EDUCATIONAL PILLAR · ELECTRONIC WILLS

Electronic wills under UEWA — fresh law, narrow adoption

The Uniform Electronic Wills Act (ULC, 2019) provides a framework for validly executing a will as an electronic record. 9 jurisdictions have adopted UEWA or a state-specific Electronic Wills Act. The remaining 42 have not, and most have no permanent post-COVID remote-witnessing rule.

Electronic Wills Act adoption · 50 states + DC
AKAlaska — not_adoptedMEMaine — not_adoptedVTVermont — not_adoptedNHNew Hampshire — not_adoptedWAWashington — ewa_state_specific (effective 2022-01-01)IDIdaho — not_adoptedMTMontana — not_adoptedNDNorth Dakota — uewa_adopted (effective 2022-08-01)MNMinnesota — not_adoptedWIWisconsin — not_adoptedMIMichigan — not_adoptedNYNew York — not_adoptedMAMassachusetts — not_adoptedCTConnecticut — not_adoptedRIRhode Island — not_adoptedOROregon — not_adoptedWYWyoming — not_adoptedSDSouth Dakota — not_adoptedIAIowa — not_adoptedILIllinois — ewa_state_specific (effective 2022-07-26)INIndiana — ewa_state_specific (effective 2018-07-01)OHOhio — not_adoptedPAPennsylvania — not_adoptedNJNew Jersey — not_adoptedCACalifornia — not_adoptedNVNevada — ewa_state_specific (effective 2001-10-01)UTUtah — uewa_adopted (effective 2020-05-12)COColorado — ewa_state_specific (effective 2021-01-21)NENebraska — not_adoptedMOMissouri — not_adoptedKYKentucky — not_adoptedWVWest Virginia — not_adoptedVAVirginia — not_adoptedMDMaryland — ewa_state_specific (effective 2022-04-21)DEDelaware — not_adoptedAZArizona — ewa_state_specific (effective 2019-07-01)NMNew Mexico — not_adoptedKSKansas — not_adoptedARArkansas — not_adoptedTNTennessee — not_adoptedNCNorth Carolina — not_adoptedSCSouth Carolina — not_adoptedDCDistrict of Columbia — not_adoptedHIHawaii — not_adoptedTXTexas — not_adoptedOKOklahoma — not_adoptedLALouisiana — not_adoptedMSMississippi — not_adoptedALAlabama — not_adoptedGAGeorgia — not_adoptedFLFlorida — ewa_state_specific (effective 2020-07-01)
  • UEWA / Electronic Wills Act adopted (10)
  • Not adopted (41)

Electronic Wills Act adoption — 50 states + DC

9 jurisdictions have adopted UEWA (Uniform Electronic Wills Act, ULC 2019) or a state-specific Electronic Wills Act, verified against the state legislature primary source. Rows without confirmed enacting bills are flagged "verification pending".

CodeStateStatusEffectiveStatute
AZArizonaState E-Wills Act2019-07-01Primary sourceAriz. Rev. Stat. §14-2518
COColoradoState E-Wills Act2021-01-21Primary sourceColo. Rev. Stat. §§ 15-11-1301 to 15-11-1311
FLFloridaState E-Wills Act2020-07-01Primary sourceFla. Stat. §732.522
ILIllinoisState E-Wills Act2022-07-26Verification pending755 ILCS 6/
INIndianaState E-Wills Act2018-07-01Verification pendingInd. Code §29-1-21
MDMarylandState E-Wills Act2022-04-21Primary sourceMd. Code Ann., Est. & Trusts §4-102 (SB36 / Ch. 177 Acts of 2022)
NVNevadaState E-Wills Act2001-10-01Primary sourceNev. Rev. Stat. §133.085
NDNorth DakotaVerification pending—Pending primary-source verification
UTUtahUEWA adopted2020-05-12Verification pendingUtah Code §75-2-1401 et seq.
WAWashingtonState E-Wills Act2022-01-01Primary sourceWash. Rev. Code §11.12.400 et seq.
ALAlabamaNot adopted——
AKAlaskaNot adopted——
ARArkansasNot adopted——
CACaliforniaNot adopted——
CTConnecticutNot adopted——
DEDelawareNot adopted——
DCDistrict of ColumbiaNot adopted——
GAGeorgiaNot adopted——
HIHawaiiNot adopted——
IDIdahoNot adopted——
IAIowaNot adopted——
KSKansasNot adopted——
KYKentuckyNot adopted——
LALouisianaNot adopted——
MEMaineNot adopted——
MAMassachusettsNot adopted——
MIMichiganNot adopted——
MNMinnesotaNot adopted——
MSMississippiNot adopted——
MOMissouriNot adopted——
MTMontanaNot adopted——
NENebraskaNot adopted——
NHNew HampshireNot adopted——
NJNew JerseyNot adopted——
NMNew MexicoNot adopted——
NYNew YorkNot adopted——
NCNorth CarolinaNot adopted——
OHOhioNot adopted——
OKOklahomaNot adopted——
OROregonNot adopted——
PAPennsylvaniaNot adopted——
RIRhode IslandNot adopted——
SCSouth CarolinaNot adopted——
SDSouth DakotaNot adopted——
TNTennesseeNot adopted——
TXTexasNot adopted——
VTVermontNot adopted——
VAVirginiaNot adopted——
WVWest VirginiaNot adopted——
WIWisconsinNot adopted——
WYWyomingNot adopted——

