Question 1

What makes a will valid in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Anyone 18 or older and of sound mind may make a will. A will must be in writing, signed by the testator (or by another person in the testator's conscious presence and at the testator's direction), and signed by at least two witnesses, each of whom signs within a reasonable time after seeing the testator sign or hearing the testator acknowledge the signature or the will.

Question 2

Is a handwritten will valid in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Yes. A will that is not witnessed is valid as a holographic will if the signature and the material portions of the document are in the testator's handwriting.

Question 3

Does a will need to be notarized in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Yes. A will can be made self-proved, at signing or later, by the testator's acknowledgment and the witnesses' affidavits made before a notary or other officer authorized to administer oaths, in substantially the statutory form.

Question 4

Who inherits if someone dies without a will in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Surviving spouse or reciprocal beneficiary takes: the entire estate if the decedent left no descendants and no parent, or if all of the decedent's descendants are also the spouse's and the spouse has no other descendants; the first $400,000 plus three-fourths of the rest if there are no descendants but a parent survives; the first $330,000 plus one-half of the rest if all the decedent's descendants are also the spouse's but the spouse has other descendants; the first $220,000 plus one-half of the rest if any of the decedent's descendants are not the spouse's. Whatever does not go to the spouse passes to descendants by representation; if none, to parents; then to siblings and their descendants, and then more distant relatives.

Question 5

What is a surviving spouse entitled to in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

A surviving spouse or reciprocal beneficiary of a Hawaii domiciliary may elect 50% of the marital-property portion of the augmented estate, plus a supplemental amount that brings the total to at least $90,000 if needed. The petition must be filed within 9 months after death or 6 months after the will is probated, whichever is later (an extension can be requested within the 9 months).

Question 6

What is the small estate limit in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Yes, for personal property. A successor can collect money owed to the decedent and the decedent's personal property by giving the holder a death certificate and an affidavit stating that the gross value of the decedent's Hawaii estate does not exceed $100,000 (motor vehicles can be transferred regardless of value), that no petition for a personal representative is pending or granted in Hawaii, and that the successor is entitled to the property. The statute does not set a waiting period. Real estate is not covered by the affidavit.

Question 7

Is there a simplified probate process in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

If the decedent's Hawaii property is worth $100,000 or less and no personal representative has been appointed, the court may authorize the clerk of the circuit court to administer the estate on a verified petition, without notice or hearing at the court's discretion. Separately, if the inventory shows the estate (less liens) does not exceed the family allowances, exempt property, administration costs, reasonable funeral expenses and last-illness medical expenses, the personal representative may distribute immediately without notice to creditors and close by sworn statement. Informal (unsupervised) probate through the probate registrar is also available.

Question 8

How does probate work in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

File an application for informal probate or appointment with the probate registrar (or a petition for formal probate with the circuit court); the personal representative is appointed and receives letters; notice to creditors may be published once a week for 2 weeks and mailed to known creditors; the personal representative prepares an inventory within 3 months after appointment and sends it to interested persons who request it; pays claims and expenses and distributes the estate; then closes the estate by a verified closing statement filed no earlier than 6 months after appointment, or by court order.

Question 9

How long do creditors have to file claims against an estate in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

If notice to creditors is published, claims arising before death must be presented within 4 months after the first publication, or within 60 days after a mailed or delivered notice to a known creditor, whichever is later. If no notice is published or served, claims are barred 18 months after death.

Question 10

Who can be an executor in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Priority for appointment goes to the person named in the will, then the surviving spouse or reciprocal beneficiary who is a devisee, other devisees, the surviving spouse or reciprocal beneficiary, other heirs, and (after 45 days) a creditor. A person under 18, or one the court finds unsuitable in formal proceedings, cannot serve. The statute does not bar non-residents. No bond is required in informal proceedings unless the will requires it or an interested person asks for one; in formal proceedings the court may require bond unless the will waives it.

