Disclaimer: General educational research only — not legal advice. Will-signing rules are strict and change often. Check your state’s current law or ask a local estate planning attorney before relying on an electronic will.
Estate Planning Data & Research → Can You Sign a Will Online?
Lots of people now write their will online. Fewer know that in most states the final step still happens on paper: you print the will and sign it in ink, with witnesses in the room.
A handful of states have changed that. They let you sign a will electronically, and some let your witnesses watch over video. We checked every state’s code and bill history to see where an electronic will is legal today, which states passed or debated changes in 2025 and 2026, and how many older adults in each state have the computer and internet access to use one.
Wherever you live, you can prepare a will online and then sign it the way your state requires. See whether you need a will, a living trust or both.
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Cite this page URL when reusing findings. Not a substitute for official sources or professional advice.
Key findings
- 15 states and DC have an electronic-will law in effect as of Oct. 6, 2026: Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Utah, Washington and the District of Columbia. We confirmed 15 of the 16 on official state code or legislature websites. Indiana is listed per LegiScan.
- Two states joined since mid-2025. Missouri’s law (HB 754, signed July 10, 2025) took effect Aug. 28, 2025. Kentucky’s (SB 50, signed April 13, 2026) took effect July 15, 2026, and covers the wills of people who die on or after that date.
- New York has passed one, but you can’t use it yet. The governor signed an electronic wills law on Dec. 12, 2025 (Chapter 637). A 2026 follow-up (Chapter 89) pushed its start date to two years after signing, so around December 2027.
- About 69% of Americans 65 and older live in a state where a will still has to be signed on paper. That’s 41.1 million of 59.4 million people. 18.3 million (30.9%) live in one of the 16 e-will jurisdictions.
- Most older adults could sign online if the law allowed it. Nationally, 88.2% (±0.1) of people 65+ have a computer and a broadband subscription, per the 2024 American Community Survey. In the 34 states with no e-will law, that’s 32.9 million people 65+.
- The access gap is real in some states. In West Virginia, 12.2% (±1.0) of people 65+ have no computer at all. Kentucky, one of the two newest e-will states, is at 10.6% (±0.7), and Mississippi is at 10.3% (±0.9). The national figure is 6.3% (±0.1).
- 2025–26 activity went both ways. Missouri and Kentucky passed e-will laws, and New York enacted one that isn’t in effect yet. Minnesota (2026), North Dakota (2025) and Utah (2026) added the Uniform Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act. Oregon went the other way: a 2025 law (SB 168) says a will “writing” does not include an electronic record. New Jersey, Michigan, Pennsylvania and DC had bills pending. Virginia’s HB 133 was defeated in committee in February 2026.
State-by-state table
“No statute found” means we didn’t find an electronic-will statute in our review. It does not mean courts there will never accept an electronic document. Oregon and New Hampshire are marked “No” because their statutes expressly rule out electronic wills. *Listed per LegiScan, not confirmed on an official site. MOE = 90% margin of error from the Census Bureau.
