What is the appropriate age to draft a will? | Mint

I am a married man, 35 years old, and have two minor children. Neither my wife nor I own anything substantial at this time, but we have nominees for some bank and demat accounts, PPF, etc. We have been advised to create a will, but we feel we are too young for this. What is the appropriate age to make a will?

Any person who is of legal age and possesses a sound mind can create a will. It is advisable to draft a will keeping the following  in mind:

• You own assets (for example, house, cash, deposits, shares, mutual fund units, PPF/EPF investments, jewellery, etc);
• You are aware that you may acquire or inherit assets in future; or
• You have minor children for whom you can appoint a testamentary guardian under your will. 

Even if you do not own substantial assets, it is preferable to make a will for any assets you possess or may come to possess. Failing to have a will could result in such assets being inherited by persons you may not have intended or may be fragmented amongst multiple people. For example, for a male Hindu dying intestate (that is, without a will), his estate is inherited equally by his mother, wife and children. 

Since a will can cover all assets you own on your death, you can prepare a will for assets that you may acquire or inherit later also.

Therefore, you may consider making a simple will for the time being, identifying who will inherit your assets and appointing testamentary guardians for your minor children, to avoid a vacuum. Once you acquire more assets, you can update your Will (through a document called a codicil) or replace it with a more detailed Will. 

Having a will also allows you to appoint executor(s) who will be responsible for giving effect to your wishes mentioned in your will. 

Do bear in mind that while you may have appointed nominees for your assets, the nominees do not become the beneficial owners of such assets. The nominee is legally required to hold the assets for the benefit of your legal heirs (that is, the persons named as beneficiaries in your will or, in the event you fail to make a will, the heirs according to the applicable law of succession). For this reason, it is recommended that you make a Will in which the beneficiary for each asset is the same as the nominee for such asset. 

Shaishavi Kadakia is a partner and Suja Nair is an associate at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas.