Unlike a notary's stamp, registration with the Sub-Registrar leaves a record your family can obtain after your death. Your will is copied into Book 3, the register of wills, and after your death anyone who applies gets a sealed copy that is admissible in court to prove what the will said. Registration costs Rs 100 in Maharashtra, Rs 600 in Delhi and Rs 200 in Karnataka, with no stamp duty.

A notary's stamp leaves only a one-line entry in the notary's register, and your family has no right to a copy of the will from the notary. WillJini's lawyers draft the will and assist with registering it if you want that record.

Where this page sits

If you already hold a notarised will, it can still be registered, even after the testator's death. For the registration fee and the office visit in Mumbai or Delhi, read the city guides below; to have WillJini draft and register the will, see will registration.

Related guides:

• What registering a will proves
• Who can witness a will
• Will registration charges in Mumbai
• Will registration in Delhi

Should a Will Be Notarised or Registered?

Register the will if you want your family to be able to get a sealed copy of it from the registration office after your death.

Registration is optional under section 18(e) of the Registration Act, 1908, and no law requires a will to be notarised. A will is valid when it meets section 63 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925: the testator signs it, and two or more witnesses, each of whom saw the testator sign or received the testator's personal acknowledgment of the signature, sign it in the testator's presence. Anyone of sound mind who has completed eighteen years can make a will (sections 59 and 2(e)).

What Does a Notary Actually Do to a Will?

A notary authenticates the signing of the will: section 8(1)(a) of the Notaries Act, 1952 lets a notary "verify, authenticate, certify or attest the execution of any instrument". Notaries are appointed by the Central or a State Government, and the Notaries Rules, 1956 let a notary charge not more than Rs 35 for this (rule 10(1)(e), as substituted in 2014).

The only record a notarisation leaves is one line in the notary's Notarial Register, kept in Form XV (rule 11(2)): the date, the name of the person, a short note of what the document is and the fee. No rule requires the notary to keep a copy of the will. A notarised will is not presumed to have been duly executed: the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 takes judicial notice of a notary's seal (section 52(1)(e)) but presumes due execution only for a notarised power of attorney (section 84).

What Does Registration Give a Will That Notarisation Does Not?

Registration puts the will on record in Book 3, the register of wills kept in every registration office (sections 51 and 52). While the testator is alive, only the testator or an agent can get a copy of that entry. After the death anyone who applies can get one, and the copy, signed and sealed by the registering officer, is admissible to prove what the original said (section 57).

The registering officer also checks who is signing: the presenter's photograph and fingerprints are affixed to the will (section 32A), and the officer must be satisfied of the identity of the person executing it (section 34(3)).

The registration office hands the original back to you once registration is complete (section 61(2)). To have a Registrar hold the original instead, you can deposit the will in a sealed cover under section 42, for Rs 100 in Maharashtra and Rs 1,000 in Karnataka.

Is a Notarised Will Valid in India?

A notarised will is valid in India if it meets section 63 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925: the testator's signature and two attesting witnesses. The notary's stamp is not one of those two witnesses. The Supreme Court held in Bhagat Ram v Suresh (2003) that a person who signs as a scribe, an identifier or a registering officer is not an attesting witness. By the same rule, a notary counts as one only if the notary saw the testator sign or received the testator's acknowledgment, signed as a witness in the testator's presence meaning to attest, and proves that in court.

On 18 September 2026 the Gujarat High Court applied this rule to a notarised will of 1992. The notary gave evidence, but no attesting witness was examined, and the court held that a notary "is not an attesting witness in the absence of independent proof of animus attestandi". The court upheld an earlier will of 1986 because one of its attesting witnesses gave evidence. Whether you notarise the will, register it or do neither, it is proved through its attesting witnesses, so pick two people who are likely to be alive and easy to trace.

Can a Notarised Will Be Challenged?

Yes, a notarised will can be challenged in court like any other will. The person relying on a will has to call at least one attesting witness before it can be used as evidence (Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023, section 67). The proviso that spares registered documents this step covers only a document "not being a will", so a registered will is proved exactly like a notarised or unregistered one.

The Supreme Court confirmed this on 1 September 2025 in Ramesh Chand v Suresh Chand: "Mere fact that the Will was registered will not grant validity to the document." On 21 May 2026, in Parvathi Nairthi v Laxmi Nairthy (2026 INSC 521), the Court upheld an unregistered will proved by an attesting witness and held that non-registration "has no significant bearing on its validity". A later will can revoke an earlier registered will, whether or not the later one is registered (Indian Succession Act, section 70).

Can a Notarised Will Be Registered Later?

A will can be presented for registration "at any time", notarised or not (Registration Act, section 27). The four-month limit that section 23 sets for other documents does not apply to a will.

Registration is possible even after the testator has died, when the executor or anyone claiming under the will presents it (section 40(1)). Before registering it, the officer must be satisfied that the testator executed it, that the testator is dead and that the person presenting it is entitled to do so (section 41(2)). In Maharashtra this costs Rs 100, and the beneficiary produces the original will, the death certificate and evidence that the testator signed it, such as the people who were present at the signing.

How Does WillJini Draft and Register a Will?

A WillJini lawyer drafts your will to suit your family and your assets, then guides you through signing it before two witnesses, as section 63 requires. For registration, WillJini helps you book the appointment and present the will at the registration office. The original comes back to you once the will is copied into Book 3.

FAQs

Is a notarised will valid in India?

Yes, a notarised will is valid if the testator signs it and two witnesses attest it as section 63 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925 requires. Neither notarisation nor registration is needed for validity; registration is optional under section 18(e) of the Registration Act, 1908.

Can a notarised will be challenged?

A notarised will can be challenged in court like any other will. Section 67 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 requires at least one attesting witness to be called before a will can be used as evidence, whether it was notarised, registered or neither.

Is a notary an attesting witness to a will?

A notary is an attesting witness to a will only when the notary has seen the testator sign, or received the testator's acknowledgment, and has signed as a witness with the intention of attesting (Bhagat Ram v Suresh, Supreme Court, 2003; Gujarat High Court, 18 September 2026).

Can a will be registered after the testator's death?

A will can be registered after the testator's death. Under sections 40 and 41 of the Registration Act, 1908 the executor or anyone claiming under the will presents it, and the officer registers it once satisfied that the testator executed it and has died. Maharashtra charges Rs 100 for this.

What does it cost to register a will?

Each state sets its own fee: Rs 100 in Maharashtra, Rs 600 in Delhi and Rs 200 in Karnataka, with no stamp duty on a will in any of the three.