Apple Digital Legacy Program: How to Set Up and Use Legacy Contacts

What the Digital Legacy Program Includes

Apple's Digital Legacy program lets you designate one or more people as Legacy Contacts. After your death, a Legacy Contact can request access to your iCloud data — photos, notes, files in iCloud Drive, Mail, contacts, calendars, and more.

The program launched with iOS 15.2 and works across iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Setting it up takes a few minutes and gives your designated contacts a clear legal and technical path to your data that doesn't involve lawyers or court orders.

What Legacy Contacts Get (and Don't Get)

A Legacy Contact receives access to most iCloud-stored data:

• iCloud Photos and shared albums
• Notes
• iCloud Drive files
• Mail
• Contacts
• Calendars
• Reminders
• Messages in iCloud
• Health data
• Voice Memos
• Safari bookmarks

They do not get:

• Keychain passwords (stored passwords and credit card numbers are excluded)
• Licensed media (music, movies, books purchased from Apple)
• In-app purchases or subscriptions
• Payment information (Apple Pay cards)
• Anything stored only on the physical device but not synced to iCloud

The Legacy Contact has three years from Apple's approval of the first access request to download the data before Apple permanently deletes the account.

How to Set Up a Legacy Contact

On iPhone or iPad (iOS 15.2+):

1. Open Settings → tap your name → Password & Security (or Sign-In & Security in newer releases) → Legacy Contact
2. Tap Add Legacy Contact and choose someone from your contacts
3. They'll receive an access key — either stored in their Apple Account (if they use a device running iOS or iPadOS 15.2 or later, or macOS Monterey 12.1 or later) or as a printed/saved PDF

On Mac (macOS Monterey 12.1+):

1. Open System Preferences on Monterey or System Settings on Ventura and later; choose Apple ID or your name → Password & Security (Monterey) or Sign-In & Security (Ventura and later) → Legacy Contact
2. Follow the same process

The access key is essential. Without it, the Legacy Contact cannot request access even if they have a death certificate.

How Legacy Contacts Request Access After Death

When the account holder dies, the Legacy Contact:

1. Goes to digital-legacy.apple.com
2. Enters their access key
3. Uploads a death certificate
4. Apple verifies the documents and creates a Legacy Contact Apple Account

This account provides access to the deceased person's eligible iCloud data through a web interface. Apple reviews the documents; its published process does not state a standard processing time.

What Happens Without a Legacy Contact

If no Legacy Contact was set up, recovering iCloud data is significantly harder. Apple does not provide account passwords or bypass Activation Lock based on a death certificate alone.

The options narrow to:

Request access to account data. An immediate family member or legal representative can ask Apple to provide access to the deceased's data. In the US, Apple may require a court order naming the requester as the rightful inheritor, personal representative, or agent and confirming lawful consent. Apple may also require a death certificate and other documents. Some end-to-end encrypted data may remain inaccessible.

Request account deletion. Account deletion is a separate request and does not provide a download of the account data.

Activation Lock removal. After Apple approves an account access or deletion request, Activation Lock is removed. The device still must be erased; Apple cannot bypass its device passcode to recover local data.

Physical device access. If the device is already unlocked or you know its passcode, data stored locally on it may be accessible without an Apple account request. Data synced to iCloud remains subject to Apple's account-access process.

The Bottom Line

The Digital Legacy program is the simplest way to ensure your family can access your iCloud data after death. It takes five minutes to set up and prevents months of paperwork.

For the complete picture — including every other platform's legacy tools, password manager recovery, and the full sequence of documents executors need — the Digital Estate Toolkit covers all of it in one place.