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Maine threw out its entire probate code in 2019 and started over. Title 18-A was replaced by Title 18-C, operative September 1, 2019 — which means a great deal of Maine estate-planning material still circulating online describes law that no longer exists. Under the current code, handwritten wills are valid with no witnesses, a spouse whose children are all shared inherits the whole estate, and Maine has a real estate tax with a $7,160,000 exclusion for 2026. Online services prepare a Maine-specific will for $199–$299. Every rule below cites the Maine Revised Statutes.
Most Maine adults can finish a legally valid will in under an hour.
Two witnesses, a signature, and clear wishes — that’s the whole requirement. An online service like Trust & Will prepares a Maine-specific will with the witness pages ready to sign.
Disclosure: we earn a commission if you buy through the Trust & Will links here, at no extra cost to you. Complex situations belong with an attorney and we say so below.
Maine Replaced Its Probate Code in 2019
This matters before anything else. Maine’s old probate code, Title 18-A, was repealed and replaced wholesale by Title 18-C, enacted as PL 2017 c. 402 and operative September 1, 2019. Section numbers changed, and several substantive rules changed with them — including the treatment of handwritten wills.
If you are reading Maine guidance that cites “18-A” section numbers, it is describing repealed law. That is a real hazard here: the recodification is recent enough that a great deal of pre-2019 material is still the top result for Maine will questions.
Maine Will Requirements (2026)
| Requirement | Maine rule | Statute |
|---|---|---|
| In writing | Required — Maine has adopted no electronic wills act | 18-C § 2-502(1)(A) |
| Signed | By you, or in your name by another individual in your conscious presence and at your direction | 18-C § 2-502(1)(B) |
| Witnessed | At least 2 individuals, each signing within a reasonable time after witnessing your signing or your acknowledgment — they need not be together | 18-C § 2-502(1)(C) |
| Notarized | Not required for validity — the notary appears only in the optional self-proving affidavit | 18-C § 2-504 |
Maine follows the modern Uniform Probate Code closely. There is no publication requirement — you need not announce that the document is your will, unlike in Iowa or Oklahoma — and no requirement that your witnesses sign in each other’s presence, unlike in New Mexico or West Virginia.
Who can make a will: 18 or older and of sound mind (18-C § 2-501).
Handwritten Wills Are Valid in Maine — and This Is Newer Than You Think
Under 18-C § 2-502(2), a will that does not meet the witnessed-will requirements is still valid as a holographic will, whether or not witnessed, if the signature and material portions of the document are in the testator’s handwriting.
No date is required. And under § 2-502(3), intent that the document constitute your will may be established by extrinsic evidence — including, for holographic wills, portions of the document that are not in your handwriting. So a preprinted form with the operative terms filled in by hand can work in Maine, and the printed language can even help prove you meant it as a will. That is the opposite of the rule in “wholly in your own handwriting” states.
Check the date on anything you read about this. Maine’s treatment of handwritten wills arrived with the 2019 recodification. Guidance written before September 2019 should not be relied on for this point.
Valid is still not the same as advisable. A holographic will arrives with no witnesses to confirm your capacity, and it is the most-contested format in probate court everywhere. Maine simply gives it more room to survive than most New England states — Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire all refuse them outright.
Electronic Wills Are Not Valid in Maine
Maine has not adopted the Uniform Electronic Wills Act. Across the whole of Title 18-C Article 2 — intestacy, wills and donative transfers — the word “electronic” appears exactly once, in § 2-917 (“Relation to Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act”), which sits in the disclaimer subpart and has nothing to do with executing a will.
An online service can prepare your Maine will — that is what these services do. The signing still happens on paper, in front of two witnesses.
Dying Without a Will in Maine
| Your situation | What your spouse receives |
|---|---|
| No descendant and no parent survive you | The entire intestate estate (§ 2-102(1)(A)) |
| All your descendants are your spouse’s, and your spouse has no others | The entire intestate estate (§ 2-102(1)(B)) |
| No descendant, but a parent survives | First $300,000 + 3/4 of the balance (§ 2-102(2)) |
| All your descendants are shared, but your spouse has other descendants | First $100,000 + 1/2 of the balance (§ 2-102(3)) |
| You have a descendant who isn’t your spouse’s | One-half — and no preferential amount at all (§ 2-102(4)) |
Maine is more generous than most of its neighbors in the best case and less generous in the worst. A spouse whose children are all shared takes the whole estate — where New Hampshire would give $250,000 plus half and Montana would give the whole estate too but drops to a setaside the moment anyone has outside children. But when you have a child from an earlier relationship, Maine strips the preferential amount entirely and leaves your spouse a flat half.
The remaining share passes to your descendants, then parents, then descendants of parents, and onward.
Maine Has an Estate Tax — $7,160,000 in 2026
Maine is one of the minority of states with its own estate tax, and it is worth stating the current figure precisely because a widely reported bill would have changed it dramatically.
