There shall be five forms of wills: holograph document, sound recording, notarial and secret documents, and instrument of dictation.
Legal basis:
Civil Act
1. Will by Holograph Document
To make a will by holograph document, the testator must write with his/her own handwriting the whole text, the date, the domicile and his/her full name, and must affix his/her seal thereto.
To make any insertion, deletion or other alteration of letters in a holograph, such correction must be made in the testator’s own handwriting and affix his/her seal thereto.
2. Will by Sound Recording
To make a will by a sound recording, the testator must orally state the tenor of his/her will, his/her full name and the date, and the witness must orally state that the will made by the testator is due and correct and also state his/her full name.
3. Will by Notarial Document
To make a will by a notarial document, the testator must orally state the tenor of his/her will before a notary, in the presence of two witnesses and the notary must write down and read it, and then the testator and each of the witness must affix their signature or names, and seals to the writing after acknowledging it to be due and correct.
4. Will by Secret Document
To make a will by a secret document, the testator must close up the document on which the writer’s full name was written and affix his/her seal thereto, and after the testator has produced the sealed document before at least two witnesses and declares that it is his/her testamentary document, the date of the production of the document must be written on the sealed cover, and then the testator and the witnesses must affix their signatures or names and seals thereto.
A closed document of a will prepared in compliance with the forms mentioned above must be submitted to a notary or the court clerk within five days from the day on which the date of production of the document has been written down on the cover of the document, and the date of confirmation thereof must be affixed on the part sealed.
5. Will by Instrument of Dictation
To make a will by an instrument of dictation in a case where a will is not able to be made in compliance with the forms mentioned in the preceding four Articles due to disease or any other cause imminent, the testator must orally declare the tenor of his will to one of the witnesses in the presence of at least two witnesses, and the person to whom the oral declaration is made must write it down and read it, and the testator and each witness, after their having acknowledged the writing to be due and correct, must affix their signature and seal thereto.
A will made in compliance with the form mentioned above must be submitted to the court for its inspection and approval thereof by the witness or the persons interested within seven days from the day on which such imminent cause terminates.
An incompetent shall not apply to a will to be made by an instrument of dictation.
