Iowa Will and Trust Laws: Witnesses, Remote Signing (2026)

Under Iowa law, a will is valid only if it is in writing, signed by the testator (or by another person in the testator's presence and at the testator's express direction), declared by the testator to be the testator's will, and witnessed at the testator's request by two competent persons who sign in the presence of the testator and of each other (Iowa Code 633.279(1)). Since July 1, 2023, that "presence" can be physical or electronic, as long as the witness and testator can see and hear each other's acts in real time (633.279(5)). No notary is required. Living trusts are governed by the Iowa Trust Code, chapter 633A.

Two Iowa rules are easy to miss when comparing the wills and trusts laws by state: the testator must declare the document to be his or her will, and a surviving spouse's elective share can reach property in a revocable trust.

Information last verified on 2026-10-20. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Iowa statutes on making, signing, changing and revoking wills (Iowa Code chapter 633) and on revocable living trusts (the Iowa Trust Code, chapter 633A). It does not cover what happens when someone dies without a will or how estate administration works (see Iowa probate), small-estate procedures (see the Iowa small estate affidavit page), powers of attorney (see Iowa power of attorney laws), or taxes. A living will is a health-care directive, not a will; see the Iowa advance directive tool.

What makes a will valid in Iowa?

Who may make a will. Under 633.264, "any person of full age and sound mind may dispose by will of all the person's property," subject to the surviving spouse's elective share and except an amount sufficient to pay debts and charges. "Full age" is defined in 633.3(20) as "the state of legal majority attained through arriving at the age of eighteen years or through having married, even though such marriage is terminated by divorce."

Form and witnesses. Section 633.279(1) provides:

"All wills and codicils, except as provided in section 633.283, to be valid, must be in writing, signed by the testator, or by some person in the testator's presence and by the testator's express direction writing the testator's name thereto, and declared by the testator to be the testator's will, and witnessed, at the testator's request, by two competent persons who signed as witnesses in the presence of the testator and in the presence of each other" (Iowa Code 633.279(1))

The requirements stack:

• Writing and signature. The testator signs, or someone else writes the testator's name in the testator's presence and at the testator's express direction.
• Declaration. The testator must declare the document to be his or her will.
• Request. The witnesses act at the testator's request.
• Two witnesses together. Both sign in the presence of the testator and of each other.

Section 633.279(1) also provides that the validity of a will executed before January 1, 1964 is determined by the law in effect immediately before that date.

Who can be a witness

Under 633.280, any person "sixteen years of age, or older, and who is competent to be a witness generally in this state, may act as an attesting witness to a will."

A beneficiary can witness, at a cost. Under 633.281, "No will is invalidated because attested by an interested witness," but unless the will is also attested by two competent and disinterested witnesses, the interested witness forfeits the part of his or her gifts that exceeds in value what the witness would have received if the testator had died intestate. A witness is interested only if the will gives the witness some portion of the estate.

Wills signed in another state or country

Under 633.283, a will executed outside Iowa "in the mode prescribed by the law, either of the place where executed or of the testator's domicile, shall be deemed to be legally executed," provided the will "is in writing and subscribed by the testator."

Remote witnessing and electronic signing

Iowa allows remote witnessing through its definition of presence. Under 633.279(5), "'presence' means any manner, physical or electronic, in which the witness and testator can see and hear the acts of each other in real time." Under 633.279(3), when a will or codicil "is executed using remote signing under this section, the original document may be executed in one or more counterparts by parties located in different locations, and all such counterparts may be aggregated to comprise the complete will or codicil of the testator." Both subsections were added by House File 397 (2023 Iowa Acts, chapter 133), effective July 1, 2023.

The remote option changes how presence is satisfied, not the other requirements: the will must still be in writing, signed, declared by the testator, and witnessed at the testator's request by two competent persons.

Iowa has no separate electronic-will statute. Chapter 633 contains no electronic-will section, and Iowa's Uniform Electronic Transactions Act "does not apply to a transaction to the extent it is governed by" a "law governing the creation or execution of wills, codicils, or testamentary trusts" (554D.104(2)(a)).

The 2020-2022 disaster proclamation (expired)

Section 633.279(4) deals with wills and codicils "executed using the remote signing procedures permitted under the proclamation of disaster emergency of the governor issued April 2, 2020, and expired February 15, 2022." A will executed during that period under those procedures "shall be deemed to satisfy the presence requirements of this section." The proclamation itself expired on February 15, 2022; current remote signing relies on 633.279(3) and (5).

Does an Iowa will need to be notarized? The self-proving affidavit

No. Section 633.279(1) does not require a notary for a will to be valid. A notary or other officer comes in through the optional self-proving affidavit.

Under 633.279(2)(a), "An attested will may be made self-proved at the time of its execution, or at any subsequent date, by the acknowledgment thereof by the testator and the affidavits of the witnesses, each made before a person authorized to administer oaths and take acknowledgments under the laws of this state, and evidenced by such person's certificate, under seal, attached or annexed to the will." The statutory form, which this page does not reproduce, includes the witnesses' statement that they were 16 or older.

The affidavit affects proof, not validity. Under 633.279(2)(b), "A self-proved will shall constitute proof of due execution of such instrument as required by section 633.293 and may be admitted to probate without testimony of witnesses." The probate process itself is covered on the Iowa probate page.

Are handwritten (holographic) wills valid in Iowa?

Not without witnesses. Section 633.279(1) requires every valid will to be in writing, signed, declared and witnessed by two competent persons, and chapter 633 contains no section recognizing a handwritten will as an exception. A will written in the testator's own hand is valid in Iowa if it is executed with the same formalities as any other will.

The out-of-state rule in 633.283 is the one route for a handwritten will signed elsewhere: it honors a will executed under the law of the place of signing or the testator's domicile if it is in writing and subscribed by the testator.

Are oral (nuncupative) wills valid in Iowa?

No. Section 633.279(1) requires all wills "to be valid, must be in writing," and chapter 633 contains no section that provides for an oral will.

Fixing a defectively signed will

Iowa has no harmless-error rule letting a court excuse a missing formality. Chapter 633 contains no such section. The cure it does provide is a codicil: under 633.282, "If a codicil to a defectively executed will is duly executed, and such will is clearly identified in said codicil, the will and the codicil shall be considered as one instrument and the execution of both shall be deemed sufficient."

Changing or revoking an Iowa will

Methods of revocation

Section 633.284 provides that "A will can be revoked in whole or in part only by being canceled or destroyed by the act or direction of the testator, with the intention of revoking it, or by the execution of a subsequent will." It adds a formality for cancellation: "When done by cancellation, the revocation must be witnessed in the same manner as the making of a new will."

Reviving a revoked will

Under the same section, no revoked or invalid will "can be revived otherwise than by a re-execution thereof, or by the execution of another will or codicil in which the revoked or invalid will, or part thereof, is incorporated by reference."

Divorce and dissolution

Two parallel sections apply, one for wills and one for revocable trusts.

• The will (633.271). If, after making a will, the testator is divorced or the marriage is dissolved, "all provisions in the will in favor of the testator's spouse or of a relative of the testator's spouse, including but not limited to dispositions, appointments of property, and nominations to serve in any fiduciary or representative capacity, are revoked by the divorce or dissolution of marriage, unless the will provides otherwise." If the testator and former spouse remarry each other, the revoked provisions are reinstated unless otherwise revoked by the testator, "except for provisions in favor of a person who died prior to the remarriage."
• A revocable trust (633A.3107). The same rule applies to "all provisions in the trust in favor of the settlor's spouse or of a relative of the settlor's spouse" after the settlor executes a revocable trust and is later divorced, unless the trust instrument provides otherwise, with the same reinstatement rule on remarriage to each other.

A "relative" of the spouse in both sections is a person related to the former spouse by blood, adoption or affinity who, after the divorce, is no longer related to the testator or settlor. Both sections speak only of wills and revocable trusts.

Children born or adopted after the will

Under 633.267(1), a child born to or adopted by the testator after the testator's last will who is not provided for receives a share equal in value to the child's intestate share (after taking into account the spouse's intestate share), "unless it appears from the will that such omission was intentional." The section also covers certain children conceived and born after the testator's death, including that the child be born within two years of the death. Section 633A.3106 gives a similar share of a revocable trust to a child born or adopted after the trust or its last amendment, unless the trust or the will shows the omission was intentional. The intestate shares these sections refer to are explained on the Iowa probate page.

Contesting a will

Under 633.309(1), an action to contest or set aside the probate of a will must be commenced "within the later to occur of four months from the date of second publication of notice of admission of the will to probate or one month following the mailing of the notice to all heirs of the decedent and devisees under the will whose identities are reasonably ascertainable." A claim that the will was procured by tortious interference with inheritance must be joined in a timely will contest (633.309(2)).

