What Should a Holographic Will Contain?

The holographic will: complete guide and practical examples and facsimile.

Those who want to make a will do not necessarily have to go to a notary. You can also do it yourself, at home, without the need for the assistance of a lawyer or witnesses. This is what is called a holographic will: “holographic” because it is made by “one’s own hand.” But what must a holographic contain to be valid? What are the essential elements required by law, the requirements, and the formulas?

In this article, we will provide a comprehensive guide that can help the reader, who is wondering how to make a will, to proceed on their own using practical templates. But let’s proceed in order.

What is a Holographic Will?

The holographic will is the instrument used to express one’s last wishes, that is, the provisions regarding the succession of one’s assets after death.

Its peculiarity lies in the simplicity of its drafting, not requiring the intervention of a notary. However, this very characteristic necessitates knowledge of the essential requirements for the will to be valid and effective.

Let’s start with the tools that need to be used. The first of these is a completely ordinary sheet of paper, of any size. To be honest, it can be any material support on which it is possible to write. One could also draft a will on a parchment, on a wall of a house, on a stone, on a cork, etc. Paper, however, is definitely the most used, secure, convenient, and effective medium.

Then a pen is necessary, which could be any color, although dark ones (black and blue) are preferable because they are more resistant over time.

You can also use a regular HB pencil or a coloured one.

Things You Cannot Use to Make a Holographic Will:

• with a typewriter
• with the computer, even if the file is then printed and signed in original; ● with a PEC (certified email)
• with a video in which the testator declares what their last wishes should be ● with a message on the cell phone or an audio.

On the contrary, a holographic will can also take the form of a traditional letter, stamped and sent to a third party, as long as it is handwritten and contains an explicit expression of intent on how to divide one’s assets.

What are the essential requirements of a holographic will?

In order for a holographic will to be valid, three fundamental requirements are necessary.

Holography:
The will must be entirely handwritten by the testator. Typewritten texts, prints, or interventions by third parties are not allowed. If a person cannot write, it is not permitted for third parties to take their place, not even under dictation. It is not permitted to guide the hand of the testator, but only to support the arm.

Anyone who, due to illness or any other reason, is unable to write the will themselves must rely on a notary (thus opting for the so-called public will): there are no alternatives.

It is not necessary for the handwriting to be “beautiful,” the important thing is that it is legible.

You can write in block letters or cursive, as long as the style is the one commonly used by the testator.

Data:

The will must include the full date, including day, month, and year. There are no formulas imposed by law. So, for example, you can write:

• DD/MM/YYYY or as well as DD/MM/YY
• DD month (in letters) year

The order doesn’t matter. You can write the year first, then the month, and finally the day.

The purpose of indicating the date is to ascertain whether the heir was capable of making a will on the day the will was drafted and, in the case of two or more subsequent wills from the same person, to determine which one is the most recent. In fact, the last will has the effect of revoking the incompatible provisions contained in the previous wills.

The Signature:

The will must be signed by the testator at the end of the provisions. The signature must be affixed in such a way as to clearly identify the testator. Consequently, it must be legible and, at the same time, consistent with the style and handwriting of its author.

It is advisable to avoid initials or scribbles, which, although they do not automatically invalidate the will, could make it more easily contestable in case of doubts about its authenticity.

However, it is up to the person claiming the will’s falsity to provide the relevant evidence in court. To this end, a handwriting expert’s report will be necessary to confirm whether the signature actually belongs to the deceased or not.

What is the content of the holographic will?
Once the formal aspects of the will have been analyzed, we come to its substance. The essential element of the will is the so-called institution of heir, that is, the testator’s manifestation of will to designate one or more individuals as their successors in the ownership of their assets or rights, indicating the share of inheritance due to each of them.

An heir can be appointed in two ways:

• Indicating the share that will be allocated to each heir from the testator’s entire estate. The share can be specified explicitly (for example, “I leave one-third of my estate to my wife, one-third to my daughter, and one-third to my son”) or implicitly (for example, “I leave all my assets to my two children, who must divide them between themselves peacefully and with a grateful heart”);
• Indicating the individual assets that will go to each heir: it is the so-called ‘institution of heir ex re certa’ (for example: “I leave my house to my wife and the bank account with all the money deposited in it to my son”).

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