Question 11

Does Hawaii allow transfer-on-death deeds?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Hawaii's Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act allows a transfer on death deed. The owner must have the same capacity as needed to make a will; the deed must have the formalities of a recordable deed, state that the transfer occurs at the owner's death, and be recorded with the Bureau of Conveyances (or filed with the Land Court assistant registrar, for Land Court property) before the owner's death. Notice to, delivery to, or acceptance by the beneficiary is not required, and the deed can be revoked by a later recorded instrument (not by tearing it up).

Question 12

What does a quitclaim deed need to be valid in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

To be recorded, a deed must carry a certificate of acknowledgment (typically before a notary public) in the statutory form. Deeds are recorded with the State Bureau of Conveyances, or for Land Court (registered) property filed with the Land Court assistant registrar. A state conveyance tax applies, based on the consideration or value, at graduated rates starting at 10 cents per $100 for property under $600,000 (higher rates apply to some sales of condominiums or single-family homes where the buyer is not eligible for a county homeowner's exemption).

Question 13

What are the requirements for a power of attorney in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Hawaii has adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act and provides a statutory form power of attorney. A power of attorney is durable unless it expressly says it ends on the principal's incapacity. It must be signed by the principal (or by another person in the principal's conscious presence at the principal's direction). Notarization is not strictly required, but a signature acknowledged before a notary is presumed genuine.

Question 14

What are the requirements for a health care directive in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

An adult or emancipated minor may give health care instructions (orally or in writing) and may sign a power of attorney for health care. The health care power of attorney must be in writing, dated and signed, and either signed by two witnesses or acknowledged before a notary public in Hawaii. Witnesses cannot be health care providers, their employees, or the agent, and at least one witness must be neither related to the principal nor entitled to inherit. The statute provides an optional Advance Health-Care Directive form.

Question 15

Does Hawaii have an estate or inheritance tax?

Accepted Answer

Hawaii has a state estate tax (no inheritance tax). The exclusion amount is $5,490,000, fixed at the 2017 federal level and not increased with the federal exemption. Rates are graduated from 10% up to 20% on amounts over $10 million. Form M-6 is filed by the personal representative.

Question 16

How do I make a living will in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Hawaii uses an "advance health-care directive." An adult or emancipated minor may give an individual instruction about health care, which may be oral or written and may be limited to take effect only if a stated condition arises. The statute includes an optional Advance Health-Care Directive form with a section for end-of-life instructions. When the written directive includes a power of attorney for health care, it must be dated, signed, and either signed by two qualified witnesses or acknowledged before a notary public in Hawaii.

Question 17

How do I make a medical power of attorney in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Hawaii calls it a "power of attorney for health care." It may authorize the agent to make any health care decision the principal could make and stays in effect after incapacity. It must be in writing, dated, signed by the principal, and either signed by two witnesses (each of whom saw the signing or the principal's acknowledgment) or acknowledged before a notary public in Hawaii. Witnesses cannot be health care providers, their employees, or the agent, and at least one witness must be neither related to the principal nor entitled to inherit. Unless related to the principal, the agent cannot be an owner, operator or employee of the facility where the principal receives care.

Question 18

How do living trusts work in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Hawaii adopted the Uniform Trust Code (Act 32 of 2021, Chapter 554D). For trusts created by instruments signed on or after January 1, 2022, a trust is revocable unless its terms expressly say it is irrevocable. The settlor may revoke or amend by substantially following the method in the trust (which may require a higher level of capacity) or, if there is no exclusive method, by another method allowed by statute. Assets must be retitled to the trustee to be governed by the trust; trust property passes under its terms without probate, while assets left outside the trust may require probate or a small estate procedure.

Question 19

What does an executor have to do in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Notice to creditors may be published once a week for two successive weeks in the judicial circuit; creditors then have four months after first publication to present claims, and the personal representative may also mail notice to known creditors (claims due by the later of four months after publication or 60 days after mailing). Within three months after appointment, the personal representative prepares an inventory with date-of-death fair market values and encumbrances, sends it to interested persons who request it, and may file it with the court. After paying claims and distributing the estate, the representative may close an unsupervised estate by a verified closing statement filed no earlier than six months after appointment, or obtain a court order closing it.