Limits on what an Iowa will can do

The spouse's elective share. Under 633.236, when a married person domiciled in Iowa dies, "the surviving spouse shall have the right to take an elective share." Section 633.238(1) limits the share to:

• one-third in value of the legal or equitable estates in real property the decedent possessed at any time during the marriage that have not been sold on execution or other judicial sale and to which the spouse has made no express written relinquishment;
• all personal property that, at death, was in the decedent's hands as head of a family and exempt from execution;
• one-third of the decedent's other personal property not needed to pay debts and charges; and
• one-third in value of property in a trust, not needed to pay debts and charges, of which the decedent was settlor and over which the decedent retained at death the power to alter, amend or revoke (or waived or rescinded that power within one year of death).

The trust portion does not apply if the decedent created the trust after the marriage and every transfer into it, except tangible personal property, included the boldface written statement 633.238(1)(d)(2) prescribes, signed and dated by the surviving spouse with a valid notarial acknowledgment.

Timing turns on notice. Under 633.237, the personal representative, and after a settlor's death the trustee of a revocable trust, must serve the surviving spouse with written notice. Unless the spouse files a written election "within four months after service of the notice," the spouse is deemed to take under the will (or to receive the intestate share) or under the terms of the revocable trust.

No-contest clauses. Chapters 633 and 633A contain no no-contest section. The Iowa Supreme Court has held that a will condition forfeiting a gift for contesting the will "will not be enforced against one who contests the will in good faith and for probable cause" (In re Estate of Cocklin, 236 Iowa 98 (1945)).

Lapse. Under 633.273, if a devisee dies before the testator leaving issue who survive the testator, the issue inherit the devised property per stirpes "unless from the terms of the will, the intent is clear and explicit to the contrary." Under 633.274, a devise to a spouse who does not survive the testator lapses unless the will clearly and explicitly provides otherwise.

Contractual wills. Under 633.270, "No will shall be construed to be contractual or mutual, unless in such will the testator shall expressly state the intent that such will shall be so construed."

Slayers. Under 633.535(1), "A person who intentionally and unjustifiably causes or procures the death of another shall not receive any property, benefit, or other interest by reason of the death" in any capacity, and the property passes as if that person had died first.

Lists, deposit and custody

• Tangible personal property list. Under 633.276, a will may refer to a written statement, letter or list disposing of tangible personal property (such as household goods, furniture, jewelry, books, art and automobiles) not otherwise specifically disposed of, except property used in a trade or business. If the writing "is dated and is either in the handwriting of the testator or is signed by testator," and describes the items and recipients with reasonable certainty, the personal representative distributes the items accordingly. It may be prepared before or after the will and changed later.
• Deposit with the clerk. Under 633.286, the clerk maintains a file for the safekeeping of wills deposited by living testators or by persons on their behalf.
• Delivering the will after death. Under 633.285, after being informed of the testator's death, the person having custody of the will "shall deliver it to the court having jurisdiction of the testator's estate." A person who willfully refuses after a court order is in contempt and liable for damages.

Revocable living trusts in Iowa

The Iowa Trust Code

Chapter 633A "may be cited as the 'Iowa Trust Code' or 'Trust Code'" (633A.1101). It was enacted by 1999 Iowa Acts, chapter 125, and it is Iowa's own code rather than the Uniform Trust Code.

Creating a trust: a signed writing

Under 633A.2101, a trust may be created by a transfer of property to a trustee during the settlor's lifetime or by will, by the owner's declaration that he or she holds property as trustee, by exercise of a power of appointment, or by an enforceable promise to transfer property to a trustee. Under 633A.2102, a trust is created only if the settlor was competent and indicated an intention to create a trust, the same person is not the sole trustee and sole beneficiary, the trust has a definite beneficiary (with exceptions for charitable, honorary and pet trusts), and the trustee has duties to perform.

The writing rule is in 633A.2103, the Trust Code's statute of frauds. A trust is enforceable when evidenced by "A written instrument signed by the trustee, or by the trustee's agent if authorized in writing," or "A written instrument conveying the trust property signed by the settlor, or by the settlor's agent if authorized in writing." For a declaration of trust, the settlor must sign before or at the time of the declaration, or afterward but before transferring the property. "Oral trusts that have not been reduced to writing as specified in this section are not enforceable" (633A.2103(4)), although a court may still declare a resulting or constructive trust. Section 633A.2103 does not require witnesses or a notary.

Capacity

Under 633A.1102(4)(a), for a revocable transfer, "competency" means "the degree of understanding required to execute a will." Under 633A.3101(1), the settlor must be competent to create, revoke or modify a revocable trust, and an aggrieved person has "all causes of action and remedies available to the aggrieved person in attacking the creation, revocation, or modification of a revocable trust as one would if attacking the propriety of the execution of a will."

