly.

Plain language matters. Most disputes about wills come from wording that can be read in two ways, or from gifts that cannot be identified, such as "my car" when there are two, or "my cousin Jim" when there are two cousins called Jim.

Rights a will cannot override

The legal right share of a spouse or civil partner

A surviving spouse or civil partner has a legal right share in the estate, whatever the will says. It is one-half of the estate if there are no children and one-third if there are children. If the will leaves the spouse a gift, they can choose either the gift or the legal right share, and the executor must tell them about that choice in writing. A spouse can give up (renounce) this right, which often happens in a separation agreement. Divorced spouses and former civil partners whose partnership was dissolved do not have a legal right share.

Children's claims under section 117

Children have no automatic right to inherit if a parent leaves a will. However, a child can ask the court to decide that a parent failed in their moral duty to make proper provision for them. These applications under section 117 of the Succession Act must be made within six months of the grant of representation (probate or administration), and the court looks at each case on its own facts. A section 117 claim cannot reduce a spouse's legal right share.

Cohabiting partners

An unmarried partner has no automatic share. You can leave them as much as the law allows in your will, and a qualified cohabitant can apply to court for provision from the estate under the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010. A will is the most reliable way to provide for a partner.

Changing or cancelling a will

You can change a will by making a codicil, a separate document signed and witnessed in the same way as a will. Small alterations on the will itself must be signed or initialled by you and both witnesses beside the change. For anything more than a minor change, making a new will is usually cleaner.

A will is revoked automatically if you:

• marry or enter a civil partnership, unless the will was clearly made with that marriage or partnership in mind;
• make a new will that revokes earlier wills;
• deliberately destroy it, or have someone destroy it in your presence and with your consent.

It is worth reviewing a will after any big life event: marriage, separation, the birth of a child, a death in the family, or buying or selling property.

Property outside Ireland and joint assets

If you own property in another country, local succession rules may apply to it, and it is common to make a separate will there. Under the EU Succession Regulation (650/2012), which Ireland has not opted into but which affects property in most other EU states, you can choose in your will for the law of your nationality to govern your succession in those countries.

Some assets pass outside a will altogether. Money in a joint account usually goes to the surviving account holder, and a credit union nomination or a pension death benefit is paid according to its own rules. A will cannot redirect these, so it helps to list them for your executor.

Where to keep a will

Ireland has no central, official register of wills. Many people leave the original with the solicitor who drew it up; others keep it at home with their important papers. Whatever you choose, make sure your executor knows where the original is. A photocopy is not normally enough to obtain probate, and if the original cannot be found the law may presume it was destroyed on purpose.

Writing your own will versus using a solicitor

A home-made will can be valid if every formality is followed. The risks are in the detail: a missing residuary clause, a gift to a witness, unclear wording, or a will that ignores the legal right share. Where an estate includes a farm, a business, property abroad, a second family or a person with a disability who depends on you, legal advice is particularly worthwhile. The Law Society of Ireland lists practising solicitors on lawsociety.ie, and there is no fixed fee for making a will, so it is reasonable to ask for a quote in advance.

Making a will is often done at the same time as an enduring power of attorney, which covers what happens if you lose capacity during your lifetime rather than after death.