• All persons are competent to make a will however the person making the will has to be 16 years or older.
• A will must be in writing. It can be written by hand, typed, or printed. It is important to know that a person who wrote the will in his/her own handwriting or his/her spouse may not be one of your heirs or the executor in the will.
• The signature of the testator/testatrix must appear on every page of the will as well as at the end of the will and the testator/testatrix should sign the will in the presence of two or more competent witnesses.
• Any person of 14 years and above is competent to act as a witness and the witness that you choose to use, or his/her spouse should not be one of your heirs or the executor in the will.  
• A witnesses must attest the last page of the will in the presence of the testator/testatrix and of each other.
• The testator/testatrix should include all details of the assets he/she want to bequeath as well as the names and details of his/her heirs.
• It’s important that the testator/testatrix decide who they want to appoint as his/her executor and then the testator/ testatrix should indicate it in his/her who he/she has decided to appoint as his/her executor.
• The testator/testatrix should indicate what should happen to the inheritance of a minor beneficiary, for example if it should be paid into a trust or into the Guardians Fund.
• If the testator/testatrix are the sole guardian of his/her minor child, the testator/testatrix should indicate who should be appointed as the guardian of his/her child after his/her death.
• The testator/testatrix should ensure that his/her original signed will is kept safe by a trustworthy person or institution, as a copy of a will is not deemed a valid will.

What are the requirements for a valid will?

• Since 1 January 1954 all wills must be in writing. They can be written by hand, typed, or printed. The signature of the testator/testatrix must appear at the end of the will. This signature must be made in the presence of two or more competent witnesses.
• The witnesses must attest and sign the will in the presence of the testator/testatrix and of each other. If the will consists of more than one page, each page other than the page on which it ends must be signed anywhere on the page by the testator/testatrix. Although the testator/testatrix must sign all the pages of the will, only the last page of the will needs to be signed by the witnesses

    These are the requirements of a valid will and this indicates exactly what is needed to draft a will that will be excepted by
    the Master of the High Court.  

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