Knowledge & Resources
Wills and estate planning
What a will does, how to write one, and what your state requires for it to count.
We use privacy-friendly analytics to understand how the Will builder is used. No advertising, no session recording, and never any of your Will content. See our Privacy Policy.
Wills and estate planning
What a will does, how to write one, and what your state requires for it to count.
Virginia accepts a wholly handwritten will with no witnesses at signing, and it is one of the few states that says an interested witness is simply competent.
A Virginia will must be in writing and signed by the testator, or by someone else in the testator's presence and at their direction, in a way that makes it clear the name is meant as a signature. A will that is not wholly in the testator's handwriting is invalid unless the testator's signature is made, or the will acknowledged, in the presence of at least two competent witnesses who are present at the same time. Both witnesses together, in one room, is what the statute describes.
Va. Code § 64.2-403
No. Section 64.2-403 requires two competent witnesses, not a notary, and notarizing a Virginia will does not replace them. A notary is involved only in a separate self-proving affidavit.
Va. Code § 64.2-403
Yes, and Virginia handles it unusually. A will wholly in the testator's handwriting is valid with no further requirements and no witnesses at signing. The catch comes later: the fact that it is wholly handwritten and signed by the testator must be proved by at least two disinterested witnesses when the will is offered for probate. So you do not need witnesses to make it, but someone will need two people able to identify your handwriting afterwards.
Va. Code § 64.2-403(B)
Virginia is blunt about it: no person is incompetent to testify for or against a will solely because they have an interest in the will or in the estate. A beneficiary who witnesses does not lose the gift. Using disinterested witnesses is still the better habit, because it removes an argument about influence rather than a legal disqualification.
Va. Code § 64.2-405
Virginia frames this as a disqualification rather than a threshold: an individual is not capable of making a will if they are of unsound mind or an unemancipated minor. An emancipated minor may make one.
Va. Code § 64.2-401
Va. Code § 64.2-403 (Execution of wills; requirements). A will not wholly in the testator's handwriting requires the signature to be made or acknowledged before at least two competent witnesses present at the same time, who subscribe in the testator's presence.
Links last checked 2026-08-25.
This is general information about the law, not legal advice, and it has not been reviewed by an attorney licensed in Virginia. Requirements change. Confirm the current rules for your state before you sign.
Answer a few plain questions and Legawyl writes the document, with Virginia’s signing instructions included. No account needed to start.
Create your free Will