| State | Can you sign a will electronically? | Law | 65+ with computer + broadband (±MOE) | 65+ with no computer (±MOE) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | No statute found | — | 84.8% (±0.5) | 8.8% (±0.5) |
| Alaska | No statute found | — | 92.1% (±1.5) | 3.7% (±1.0) |
| Arizona | Yes | A.R.S. 14-2518 | 90.4% (±0.5) | 4.1% (±0.4) |
| Arkansas | No statute found | — | 84.9% (±0.8) | 8.2% (±0.7) |
| California | No statute found | — | 91.4% (±0.2) | 4.3% (±0.2) |
| Colorado | Yes | HB21-1004 (Uniform Electronic Wills Act), signed 1/21/2021 | 90.7% (±0.6) | 4.2% (±0.4) |
| Connecticut | No statute found | — | 89.5% (±0.8) | 6.4% (±0.6) |
| Delaware | No statute found | — | 91.0% (±1.2) | 4.3% (±0.7) |
| District of Columbia | Yes | D.C. Code 18-901 to 18-911 (Uniform Electronic Wills Act) | 84.1% (±2.6) | 7.1% (±1.8) |
| Florida | Yes | Fla. Stat. 732.522 | 90.9% (±0.3) | 3.8% (±0.2) |
| Georgia | No statute found | — | 88.3% (±0.5) | 5.9% (±0.4) |
| Hawaii | No statute found | — | 89.9% (±1.1) | 4.9% (±0.8) |
| Idaho | Yes | S1092 (2023) Uniform Electronic Wills Act, signed 3/29/2023 | 89.1% (±1.0) | 4.8% (±0.6) |
| Illinois | Yes | 755 ILCS 6 (Electronic Wills, Electronic Estate Planning Documents, and Remote Witnesses Act) | 87.4% (±0.4) | 7.0% (±0.3) |
| Indiana | Yes* | HB 1303 (2018), Ind. Code 29-1-21 | 86.0% (±0.7) | 7.7% (±0.5) |
| Iowa | No statute found | — | 85.0% (±0.9) | 7.4% (±0.5) |
| Kansas | No statute found | — | 87.2% (±0.7) | 6.6% (±0.6) |
| Kentucky | Yes (since July 15, 2026) | KRS 394.700–394.715 (Uniform Electronic Wills Act), enacted by SB 50 (2026 Ky. Acts ch. 134) | 83.1% (±0.8) | 10.6% (±0.7) |
| Louisiana | No statute found | — | 83.4% (±0.8) | 8.9% (±0.5) |
| Maine | No statute found | — | 88.4% (±1.0) | 6.4% (±0.8) |
| Maryland | Yes | Md. Code, Est. & Trusts 4-102 (electronic wills, electronic presence) | 89.8% (±0.6) | 5.3% (±0.4) |
| Massachusetts | No statute found | — | 89.0% (±0.6) | 6.5% (±0.4) |
| Michigan | No statute found | — | 87.8% (±0.4) | 6.3% (±0.3) |
| Minnesota | Yes | Minn. Stat. 524.2-501 et seq. as amended by Laws 2023 ch. 21 (Uniform Electronic Wills Act) | 87.2% (±0.5) | 6.6% (±0.4) |
| Mississippi | No statute found | — | 80.3% (±1.2) | 10.3% (±0.9) |
| Missouri | Yes (since Aug. 28, 2025) | RSMo 474.540–474.564 (Missouri Electronic Wills and Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act), enacted by HB 754 (2025) | 85.6% (±0.5) | 7.5% (±0.4) |
| Montana | No statute found | — | 86.1% (±1.2) | 7.2% (±0.9) |
| Nebraska | No statute found | — | 84.5% (±1.0) | 7.9% (±0.6) |
| Nevada | Yes | NRS 133.085–133.087 | 92.6% (±0.8) | 3.7% (±0.5) |
| New Hampshire | No (state law bars e-wills) | RSA 551:2(III)(b) | 91.6% (±1.0) | 4.6% (±0.8) |
| New Jersey | No statute found | — | 90.5% (±0.4) | 5.5% (±0.3) |
| New Mexico | No statute found | — | 84.6% (±1.3) | 7.9% (±0.8) |
| New York | Not yet (law takes effect about Dec. 2027) | Ch. 637 of 2025 (S7416-A), effective date amended by Ch. 89 of 2026 (S8887) to two years after 12/12/2025 | 87.8% (±0.4) | 7.3% (±0.3) |
| North Carolina | No statute found | — | 87.7% (±0.5) | 7.3% (±0.4) |
| North Dakota | Yes | N.D.C.C. ch. 30.1-37 (Uniform Electronic Wills Act) | 82.5% (±1.8) | 9.2% (±1.6) |
| Ohio | No statute found | — | 86.2% (±0.5) | 7.8% (±0.4) |
| Oklahoma | Yes | 84 O.S. §§ 901–910 (electronic wills, ch. 8); §§ 911–927 (Uniform Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act, ch. 9) | 86.0% (±0.6) | 7.3% (±0.4) |
