• I would like to consult a lawyer about end-of-life planning or inheritance in the area of Yaizu, Makinohara, Yoshida-cho and Omaezaki.
• I want to make a self-written will, but I want to know the conditions (requirements) for it to be valid.
• A self-written will left by a deceased person has been found, and I want to know whether it is valid.

Are you facing any of these issues in Yaizu, Makinohara, Omaezaki, Fujieda, Shimada, Yoshida Town, or other nearby areas?
At Yaizu Sogo Law Office, we offer a free first-time legal consultation on inheritance and estate matters. Consulting us once does not obligate you to retain us. We are also available on weekday evenings and on Saturdays. Please feel free to contact us by phone or email.

A self-written will must satisfy the requirements set out in the Civil Code

In recent years, end-of-life planning has increasingly become a topic of conversation, and the number of people who consult our office about it has been on the rise. Leaving a will as part of end-of-life planning is important, both to ease the burden on the bereaved family and to make the rest of your own life more fulfilling.

However, among those who are considering making a will, many are unsure how to prepare one so that it will not be legally problematic.

In the same way, some of you may have found a will while sorting through the belongings of a deceased person and be unsure whether it is in fact valid.

On this point, the Civil Code sets out detailed requirements as to whether a will you are about to make (a self-written will) or a will you have found was in fact prepared in a legally sound form. A will that does not satisfy these requirements is invalid, so they are extremely important.

In this article, we explain the requirements for a self-written will.

Practical Points

In actual inheritance practice, cases in which "the wishes were clearly written down, yet a formal mistake made the whole will invalid" occur surprisingly often.

No matter how fine the content may be, the frightening thing about a self-written will is that if even one formality is missing, it becomes "no more than a scrap of paper."

Requirements for a Self-Written Will

The requirements for a self-written will are set out in Article 968 of the Civil Code.

Specifically, Article 968, Paragraph 1 provides that "in order to make a will by a self-written document, the testator must write out the entire text, the date and his or her name in his or her own hand, and must affix his or her seal thereto."

In addition, Article 968, Paragraph 3 prescribes the method for amending (correcting) the contents of a self-written will.

Below, we explain each of the requirements, divided into five categories.

① The testator must write out the entire text in his or her own hand

The testator himself or herself must write out the entire text in his or her own hand (handwriting). A text typed on a computer, a video, a recording made with a voice recorder or the like, or writing by another person such as a family member, is invalid.

The purpose of this requirement is to prevent fraud, forgery and the like by third parties by means of the handwriting.

That said, with the revision of the Civil Code, from 13 January 2019 a property inventory covering all or part of the inherited property may be prepared on a computer or the like, so the rule has been simplified in part (until then, every detail of the property also had to be written by hand, which was extremely cumbersome).

Practical Points

• The main text must be entirely handwritten (if any part is typed on a computer, the will is in principle invalid)
• Only the property inventory may exceptionally be prepared on a computer
• Even if handwritten, there is a risk that "writing by another person" or "merely tracing over a draft" will be found to be invalid

② The testator must write the date of preparation in his or her own hand

Write the date on which the will was prepared accurately, such as "1 November, Reiwa 3" or "1 November 2021" (either the Japanese era name or the Western calendar is acceptable).

If several wills remain and their contents differ, the one bearing the later date is valid.

Examples of dates that are likely to be invalid

• "An auspicious day in month ○ of year ○ of Reiwa" → invalid
• Only "year ○, month ○" → invalid
• Erased with an eraser and written over → very likely invalid

→The date must be "a single identifiable day," and this is a very frequent cause of invalidity.

③ The testator must write his or her name in his or her own hand

You must write your name as recorded in the family register accurately in your own hand. If only a common name entirely different from the family register is used, it may be found to be invalid. A surname alone or a given name alone also tends to cause trouble.

Although this is not a legal requirement, in order to identify the person more accurately you may also write your address together with your name.

④ Affix a seal

You must affix your seal after your name. Press it firmly so that the seal impression does not become unclear. (If the seal impression has faded, or if there is no seal impression, the will is invalid.)

