Is An Online Will Legally Valid in Montana?

Online wills are legal in Montana, but that doesn’t mean your will is automatically valid just because you created it. Creating the document online is only step one. Here's what else needs to happen.

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Not to worry, FeedingBird walks you through each of these steps and provides guidance throughout the entire process.

What Makes an Online Will Legally Valid in Montana?

Online wills are legal in Montana. The document must be printed on paper and signed by the person stating their wishes (the testator), with two witnesses required unless the will qualifies as holographic. Notarization is only required if you are choosing a self-proving will.

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Montana recognizes holographic, or handwritten, wills with no witnesses required, provided the will and signature are in the testator's own handwriting.

What You Need to Know about Online Wills in Montana

Estate laws are complex and have nuances that vary from state to state. It's important to ensure your online will is is structured according to the law if you want to avoid long legal processes.

Montana Property Laws

Montana is a common law property state. This means ownership of a decedent's assets generally falls to the person named on the title, deed, or account. Montana also gives a surviving spouse an elective share equal to 50% of the marital-property portion of the augmented estate.

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It should be noted that the length of the marriage factors into how that marital-property portion is calculated.

Montana Probate

All wills go through probate in Montana unless the estate qualifies for a small estate affidavit. You can apply for this process if the estate is valued at $100,000 or less. If this does not apply, a trust is typically needed to avoid probate. Montana has no state estate or inheritance tax.

Avoiding Probate in Montana

• Revocable living trust: A living trust lets you have full control over your estate as the trustee. You name a successor trustee who will manage distributing your assets after your death.

• Beneficiary designations: A payable-on-death (POD) designation will specify who receives payment at the time of your death. A transfer-on-death (TOD) designation names a new owner for retirement or brokerage accounts.

• Real estate beneficiaries: Montana allows transfer-on-death deeds, which automatically name a new owner for that property upon your death.

• Joint ownership with right of survivorship: This grants a new co-owner automatic ownership of any joint property.

Want to learn more about trusts in Montana? Check out the requirements for putting a trust together.