Types of Wills
A Will is the best way to state your last wishes ensuring that your estate is transferred to any of your family members, friends, companies or charities you wish.
Under the Italian law there are different ways of drafting a Will:
- Testamento Olografo: equivalent to the English Handwritten Will it has to be written by hand, signed and dated by the testator. Such document does not require any witnesses and can be kept by a solicitor, a Notary Public or the testator himself.
- Testamento Pubblico: this is a Formal Will which has to be drafted by a Public Notary based on testator’s instructions. It requires witnesses and has to be placed on deposit by a Public Notary.
- Testamento Segreto: it is a Secret Will which is usually hand written by the testator, placed in a sealed envelope and placed pm deposit by a Public Notary until testator’s death.
Other forms of will are made in special circumstances (epidemics, war, etc.)
Revocation
A will may be revoked by the testator with full possess of mental capacity. Revocation may be express or implied, being the latter case a conflict between two provisions made in different wills or the same one or the destruction of the testament made by the testator.
You might also be interested in Italian Inheritance Tax