An unregistered seal (mitome-in) is acceptable, but a registered seal (jitsuin) is preferable because it makes it easier for others to identify later whose seal it is. Moreover, given the possibility that the validity of the will is later disputed, it is reassuring to attach a certificate of seal registration, which can prove that the seal was the testator's registered seal as of the date the will was prepared.

Troubles that frequently arise in practice

• The seal impression is faint, and it is disputed that "it was never affixed"
• Use of a self-inking stamp (Shachihata) becomes a problem
• Only the corrected part bears no seal impression, and the will becomes invalid

⑤ To correct the will, affix a seal, note in the margin where the correction was made, and sign

The method of correction is also prescribed by the Civil Code (Article 968, Paragraph 3). Follow it. (Please also see the article "I want to correct a typographical error in a self-written will I prepared earlier.")

Civil Code Article 968, Paragraph 3
Any addition, deletion or other alteration in a self-written document (including the inventory referred to in the preceding paragraph) shall not take effect unless the testator indicates the place of the alteration, writes a note to the effect that it has been altered, specially signs it, and affixes his or her seal at the place of the alteration.

Practical Points

• A double line plus a correction seal alone is in principle invalid
• A "note in the margin to the effect that the change was made" and a "signature" are mandatory
• Cases in which this correction rule is not observed and part or all of the will becomes invalid occur frequently

Summary

The above are the requirements for a self-written will to be valid.

A self-written will

• "Mistakes at the time of preparation"
• "Loss or alteration during storage"
• "The probate procedure after death"

always carries these three major risks.

If you have even the slightest concern that "will this will really be all right?", be sure to consult a specialist, including the possibility of switching to a notarized will.

Our office handles many legal issues relating to inheritance. If you wish to prepare a will, if you have found a self-written will and want to know whether it is valid, or if the articles on this website have told you whether it is valid (or invalid) but you do not know what procedures to follow next, please feel free to consult our office.

Frequently Asked Questions

For Your Inheritance Concerns, Consult Yaizu Sogo Law Office

Yaizu Sogo Law Office handles a wide range of inheritance-related matters, including the drafting and execution of wills, renunciation of inheritance, division of estate, and claims for reduction of the statutory reserved share (iryubun).

Inheritance disputes are so notorious for the intense emotional conflict they stir up among heirs — hence their nickname, the "inheritance war" — that disputes can drag on for a long time. This is why consulting a lawyer offers significant benefits.

If you are facing an inheritance issue, please feel free to consult us. The first consultation on inheritance matters is free of charge.

At Yaizu Sogo Law Office, consultations are available not only during weekday daytime hours but also on weekday evenings and on Saturdays. Please call or email us first to make an appointment for a legal consultation.

Are You Troubled by an Inheritance Issue?

• Creating a Will for End-of-Life Planning
• Disputes over How to Divide an Estate (Estate Division)
• Claiming Your Reserved Share of an Estate (Claim for Infringement of Legally Reserved Portion)
• A Family Member Passed Away Leaving Debts Behind (Renunciation of Inheritance)
• Dissatisfied with the Contents of a Will
• Dividing an Inheritance
• What You Need to Know About Filing for Custody of a Holographic Will
• Wills That Bequeath Property Exceeding the Statutory Share of Inheritance to a Specific Heir
• Finding Out Which Court Handles Inheritance Division Mediation
• About the Process of Creating a Notarized Will
• I found a will, but is it all right to open it? (Inspection of a will)
• The Validity of a Will When the Intended Recipient (Legatee) Dies First
• I want to know about the cost of preparing a notarized will
• Can an Estate Division Different from the Will Be Made?
• I want to know what can be specified in a will
• Requirements for a Self-Written Will (Holographic Will)
• I want to correct an error in a handwritten will I made previously
• About the Executor of a Will
• How Life Insurance Proceeds Are Treated in an Inheritance Division Agreement Where the Beneficiary Is Designated as an Heir
• If I renounce my inheritance, who will manage the family grave?
• Want the State to take over inherited land (the Inherited Land National Attribution System)
• Do You Inherit Debts Even After Years of No Contact with Your Parents?

See all articles on inheritance