Whenever anyone asks me what is a will , my answer is usually

A simple document that keeps my family together and to preserve my estate the way I intend it to be.

Well, that sounds like a simple fantasy that can possibly work out even without a will. Despite that, we have heard stories about the rising tension or lingering confusion because of its absence. With this in mind, let’s find out what is a will and whether you should write one today.

Table of Contents:

1. What is a Will?
2. Problems without a Will
3. Purpose of a Will
4. Requirements to make a valid Will
5. Who can make a Will?
6. When is a Will activated?
7. Should You write a Will?

One Minute Summary:

• A will is a legal document to appoint an executor to carry out your final wishes upon your death.
• It is not compulsory to draft a will in Singapore. However, its absence can lead to undesirable consequences, e.g. your intended beneficiary is excluded from your estate.
• Anyone who is above 21 years old and of sound mind can make a will.
• You need to make a will in writing. Thereafter, both your witnesses and you must sign at the foot of the will.
• A will is revocable and there are four ways to do so.

Part 1: What is a Will?

According to the Wills Act (Chapter 352),

A will includes a testament and an appointment by will or by writing in the nature of a will in exercise of a power. In addition, it is also a disposition by will and testament and any other testamentary disposition.

In other words, it is a legal document to appoint an executor (someone who you trust). For the most part, the executor’s role is to carry out your instructions on how to manage your estate after your death.

Part 2: Problems without a Will

As a matter of fact, it is not compulsory to write a will in Singapore. Despite that, I will highly encourage my clients to write one at a nominal fee (or for free in some cases). Emphatically, this is regardless of your life stage at this instant. Otherwise, it may lead to potential problems; for instance,

• An unintended beneficiary may benefit from your estate, e.g. an abusive spouse;
• Your intended beneficiary is excluded from the distribution because of his or her ranking in the Intestate Succession Act;
• We need much more time to complete the administrative process before we can transfer your estate;
• The administer may not be able to deal with the respective institutions without the Letters of Administration.
• There is no direction on who will become the guardians for your children.

Part 3: Purpose of a Will

As the testator, you can use a will to appoint an executor to manage both personal estate and real estate.

• Example of Personal Estate: Moneys, shares of a company, intellectual property, animals
• Example of Real Estate: Land

Additionally, we can also use a will to appoint guardians for minor children. Furthermore, you can include a letter of wishes to express your final words. By the same token, you may write a statement of encouragement and love for your loved ones.

Part 4: Requirements to make a valid Will

To sum up, there are three requirements to make a valid will in Singapore.

1. Firstly, you have to make the will in writing.
2. Thereafter, you must sign at the foot of the will in the presence of at least two witnesses.
3. In like manner, your witnesses must sign as witness in your presence.

For the same reason, the will may be invalid when you omit any of the above mentioned steps. For example, I wrote a will to give all my assets to my wife (after some nagging). While this may be true, I didn’t sign the will. Under those circumstances, the will is not valid after all (since I did not complete Step 2).

Part 5: Who can make a Will?

Generally, anyone who is at least 21 years old and of sound mind can make a will. Meanwhile, it is important to realise that the following people should not sign as the witness in your will:

• Beneficiary for your estate; and/or
• Spouse of the beneficiary for your estate.

Otherwise, they will not be entitled to any gifts in the will.

What is a privileged will?

Basically, it is a will that is written by anyone under 21 years old. For this purpose, you must be in an active military service or a mariner or a seaman.

Part 6: When is a Will activated?

Your will is activated upon your death. To clarify, we will distribute the gifts that are present at the time of death. On the contrary, these gifts do not have to be existent at the point of drafting the will.

As an illustration, I want to give a mansion to my wife after my death. Obviously, I don’t own a mansion at the point of writing. Nevertheless, if I am rich enough to own a mansion before I die, then the house goes to my wife. Otherwise, this wish will probably make her happy for as long as I live.

Meanwhile, you may revoke a will at anytime when you are alive and there are four ways to do so.

Part 7: Should You write a Will?

Altogether, a will is a simple and responsible way to manage your estate upon death. Above all, it cuts the queue on the lengthy administrative process to obtain the Letters of Administration.

Besides, it also takes away the unnecessary stress for the debtors to harass your family while they grieve. At the end of the day, what’s the point of creating a chaos when you leave?

Checklist:

1. Have you written your own Will?
2. What are your considerations when drafting a Will?

First Published: 17 July 2019
Last Updated: 23 September 2020