Question 20

How do I get letters testamentary in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

To act, a personal representative must be appointed by order of the circuit court or the probate registrar, qualify, and be issued letters; administration begins when letters issue. Informal probate or appointment is requested by application to the probate registrar; formal proceedings are by petition to the circuit court. Priority goes to the person named in the will, then the surviving spouse or reciprocal beneficiary who is a devisee, other devisees, the spouse or reciprocal beneficiary, and other heirs. No bond is required in informal proceedings unless the will requires it or an interested person asks for one.

Question 21

Does Hawaii have an affidavit of heirship?

Accepted Answer

No statute. Hawaii has no statutory affidavit of heirship for real estate, and the small estate affidavit covers personal property only. Real estate in the decedent's sole name passes through probate (informal or formal), the clerk-administered procedure for Hawaii estates of $100,000 or less, or a transfer on death deed.

Question 22

How can you avoid probate in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Non-probate options in Hawaii include: transfer on death deeds for real estate, recorded with the Bureau of Conveyances or Land Court before death (Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 527); joint and payable-on-death accounts, which belong to the surviving party or POD payee (Haw. Rev. Stat. § 560:6-104); transfer-on-death registration of securities (Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 539); jointly owned vehicles, which the survivor can transfer; property in a funded revocable trust (Haw. Rev. Stat. § 554D-602); and the small estate affidavit for estates of $100,000 or less (vehicles can be transferred regardless of value) (Haw. Rev. Stat. § 560:3-1201).

Question 23

Where can I get a power of attorney form in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

For health care, the Hawaii Department of Health's Executive Office on Aging links to the Hawaii Advance Health Care Directive form in fillable and printable versions (hosted by Kokua Mau); electronic signatures are not accepted.

Question 24

How do I search probate court records in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Estate and probate cases are Circuit Court cases. The Judiciary's eCourt Kokua system provides public case information for Circuit Court civil and other case types; probate and estate case numbers use prefixes such as EQ, LG, LP, SE and TS in the 12-character eCourt case ID. Confidential, juvenile and sealed cases are not shown.

Question 25

How do I transfer a car title after someone dies in Hawaii?

Accepted Answer

Vehicle titles are handled by each county's motor vehicle office. In the City and County of Honolulu: if the vehicle was jointly owned, the survivor signs Section A of the title (with odometer reading for vehicles 10 years old or newer) and Section D, and brings the endorsed title, last registration, a current safety inspection certificate, and a state-certified copy of the death certificate (photocopies not accepted). If the vehicle was registered only to the decedent, the successor uses the Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property of the Decedent (CS-L (MVR) 39). A $10 transfer fee applies, and an appointment through AlohaQ is required. Other counties have similar procedures.

Requirements for a valid will	Anyone 18 or older and of sound mind may make a will. A will must be in writing, signed by the testator (or by another person in the testator's conscious presence and at the testator's direction), and signed by at least two witnesses, each of whom signs within a reasonable time after seeing the testator sign or hearing the testator acknowledge the signature or the will. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:2-501, 560:2-502(a)
Handwritten (holographic) wills	Yes. A will that is not witnessed is valid as a holographic will if the signature and the material portions of the document are in the testator's handwriting. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. § 560:2-502(b)
Self-proving affidavit	Yes. A will can be made self-proved, at signing or later, by the testator's acknowledgment and the witnesses' affidavits made before a notary or other officer authorized to administer oaths, in substantially the statutory form. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. § 560:2-504