Revocable by default, and how to revoke or modify

Section 633A.3102(1) states: "Unless the terms of the trust expressly provide that the trust is irrevocable, the settlor may revoke or modify the trust. This subsection does not apply to trusts created under instruments executed before July 1, 2000."

Under 633A.3102(3), a revocable trust may be revoked or modified by any method the trust specifies, or, unless the trust makes its method exclusive, by either:

1. "a writing, other than a will, signed by the settlor and delivered to the trustee during the settlor's lifetime"; or
2. "a later will or codicil expressly referring to the trust and which makes a devise of the property that would otherwise have passed by the terms of the trust."

Other rules in the section:

• More than one settlor. Except as the trust provides, each settlor may revoke or modify the trust as to the portion that settlor contributed (633A.3102(2)).
• Agents. An agent under a power of attorney may exercise the settlor's revocation or modification powers only if both the trust instrument and the power of attorney expressly authorize it (633A.3102(5)). See Iowa power of attorney laws.

While a trust is revocable, and unless the trustee actually knows the holder of the power to revoke is not competent, the holder of that power (not the beneficiaries) has the beneficiaries' rights and the trustee's duties are owed to the holder (633A.3103).

Creditors

Under 633A.3104(1), "During the lifetime of the settlor, the trust property of a revocable trust is subject to the debts of the settlor to the extent of the settlor's power of revocation." After the settlor's death, if the estate cannot cover the settlor's debts and estate charges, the revocable-trust property is subject to them, to the extent of the property the settlor could revoke, unless the debts are barred under 633A.3109 (633A.3104(2)). Under 633A.3109(2), if the trustee gives no notice, a creditor must sue within one year of the settlor's death or be "forever barred from collecting against the trust assets."

Certification of trust

Under 633A.4604(1), "A trustee may present a certification of trust to any person in lieu of providing a copy of the trust instrument to establish the trust's existence or terms or the trustee's authority." It must name all currently acting trustees, state how co-trustees act, state that the trust has not been revoked, modified or amended in a way that makes its statements incorrect, be signed by an acting trustee or the trustee's attorney, and be certified under penalty of perjury or sworn before a notary (633A.4604(2)). A person who relies on it after taking reasonable steps to verify the trustee's identity, without knowing it is incorrect, "is not liable to any person for so acting"; the verification period may not exceed ten business days (633A.4604(5)).

Deadline to contest a revocable trust

Under 633A.3108, if notice is published or given under 633A.3110 within one year of the settlor's death, "a proceeding to contest the validity of a revocable trust must be brought within the period specified in that notice." If no notice is published or given within that period, a contest "must be brought no later than one year following the death of the settlor."

The trustee's notice is optional; under 633A.3110(2), the trustee "may" give it. If the trustee does, the notice is published once each week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper in the county where the settlor lived, and mailed to the surviving spouse and reasonably ascertainable heirs within one year of death. It states that any action to contest the trust must be brought within "the later to occur of four months from the date of the second publication of the notice" or "thirty days from the date of mailing of the notice" (633A.3110(2)(d)).

House File 2532 (2026 Iowa Acts, chapter 1074), signed May 2, 2026, adds two related rules. Since it was signed, "Actions to set aside or contest trusts and for the establishment of contested claims shall be triable in probate as law actions" (633A.6203(1)). For actions involving decedents dying on or after July 1, 2026, a claim founded upon a decedent's title to assets, beneficiary designations or other nontestamentary transfers "procured in whole or in part by tortious interference with inheritance, undue influence, fraud, or other wrongful conduct" must be brought within two years of the decedent's death (Iowa Code 614.1(2B)).

Once the trust becomes irrevocable, 633A.4213 requires the trustee to tell each qualified beneficiary, within a reasonable time, of the right to receive an annual accounting and a copy of the trust instrument.

Pour-over wills

A pour-over will leaves property to the trustee of a trust. Under 633.275, a will may make a devise "to the trustee of a trust established, or to be established, by the testator, or by the testator and some other person or persons, or by some other person or persons, including a funded or unfunded life insurance trust," if the trust is identified in the will and "its terms are set forth in a written instrument other than a will executed before or concurrently with the execution of the testator's will," or in the valid will of a person who died before the testator.

