How Do I Avoid Probate in Wyoming?
In Wyoming, a home with a transfer on death deedWyo. Stat. 2-18-101 to 2-18-106Verified Oct 17, 2026View source and a vehicle with a transfer on death designationWyo. Stat. 31-2-104.1Verified Oct 21, 2026View source pass outside probate, as does property in a revocable trust; what is left is the probate estate.
At a death in Wyoming, the statute names whom the institution may pay from a joint account and does not say who owns the moneyW.S. § 2-1-203(b)Verified Nov 2, 2026View source. On the pay on death designation: for a p.o.d. account the statute names whom the institution may pay and does not say who owns the moneyW.S. § 2-1-203(d)Verified Nov 2, 2026View source.
Wyoming has no general statute making a payable-at-death provision in a written instrument nontestamentaryW.S. Titles 1 to 42 and 34.1, including Title 2 chs. 1, 16 and 18, Title 13 and Title 26Verified Nov 2, 2026View source. A policy with no beneficiary, or one payable to the estate, is part of the probate estate.
An employer plan is governed by federal law: An employer retirement plan pays its death benefit to the beneficiary named in the plan's records, and federal law displaces a state rule that would redirect it. A married participant's spouse is the beneficiary unless the spouse consented in writing to another29 U.S.C. § 1144(a)Verified Nov 1, 2026View source. A retirement account with no beneficiary named is part of the probate estate.
Survivorship title in Wyoming: Wyoming owners hold with survivorship as joint tenants (a joint estate) or, for spouses, as tenants by the entirety. A deed naming the owners as husband and wife, spouses or similar creates a tenancy by the entirety unless the deed specifies another form of ownershipWyo. Stat. 2-9-102; Wyo. Stat. 2-9-103; Wyo. Stat. 34-11-101; Wyo. Stat. 34-1-140Verified Oct 26, 2026View source. Wyoming recognizes the transfer on death deedWyo. Stat. 2-18-101 to 2-18-106Verified Oct 17, 2026View source: the home passes to the named beneficiary at the owner's death without probate. A home in the owner's name alone, with no survivor, deed beneficiary or trust, is part of the probate estate.
Wyoming titles a vehicle with a transfer on death designationWyo. Stat. 31-2-104.1Verified Oct 21, 2026View source: the vehicle passes to the named beneficiary at the owner's death without probate. The form is Wyoming Automatic Transfer of a Vehicle Title Upon Death to Beneficiary Designation Form (Form MV-308)Wyo. Stat. 31-2-104.1View source. A vehicle in the owner's name alone is part of the probate estate.
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Marriage
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New Home
How to put your house in a revocable trust: the deed you record, what it does to your mortgage and property taxes, and when a TOD deed is simpler.
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Retirement
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Learn moreForms for Planning Your Estate in Wyoming
Free forms for planning your estate in Wyoming: a will, living trust, pour-over will, both powers of attorney, living will, and TOD deed.
Last Will and Testament
In Wyoming, a will is signed before 2Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-112Verified Oct 19, 2026View source witnesses, and a self-proving affidavit signed with it lets the court admit it without witness testimonyWyo. Stat. § 2-6-112Verified Oct 19, 2026View source.
Codicil to a Will
In Wyoming, a codicil is signed before 2Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-112Verified Oct 19, 2026View source witnesses, like a will, and the self-proving affidavit signed with it lets the court admit it without witness testimonyWyo. Stat. § 2-6-114; Wyo. Stat. § 2-1-301(a)(xxxiv)Verified Oct 25, 2026View source.
Healthcare Power of Attorney
Wyoming allows a choice for a healthcare power of attorney: 2Wyo. Stat. § 35-22-405 (repealed 2007 Ch. 61, § 2)Verified Oct 15, 2026View source witnesses or a notary.
HIPAA Release
In Wyoming, a HIPAA release names who may receive your records and, as the state requires, names HIV/AIDS-related information and mental health recordsWyo. Stat. §§ 35-4-130(b), 35-4-132(d)(iii); Wyo. Stat. § 25-10-122(a)Verified Jun 19, 2026View source expressly before a provider releases them.
Financial Power of Attorney
Wyoming treats a power of attorney as durable by defaultWyo. Stat. §§ 3-9-101 to 3-9-403 (Uniform Power of Attorney Act, eff. Jan 1, 2018; SF0105, 2017 session; repealed former §§ 3-5-101, 3-5-102)Verified Sep 20, 2026View source, and it is signed with no witness or notary requirementWyo. Stat. §§ 3-9-101 to 3-9-403 (Uniform Power of Attorney Act, eff. Jan 1, 2018; SF0105, 2017 session; repealed former §§ 3-5-101, 3-5-102)Verified Oct 21, 2026View source.
