Jamaican Will Template: What to Include (Land, Executor, Guardians) Checklist

Short answer: a simple Jamaican will needs your full identity, a revocation clause, at least one executor, clear gifts (land described by Volume and Folio), a residue clause for everything else, and a proper attestation clause signed by two independent witnesses. Here is a clause-by-clause checklist.

1. Who you are

Your full legal name, any other names on your documents or titles (maiden name, aliases), your address, and optionally your occupation and TRN. If the name on your land title differs from your passport, list both. That one line can save your executor an extra statutory declaration.

2. Revocation clause

This cancels earlier wills. If you also have a will abroad, limit it to Jamaican property: "I revoke all former wills in so far as they relate to my property situated in Jamaica." See why this matters for diaspora.

3. Executor and backup executor

Your executor applies for probate, pays debts and transfers property. Name a backup in case the first cannot act. Someone who lives in Jamaica, or visits often, makes the process much easier.

4. Guardian for minor children

Optional, but important if you have children under 18.

5. Specific gifts: land

Describe each property the way the National Land Agency does: Volume ____ Folio ____ of the Register Book of Titles, plus a description and parish. Say who gets it and, if more than one person, whether they share equally. If you do not know the Volume/Folio, order a title search first. For unregistered family land, describe it as clearly as you can (district, boundaries, how you came to own it).

6. Specific gifts: money and items

"All money in my account at [bank] in Jamaica," a vehicle by registration number, jewellery, and so on.

7. What happens if a beneficiary dies first

Say whether the gift passes to that person's children or falls into the residue. Leaving this out is a common cause of disputes.

8. Residue clause

Everything not gifted specifically. Name people and shares (or "equally"), plus a backup.

9. Debts, expenses and executor powers

A standard clause directs the executor to pay debts, funeral and testamentary expenses and transfer tax, and gives power to sell or transfer property.

10. Attestation clause and signatures

The clause stating you signed in the presence of two witnesses present at the same time, who signed in your presence. Leave space for each witness's name, address and occupation. Read who can witness a Jamaican will.

Mistakes that delay probate

• Handwritten changes after signing.
• A beneficiary as a witness.
• Staple holes from a removed page or attachment.
• Vague land descriptions ("my land in the country").
• No backup executor or residue beneficiary.
• Getting married after signing without updating the will (marriage can revoke an earlier will in Jamaica).

General information only, not legal advice. For business interests, blended families or disputes, consult a Jamaican attorney.