The UEWA model act

UEWA requires an electronic will to be:

"Electronic presence" is the load-bearing concept — the witnesses don't need to be physically present, but must be able to see and hear the testator in real time during the signing.

Primary sourceUEWA (ULC 2019)

UEWA is distinct from UETA

The Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA) — adopted by nearly every state — explicitly EXCLUDES wills from its scope under UETA §3(b)(1). That's why UEWA exists: states needed a separate, will-specific framework. Some pre-UEWA state e-will statutes (FL 2020, NV 2017, AZ 2019, IN 2018) predate UEWA and have slightly different requirements.

Primary sourceUETA §3(b)(1)

Cross-state portability of an electronic will

The cross-state portability question for e-wills is unsettled in most non-adopting states. A few specific patterns appear:

The cross-state decoder runs this conditional.

COVID-era remote witnessing — distinct from UEWA

During COVID-19, most states issued executive orders permitting remote witnessing. Most expired between 2022 and 2023. A few states (e.g., Illinois, Washington) enacted permanent post-COVID remote-witnessing frameworks separate from UEWA. A will purportedly executed under a now-expired emergency rule may be invalid; legal review required.

UEWA adopters in detail

Frequently asked questions

Which states have adopted UEWA or an Electronic Wills Act?

Nine jurisdictions enacted Electronic Wills Act statutes as of 2026-05-11: Utah adopted the Uniform Electronic Wills Act; Arizona (2019), Colorado (2021, Colorado Uniform Electronic Wills Act), Florida (2020), Illinois (2022), Indiana (2018), Maryland (2022, state-specific), Nevada (originally 2001 — the first US state to permit e-wills, substantially revised 2017), and Washington (2022) enacted state-specific Electronic Wills Acts. North Dakota was previously listed but is currently flagged citation-drift (the chapter we originally cited turned out to be International Wills, not e-wills) and is suppressed from the public count until re-verified.

What is the difference between UEWA and UETA?

UETA (Uniform Electronic Transactions Act) is a general electronic-records statute adopted by nearly every state. UETA §3(b)(1) explicitly EXCLUDES wills from its scope, which is why a separate framework — UEWA, or state-specific Electronic Wills Acts — was needed for electronic wills.

Is my electronic will valid if I move to a non-adopting state?

It depends on the domicile state's choice-of-law rule and whether the e-will satisfies the execution-state's framework. Cross-state recognition of e-wills under a non-adopting state's UPC §2-506 conformity rule is unsettled — the decoder will flag this as UNCERTAIN.

Did COVID-era remote-witnessing become permanent?

Only in a few states (notably Illinois and Washington have permanent post-COVID frameworks separate from UEWA). Most states' COVID emergency orders expired between 2022 and 2023. A will executed under a now-lapsed emergency order may not be valid; legal review required.

What is 'electronic presence' under UEWA?

UEWA defines electronic presence as the witnesses being able to see and hear the testator in real time during the signing, even if not physically co-located. The signing must be recorded simultaneously or within a reasonable time. State-specific Electronic Wills Acts have similar but not identical definitions.

Related — Desymphony estate cluster

SmallEstateMap.usSmall-estate / no-will threshold matrix (post-death)PostSave.usPost-save planning (post-death finalization)RMDAcross.comMulti-account RMD aggregation (estate-tax-touching)