Signing Guide for Scottish Wills

Helen Claydon
Jul 24
2 min read

A Will is a powerful document but must be signed and witnessed correctly to be of use. The rules on how a Will should be signed and witnessed in Scotland differ from the rest of the UK and this guide gives step-by-step instructions on what you will need to do to ensure your Will works as planned.

Young couple signing their Scottish Wills

Witnesses for a Scottish Will

For the Scottish Wills we prepare we strongly recommend that you use two witnesses.

Your witnesses must be 16 year of age or older.
Your witnesses must not be your Executors, Trustees, Guardians or Beneficiaries.
Your witnesses also must not be the spouse or partners of your Executors, Trustees, Guardians or Beneficiaries.
Your witnesses must be of sound mind.

Things to consider when signing a Scottish Will

You must sign your Scottish Will with your witnesses observing.
You must complete the date in the correct format as described.
Take care and sign with your usual signature.
Remember you will need to sign every page of your Scottish Will.

Important notes

If you make an error DO NOT attempt to correct it, instead contact us and ask for advice
Please DO NOT attach anything to your documents. This could invalidate them.

How to sign your Scottish Will

Turn to the last page of your Will.
Complete the date as shown in the example. For example, ‘17^th day of March 2025’.
Write in the location of where you are signing your Will. For example, ‘at (town) Kilmarnock’.
Above the line labelled ‘Signature of Testator’ or ‘Signature of Testatrix’ sign with your usual signature.
Turn to the first page of your Will and sign your usual signature in the space bottom right.
Read through your Will signing every page in the space bottom right.
Sign the last page of your Will for a second time in the space bottom right.
Both of your witnesses must now complete their sections.
Each witness signs on the line indicated.
They then print their full name. For example, ‘Andrew Bruce Macdonald’.
They then add their occupation. If retired, please put retired.
Finally, they write in their full address, including postcode.
Your Will is now complete and should look similar to the example.