Self-Proving Affidavit for Wills Requirements in South Carolina

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Availability and governing law

Section 62-2-503 provides two self-proof routes. A will may be executed, attested, and self-proved in one ceremony, or an already-attested will may be made self-proved later.

South Carolina also has a narrower notarization route. A will witness who is an officer authorized to administer oaths may notarize the other witness's signature. Section 62-3-406 distinguishes a will completed that way but not self-proved from a self-proved will.

Who signs or swears

The will itself still has two witnesses. For self-proof, however, the testator acknowledges and swears, while only "at least one witness" must give the sworn affidavit. The one-step form has both witnesses sign the will but expressly says at least one is sworn.

The later form likewise names the testator and at least one witness as the people completing the affidavit.

When it may be made

The one-step route is simultaneous with execution and attestation. Under subsection (b), an attested will may be made self-proved "at any time subsequent" to execution. The statute states no elapsed-time deadline, but the later form still requires the testator's acknowledgment.

Officer, oath and seal

For simultaneous self-proof, the officer must be authorized to administer oaths by the state where execution occurs. For later self-proof, the officer's authority comes from the state where the acknowledgment occurs. In both cases, the officer's certificate must be under official seal.

A will witness who is also a South Carolina oath officer may notarize the other witness's signature. That act does not by itself supply every element of self-proof.

Required recitals and form

South Carolina permits the statutory form or a similar form showing the same intent. The testator declares that the instrument is the will, the signature or direction to another signer was willing, execution was a free and voluntary act, and the testator met the age or married/emancipated-minor rule, was of sound mind, and was under no constraint or undue influence.

The witness affidavit covers the corresponding facts, including that each will witness signed in the testator's presence and hearing.

Attachment to the will

For later self-proof, the officer's sealed certificate must be attached or annexed to the will. The simultaneous subsection does not state a separate attachment command. Section 62-2-503 also contains no rule treating an affidavit signature as a missing signature on the will.

Electronic, remote and out-of-state rules

The current Title 62 index and wills part contain no South Carolina electronic- will self-proof route. The state's electronic-notary chapter cannot supply one: § 26-2-200 says that chapter "does not apply to wills and trusts."

For an ordinary paper affidavit, § 62-2-503 permits an oath officer authorized under the law of the relevant state of execution or acknowledgment. Section 62-2-505 separately validates some wills executed under another place's law, but the cited provisions do not give blanket recognition to foreign self-proved status.

Probate effect and exceptions

In a contested execution dispute, filing the self-proved will and its attached or annexed acknowledgment and affidavits satisfies the execution requirements without testimony from any attesting witness. That result is expressly "subject to rebuttal"; South Carolina does not make the execution facts conclusive merely because the will is self-proved.

A will notarized through the witness-officer route but not self-proved receives a rebuttable presumption that it satisfies execution requirements.

If there is no affidavit

Under § 62-3-303(c), in informal probate a will with the apparent required signatures and a proper attestation clause may be admitted without further proof. Otherwise, the court may assume execution from an apparently proper will or accept a sworn statement from anyone who knows the signing circumstances.

Under § 62-3-405, in an unopposed formal case one attesting witness's affidavit or testimony is sufficient if execution evidence is needed; other evidence or an affidavit can be used if neither is available. In a contested case, one available, competent in-state witness generally testifies, but other evidence and witness affidavits remain available, and a signed attestation clause raises a rebuttable presumption.

What trips people up

Two witnesses sign the will, but only one must swear

The execution rule and self-proof rule answer different questions. Two witnesses must sign the will, while § 62-2-503 makes the self-proof affidavit effective with the affidavit of at least one witness plus the testator's acknowledgment.

Witness-officer notarization is not automatically self-proof

Section 62-2-503(c) lets a witness-officer notarize the other witness's signature. Section 62-3-406(2) expressly addresses a will notarized that way "but not self-proved" and gives it a rebuttable execution presumption, not the self-proved route in paragraph (1).

Common questions

Can a South Carolina will be made self-proving later?

Yes. An attested will may be made self-proved "at any time subsequent" to execution if the testator and at least one witness complete the required form before the proper officer under official seal.

Must both will witnesses sign the affidavit?

No. Both witnesses must sign the will, but the self-proof statute requires the affidavit of at least one witness.

Is a self-proved South Carolina will immune from an execution challenge?

No. In a contested case it satisfies execution requirements without witness testimony, but § 62-3-406(1) makes that effect subject to rebuttal.

What if the will has only an attestation clause?

A proper attestation clause may permit informal probate without further proof. In a contested case, it raises a rebuttable presumption that the events it recites occurred, but it is not the same as self-proof.

Statutes and sources

• S.C. Code Ann. § 62-2-503 — one-step and later self-proof, one-witness affidavit, forms, officer and seal, attachment, and witness-officer route: official State House text (accessed 2026-08-01)
• S.C. Code Ann. §§ 62-3-303, 62-3-405, and 62-3-406 — informal, uncontested, and contested proof and presumptions: official State House text (accessed 2026-08-01)
• S.C. Code Ann. § 26-2-200 — electronic-notary chapter excludes wills: official State House text (accessed 2026-08-01)
• S.C. Code Ann. § 62-2-505 — execution under another place's law: official State House text (accessed 2026-08-01)