Amending a Will
Updated: 4 days ago
Your will should reflect your current wishes and circumstances. If your life changes, it may be necessary to change your will too.
You are allowed to amend your will, but changes must be made carefully. An amendment that does not comply with the Wills Act 7 of 1953 may be invalid.
When should you consider changing your will?
You should consider reviewing your will whenever there is a significant change in your life or when your wishes change. This may include:
getting married or divorced;
the birth or adoption of a child;
the death of a beneficiary or nominated executor;
acquiring or disposing of significant property;
changes in your family relationships or financial circumstances; or
simply deciding that you would like your estate to be distributed differently.
You do not have to wait for a major life event. If your will no longer reflects what you want, it is worth reviewing it.
How can you change your will?
There are several ways to change a will.
1. Make a new will
If you want to make substantial changes, the simplest option may be to draft and properly execute a new will.
The new will should contain a revocation clause stating that you revoke your previous wills and codicils. For example:
“I hereby revoke all previous wills and codicils made by me.”
The new will must then comply with the same formal requirements for a valid will that we discussed in What Is a Will and How Do You Make a Valid One?
This is often the clearest option where several parts of your existing will need to change.
2. Use a codicil
A codicil is a separate document used to amend or add something to an existing will without replacing the whole will.
For example, imagine your will currently says:
“I bequeath R50 000 to Joy.”
You later decide that you want Joy to receive R100 000.
Instead of drafting an entirely new will, you could use a codicil to record that the relevant provision of your existing will must now be read as providing for the R100 000 bequest.
A codicil becomes part of your will and must comply with the same signing and witnessing requirements as a will. Importantly, you do not have to use the same witnesses who witnessed the original will.
When using a codicil, clearly identify the will being amended, for example by referring to its date, and clearly state which provision you want to change.
If you find yourself making several codicils, it may be easier and clearer to make a new will instead.
3. Change the existing document
It is legally possible to make a change directly on an existing will, for example by deleting words, adding words or changing a provision.
The Wills Act calls these kinds of changes amendments.
However, simply crossing something out and writing something new next to it is not enough.
Where an amendment is made after the will was originally signed, the amendment must itself comply with formal requirements. In general:
the testator must sign or identify the amendment by their signature;
at least two competent witnesses must be present at the same time;
those witnesses must also sign to identify the amendment, in the presence of the testator and each other; and
additional requirements apply where the testator signs by a mark or someone else signs on their behalf.
The witnesses to the amendment do not have to be the same people who witnessed the original will.
Is changing the original will a good idea?
Although it is possible, we would generally recommend caution.
Crossing out words, writing between lines or making handwritten changes to an already signed will can create questions about when the change was made, who made it and whether the correct formalities were followed.
In fact, the Wills Act generally presumes that an amendment appearing on a will was made after the will was executed unless one can prove otherwise.
For a small change, a properly executed codicil is usually clearer. For several or substantial changes, making a new will may be the better option.
What about revoking a will?
Sometimes you do not want to amend an old will. You want to replace it completely.
The clearest way to do this is to execute a new valid will containing an express revocation clause.
Section 2A of the Wills Act also allows a court to declare a will, or part of a will, revoked where the testator performed an act or created a written document showing an intention to revoke it.
However, relying on a court to determine what you intended after your death creates unnecessary uncertainty.
If you no longer want an old will to apply, say so clearly in your new will and make sure the new will is validly executed.
What happens to your will after divorce?
Divorce deserves special attention.
Section 2B of the Wills Act gives a divorced person a three-month period in which to reconsider their will.
If you die within three months after your divorce or annulment, a will that you made before the divorce is generally applied as though your former spouse had died before the marriage ended, unless your will shows that you intended your former spouse to benefit despite the divorce.
But after those three months, that protection falls away.
This means that if your former spouse is still named as a beneficiary in your existing will and you die more than three months after the divorce without changing the will, they may still inherit according to the will. The Master and Legal Aid South Africa both specifically warn divorced persons to review their wills within this period.
So, after a divorce, do not simply assume that your former spouse has automatically been removed from your will.
Review your will and make your intentions clear.
Keep your latest will safe
Once you have amended or replaced your will:
keep the original signed document in a safe place;
make sure that someone you trust knows where it can be found;
avoid leaving unclear or unfinished amendments on your will; and
make sure everyone dealing with your estate can identify which document reflects your latest wishes.
If you have replaced your old will, the new will should clearly revoke the previous one.
Useful resources
Wills Act 7 of 1953
Contains the legal rules governing wills, amendments, revocation and the effect of divorce on a will.
Master of the High Court: Wills
Includes official guidance on changing a will, codicils and wills after divorce.
Legal Aid South Africa: Drafting of Wills
Provides plain-language information about codicils, divorce and changing a will.
Your will is not something that has to remain unchanged for the rest of your life. What matters is that any changes are clear and legally valid.
Review your will. Update your wishes. Make every change properly.
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