Are My Out-of-State Estate Planning Documents Valid in Florida?

If you have created your estate plan but have since moved to Florida, you may wonder if your documents are still valid or if you need new ones. The good news is, if your estate planning documents were valid in your original state, they will likely be valid in Florida. However, that does not mean you should not review and revise your documents. You still want to have a Florida attorney review (and potentially revise) those documents to ensure they still meet your goals.

Florida Law May Be Different from Your Prior State

There are several things often handled in a comprehensive estate plan that are state specific. One of those is homestead laws – the rules surrounding what is considered homestead and what you are permitted to do with it are very specific to Florida. A knowledgeable estate planning attorney can advise you whether your prior wishes can be followed with your Florida homestead.

Durable powers of attorney are also very state-specific. It is a good idea to have a local estate planning attorney review and revise your durable power of attorney to ensure it is valid in Florida. If you were to become incapacitated and need that power of attorney, you may not want to rely upon an older or out-of-state power of attorney.Similarly, your health care directives can be very state specific. This means your living will and/or health care surrogate appointments should be reviewed and potentially revised to ensure compliance with Florida law.

Additionally, while a revocable living trust is often interpreted by the state of origin, and therefore, is likely to remain valid even after a move to Florida, you still likely want to have it reviewed and possibly revised to be compliant with the laws of your new home state.

Last, holographic or nuncupative wills are never valid in Florida. If your will is holographic or nuncupative, you will want to draft a will that is compliant with Florida law to ensure your wishes are able to be met upon your death.

Jacksonville Estate Planning Attorney

If you are in Florida and are interested in updating your estate plan, contact us today. If you are ready to get started on your Florida estate plan, you can do so here.