| Oregon | No (state law bars e-wills) | ORS 112.235(4), added by SB 168 (2025) | 90.1% (±0.7) | 5.0% (±0.6) |
| Pennsylvania | No statute found | — | 85.8% (±0.4) | 8.6% (±0.3) |
| Rhode Island | No statute found | — | 87.7% (±1.5) | 7.0% (±1.1) |
| South Carolina | No statute found | — | 87.1% (±0.6) | 6.9% (±0.5) |
| South Dakota | No statute found | — | 84.0% (±1.7) | 8.4% (±1.3) |
| Tennessee | No statute found | — | 86.3% (±0.7) | 7.6% (±0.4) |
| Texas | No statute found | — | 88.6% (±0.3) | 5.6% (±0.2) |
| Utah | Yes | Utah Code 75-2-1401 et seq. (Uniform Electronic Wills Act, eff. 8/31/2020) | 91.2% (±0.9) | 3.7% (±0.5) |
| Vermont | No statute found | — | 88.9% (±1.2) | 6.3% (±0.9) |
| Virginia | No statute found | — | 87.0% (±0.5) | 7.4% (±0.4) |
| Washington | Yes | RCW 11.12.400–11.12.491 | 91.4% (±0.4) | 4.1% (±0.3) |
| West Virginia | No statute found | — | 81.3% (±1.0) | 12.2% (±1.0) |
| Wisconsin | No statute found | — | 86.0% (±0.5) | 7.8% (±0.3) |
| Wyoming | No statute found | — | 84.7% (±1.8) | 6.9% (±1.4) |
Why the rules differ
Will laws are old and strict on purpose. Witnessing rules exist to prevent fraud and pressure on the person making the will. Lawmakers worry that a will signed on a laptop, with witnesses on a video call, is harder to police, especially for older or vulnerable people.
Most states that changed used a model law. The Uniform Law Commission’s Electronic Wills Act (2019) gave states a ready-made text. Colorado, Utah, North Dakota, Idaho, Minnesota, Washington, Oklahoma, Kentucky and DC adopted versions of it. Nevada was early, adopting electronic wills back in 2001. Florida, Indiana, Arizona, Illinois and Maryland wrote their own, and Missouri put its e-will rules and electronic estate planning documents into one 2025 act.
Electronic signing and remote witnessing are different things. Some states allow witnesses to watch over video but still want a paper original. Wyoming, for example, lets witnesses attend by video and sign electronically, and New Hampshire allows remote witnessing only when the lawyer who drafted the will runs the signing. Neither has an e-will law. Others allow a fully electronic will. Florida, for example, ties remote signing to its online-notary rules and uses “qualified custodians” to hold some electronic wills. The details matter more than the label.
The pandemic changed things only for a while. Many states allowed remote will signings by emergency order in 2020–21. Most of those orders have expired, so check the current statute, not a 2020 news story.
What this means for your family
If you live in one of the 34 states without an e-will law (or in New York until its law starts), you can still do most of the work online: answer the questions, get a draft, and review it from home. Then print it and sign it in front of witnesses (and a notary, if you want it to be “self-proving”). That’s a valid will. See what a will costs and will vs. trust if you’re still deciding.
If you’re in an e-will state, read the signing steps carefully. Witness location, ID checks and storage rules vary, and a mistake can mean your will doesn’t count. Many families also want a power of attorney and health care directive, which have their own signing rules.
Related: Avoiding probate · Living trust cost · My parents are getting older
Related research: seniors without broadband by state (6,989,362 people 65+ lack it) and digital asset laws by state.
