Key Points
A French will is a unilateral act producing no effect and no tax liability during the testator's lifetime (C. civ. Art. 895). It is always freely revocable — any advance renunciation of this right is void as contrary to public order.
A joint will made by two people on the same document is absolutely null (C. civ. Art. 968). Each testator must make their own separate will.
The testament olographe (holograph will) must be entirely handwritten, dated, and signed by the testator (C. civ. Art. 970). No witnesses or notary required — but it is the most litigated form.
The testament authentique (notarial will) offers maximum security, is the only form available to testators who cannot write or sign, and is the only form enabling recognition of a natural child or deprivation of the surviving spouse's right to the family home (C. civ. Art. 971–975).
Three categories of legacy: the legs universel (entire estate — Art. 1003), the legs à titre universel (defined fraction — Art. 1010), and the legs à titre particulier (specific asset or sum).
A testament-partage combines a will with an anticipated partition. It is freely revocable (unlike a donation-partage) and may cover future assets — but triggers the droit de partage at 2.5% and a joint testament-partage by two spouses is prohibited.

Nature of a French Will

A testament is defined by C. civ. Art. 895 as a unilateral act by which the testator expresses their last wishes and disposes, for the time after their death, of all or part of their assets — and which they may revoke. Three characteristics are fundamental: it is unilateral (the beneficiaries' acceptance is not a condition of validity, only of effectiveness); it is an act cause de mort (produces no effect until death, remains revocable throughout the testator's life); and it is solemn (valid only if it satisfies specific formal requirements). Because no transfer occurs during the testator's lifetime, no gift duty arises on drafting — succession duty applies at death.

A will is not limited to property dispositions. It may also record: funeral arrangements; recognition of a child (only notarial will); consent to organ donation; appointment of a guardian for minor children; or expressions of natural obligations without legally binding force (though courts have held that testamentary expressions of natural obligations may become civilly binding: Cass. 3ème civ. 26-1-2022 n° 20-23.436).

The Three Principal Forms

Form 1 — most common
Testament Olographe

Requirements: Entirely handwritten, dated, and signed by the testator. No witnesses, no notary, no registration required (C. civ. Art. 970).

Advantages: Free; simple; secret; easily revoked by destruction or new will.

Risks: Loss or falsification; ambiguous or formally invalid drafting; weak evidential value (private deed, subject to forgery challenge); abundant litigation.

After death: Must be deposited with a notary who draws up a procès-verbal d'ouverture. A copy is sent to the court within one month. No mandatory registration duty since 1 January 2020.

Form 2 — most secure
Testament Authentique

Requirements: Dictated by the testator to a notary who writes or types it, then reads it back; signed by testator, notary and two witnesses (or second notary). All formalities must be expressly noted in the deed (C. civ. Art. 971–975).

Advantages: Maximum security; no risk of loss; strong evidential force (authentic deed); universal legatee needs no court order if no reserved heirs; mandatory for testators who cannot write or sign; only form enabling recognition of a natural child.

Risks: Costly (€135.83 TTC); heavy formalism; partly public if received by one notary with two witnesses.

After death: Registered at flat rate of €125 within three months of death. Preserved by notary for 75 years (or 100 years if testator was a minor).

Form 3 — rarely used
Testament Mystique

Requirements: The testator drafts or has typed a secret will, signs it, places it in a closed envelope and presents it to a notary in the presence of two witnesses. The notary draws up an acte de suscription (C. civ. Art. 976–979).

Advantages: Secret; may be typed; available to those who cannot use the holograph form; renewed interest for digital assets and encryption keys.

Risks: Cumulates the disadvantages of both forms without their advantages; heavy and archaic formalism.

Salvage: A void mystique will may be treated as a valid holograph will if it meets the holograph requirements (C. civ. Art. 979, al. 2).

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Testament International

A fourth form exists for cross-border testators: the testament international, introduced by the Washington Convention (1973) and operative in France since 1994. It may be written in any language the testator understands, need not be handwritten, and is signed by the testator before two witnesses and a notary. It is valid regardless of where it was made or where the assets are located. A null authentic will may be saved as a testament international if it meets that form's requirements (Cass. 1ère civ. 12-6-2014 n° 13-18.383).

The Holograph Will in Detail

Entirely handwritten

Every word must be in the testator's own handwriting. A partially typed or dictated will is null (Cass. 1ère civ. 20-9-2006 n° 04-20.614). A testator who needs physical assistance (testament à main guidée) may have a third party hold their hand, provided the testator's handwriting remains recognisable and the content expresses the testator's own wishes (Cass. 1ère civ. 11-1-2000 n° 98-10.700). The language may be any language the testator fully understands: a will written in French by a German who does not understand French is null (Cass. 1ère civ. 9-6-2021 n° 19-21.770).

Date

The date must indicate day, month, and year. Courts mitigate strict requirements where the will contains intrinsic elements (a datable event, a named location) from which the date can be determined — but only where no third-party evidence is needed and no conflicting will exists for that period. A date that is demonstrably false makes the will absolutely void (Cass. 1ère civ. 29-1-2014 n° 12-35.128). Total absence of any intrinsic dating element is fatal (Cass. 1ère civ. 7-6-2006 n° 04-10.602).

