Estate plan requirements

New Hampshire

Everything your estate plan needs to be valid in New Hampshire: execution requirements, statutory citations, and the exact wording each document requires.

Requirements at a glance

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

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We are reviewing New Hampshire’s rules for online legal document services and have paused generating documents governed by New Hampshire law while that review is under way.

Will

N.H. Rev. Stat. §551:1 et seq.

Witnesses: 2 required

Two or more credible witnesses must sign, and each must attest to the testator's signature at the request of the testator and in the testator's presence (RSA 551:2, I(d)). The will must be in writing and signed by the testator, or by another person at the testator's express direction and in the testator's presence (RSA 551:2, I(b)-(c)). No seal is required (RSA 551:2, II). Remote attestation by simultaneous audio-video is available for a paper will only through the attorney-supervised pathway in RSA 551:2, III(a); electronic wills remain prohibited (RSA 551:2, III(b)). A beneficial devise or legacy to a subscribing witness, or to that witness's spouse, is void unless there are 2 other subscribing witnesses; the interested witness remains a competent witness, and a provision for the payment of a debt is not void and does not disqualify the creditor as a witness (RSA 551:3). Witnesses need not sign in each other's presence for the will to be valid, but the RSA 551:2-a self-proving acknowledgment requires each witness to swear that they signed in the presence of the other witness.

Notarization: Recommended

Not legally required, but recommended for self-proving affidavit

Holographic will: Not valid

New Hampshire 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

•In New Hampshire, a separate list of personal items written after you sign your will is not legally binding, so name each item and the person who gets it in the specific gifts section of your will before you sign.

•Remote audio-video witnessing of paper wills is permitted under RSA 551:2, III(a) when the notarial officer in the session is the NH-licensed drafting attorney in good standing, another NH-licensed attorney in good standing under that attorney's supervision, or a paralegal supervised by either. RSA 551:2, III applies only to wills executed on or after March 23, 2020.

•Electronic wills barred (RSA 551:2, III(b)).

•RSA 551:10 (pretermitted heirs) was repealed and reenacted by 2022, 261:1, eff. Jan. 1, 2023; companion RSA 551:11 was repealed by 2022, 261:2 the same date.

•RSA 563-D:22 notice-of-death affidavit for transfer-on-death deeds, 2025, 114:1, eff. Aug. 22, 2025; the beneficiary must record within 60 days of transferor's death.

ViewSelf-proving affidavit wording

The testator and the witnesses, being duly sworn, do swear as follows: 1. The testator signed the instrument as the testator's will or expressly directed another to sign for the testator. 2. This was the testator's free and voluntary act for the purposes expressed in the will. 3. Each witness signed at the request of the testator, in the testator's presence, and in the presence of the other witness. 4. To the best of my knowledge, at the time of the signing the testator was at least 18 years of age, or if under 18 years was a married person, and was of sane mind and under no constraint or undue influence.

ViewWitness disqualification / interested-witness rule

RSA 551:3: any beneficial device or legacy in a will to a subscribing witness, or to the wife or husband of such a witness, is void unless there are 2 other subscribing witnesses. The interested witness remains a competent witness, so the disqualification reaches only the gift and not the witness's testimony. A provision for the payment of a debt is not void and does not disqualify the creditor as a witness.

Living Trust

Witnesses: None required

No formal execution requirements beyond settlor signature; notarization strongly recommended when funding real property

Notarization: Recommended

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

Certification of trust: N.H. Rev. Stat. §564-B:10-1013

New Hampshire lets your trustee prove the trust to a bank, brokerage, title company, insurer, or transfer agent with a short certification instead of the trust itself. It states that the trust exists, who the trustee is, and what the trustee may do, and it leaves out who inherits and what each person receives. The same section also says what happens if someone demands the trust itself anyway. N.H. Rev. Stat. §564-B:10-1013(h) provides that a person making a demand for the trust instrument in addition to a certification of trust or excerpts is liable for damages if the court determines that the person did not act in good faith in demanding the trust instrument.

Durable Power of Attorney

Witnesses: None required

No witnesses required for power of attorney

Notarization: Required

Notarization is required for a valid durable power of attorney

State-specific notes

•Signed by the principal (other than by electronic signature), or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual the principal directs, and acknowledged before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments (N.H. Rev. Stat. §564-E:105).

•The power of attorney is durable unless it expressly provides that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal (N.H. Rev. Stat. §564-E:104).

•The agent has no authority to act until the agent has signed, other than by electronic signature, and affixed to the power of attorney the acknowledgment set out in the statute. Sign that acknowledgment in ink; an electronic signature does not satisfy it (N.H. Rev. Stat. §564-E:113).

ViewWarning notice for the principal

INFORMATION CONCERNING THE POWER OF ATTORNEY THIS IS AN IMPORTANT LEGAL DOCUMENT. BEFORE SIGNING THIS DOCUMENT YOU SHOULD KNOW THESE IMPORTANT FACTS: Notice to the Principal: As the "Principal," you are using this Power of Attorney to grant power to another person (called the "Agent") to make decisions, including, but not limited to, decisions concerning your money, property, or both, and to use your money, property, or both on your behalf. If this Power of Attorney does not limit the powers that you give to your Agent, your Agent will have broad and sweeping powers to sell or otherwise dispose of your property, and to spend your money without advance notice to you or approval by you. Unless you have expressly provided otherwise in this Power of Attorney, your Agent will have these powers before you become incapacitated, and unless you have expressly provided otherwise in this Power of Attorney, your Agent will continue to have these powers after you become incapacitated. You have the right to retain this Power of Attorney and to release it later or to request that another person retain this Power of Attorney on your behalf and release it only if one or more conditions specified in advance by you are satisfied. You have the right to revoke or take back this Power of Attorney at any time, so long as you are of sound mind. If there is anything about this Power of Attorney that you do not understand, you should seek professional advice.

ViewAgent acknowledgment wording

I, {agentName}, have read the attached power of attorney and am the person identified as the agent for the principal. I hereby acknowledge that when I act as agent, I am given power under the power of attorney to make decisions about money, property, or both belonging to the principal, and to spend the principal's money, property, or both on the principal's behalf, in accordance with the terms of the power of attorney. When acting as agent, I have duties (called "fiduciary duties") to act in accordance with the principal's reasonable expectations to the extent actually known by me and, otherwise, in the principal's best interest, to act in good faith, and to act only within the scope of authority granted in the power of attorney, as well as other duties imposed by law to the extent not provided otherwise in the power of attorney. As an agent, I am not entitled to use the money or property for my own benefit or to make gifts to myself or others unless the power of attorney specifically gives me the authority to do so. As an agent, my authority under the power of attorney will end when the principal dies and I will not have authority to manage or dispose of any property or administer the estate of the principal. If I violate a fiduciary duty under the power of attorney, I may be liable for damages and may be subject to criminal prosecution. If there is anything about the power of attorney, or my duties under it, that I do not understand, I understand that I should seek professional advice.

Advance Directive

N.H. Rev. Stat. §137-J:1 et seq.

Witnesses: 2 required, or notary

New Hampshire accepts either 2 witnesses or notarization

Notarization: Accepted as alternative

Acknowledged before a notary public or justice of the peace (N.H. Rev. Stat. §137-J:14, I)

State-specific notes

•Either 2 qualified witnesses or acknowledgment before a notary public or justice of the peace satisfies the formality requirement (RSA 137-J:14, I)

•Disqualified witnesses: agent or surrogate, spouse, heir at law, person entitled to any part of the estate, attending practitioner (or anyone acting under the practitioner's direction); no more than one witness may be the principal's health or residential care provider or such provider's employee (RSA 137-J:14, I(a))

•Default-surrogate hierarchy under RSA 137-J:35, I when no health care agent is authorized and available: (a) spouse, or civil union partner or common law spouse as defined by RSA 457:39 if the principal were currently deceased, unless a divorce proceeding, separation agreement, or restraining order limits that person's relationship with the patient; (b) adult son or daughter; (c) either parent; (d) adult brother or sister; (e) adult grandchild; (f) grandparent; (g) adult aunt, uncle, niece, or nephew; (h) close friend; (i) the agent with financial power of attorney or a conservator appointed under RSA 464-A; (j) guardian of the patient's estate. The surrogacy takes effect when the decision-maker's name is recorded in the medical record. Under RSA 137-J:37 a surrogate may not be identified over the patient's express objection and the surrogacy terminates whenever the patient objects; surrogate authority also terminates if the patient regains capacity or a guardian is appointed, and in any event terminates after 180 days unless the patient is determined to be actively dying.

ViewWitness disqualification recital

Neither witness may be the agent or surrogate, the principal's spouse or heir at law, or a person entitled to any part of the estate; nor the attending practitioner or a person acting under the attending practitioner's direction. No more than one witness may be the principal's health or residential care provider or such provider's employee. (RSA 137-J:14, I(a))

Subscription

6 more documents with a subscription

Document generation is currently unavailable for New Hampshire, including these.

Disposition of Remains Authorization

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

Military service: If you are in military service and have named someone on a DD Form 93, New Hampshire law reaches that designation as well. The authorization itself names the section.

HIPAA Authorization

Stand-alone PHI release that survives death for the period you specify, separate from the in-life authorization in your healthcare directive. The free packet includes it too whenever it has a healthcare directive.

Nomination of Guardian of the Person and Estate

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

Electronic will status

New Hampshire has not adopted electronic will legislation. A traditional paper will with physical signatures is required.

Digital assets access

New Hampshire has adopted RUFADAA (2019). 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)

New Hampshire authorized RON in 2022.

Will

Not allowed

Trust

Allowed

POA

Allowed

Remote online witnessing (ROW)

For the paper documents Will.com produces, New Hampshire does not allow remote online witnessing. Witnesses must be physically present when you sign. Not available to a self-serve signer. RSA 551:2, III(a) deems a witness to be in the testator's presence over a simultaneous sight-and-sound connection only when a notarial officer is in the session, and that officer must be the New Hampshire-licensed attorney who drafted the will, another New Hampshire-licensed attorney under the drafting attorney's supervision, or a paralegal supervised by either. A will drafted without a New Hampshire attorney has no qualifying officer, so both witnesses must attest in physical presence. Where the route is available it permits counterparts and does not require a witness to be physically within New Hampshire; electronic wills remain barred by RSA 551:2, III(b).

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 New Hampshire for guidance specific to your situation.

Also for New Hampshire

Make a New Hampshire will

Requirements and signing rules.

New Hampshire healthcare directive

Name your medical decision-maker and treatment wishes.

New Hampshire power of attorney

Name someone to handle finances if you can't.

New Hampshire living trust

Skip probate and keep your estate private.

Document generation isn’t currently available in New Hampshire.

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