Idaho Will Registry: How to Register and Find a Will

Idaho maintains a Will Registry through the Secretary of State's office — one of a handful of states that offers this service. It is a simple, often overlooked tool that solves a specific problem: after someone dies, their family cannot find the original will.

The registry does not store the will itself. It records where the will is located so your personal representative and family can retrieve it.

What the Registry Does (and Does Not Do)

The Idaho Will Registry is a searchable database maintained by the Secretary of State. When you register, you are filing a record that states:

• Your name and identifying information
• The date the will was executed
• Where the original will is physically stored (attorney's office, bank safe deposit box, home safe, etc.)

The registry does not:

• Store, review, or certify the will itself
• Make the will a public document
• Validate the will's legal sufficiency
• Replace the need to file the will with the local Magistrate Court after death

Think of it as a locator service, not a filing system.

Why Registration Matters

The most common will-related disaster in Idaho is not an invalid will — it is a will that nobody can find. The testator stored the original in a home safe they never told anyone about, or with an attorney who has since retired, or in a safe deposit box that requires court authorization to access after death.

Under Idaho law, the person who has custody of a will must deliver the original to the local county clerk or Magistrate Court within a reasonable time after the testator's death. If no one knows the will exists or where it is, this obligation goes unfulfilled, and the estate proceeds under intestacy rules as if there were no will at all.

Registration eliminates this risk. Your personal representative searches the registry, finds the location, and retrieves the original.

How to Register

Registration is handled through the Idaho Secretary of State's office. The process is straightforward:

1. Complete the registration form with your personal information and the will's location
2. Submit the form to the Secretary of State's office
3. Pay the registration fee (nominal)
4. Receive confirmation that the registration is recorded

You can update the registration if you move the will to a new location or execute a new will. Updating the registry each time you revise your will or change its storage location keeps the record accurate.

How to Search After a Death

After a death, family members or the nominated personal representative can search the Will Registry to determine whether the deceased person registered a will and where it is stored.

Contact the Idaho Secretary of State's office with:

• The deceased person's full legal name
• Date of birth
• Date of death
• Your relationship to the deceased or your appointment as personal representative

The registry search confirms whether a registration exists and provides the recorded storage location.

Common Storage Locations and Their Trade-Offs

Attorney's office: Secure and professional, but what happens if the attorney retires, changes firms, or dies? Make sure you know the firm's document retention policy, and register the location so your family is not searching for a lawyer they have never met.

Bank safe deposit box: Physically secure, but Idaho law may require a court order for anyone other than a joint holder to access the box after the owner's death. This creates a timing problem — you need the will to open probate, but you need probate to access the box.

Home safe or fireproof box: Immediately accessible to family, but vulnerable to fire, flood, or theft. Make sure at least two trusted people know the safe combination or key location.

With the local county clerk: You can file the original will with the Magistrate Court for safekeeping before death. This is the most secure option — the court holds it until needed.

The Best Approach

Use two layers of protection:

1. Store the original will in a secure, accessible location (your attorney's office or the county clerk's office)
2. Register that location with the Idaho Will Registry
3. Give copies to your personal representative and at least one trusted family member
4. Include the will's location in your master estate planning inventory

Label the copies clearly: "COPY — Original on file at [location]." This prevents anyone from accidentally probating a copy when the original has been revoked and replaced.

The Idaho Basic Estate Planning Kit includes a document storage guide with a checklist for registering your will, organizing your original documents, and creating a master inventory that your personal representative can use to locate everything they need.

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