Probate steps	File an application for informal probate or appointment with the probate registrar (or a petition for formal probate with the circuit court); the personal representative is appointed and receives letters; notice to creditors may be published once a week for 2 weeks and mailed to known creditors; the personal representative prepares an inventory within 3 months after appointment and sends it to interested persons who request it; pays claims and expenses and distributes the estate; then closes the estate by a verified closing statement filed no earlier than 6 months after appointment, or by court order. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:3-301, 560:3-706, 560:3-801, 560:3-1003
Simplified probate	If the decedent's Hawaii property is worth $100,000 or less and no personal representative has been appointed, the court may authorize the clerk of the circuit court to administer the estate on a verified petition, without notice or hearing at the court's discretion. Separately, if the inventory shows the estate (less liens) does not exceed the family allowances, exempt property, administration costs, reasonable funeral expenses and last-illness medical expenses, the personal representative may distribute immediately without notice to creditors and close by sworn statement. Informal (unsupervised) probate through the probate registrar is also available. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:3-1205, 560:3-1203, 560:3-301
Small estate affidavit	Yes, for personal property. A successor can collect money owed to the decedent and the decedent's personal property by giving the holder a death certificate and an affidavit stating that the gross value of the decedent's Hawaii estate does not exceed $100,000 (motor vehicles can be transferred regardless of value), that no petition for a personal representative is pending or granted in Hawaii, and that the successor is entitled to the property. The statute does not set a waiting period. Real estate is not covered by the affidavit. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. § 560:3-1201
Deadline for creditor claims	If notice to creditors is published, claims arising before death must be presented within 4 months after the first publication, or within 60 days after a mailed or delivered notice to a known creditor, whichever is later. If no notice is published or served, claims are barred 18 months after death. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:3-801, 560:3-803
Who can be executor	Priority for appointment goes to the person named in the will, then the surviving spouse or reciprocal beneficiary who is a devisee, other devisees, the surviving spouse or reciprocal beneficiary, other heirs, and (after 45 days) a creditor. A person under 18, or one the court finds unsuitable in formal proceedings, cannot serve. The statute does not bar non-residents. No bond is required in informal proceedings unless the will requires it or an interested person asks for one; in formal proceedings the court may require bond unless the will waives it. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:3-203, 560:3-603
Finding probate court records	Estate and probate cases are Circuit Court cases. The Judiciary's eCourt Kokua system provides public case information for Circuit Court civil and other case types; probate and estate case numbers use prefixes such as EQ, LG, LP, SE and TS in the 12-character eCourt case ID. Confidential, juvenile and sealed cases are not shown. https://www.courts.state.hi.us/legal_references/records/search_court_records Source: Hawaii State Judiciary, Accessing Cases on eCourt Kokua (FAQ); Search Court Records

Financial power of attorney	Hawaii has adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act and provides a statutory form power of attorney. A power of attorney is durable unless it expressly says it ends on the principal's incapacity. It must be signed by the principal (or by another person in the principal's conscious presence at the principal's direction). Notarization is not strictly required, but a signature acknowledged before a notary is presumed genuine. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 551E-3, 551E-51
Health care directive	An adult or emancipated minor may give health care instructions (orally or in writing) and may sign a power of attorney for health care. The health care power of attorney must be in writing, dated and signed, and either signed by two witnesses or acknowledged before a notary public in Hawaii. Witnesses cannot be health care providers, their employees, or the agent, and at least one witness must be neither related to the principal nor entitled to inherit. The statute provides an optional Advance Health-Care Directive form. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 327E-3, 327E-16
Official power of attorney forms	For health care, the Hawaii Department of Health's Executive Office on Aging links to the Hawaii Advance Health Care Directive form in fillable and printable versions (hosted by Kokua Mau); electronic signatures are not accepted. Source: Hawaii Department of Health, Executive Office on Aging, Advance Healthcare Directive

