How many witnesses does a will need in Indiana?

A will in Indiana must be signed in front of two witnesses. The witnesses must sign at the same time, in each other's presence and in front of the testator. See Ind. Code §29-1-5-1 et seq..

Does a will have to be notarized in Indiana?

No. Notarization is not required for a Indiana will to be valid, but adding a self-proving affidavit (which is notarized) lets the will be admitted to probate without calling the witnesses to testify.

Is a handwritten will valid in Indiana?

No. Indiana does not recognize holographic wills. Every will must be signed in front of witnesses to be valid.

What is the minimum age to make a will in Indiana?

You must be at least 18 years old to make a will in Indiana.

Can I sign my will online in Indiana?

Yes. Indiana has adopted electronic will legislation (2018), so a will may be signed and witnessed entirely online when the statutory requirements are met. Remote online notarization is also available.

What documents make up a complete estate plan in Indiana?

A complete estate plan in Indiana usually includes four documents: a Last Will and Testament, a Revocable Living Trust, a Durable Power of Attorney, and a Healthcare Directive. Will.com generates all four together based on your answers.

Estate plan requirements

Indiana

Everything your estate plan needs to be valid in Indiana: execution requirements, the documents we generate, statutory citations, and the exact wording our generators insert.

Requirements at a glance

Document	Witnesses	Notary
Will	2 required	Recommended
Living trust	None required	Recommended
Power of attorney	2 required	Recommended
Healthcare directive	2 required, or notary	Alternative to witnesses

Your complete Indiana estate plan

Will, living trust, durable power of attorney, healthcare directive, and six more documents, all valid in Indiana.

$29per year · cancel anytime

Your answers stay private, encrypted in your browser.
You keep every document you made.
Edit any document any time as life changes.

Get started Start free

Indiana content last reviewed August 14, 2026.

Will

Ind. Code §29-1-5-1 et seq.

Witnesses: 2 required

Two attesting witnesses must sign in the presence of the testator and of each other (Ind. Code §29-1-5-3(b)(2)). In the presence of both witnesses the testator must signify that the instrument is the testator's will, and must either sign it, acknowledge a signature already made, or have another person sign the testator's name at the testator's direction and in the testator's presence (Ind. Code §29-1-5-3(b)(1)).

Witnesses sign together: Required

Indiana requires the attesting witnesses to sign in each other's presence; signing within a reasonable time of one another is not sufficient.

Notarization: Recommended

Not legally required, but recommended for self-proving affidavit

Holographic will: Not valid

Indiana does not recognize handwritten wills without witnesses

Self-proving affidavit: Available

Allows the will to be admitted to probate without witness testimony

State-specific notes

•Both witnesses must sign in the presence of the testator and of each other (Ind. Code §29-1-5-3(b)(2)). Indiana's only statutory departure from single-document signing is the counterpart procedure described below, which requires attorney or directed-paralegal supervision.

•The self-proving clause may be signed under penalties for perjury. No notarization is required to make an Indiana will self-proving (Ind. Code §29-1-5-3.1(c)).

•Counterpart paper signing is lawful in Indiana only under attorney or directed-paralegal supervision. All counterparts must be physically assembled not later than five (5) business days after signing, and the supervising attorney or paralegal must complete the statutory affidavit of compliance (Ind. Code §29-1-5-3(d)). A will executed in counterparts without that supervision is voidable in the discretion of the court (Ind. Code §29-1-5-3(c) to (e)).

•A gift to a subscribing witness is void as to that witness only if the will cannot be proved without the witness's testimony or proof of the witness's signature, and then only to the extent the gift exceeds what the witness would have taken in intestacy (Ind. Code §29-1-5-2(c)). Being named executor, trustee, guardian, or counsel for the estate does not by itself make a witness interested (Ind. Code §29-1-5-2(d)).

•A funeral planning declaration may not be included in a will or a power of attorney, and must be substantially in the statutory form (Ind. Code §29-2-19-8(a), form at §29-2-19-13). Keep funeral directions in the separate Disposition of Remains document.

•If your marriage is dissolved or annulled after you sign this will, every provision in favor of your former spouse is revoked as of the dissolution or annulment, and those provisions revive only if you remarry that same person (Ind. Code §29-1-5-8). Marriage alone does not revoke a will (Ind. Code §29-1-5-6).

ViewSelf-proving affidavit wording

State of Indiana County of _______________ We, {testatorName}, the Testator, and the Witnesses whose names are signed to the attached or foregoing instrument, declare under penalties for perjury under the laws of the State of Indiana, pursuant to Ind. Code §29-1-5-3.1(c): (1) that the Testator executed the instrument as the Testator's will; (2) that, in the presence of both Witnesses, the Testator signed the will, or acknowledged the signature already made, or directed another to sign for the Testator in the Testator's presence and at the Testator's express direction; (3) that the Testator executed the will as a free and voluntary act for the purposes expressed in it; (4) that each of the Witnesses, in the presence of the Testator and of each other, signed the will as an attesting witness; (5) that the Testator was of sound mind when the will was executed; and (6) that, to the best knowledge of each Witness, the Testator was, at the time the will was executed, at least eighteen (18) years of age, or was a member of the armed forces or of the merchant marine of the United States or its allies. This self-proving clause may be signed and dated under penalties for perjury under §29-1-5-3.1(c) without a notarial acknowledgment, in which case the perjury declaration on the signatures of the Testator and each Witness is the proof of authenticity. The Testator and Witnesses may instead, or in addition, acknowledge their signatures before a notary public; the notary block below applies only if the notary path is used.

