Will Execution Requirements in Oregon

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Governing law

Oregon's will-execution rules are in the Oregon Revised Statutes, Chapter 112. The core statute is § 112.235, which sets the writing, signature, and two-witness formalities; § 112.225 says who may make a will; § 112.238 is a harmless-error safety valve; and § 112.245 handles a witness who is also a beneficiary. Oregon uses the traditional common-law attested will — a written document signed before two witnesses — and, unlike about half the states, does not recognize a handwritten (holographic) will. The 2025 Legislature (2025 Or. Laws ch. 34) amended §§ 112.235 and 112.238, effective January 1, 2026; those amendments are already in force.

Minimum age & capacity

A will may be made by "any person who is 18 years of age or older or who has been lawfully married or who has been emancipated" under ORS 419B.550 to 419B.558, and who is "of sound mind" (§ 112.225). So the usual age is 18, but marriage or a court emancipation lets a younger person make a will. The statute does not define "sound mind"; Oregon courts apply the standard testamentary-capacity test — the maker must understand that they are making a will, know the nature and extent of their property, and know the people who would ordinarily receive it — measured at the moment of signing.

Writing & signature

An Oregon will must be in writing (§ 112.235(1)), and the law is now explicit that "writing" "does not include an electronic record, document or image" (§ 112.235(4)). In the presence of each of the witnesses, the testator must do one of three things: sign the will; direct a witness or another person to sign the testator's name (that person then signs their own name too, showing who signed and why); or acknowledge a signature already on the will (§ 112.235(1)(a)). Oregon does not require the signature to be at the end of the document.

Witnesses required

An Oregon will needs at least two witnesses. Each witness must either see the testator sign, hear the testator acknowledge the signature, or hear or observe the testator direct someone else to sign — and each must "attest the will by signing the witness' name to the will within a reasonable time before the testator's death" (§ 112.235(1)(b)). Two features stand out. First, the witnesses do not have to sign in each other's presence (unlike some states), and they may sign a bit later — so long as it is within a reasonable time and before the testator dies. Second, using a beneficiary as a witness does not hurt the will: "A will attested by an interested witness is not thereby invalidated" (§ 112.245). Oregon abolished the old rule that voided a gift to a witness, so an interested witness keeps their gift — though disinterested witnesses are still the cleaner practice.

Notarization & self-proving

Oregon does not require a will to be notarized — a notary is not a substitute for a witness. Oregon also does not use the classic "self-proving affidavit" signed at execution that some states use to lock in validity. Instead, § 112.235(2) provides that a witness's signature on an affidavit executed at the same time as the will counts as the witness signing the will, and at probate an attesting witness's testimony can be supplied by affidavit (ORS 113.055) so the witness need not appear in court. A properly witnessed Oregon will is complete without any notary.

Handwritten (holographic) wills

Oregon does not recognize holographic wills. There is no handwriting exception in § 112.235: a will written entirely by hand still needs two witnesses, just like a typed one. Oregon likewise does not recognize oral (nuncupative) wills. One practical cushion: a will that fails Oregon's formalities may still be honored in Oregon if it was validly executed under the law of the state where it was signed — but a homemade, unwitnessed handwritten will made in Oregon is not valid here.

Electronic & remote wills

Oregon does not permit electronic wills, and as of January 1, 2026 the statute says so directly. Oregon has not adopted the Uniform Electronic Wills Act, and 2025 Or. Laws ch. 34 amended § 112.235 to provide that "writing" "does not include an electronic record, document or image" (§ 112.235(4)). The witnesses must actually see the signing or hear the acknowledgment, and there is no standing authority for remote audio-video witnessing. A will that exists only as a computer file, or that was "signed" electronically, is not a valid Oregon will.

Harmless-error / curative doctrine

Oregon has a harmless-error rule, in § 112.238. Even if a writing was not executed exactly as § 112.235 requires, a court may treat it as a will if it was executed before the person's death, the decedent (or someone at the decedent's direction) signed it, and the person offering it "establishes by clear and convincing evidence that the decedent intended the writing to constitute" their will (or a revocation or change to it). That can rescue a will with, say, only one witness. But the cure has a hard edge: because "writing" excludes an electronic record and that same definition governs § 112.238, the harmless-error rule cannot save an electronic document — it works only for a physical writing.

What trips people up

A handwritten will you signed without witnesses is not valid in Oregon. This is the most common mistake. Oregon does not accept holographic wills; § 112.235 requires two witnesses for every will. Handwriting the document changes nothing about the witness requirement. (The § 112.238 harmless-error rule might rescue it, but only by convincing a probate court after the fact — far from guaranteed.)

Electronic and video-only signings do not work. Since January 1, 2026 the statute defines "writing" to exclude an electronic record (§ 112.235(4)). An online service that emails you a signed PDF has produced a draft, not a will, until it is printed and witnessed in person.

Witnesses must attest before you die — and it is best to do it at the signing. Section 112.235(1)(b) lets witnesses sign "within a reasonable time before the testator's death," but a witness who never gets around to signing, or signs after death, breaks the rule. Have both witnesses sign at the ceremony.

Harmless error is a backstop, not a plan. Section 112.238 can save a defective will, but it requires a court petition, notice to interested people, and clear-and-convincing proof of intent — the expense and uncertainty a properly witnessed will avoids.

Common questions

Does my Oregon will have to be notarized? No. Oregon requires two witnesses, not a notary (§ 112.235). Notarization is never required to make the will valid.

Can I handwrite my own will in Oregon? You can write it by hand, but it still needs two witnesses — Oregon does not recognize unwitnessed holographic wills. A handwritten, unwitnessed document is not a valid Oregon will (though a court might, in limited circumstances, honor it under the harmless-error rule in § 112.238).

Can a beneficiary witness my Oregon will? Yes, without penalty. "A will attested by an interested witness is not thereby invalidated," and Oregon does not void the gift (§ 112.245). Using disinterested witnesses is still tidier, but it is not required.

Can I sign my will online in Oregon? No. As of 2026 the law says a "writing" cannot be an electronic record, document, or image (§ 112.235(4)), so an electronic or video-only will is not valid in Oregon.

Statutes and sources

• ORS 112.225 — who may make a will: 18 or older, or married or emancipated, and of sound mind. https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors112.html (accessed 2026-07-11)
• ORS 112.235 — execution: a written will signed by the testator and attested by two witnesses within a reasonable time before death; "writing" excludes electronic records (subsection (4), 2025 amendment). https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors112.html (accessed 2026-07-11)
• ORS 112.238 — harmless-error exception: a non-compliant writing may be treated as a will on clear and convincing proof of the decedent's intent. https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors112.html (accessed 2026-07-11)
• ORS 112.245 — a will attested by an interested witness is not invalidated; no purging of the gift. https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors112.html (accessed 2026-07-11)