Methodology
Statutes. We searched LegiScan across all years for enacted bills whose text mentions electronic wills (“electronic will,” “Uniform Electronic Wills Act,” “electronic estate planning,” “electronic presence,” “remote witness”). We read the matching text of every enacted bill, not just its title, because some e-will laws are inside bills with unrelated titles. Missouri’s is in a bill titled “Modifies standards for certain financial organizations,” and Kentucky’s is in one titled “An Act relating to the disposition of property.” We checked each e-will law on the state’s official code or legislature website on Oct. 6, 2026. For the 34 states without one, we also read the will-execution statute on the official code site where it could be retrieved (24 states; the rest are JavaScript-only or hosted by a publisher) and compared every state with Family Estate Guide’s own state will pages. We counted a state as “in effect” only if its law lets a will be signed and kept as an electronic record. Laws that only allow remote witnessing of a paper will don’t count. Indiana’s official site requires JavaScript, so it’s listed per LegiScan (HB 1303, 2018).
2025–26 bills. These come from Family Estate Guide’s estate planning law tracker. It pulls LegiScan for bills introduced in 2025 and 2026, screens them by title, then rechecks enacted bills by their official description and bill text. Bill status is either verified on the official legislature site or labeled with LegiScan’s last action date.
Census data. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates, table B28005 (Age by Presence of a Computer and Types of Internet Subscription in Household), for the population 65 and over. “Computer + broadband” is B28005_017 ÷ B28005_014. “No computer” is B28005_019 ÷ B28005_014. MOEs are 90% margins of error. For shares, we derived them with the Census Bureau’s formula for proportions. The population living in e-will states is the sum of B28005_014 for those 16 jurisdictions. ACS covers people in households, not nursing homes or other group quarters.
Frequently asked questions
Can I make a will online and sign it with my finger on a screen?
Only in a state that allows electronic wills, and only if you follow that state’s signing and witnessing steps. In most states you can prepare a will online, but you have to print it and sign it in ink.
Is a will I wrote online but signed on paper valid?
Yes, if it meets your state’s normal rules. Usually that means signed by you and two witnesses. The website you used to write it doesn’t matter. The signing does.
Can my witnesses watch over Zoom?
Some states allow “electronic presence” witnessing; others require witnesses in the same room. Check your state’s statute. The emergency orders from 2020–21 have mostly ended.
If I move, is my electronic will still valid?
Many states honor a will that was valid where it was signed. But a state without an e-will law may handle an electronic will differently. If you move, have a lawyer in your new state look at it, or sign a paper version.
Do the new Missouri and Kentucky laws work the same way?
No. Missouri’s law (RSMo 474.540–474.564) allows witnesses who are physically or electronically present, and an electronic will can be self-proved before a remote online notary. Kentucky’s law (KRS 394.700–394.715) requires both witnesses to be Kentucky residents who are physically in Kentucky when they sign, and it applies to people who die on or after July 15, 2026.
When can New Yorkers sign an electronic will?
Not yet. The law was signed Dec. 12, 2025, and amended in 2026 to take effect two years after signing, so around December 2027. Until then, New York wills need the traditional signing.
Sources
Government public-domain data and official state code/legislature pages only.
Electronic-will statutes (checked 2026-10-06)
- Arizona — A.R.S. 14-2518: https://www.azleg.gov/ars/14/02518.htm
- Colorado — HB21-1004, Governor signed 01/21/2021: https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb21-1004
- District of Columbia — D.C. Code Title 18, Chapter 9, Uniform Electronic Wills Act, 18-901 to 18-911: https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/titles/18
- Florida — Fla. Stat. 732.522: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2025/732.522
- Idaho — S1092 (2023), signed 3/29/2023: https://legislature.idaho.gov/sessioninfo/2023/legislation/S1092/
- Illinois — 755 ILCS 6: https://www.ilga.gov/Legislation/ILCS/Acts?ChapterID=60&ChapterName=ESTATES