Transfer on Death Deed
In Wyoming, a transfer on death deed is signed before a notaryWyo. Stat. 2-18-101 to 2-18-106Verified Oct 19, 2026View source, then recorded with the county before the owner's deathWyo. Stat. 2-18-101 to 2-18-106Verified Oct 19, 2026View source. Wyoming does not recognize a Lady Bird deed.
Vehicle Transfer on Death
Wyoming allows a transfer-on-death beneficiary designation on a vehicle titleWyo. Stat. 31-2-104.1Verified Oct 21, 2026View source, filed through the County Clerk (Wyoming vehicle titles are issued by county clerks; WYDOT Motor Vehicle Services provides the forms) using Form MV-308.
Living Will
In Wyoming, the living will is the Advance Health Care DirectiveWyo. Stat. Title 35, Ch. 22, Art. 4 (Wyoming Health Care Decisions Act), §§ 35-22-401 to 35-22-416Verified Sep 27, 2026View source, a written instruction that is valid with no agent named.
Tools for Planning Your Estate in Wyoming
Free tools for planning your estate in Wyoming: what a will or trust costs, whether you need a trust or TOD deed, and how documents are signed.
How Much Does a Will Cost?
An attorney-prepared will in Wyoming runs $831Estimate: 3 hours at $277, Clio's Wyoming Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $1,662Estimate: 6 hours at $277, Clio's Wyoming Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source, against $0 to $299 up front with an online service, and probate on a $500,000 estate adds about $21,210Wyo. Stat. § 2-7-804 (10% of first $1K, 5% of next $4K, 3% of next $15K, 2% thereafter)Verified Sep 9, 2026View source.
How Do I Name a Guardian for My Minor Children?
In Wyoming, a parent names a guardian for a minor child in a willWyo. Stat. § 3-2-107(d), (e)Verified Sep 16, 2026View source, and the nomination covers the child until the age of majority, 18Wyo. Stat. § 14-1-101(a)Verified Sep 16, 2026View source.
Trust or Will: Which Costs Less?
In Wyoming, a will-based plan pays probate attorney fees set by statute as a percentage of the gross estateWyo. Stat. § 2-7-804 (10% of first $1K, 5% of next $4K, 3% of next $15K, 2% thereafter)Verified Sep 9, 2026View source; a funded revocable trust keeps those assets out of probate and off that fee.
How Much Is the Federal Gift Tax?
Whether a gift owes federal gift tax, how much of the annual exclusion and lifetime exemption it uses, and whether Form 709 is due.
What Does Estate Planning Actually Cost?
An attorney-prepared revocable trust in Wyoming runs $3,070Estimate: 10 hours at $307, Clio's Wyoming Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $4,605Estimate: 15 hours at $307, Clio's Wyoming Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source and a simple will $831Estimate: 3 hours at $277, Clio's Wyoming Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $1,662Estimate: 6 hours at $277, Clio's Wyoming Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source, against $0 to $549 up front plus a subscription with an online service.
How Much Life Insurance Do I Need?
In Wyoming, four years at a public university cost about $60,976NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2023, Table 330.20, public 4-year in-state tuition, fees, room and board, academic year 2022-23Verified Oct 17, 2026View source and the cost of living is 7% below the U.S. averageBEA Regional Price Parities, all items, by state, 2024Verified Oct 17, 2026View source; no state estate or inheritance tax appliesNo state estate or inheritance tax is payable. Wyoming never repealed its death tax: Wyo. Stat. § 39-19-103(a) still imposes "a tax... on the transfer of property constituting the Wyoming gross estate of every decedent," but § 39-19-103(b) sets the amount at "the maximum state death tax credit allowed to a Wyoming estate as a credit against federal estate taxes under the laws of the United States." That federal credit (former IRC § 2011) was phased out by EGTRRA 2001 and terminated for deaths after Dec 31, 2004 (IRC § 2011(g)), so the Wyoming tax computes to $0 for every death on or after January 1, 2005. Despite the chapter caption "Inheritance Taxes," Chapter 19 is a pick-up estate tax — Wyoming has no relationship-class inheritance tax and no state gift or generation-skipping transfer tax.Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.
Are My Beneficiary Designations Protected?
Wyoming automatically revokes an ex-spouse as beneficiary at divorceWyo. Stat. § 2-6-125 (§ 2-6-118 repealed by Laws 2023, ch. 140, § 2)Verified Sep 15, 2026View source; employer plans under ERISA follow federal rules either way, so a 401(k) beneficiary changes only by a new designation.
How Do I Sign Estate Documents?
In Wyoming, a will is signed before 2Wyo. Stat. § 2-6-112Verified Oct 19, 2026View source witnesses, and notarization is not requiredWyo. Stat. § 2-6-112Verified Oct 19, 2026View source.
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Wyoming Estate Planning Resources
In-depth guides covering Wyoming probate laws, trust requirements, and estate planning strategies.