Signature and conservation

The signature must appear at the end of the text to signify final approval. A signature placed at the beginning or in the body of the document does not suffice (Cass. 1ère civ. 17-6-2009 n° 08-12.896). A holograph will may be deposited with a notary for safe custody (€31.69 TTC). The notary may, with the testator's agreement, register it in the fichier central des dispositions de dernières volontés (FCDDV) — the national registry consulted in every succession settlement.

Revocation of a Will

The right to revoke is absolute, personal, and of public order — any advance renunciation is void (Cass. 1ère civ. 30-11-2004 n° 02-20.883). Revocation may be:

  • Express: by a new will revoking the previous one (no parallelism of forms required — a holograph will validly revokes a notarial one), or by a notarial declaration of change of will received by two notaries (or one notary and two witnesses).
  • Tacit (three causes only): a new will whose dispositions are incompatible with the earlier one (revocation limited to the incompatible portion); voluntary alienation of the specifically bequeathed asset, creating a rebuttable presumption of revocation (C. civ. Art. 1038) — inapplicable to category-based legacies (Cass. 1ère civ. 11-7-2006 n° 04-14.947); and voluntary destruction of the holograph will by the testator.

A revoked will does not revive merely because the revoking will is itself later revoked (Cass. 1ère civ. 17-5-2017 n° 16-17.123).

Content of a Will: Legacies

Legs Universel
Universal Legacy

Gives the legatee a vocation to the entire estate (C. civ. Art. 1003). Characterised by vocation, not actual receipt. The universal legatee is liable for the succession's debts. In the absence of reserved heirs, the universal legatee under a notarial will takes possession without any court order.

Legs à Titre Universel
Residuary Legacy

A defined fraction of the estate: all the movables, all the immovables, a stated arithmetical fraction, or the usufruct of all assets (C. civ. Art. 1010). If one of several residuary legatees predeceases or renounces, their share falls back to the heirs unless the will provides otherwise.

Legs à Titre Particulier
Specific Legacy

Any legacy that is not universal or residuary: a named asset, a cash sum, or any category of assets not within the residuary list. The specific legatee is not liable for the succession's debts (unless the legacy bears a mortgage). They receive the asset with accessories in its condition at death (C. civ. Art. 1018).

Transmission of title, caducity and accroissement

Title to bequeathed property passes automatically at the testator's death. A legacy becomes void (caduc) where the legatee predeceases the testator; the bequeathed asset no longer exists at death; the legatee renounces; or the legatee's legal capacity to receive is lost after the will was made. Where the testator made a conjoint legacy without assigning shares (e.g. "I leave my property to my two nephews"), the accroissement rule applies: the surviving legatee takes the share of the predeceased or renouncing co-legatee (C. civ. Art. 1044).

Exhérédation and the Penal Clause

A testator may disinherit heirs directly (by naming those excluded) or indirectly (by leaving the entire disponible portion to legatees). A penal clause — an heir who challenges the will is excluded from their share — is valid in principle, but courts apply a proportionality review: a clause that imposes an excessive restriction on the right of access to a court will be struck out (Cass. 1ère civ. 16-12-2015 n° 14-29.285). Disinheritance cannot deprive a reserved heir of their reserve.

The Testament-Partage

The testament-partage is a will by which the testator distributes and partitions the assets they will leave at death, directing which of those assets each heir or legatee is to receive as a lot (C. civ. Art. 1075). It combines a testament with an anticipated partition. Unlike a donation-partage, it produces no effect during the testator's lifetime — the testator retains full ownership and the will is freely revocable. It may therefore cover future assets. Main disadvantages compared with the donation-partage:

  • Subject to the droit de partage at 2.5% on the net partitioned value.
  • A joint testament-partage by two spouses is prohibited (the conjoint will rule applies).
  • Cannot include community assets or assets belonging to the testator's spouse (Cass. 1ère civ. 3-2-2010 n° 08-18.196).
  • Third parties (non-presumptive heirs) cannot be allotted, unlike in a donation-partage where a business may be given to an employee.

The allocation imposed in the testament-partage is binding on the beneficiaries: they cannot renounce the partition to claim their intestate share — renouncing the testament-partage means renouncing the succession (C. civ. Art. 1079). At least two lots are required. A document that merely offers beneficiaries the option of taking certain assets is not a testament-partage but an ordinary will with specific legacies (Cass. 1ère civ. 13-4-2022 n° 20-17.199). The action en complément de part for lésion of more than one-quarter does not apply (C. civ. Art. 1075-3).

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Exécuteur Testamentaire

The testator may appoint an exécuteur testamentaire to oversee the execution of the will and enforce legacies and charges (C. civ. Art. 1025). Any person with full legal capacity may be appointed. The executor may take conservatory measures, commission an inventory, and sell movables to pay urgent debts. Their mission is limited to two years (extendable by one year by the court). They must account to the heirs within six months of completing their mission.

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Our guides cover the choice of will form, the drafting of legacies, executor appointments, and the interaction with the reserve — particularly for testators with assets or beneficiaries in multiple countries.

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This article is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Testamentary arrangements with cross-border elements may additionally be subject to EU Succession Regulation No. 650/2012. Readers should consult a qualified French notary and lawyer before drafting or amending a will.