Living will / advance directive	Hawaii uses an "advance health-care directive." An adult or emancipated minor may give an individual instruction about health care, which may be oral or written and may be limited to take effect only if a stated condition arises. The statute includes an optional Advance Health-Care Directive form with a section for end-of-life instructions. When the written directive includes a power of attorney for health care, it must be dated, signed, and either signed by two qualified witnesses or acknowledged before a notary public in Hawaii. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 327E-3, 327E-16
Medical power of attorney	Hawaii calls it a "power of attorney for health care." It may authorize the agent to make any health care decision the principal could make and stays in effect after incapacity. It must be in writing, dated, signed by the principal, and either signed by two witnesses (each of whom saw the signing or the principal's acknowledgment) or acknowledged before a notary public in Hawaii. Witnesses cannot be health care providers, their employees, or the agent, and at least one witness must be neither related to the principal nor entitled to inherit. Unless related to the principal, the agent cannot be an owner, operator or employee of the facility where the principal receives care. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. § 327E-3
Revocable living trust	Hawaii adopted the Uniform Trust Code (Act 32 of 2021, Chapter 554D). For trusts created by instruments signed on or after January 1, 2022, a trust is revocable unless its terms expressly say it is irrevocable. The settlor may revoke or amend by substantially following the method in the trust (which may require a higher level of capacity) or, if there is no exclusive method, by another method allowed by statute. Assets must be retitled to the trustee to be governed by the trust; trust property passes under its terms without probate, while assets left outside the trust may require probate or a small estate procedure. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 554D-101, 554D-602
Ways to avoid probate	Non-probate options in Hawaii include: transfer on death deeds for real estate, recorded with the Bureau of Conveyances or Land Court before death (Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 527); joint and payable-on-death accounts, which belong to the surviving party or POD payee (Haw. Rev. Stat. § 560:6-104); transfer-on-death registration of securities (Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 539); jointly owned vehicles, which the survivor can transfer; property in a funded revocable trust (Haw. Rev. Stat. § 554D-602); and the small estate affidavit for estates of $100,000 or less (vehicles can be transferred regardless of value) (Haw. Rev. Stat. § 560:3-1201). Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 527; §§ 560:6-104, 539-1, 554D-602, 560:3-1201

Executor's duties	Notice to creditors may be published once a week for two successive weeks in the judicial circuit; creditors then have four months after first publication to present claims, and the personal representative may also mail notice to known creditors (claims due by the later of four months after publication or 60 days after mailing). Within three months after appointment, the personal representative prepares an inventory with date-of-death fair market values and encumbrances, sends it to interested persons who request it, and may file it with the court. After paying claims and distributing the estate, the representative may close an unsupervised estate by a verified closing statement filed no earlier than six months after appointment, or obtain a court order closing it. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:3-706, 560:3-801, 560:3-1003
Letters testamentary	To act, a personal representative must be appointed by order of the circuit court or the probate registrar, qualify, and be issued letters; administration begins when letters issue. Informal probate or appointment is requested by application to the probate registrar; formal proceedings are by petition to the circuit court. Priority goes to the person named in the will, then the surviving spouse or reciprocal beneficiary who is a devisee, other devisees, the spouse or reciprocal beneficiary, and other heirs. No bond is required in informal proceedings unless the will requires it or an interested person asks for one. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:3-103, 560:3-203, 560:3-603
Affidavit / determination of heirship	No statute. Hawaii has no statutory affidavit of heirship for real estate, and the small estate affidavit covers personal property only. Real estate in the decedent's sole name passes through probate (informal or formal), the clerk-administered procedure for Hawaii estates of $100,000 or less, or a transfer on death deed. Source: Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 560:3-1201, 560:3-1205
Transferring a car after death	Vehicle titles are handled by each county's motor vehicle office. In the City and County of Honolulu: if the vehicle was jointly owned, the survivor signs Section A of the title (with odometer reading for vehicles 10 years old or newer) and Section D, and brings the endorsed title, last registration, a current safety inspection certificate, and a state-certified copy of the death certificate (photocopies not accepted). If the vehicle was registered only to the decedent, the successor uses the Affidavit for Collection of Personal Property of the Decedent (CS-L (MVR) 39). A $10 transfer fee applies, and an appointment through AlohaQ is required. Other counties have similar procedures. Source: City and County of Honolulu, Department of Customer Services, Vehicle Ownership Transfer; Haw. Rev. Stat. § 560:3-1201

Hawaii Wills, Probate and Estate Law

Quick answers for Hawaii

Wills

If there is no will

Probate

Deeds and transferring a house

Power of attorney and health care directives

Estate and inheritance tax

Planning documents and avoiding probate

Executors and heirs

Official Hawaii forms

Probate court and deed recording by county

Hawaii estate law FAQ

More Hawaii law