For estates of decedents dying in 2026, the Maine exclusion amount is $7,160,000. The exclusion is indexed and has risen every year:
| Year of death | Maine exclusion |
|---|---|
| 2026 | $7,160,000 |
| 2025 | $7,000,000 |
| 2024 | $6,800,000 |
| 2023 | $6,410,000 |
| 2022 | $6,010,000 |
| 2021 | $5,870,000 |
| 2018–2020 | $5,600,000 – $5,800,000 |
| 2013–2015 | $2,000,000 |
Above the exclusion, 36 M.R.S. § 4103(1) sets the rates: 8% of the excess up to the exclusion plus $3,000,000; then $240,000 plus 10% up to the exclusion plus $6,000,000; then $540,000 plus 12% above that.
A correction you may need. LD 1617 in the 132nd Legislature proposed cutting the Maine estate tax exclusion from $5.6 million to $1 million beginning in 2026. That bill did not become law, and you will find the $1 million figure repeated as though it had. Maine Revenue Services publishes $7,160,000 as the 2026 exclusion. A proposal is not a statute.
See our state estate tax guide for how Maine compares — and note the contrast with New Hampshire next door, which has no estate tax at all.
What a Will Costs in Maine
| Route | Typical cost | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Handwritten | $0 | Valid if the signature and material portions are in your hand — no date needed, but the most-contested format |
| Online service | $199 individual / $299 couple | Maine-specific will with witness pages, done in about an hour |
| Maine attorney | Flat fees vary — Portland and the southern coast run above the rest of the state | Custom drafting and counsel, including estate-tax planning if you are near the exclusion |
Online pricing verified against Trust & Will’s published rates (August 2026). The Maine State Bar Association publishes no fee survey, so we quote no attorney figures we can’t source. See how Maine compares with the rest of the country for national cost ranges and a state-by-state table of will requirements.
What a Maine Will Does Not Do
1. A will does not avoid probate. Maine probate is a county probate court process on the public record. For the comparison, see what a living trust costs in Maine and our guide to avoiding probate.
2. A will does not reduce the Maine estate tax. The tax applies with or without one. If your estate is near $7,160,000 — and a coastal property plus retirement accounts and life insurance can get there faster than people expect — the planning that addresses it lives in a trust, not a will.
3. A will does not cover incapacity, and does not override beneficiary designations. Pair it with a durable power of attorney and an advance health-care directive — see the five documents every family needs — and keep your beneficiary forms current.
Will vs. Trust for Maine Families
Every Maine adult needs a will — no default rule names a guardian for your children, and a child from an earlier relationship costs your spouse half the estate and the entire preferential amount.
Maine is also one of the states where the trust question has a numerical answer rather than a philosophical one. If your property, retirement accounts and life insurance approach $7,160,000, the state estate tax is in view, and the tools that address it are trust tools. Start with Trust vs. Will: Which Does Your Family Need? and the numbers in our Maine living trust cost guide.
If the will is what you need today, Trust & Will’s Maine package includes the witness pages, guardianship nominations, and healthcare documents — build your Maine will here.
FAQ
Does a will have to be notarized in Maine?
No. Validity takes your signature and two witnesses, each signing within a reasonable time after witnessing your signing or acknowledgment (18-C § 2-502). The notary appears only in the optional self-proving affidavit (§ 2-504).
Are handwritten wills legal in Maine?
Yes, with no witnesses, if the signature and material portions are in your handwriting (18-C § 2-502(2)). No date is required, and under § 2-502(3) even printed portions of the document can help prove you intended it as your will. Note this rule arrived with the 2019 probate code — older Maine guidance is unreliable on the point.
Can I make an electronic will in Maine?
No. Maine has not adopted the Uniform Electronic Wills Act; the only “electronic” reference in Title 18-C Article 2 is § 2-917, which concerns disclaimers, not will execution.
What happens if I die without a will in Maine?
Your spouse takes the entire estate if you leave no descendant and no parent, or if all your descendants are also theirs and they have no others. If a parent survives and you have no descendants, they take $300,000 plus three-quarters. If your spouse has outside children, $100,000 plus half. If you have a descendant who is not theirs, one-half with no preferential amount (18-C § 2-102).
Does Maine have an estate tax?
Yes. For decedents dying in 2026 the Maine exclusion amount is $7,160,000, with rates of 8%, 10% and 12% above it (36 M.R.S. § 4103). A 2025 bill proposing to cut the exclusion to $1 million did not become law.
Does a will avoid probate in Maine?
No — a will goes through probate. Living trusts, joint ownership, transfer-on-death arrangements and beneficiary designations are the tools that pass property outside the court process.
Maine Law Cited on This Page
- 18-C M.R.S. § 2-502 — execution; holographic wills
- 18-C M.R.S. § 2-102 — share of spouse
- 36 M.R.S. § 4103 — tax on estate of resident
- Maine Revenue Services — estate tax (706ME) and annual exclusion amounts
Update log — August 2026: page created. Execution, holographic and intestacy rules verified against the official Maine Revised Statutes Title 18-C as published by the Maine Legislature; the 2026 exclusion amount and rate schedule verified against Maine Revenue Services and 36 M.R.S. § 4103. Reviewed when Maine law changes.