In short
Your will should make clear that crypto is part of your estate and who gets it. It should never contain seed phrases, PINs or passwords, because in many places a will becomes a public document after death.
Why secrets don’t belong in a will
A will is a legal document with a public life of its own. In England and Wales, once a grant of probate has been issued, anyone can order a copy of the will for a small fee through GOV.UK. In most US states, a will filed with the probate court becomes a public court record. Other countries differ, but the principle holds: a will is read by lawyers, courts, relatives and sometimes strangers.
A seed phrase in that document is a seed phrase anyone can read. Keep the will for who gets what. Keep the how in a letter of instruction.
What your will should say
Your lawyer or notary will word it for your country, but a few points are worth raising with them.
- That digital assets are part of your estate. Mentioning crypto and other digital assets explicitly removes doubt about whether your executor is meant to deal with them.
- Who inherits them. Either as part of the rest of your estate, or as a specific gift. If you give specific coins to specific people, think about what happens when the value changes a lot. A gift of “my bitcoin” might be worth far more or less by the time you die than you intended. A percentage of the estate avoids that problem.
- Who handles them. Your executor may not be comfortable with crypto. Some people name a second executor for digital assets, or ask the executor to take advice from a named person.
- Permission to access your devices and accounts. In the US, the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (RUFADAA), adopted by the large majority of states, lets you give your executor access to online accounts through your will. It helps with exchange accounts and email. It can’t help with a wallet where you hold the keys yourself; there’s no company to ask.
- Where the letter of instruction is. One line is enough: “Instructions for my digital assets are kept with …”
Questions to ask your lawyer or notary
- How does our law treat crypto in an estate, and does anything need a special clause?
- Will my will become public, and when?
- Can my executor legally access my devices and accounts, and do I need to give explicit permission?
- How should the estate value crypto for tax, and at which date?
- If the heirs can’t access some of the crypto, how is that handled in the estate and for tax?
The country pages cover the basics for the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union.
Be careful what you tell the professionals
Your lawyer needs to know that crypto exists and roughly what it’s worth. They don’t need your seed phrase, and a good one won’t ask. If you want a lawyer to hold part of your secrets, give them a sealed envelope and treat it as a separate arrangement.
When nobody knows the will mentions crypto
A will that says “my bitcoin goes to my daughter” doesn’t help if nobody can find the bitcoin. The will and the letter work as a pair. Make sure the people who’ll read the first one know the second exists.
Next: Multisig inheritance.