Estate Planning in Washington

Washington operates under community property law, one of only nine states to do so. Most assets acquired during marriage belong equally to both spouses regardless of whose name is on the title or who earned the income. This fundamental difference from common law states shapes every aspect of estate planning here, from how property passes at death to what a surviving spouse automatically inherits.

Like all states, Washington recognizes formally executed wills and living trusts as valid estate planning tools. A standard will here requires 2RCW 11.12.020Verified Sep 16, 2026View source adult witnesses, and adding a notarized self-proving affidavit can streamline the probate process later.

A Washington healthcare power of attorney is signed before either 2RCW 11.125.050; RCW 11.125.400; RCW 70.122.030; RCW 7.70.065Verified Jul 15, 2026View source witnesses or a notary publicRCW 11.125.050; RCW 11.125.400; RCW 70.122.030; RCW 7.70.065Verified Jul 15, 2026View source. Witnesses must be at least 18 yearsRCW 11.125.050; RCW 11.125.400; RCW 70.122.030; RCW 7.70.065Verified Jul 15, 2026View source old and cannot be blood relatives, anyone who would inherit from the principal or employees of the facility where the principal is a patient. Those restrictions do not apply when the document is notarized instead of witnessed. The agent must be at least 18 yearsRCW 11.125.050; RCW 11.125.400; RCW 70.122.030; RCW 7.70.065Verified Jul 15, 2026View source old, and Washington bars the principal’s healthcare providers and employees of the treating facility from serving, subject to the statute’s exceptions.

A Washington financial power of attorney is signed before either 2RCW § 11.125.050Verified Sep 20, 2026View source witnesses or a notary publicRCW § 11.125.050Verified Sep 20, 2026View source. It is not durable unless it says soRCW § 11.125.050Verified Sep 20, 2026View source, in words such as “This power of attorney shall not be affected by disability of the principal”; without that language it ends when the principal becomes incapacitated. A springing power of attorney, one that takes effect only when the principal becomes incapacitated, is permittedRCW § 11.125.050Verified Sep 20, 2026View source. The state adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act in 2016, modernizing its rules around financial powers of attorney. Documents created before 2016 may not reflect the current law’s protections.

Washington imposes its own estate tax on estates exceeding $3,000,000RCW 83.100.020(1)(a)(x), 83.100.040(2)(a)(iii); ESB 6347 (Ch. 209, Laws of 2026)Verified Sep 15, 2026View source, with a top rate of 20%RCW 83.100.020(1)(a)(x), 83.100.040(2)(a)(iii); ESB 6347 (Ch. 209, Laws of 2026)Verified Sep 15, 2026View source. This is separate from the federal estate tax and applies at a much lower threshold—the federal exemption is $15,000,00026 USC 2001(c), 2010; P.L. 119-21 §70106Verified Sep 15, 2026View source. Families with estates near this threshold often use trusts and lifetime gifting to reduce exposure.

Washington does not require a revocable living trust to be notarizedRCW 11.98.005 et seq.; RCW 11.103 (revocable trusts)Verified Jul 15, 2026View source. Washington allows transfer-on-death deeds for real estate, enabling property to pass directly to named beneficiaries without probate. This is a significant probate avoidance tool that doesn't require creating a trust. Transferring property into a revocable trust does not trigger a property tax reassessment in Washington, so property taxes remain at their current level.

Washington automatically revokes an ex-spouse as beneficiary on life insurance, retirement accounts, and similar designations upon divorce. However, these automatic revocations can be overridden by a divorce decree or by re-designating the ex-spouse after the divorce.

Washington fully authorizes remote online notarization (RON) for estate planning documents, including wills, trusts, healthcare directives, powers of attorney. RON covers the notarization step; whether the whole signing can happen remotely also depends on whether the document's witnesses may attend by video.