What it means
A validly executed will still has to be proved in probate. §732.503 offers a shortcut: a will or codicil can be made self-proved — at signing or any time afterward — by adding an affidavit of the testator and the witnesses, sworn before a notary or other officer authorized to administer oaths. The statute supplies the exact form.
A self-proving affidavit lets the will be admitted to probate without the witnesses being located or testifying later — which, decades after signing, is often impossible. The affidavit can be signed in person or by online notarization.
- Makes a will self-proved through a sworn affidavit of the testator and witnesses before a notary.
- Can be added at execution or at any later date.
- A self-proved will can be admitted to probate without the witnesses testifying.
- The statute prescribes the exact form of the affidavit and the officer's certificate.
- May be executed in person or by online notarization.
How it plays out
We attach a self-proving affidavit to essentially every will we draft, and we wish every will that crossed our desk had one. Without it, admitting the will can mean finding a witness twenty years later — someone who's moved, forgotten, or died — and getting a sworn oath under §733.201. With it, the will proves itself. The affidavit is cheap insurance at signing and a major headache avoided at death; its absence is one of the first things we look for when an estate stalls at probate.
Where this shows up
Pages on this site where § 732.503 does real work:
Questions people ask
