Before you have your will drafted online or decided to do it yourself, there are three things that you cannot place in a will. Here is what you need to know. 

Illegal or complicated requests

A will is a great way of having control over how the things that matter the most to you are handled after your death. It can also ensure that the right people end up with what belongs to them instead of having your loved ones battle it out with each other or in court.

However, placing illegal conditions on your beneficiaries inheriting items you have placed in your will is not allowed. For example, asking someone to get involved in illegal activities to prove themselves in order to get access to the inheritance is illegal.

Furthermore, stating that people should get married to a selected person to receive their inheritance can make things complicated and invalidate the purpose of your will. To make any will legal and valid means making sure that it complies with the Wills Act 7 of 1953 of South Africa. 

Giving away a jointly owned property

Unless the property is in your name, it is not legally possible to pass on a property that is jointly owned. What this means is that if you own property that is in your name and someone else's name, making you joint owners, it will automatically fall to the joint owner when you pass away.

It will also be impacted by the conditions that are placed in the National Credit Act 34 of 2005 (NCA) where the joint owner would need to reapply for the mortgage and would need to qualify for the mortgage in their own right. Things can become further complicated if you have split from your partner, which will require legal action before including it in a will. 

A witness becoming a beneficiary

Wills act as a safety net and shield from fraudulent means of people placing a claim on things that you worked so hard for. When drafting a legally recognised will, you will need witnesses and beneficiaries.

However, a person who signs on as a witness cannot be a beneficiary. This is to avoid fraudulent circumstances where foul play is committed in order to have what is written in the will released to them. It also means you cannot be a beneficiary as a drafter or witness of a will. Even if you have someone drafting the will on your behalf, they cannot list themselves as a beneficiary.

You can appoint an executor in the form of MiWayLife to draft and keep a legally recognised will for you or another legal institution to make sure that the safety net you are creating for your loved ones ends up in the right hands. Always remember to keep your will up to date and by making sure that it is dated, signed on every page, and kept in a secure place.