Knowledge & Resources
Wills and estate planning
What a will does, how to write one, and what your state requires for it to count.
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Wills and estate planning
What a will does, how to write one, and what your state requires for it to count.
North Carolina accepts handwritten wills, but with a condition most states drop: it must be found among your valuable papers or left with someone for safekeeping.
An attested North Carolina will must be in writing, signed by the testator (or by someone else in the testator's presence and at their direction), and attested by at least two competent witnesses. You must signify to the witnesses that the document is yours, either by signing in front of them or by acknowledging a signature you made earlier, and you may do that with each witness separately. The witnesses must then sign in your presence, but they do not need to sign in the presence of each other.
N.C.G.S. § 31-3.3
No. Section 31-3.3 requires two competent witnesses, not a notary, and notarizing a North Carolina will does not substitute for them. A notary appears only in connection with a self-proving affidavit.
N.C.G.S. § 31-3.3
Yes. A North Carolina holographic will must be written entirely in the testator's handwriting and subscribed by the testator, or have the testator's name written in or on the will in their own hand. Printed matter on the page does not spoil it, so long as the handwritten words alone are enough to make a valid will and the printing does not change their meaning. No witnesses are needed.
N.C.G.S. § 31-3.4
Any person of sound mind who is 18 years of age or over may make a will in North Carolina.
N.C.G.S. § 31-1
N.C.G.S. § 31-3.3 (Attested written will). A written will signed by the testator and attested by at least two competent witnesses.
Links last checked 2026-08-25.
We could not read this statute at its official source, so the summary above is provisional. Confirm it before relying on it.
This is general information about the law, not legal advice, and it has not been reviewed by an attorney licensed in North Carolina. Requirements change. Confirm the current rules for your state before you sign.
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