ViewIndependent administration recital

I direct that my estate be administered as an unsupervised administration under Ind. Code §29-1-7.5-2(b)(1). I expressly authorize my Personal Representative to administer my estate without continuous supervision by the probate court, except as Ind. Code §29-1-7.5 et seq. otherwise requires for the admission of this Will to probate, the issuance of letters testamentary, and any matter that the Personal Representative or an interested person elects to bring before the court. Nothing in this direction is intended to waive any interested person's ability under Ind. Code §29-1-7.5-2(d) to move the court, at any time, to revoke an order of unsupervised administration, which the court may grant on its own motion or on such a motion if it finds revocation to be in the best interests of the estate, creditors, taxing authorities, heirs, legatees, or devisees, and any such ability remains exercisable notwithstanding this clause.

Living Trust

Witnesses: None required

Indiana does not require witnesses or a notary for your trust to be valid (Ind. Code §30-4-2-1). The trust is enforceable once its written terms carry your signature. Notarizing is still worth doing, because you will need an acknowledged signature to record a deed moving real estate into the trust.

Notarization: Recommended

Not legally required for the trust document, but needed to transfer real property

Durable Power of Attorney

Witnesses: 2 required

Indiana requires 2 witnesses for power of attorney execution

Notarization: Recommended

Notarization is not legally required but is recommended. It creates a presumption of genuine signature and simplifies third-party acceptance.

State-specific notes

•Durability is presumed unless the instrument states otherwise

•Indiana provides two alternative validity paths (Ind. Code §30-5-4-1(a)(4)): (A) signed in the presence of a notary public who completes a notarial certificate, OR (B) signed in the presence of two attesting witnesses meeting the statutory qualifications and procedure (Ind. Code §§30-5-4-1.3, 30-5-4-1.5, 30-5-4-1.7, and 30-5-4-1.9; witness path added by P.L.185-2021, eff. July 1, 2021). Either path alone is legally sufficient; notarization is not a freestanding statutory requirement. As a practical matter, however, Indiana banks, brokerages, title companies, and county recorders routinely insist on a notary acknowledgment, and a POA used to convey or encumber Indiana real property must be recorded with the county recorder (Ind. Code §30-5-3-3; §30-5-3-3(d) requires a document creating a power of attorney to comply with recording requirements, including notary and preparation statements, to be recorded, except as provided in §30-5-3-3(e): a power of attorney the principal executed before witnesses under Ind. Code §30-5-4-1(a)(4)(B) may be recorded if a proof as defined in Ind. Code §32-21-2-1.7, signed by at least one attesting witness and complying with Ind. Code §33-42, is attached. Section 30-5-3-3 as amended by P.L.99-2024, SEC.17. A notarial officer still takes that proof, so the practical recommendation below is unchanged.). For maximum acceptance, this Power of Attorney is executed with BOTH a notary acknowledgment AND attestation by two competent adult witnesses (free of disqualifying interest under §30-5-4-1.3); the witness signatures provide the backup path if the notarial certificate is later challenged or the original notarial seal is lost (Ind. Code §30-5-4-1(a)(4)(B)).

ViewWitness disqualification recital

I am competent to be a witness in the State of Indiana. This Power of Attorney does not name me as the principal's attorney in fact or as a successor to the attorney in fact, and it does not grant me any power or beneficial interest other than such an appointment; and no person whom it does so name or benefit is my spouse or my descendant. I therefore have no interest in this power of attorney within the meaning of Ind. Code §30-5-4-1.3(d) and (e), which applies to a power of attorney executed in the presence of witnesses on or after March 31, 2020.

Healthcare Directive

Ind. Code §16-36-7-1 et seq.

Witnesses: 2 required, or notary

Indiana accepts either 2 witnesses or notarization

Notarization: Accepted as alternative

Signed or acknowledged by the declarant in the presence of a notarial officer, who completes and signs a notarial certificate and makes it part of the advance directive (Ind. Code §16-36-7-28(c)(2); notarial certificate under §33-42-9-12). A remote online notarization or electronic notarization satisfies this path (Ind. Code §33-42-17).

State-specific notes

•Execution requirements (Ind. Code §16-36-7-28(c)). An advance directive must be signed in the declarant's presence by two (2) adult witnesses, at least one (1) of whom may not be the spouse or other relative of the declarant, OR be acknowledged by the declarant before a notarial officer who completes a notarial certificate. The witness rule and the notarial-acknowledgment rule are alternatives; only one must be satisfied.

•Witness exclusion (Ind. Code §16-36-7-28(b)(2)). An individual who signs the declarant's name on the advance directive may not be a witness, the notarial officer, or a health care representative designated in the advance directive.