Three points follow from the text:

• Timing of the trust instrument. Iowa's section requires the trust's terms to be in an instrument executed before or at the same time as the will.
• Revocable trusts qualify. "The devise or bequest is not invalid because the trust is amendable or revocable, or both, or because the trust was amended after the execution of the will or after the death of the testator." The property becomes part of the trust and follows its terms, including amendments made before the testator's death, and amendments made after death only if the will so provides.
• Revoking the trust first. "A revocation or termination of the trust before the death of the testator causes the devise or bequest to lapse."

Iowa wills and trusts at a glance

Making a will in practice

The site's free Iowa will-maker tool can help draft a basic will. Whatever produces the document, signing must follow 633.279, including the testator's declaration and two witnesses who sign in the presence of the testator and each other, and the self-proving affidavit in 633.279(2) is optional. Complex estates, blended families, business interests or tax concerns are reasons to consult a lawyer licensed in Iowa. The tool is not legal advice.

Members of the armed forces have one federal option as well: under 10 U.S.C. 1044d, a military testamentary instrument is exempt from state formalities and has the same legal effect as a will executed under the law of the state where it is presented for probate (see the wills and trusts hub for the federal layer).

Related pages

• Wills and trusts laws by state
• Iowa probate
• Iowa small estate affidavit
• Iowa power of attorney laws

This article provides general legal information about Iowa law on wills and revocable trusts as of 2026-10-20. It is not legal advice. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in Iowa or the court that handles probate in your county.

Last updated: 2026-10-20.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many witnesses does a will need in Iowa?

Two. Under Iowa Code 633.279(1), the will must be witnessed, at the testator's request, by two competent persons who sign as witnesses in the presence of the testator and of each other. Witnesses must be 16 or older and competent to be a witness generally (633.280).

Is a handwritten will valid in Iowa?

Only if it is also signed, declared and witnessed like any other will. Section 633.279(1) requires every valid will to be in writing and witnessed by two competent persons, and chapter 633 contains no holographic-will section. A will signed outside Iowa can be valid under 633.283 if it meets the law of the place of signing or the testator's domicile and is in writing and signed by the testator.

Does a will have to be notarized in Iowa?

No. Section 633.279(1) does not require a notary for validity. A self-proving affidavit, made before a person authorized to administer oaths and take acknowledgments at signing or later, lets the will be admitted to probate without testimony of witnesses (633.279(2)).

Can a will be witnessed remotely in Iowa?

Yes. Since July 1, 2023, 633.279(5) defines presence as any manner, physical or electronic, in which the witness and testator can see and hear each other's acts in real time, and 633.279(3) lets a remotely signed will be executed in counterparts that are aggregated into the complete will. Chapter 633 has no separate electronic-will statute, and Iowa's electronic transactions act does not apply to executing wills (554D.104(2)(a)).

Does divorce revoke a will in Iowa?

Under Iowa Code 633.271, divorce or dissolution revokes all will provisions in favor of the former spouse or the spouse's relatives, including gifts, appointments and fiduciary nominations, unless the will provides otherwise. If the two remarry each other, the provisions are reinstated except gifts to a person who died before the remarriage. Section 633A.3107 applies a parallel rule to revocable trusts.

How do I revoke a will in Iowa?

Under 633.284, a will can be revoked only by being canceled or destroyed by the testator's act or direction with the intent to revoke, or by a later will. A revocation by cancellation must be witnessed in the same manner as a new will, and a revoked will is revived only by re-execution or by a later will or codicil that incorporates it by reference.

Is a living trust revocable in Iowa?

For a trust created under an instrument executed on or after July 1, 2000, yes unless its terms expressly provide that it is irrevocable (Iowa Code 633A.3102(1)). Unless the trust makes its own method exclusive, the settlor may revoke or modify it by a signed writing, other than a will, delivered to the trustee during the settlor's lifetime, or by a later will or codicil that expressly refers to the trust and devises its property.

How long do you have to contest a trust in Iowa?

Under 633A.3108, if the trustee publishes or gives notice under 633A.3110 within one year after the settlor's death, a contest must be brought within the period in that notice (the later of four months from the second publication or 30 days from mailing). If no notice is given within that year, the deadline is one year after the settlor's death.

Can a spouse be left out of a will in Iowa?

A surviving spouse of a person domiciled in Iowa may take an elective share under 633.236 to 633.246, including one-third in value of certain real property, exempt personal property, one-third of other personal property and one-third of revocable-trust property, subject to the exceptions in 633.238. The election must be filed within four months after service of the required notice, or the spouse is deemed to take under the will or trust (633.237).