Is An Online Will Legally Valid in Louisiana?

Yes, but although Louisiana allows online wills (called testaments), they are held to a higher standard than almost anywhere else in the country. Creating a document online is only the first step. Learn what the state actually requires below.

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Don’t worry, FeedingBird takes you through each step ensuring you have everything you need in place.

What Makes an Online Will Legally Valid in Louisiana?

Louisiana recognizes two kinds of testaments. A notarial testament, the type most online will platforms produce, must be typed, signed by the testator on every page and at the end, and executed in the physical presence of a notary and two competent witnesses, all signing at the same time in the same room. Digitally notarized wills are not recognized in Louisiana, so this step can't be done remotely.

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Louisiana also recognizes an olographic testament, meaning one that is entirely handwritten, dated, and signed by the testator, with no notary or witnesses required. But if even one word of the body is typed, the entire document is void. That makes olographic testaments a poor fit for anything produced by an online platform.

What You Need to Know about Online Wills in Louisiana

Louisiana Property Laws

Louisiana is a community property state, so your spouse already owns half of what you acquired during the marriage. Louisiana also has forced heirship, meaning descendants 23 or younger, or permanently incapacitated at any age, are entitled to a protected share of your estate that a testament generally can't override.

Louisiana Succession

All testaments go through succession in Louisiana unless the estate is valued at $200,000 or less (effective August 1, 2026), in which case a small succession affidavit is available. Otherwise, a trust is typically used to plan around the process, though it won't defeat forced heirship on its own. Estates in Louisiana are not subject to an estate or inheritance tax.

Avoiding Succession Court in Louisiana

• Put your assets in a revocable living trust, understanding that Louisiana courts still count trust assets toward the legitime owed to any forced heirs.

• Name beneficiary designations on financial and retirement accounts to identify a new owner for those accounts.

• Louisiana does not recognize joint tenancy with right of survivorship the way most states do, co-owned property (outside of marriage) is typically owned "in indivision," and a deceased co-owner's share still passes through succession to their own heirs rather than automatically to the surviving co-owner. To achieve a similar automatic-transfer effect, Louisianans generally rely on beneficiary designations, a trust, or (between spouses) the community property regime itself.

Want to learn more about trusts in Louisiana? Find out what is required to put your trust together.