•Telephonic-interaction option (Ind. Code §16-36-7-28(e)). If facts and circumstances (including physical impairment or physical isolation of a competent declarant) make audiovisual interaction impossible or impractical, the declarant and the witnesses may use telephonic interaction throughout the signing process to satisfy the presence requirement. The witnesses must positively identify the declarant and establish capacity and sound mind by accurate answers from the declarant. The directive must recite that telephonic interaction was used. No witness can be compelled to accept the telephonic path. An advance directive executed under the telephonic provision is presumed valid if the recital is included.

•Governing law. This Healthcare Directive is governed by the Indiana Health Care Decisions Act (Ind. Code §16-36-7-1 et seq., codified 2021; amended 2023). The Indiana Health Care Consent Act (Ind. Code §16-36-1 et seq.) supplies separate rules for substitute consent by family or health-care representatives and does NOT supply the witness-disqualification list for this directive. The Health Care Decisions Act contains no pregnancy provision (Ind. Code §16-36-7). The pregnancy rule belongs to the separate Living Will Declarations Act (Ind. Code §16-36-4-8(d)) and by its terms suspends a living will declaration under Ind. Code §16-36-4-10; the directive itself states how it applies to the life-sustaining-treatment elections, and a health care representative's authority over other health care decisions is not suspended. At hospital intake, this Directive should be treated as a Health Care Power of Attorney and Advance Directive under Ind. Code §16-36-7.

ViewWitness disqualification recital

I am at least 18 years of age. I am signing this advance directive in the declarant's presence as one of two (2) adult witnesses under Ind. Code §16-36-7-28(c)(1), and at least one of the two witnesses is not the declarant's spouse or other relative. I did not sign the declarant's name on this advance directive; under Ind. Code §16-36-7-28(b)(2) a person who signs for the declarant may not be a witness, the notarial officer, or a health care representative designated in the directive. As an alternative to witnesses, §16-36-7-28(c)(2) permits the declarant to sign or acknowledge this directive before a notarial officer who completes and signs a notarial certificate; only one of the two paths must be satisfied.

Subscription

6 more documents with a subscription

$29/year unlocks the documents below alongside the four free ones above. Your answers and documents are saved privately to your account, encrypted in your browser, so you can revise them any time life changes.

Disposition of Remains Authorization

Names the agent who controls funeral, burial, or cremation decisions, with optional preferences.

HIPAA Authorization

Stand-alone PHI release that survives death for the period you specify, separate from the in-life authorization in your healthcare directive.

Nomination of Conservator

Pre-nominates the person you want a court to appoint if a conservator (or guardian of the estate) is ever needed.

Business Succession Declaration

Identifies your interests in any closely-held businesses and how they should be transferred or wound down.

Real-Estate Retitling Checklist

Step-by-step instructions for transferring real-property deeds into your trust so the trust actually controls those assets.

Letter of Instruction

Non-binding personal note to your executor and family: where to find documents, account access, funeral wishes, and other practical guidance.

Free vs. paid

	Free	Paid
All 4 state-specific documents	Included in free	Included in paid tier
State-specific signing guide	Included in free	Included in paid tier
Download as PDF, print forever	Included in free	Included in paid tier
Secure online storage	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Covers real estate, business, digital, and funeral wishes	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Disposition of remains authorization	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Standalone HIPAA authorization	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Nomination of conservator	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Business succession declaration	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Real-estate retitling checklist	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Special needs trust provisions	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Letter of instruction, pre-filled and editable	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Edit anytime	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Annual review reminder	Not in free	Included in paid tier

Get started

Electronic will status

Indiana has adopted electronic will legislation (2018). You may be able to create, sign, and witness a will electronically using approved methods.

Digital assets access

Indiana has adopted RUFADAA (2016). This is the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, which lets your executor, trustee, or agent access your email, social media, cryptocurrency wallets, cloud storage, and other digital accounts after death or incapacity.

To take advantage of RUFADAA, your will, trust, or power of attorney must explicitly grant authority to access digital assets. Without explicit authorization, service providers can deny access even to a court-appointed executor.

Remote online notarization (RON)

Indiana authorized RON in 2018. No notarial act is required for an Indiana will at any point, so remote online notarization is never necessary here. If you notarize anyway, Ind. Code §33-42-17-3(b) permits a registered Indiana remote notary to take an acknowledgment remotely, and §33-42-17-3(d) treats that act as performed in Indiana regardless of where you are.

Will

Allowed

Trust

Allowed

POA

Allowed

Remote online witnessing (ROW)

Indiana does not allow remote online witnessing for estate planning documents. Witnesses must be physically present when you sign.

Will

Not allowed

Trust

Not allowed

POA

Not allowed

HC Directive

Not allowed

This information is general in nature and not legal advice. Laws change. Consult a licensed estate planning attorney in Indiana for guidance specific to your situation.

Also for Indiana

Make a Indiana will

Free last will and testament, valid in Indiana.

Indiana healthcare directive

Name your medical decision-maker and treatment wishes.

Indiana power of attorney

Name someone to handle finances if you can't.

Indiana living trust

Skip probate and keep your estate private.

Get started Start free

All states