Hawaii: Self-Proving Affidavit for Wills Requirements

Requirements one by one

Availability and governing law

Hawaii provides two self-proof routes in § 560:2-504. Subsection (a) combines
will execution, witness attestation, and self-proof in one ceremony. Subsection
(b) lets an already attested will be made self-proved later.

Who signs or swears

Both routes use the testator and both witnesses. The testator acknowledges the
will and signs the form; each witness makes an affidavit and signs. This signer
set is distinct from § 560:2-502's execution rule, which allows each witness to
sign within a reasonable time after observing the signature or acknowledgment.

When it may be made

Subsection 560:2-504(a) is the execution-time route. Subsection (b) says an
attested will may be self-proved “at any time after its execution,” but its form
still calls for the testator and both witnesses. It is therefore not a
post-death cure when the testator can no longer acknowledge the will.

Officer, oath, and seal

The officer must be authorized to administer oaths under the law of the state
where the execution or later acknowledgment occurs. Section 560:2-504 requires
the officer's certificate under official seal and includes the officer's signed
capacity line in both substantial forms.

Required recitals and form

The forms need only be followed substantially. The testator declares willing,
free, and voluntary execution, age eighteen or older, sound mind, and freedom
from constraint or undue influence. The witnesses swear that the testator
signed willingly and that each witness signed in the testator's presence and
hearing, with the same age, sound-mind, and no-constraint recitals.

The statutory witness form does not say the witnesses must sign in each other's
presence and does not add a minimum witness age.

Attachment to the will

For later self-proof, subsection 560:2-504(b) requires the officer's certificate
to be attached or annexed to the will. Section 560:3-406(1) likewise measures
the probate shortcut upon filing the will and the acknowledgment and affidavits
annexed or attached to it.

Electronic, remote, and out-of-state rules

The cited will provisions do not create a separate electronic or remote self-
proof procedure. They do allow the oath officer to act under the law of the
state where the execution or later acknowledgment occurs, so the ceremony need
not occur in Hawaii if the officer has authority there.

Probate effect and exceptions

Under § 560:3-406(1), filing a self-proved will with its attached or annexed
acknowledgment and affidavits satisfies execution without testimony from an
attesting witness. The stated exception is evidence of fraud or forgery
affecting the acknowledgment or affidavit.

Section 560:2-504(c) adds a separate rescue rule: a signature on an attached
self-proving affidavit counts as a signature on the will when necessary to
prove due execution.

If there is no affidavit

Section 560:3-406(2) ordinarily requires testimony from at least one attesting
witness who is in Hawaii, competent, and able to testify. Other evidence may
establish proper execution, including an attesting witness's affidavit. A
signed attestation clause creates a rebuttable presumption that its recited
events occurred.

What trips people up

• Later does not mean after death. The later form still requires the
  testator's acknowledgment and signature along with both witness affidavits.
• The seal is statutory. Both routes require an officer's certificate under
  official seal; a bare signature line is incomplete.
• Execution and self-proof use different timing rules. Witnesses may sign
  the will within a reasonable time under § 560:2-502, but self-proof requires
  the all-party oath-and-acknowledgment ceremony in § 560:2-504.

Common questions

Does a missing affidavit invalidate the will?

No. Section 560:2-502 governs execution. Without self-proof, § 560:3-406(2)
uses witness testimony or other proof and gives a signed attestation clause a
rebuttable presumption.

Can an affidavit signature repair a missing will signature?

Potentially. Section 560:2-504(c) treats a signature on an attached self-
proving affidavit as a signature on the will when necessary to prove due
execution. It does not excuse the remaining execution requirements.

Statutes and sources

• Haw. Rev. Stat. § 560:2-502 — writing, testator signature, witness timing,
  and holographic-will rules.
  https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol12_Ch0501-0588/HRS0560/HRS_0560-0002-0502.htm
  (accessed 2026-08-01)
• Haw. Rev. Stat. § 560:2-504 — both self-proof routes, statutory forms,
  officer certificate and seal, attachment, and affidavit-signature rule.
  https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol12_Ch0501-0588/HRS0560/HRS_0560-0002-0504.htm
  (accessed 2026-08-01)
• Haw. Rev. Stat. § 560:3-406 — self-proof effect, fraud/forgery exception, and
  alternate proof without an affidavit.
  https://data.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol12_Ch0501-0588/HRS0560/HRS_0560-0003-0406.htm
  (accessed 2026-08-01)