- Maryland — Est. & Trusts 4-102: https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Laws/StatuteText?article=get§ion=4-102&enactments=false
- Minnesota — Laws 2023, ch. 21 (H.F. 244): https://www.revisor.mn.gov/laws/2023/0/21/ ; SF3602 (2026)
- Kentucky — KRS 394.700–394.715 (Uniform Electronic Wills Act), created by 2026 Ky. Acts ch. 134 (SB 50), effective 7/15/2026: https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=57699 ; bill record (signed by Governor 4/13/26, Acts Ch. 134): https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26rs/sb50.html
- Missouri — RSMo 474.540–474.564 (Missouri Electronic Wills and Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act), L. 2025 H.B. 754, effective 8/28/2025: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=474.540 ; HB 754 actions (Approved by Governor 7/10/2025): https://house.mo.gov/BillActions.aspx?bill=HB754&year=2025&code=R
- Nevada — NRS 133.085 (added 2001, amended 2017): https://www.leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-133.html
- North Dakota — N.D.C.C. ch. 30.1-37: https://ndlegis.gov/cencode/t30-1c37.pdf ; SB2127 (2025)
- Oklahoma — 84 O.S. §§ 901–910 (electronic wills, ch. 8) and §§ 911–927 (Uniform Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act, ch. 9) (OSCN): https://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/index.asp?ftdb=STOKST84
- Utah — Utah Code 75-2 Part 14 (eff. 8/31/2020): https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title75/Chapter2/75-2-P14.html
- Washington — RCW 11.12.400–.491 (2021 c 140): https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=11.12
- New York — Ch. 637 of 2025 (S7416-A) and Ch. 89 of 2026 (S8887): https://nyassembly.gov/leg/?bn=S08887&term=2025 and https://nyassembly.gov/leg/?bn=S07416&term=2025
- Indiana (per LegiScan only) — HB 1303 (2018): https://legiscan.com/IN/bill/HB1303/2018
States whose statutes rule out e-wills or allow only remote witnessing
- Oregon — ORS 112.235(4), added by SB 168 (2025), Or. Laws 2025 ch. 34: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors112.html ; https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2025R1/Measures/Overview/SB168
- New Hampshire — RSA 551:2(III)(b): https://gc.nh.gov/rsa/html/LVI/551/551-2.htm
- Wyoming — W.S. 2-6-112(b) (video witnesses, 2023 SF0099): https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title02.pdf
- North Carolina — G.S. 31-71 to 31-73, electronic storage of attested paper wills, S.L. 2025-33 (H 388): https://www.ncleg.gov/BillLookUp/2025/H388
Re-sweep (2026-10-06)
- Every jurisdiction was rechecked three ways: official code page where retrievable, an all-years LegiScan full-text sweep of enacted bills, and Family Estate Guide’s state will pages. States we could not check on an official code site are listed below.
2025–26 bills
- Family Estate Guide law tracker (LegiScan API pull 2026-10-06; LegiScan data CC BY 4.0): https://familyestateguide.com/estate-planning-data/estate-planning-law-tracker/
- NJ S421, A3229, S1336; MI HB5701; MO HB176; PA SB1138; VA HB133; DC B26-0031; UT HB181; AZ HB2657 — status per LegiScan last action (dates in the CSV download)
Census
- U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 1-year, Table B28005: https://api.census.gov/data/2024/acs/acs1/groups/B28005.html (API query: B28005_014E/M, _017E/M, _019E/M for state:* and us:1)
- MOE methodology: Census Bureau, “Understanding and Using ACS Data,” Ch. 8 (calculating MOEs for derived estimates): https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/library/handbooks/general.html
Not verified
- Indiana’s statute (official site is JavaScript-only).
- Remote-witnessing-only rules (paper will, video witnesses) were not surveyed state by state; Wyoming and New Hampshire are noted because the re-sweep turned them up.
- Official code pages for AL, AR, CA, GA, LA, MS, NJ, NM, TN and TX could not be retrieved as text (JavaScript-only, publisher-hosted or blocked); those states rest on the LegiScan text sweep and our state will pages.
Cite this data
Family Estate Guide, “Can You Sign a Will Online? Electronic Will Laws by State (2026),” October 2026. https://familyestateguide.com/estate-planning-data/sign-a-will-online/
You’re welcome to reuse the table with a link back to this page. The Census data is public domain.
Published October 6, 2026 by Family Estate Guide. Data vintage: state statutes checked Oct. 6, 2026; 2025–26 bills per LegiScan pull of Oct. 6, 2026; ACS 2024 1-year estimates. Editorial standards.