Wills NZ: How to Write a Will, Costs, and Your Options in 2026

About half of New Zealand adults don't have a will. That means if they die tomorrow, their estate gets divided by a statutory formula under the Administration Act 1969 — a formula that often produces results nobody in the family would have chosen.

What Makes a Will Valid in New Zealand

Under the Wills Act 2007, a valid will must be:

• In writing (handwritten or typed)
• Signed by the person making it (the testator) or by someone else in their presence and by their direction
• Witnessed by two witnesses who are both present when the testator signs, and who then sign the will themselves

The witnesses can be beneficiaries, but if a witness (or their spouse/partner) is named as a beneficiary, that gift may be void — the will itself stays valid unless a statutory exception applies.

There's no legal requirement to use a lawyer, which is why DIY and online options exist. But there's a meaningful gap between "technically valid" and "actually does what you want."

Your Options and What They Cost

Free wills. Public Trust offers a free basic will if you appoint them as your executor. The catch: their estate administration fees typically run 4% to 5% of the gross estate value, plus a setup fee (around $6,495). On a $500,000 estate, that's $26,000 to $31,000 in executor fees — far more than you'd pay a family member executor with a solicitor-drafted will.

Online will platforms. Services like Footprint ($100 one-off or $120/year subscription), EveryWill (free basic will), and Agreeable ($159) let you create a will in 15 to 30 minutes. They work well for straightforward situations — single person, clear beneficiaries, no complex assets. They struggle with blended families, Māori freehold land, business ownership, or trust structures.

Solicitor-drafted wills. Typically $350 to $750 for a standard will, or $500 to $1,200 for a couple's mirror wills. More for complex estates with trusts, business interests, or cross-border assets. The value is in the advice: a solicitor identifies issues you didn't know you had (like a property title registered as tenants in common when you assumed joint tenants).

Legal executives. Similar service to solicitors, usually at the lower end of the cost range. Particularly common for straightforward wills.

Key Rules Most People Don't Know

Marriage or civil union revokes your will. Under the Wills Act 2007, getting married or entering a civil union automatically cancels any existing will unless the will was made "in contemplation of that marriage or civil union." If you made a will five years ago and got married last year, you currently have no valid will.

Divorce or dissolution doesn't revoke your will entirely. It only invalidates provisions that benefit your former spouse or civil union partner. Everything else stands. But if your former spouse or partner was your sole beneficiary and executor, you effectively have a will that can't operate as intended.

Your funeral wishes aren't binding. Instructions about burial, cremation, or tangihanga in your will are legally advisory. The executor named in your will is the "first-decider" under Takamore v Clarke [2012] NZSC 116, but they must consider your wishes, family desires, and cultural preferences. They're not legally bound to follow them.

Your will doesn't cover everything. Joint tenancy property passes by survivorship, bypassing the will entirely. KiwiSaver goes into the general estate but has no beneficiary nomination. Life insurance with a named beneficiary goes directly to that person. Understanding what your will controls — and what it doesn't — prevents false assumptions.

When to Update Your Will

Any of these events should trigger a review:

• Marriage, separation, or divorce
• Birth or adoption of a child
• Buying or selling property
• Starting or closing a business
• A named beneficiary or executor dying
• Moving to or from New Zealand
• Major changes in asset values (especially KiwiSaver, which averages $37,079 and keeps growing)

Our New Zealand End-of-Life Planning Guide includes a Will Audit Checklist and an Annual Review Checklist that walks through every trigger point — so you catch the updates before a life event makes your will ineffective.

Beyond the Will

A will is one document in a broader plan. Without enduring powers of attorney, nobody can legally manage your finances or healthcare if you lose capacity while alive. Without an advance care plan, your medical preferences are unrecorded. Without a document inventory, your executor may not even find the will.

The complete guide covers how all these documents work together and provides the organiser templates to keep them accessible.

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