Are Beneficiary Designations Protected in Idaho?
Idaho automatically revokes an ex-spouse as beneficiary at divorceIC § 15-2-804Verified Sep 15, 2026View source; employer plans under ERISA follow federal rules either way, so a 401(k) beneficiary changes only by a new designation.
A beneficiary designation on life insurance, a retirement account, a payable-on-death bank account or a transfer-on-death brokerage account decides who receives that asset at death, in Idaho as everywhere. The designation controls over the will or trust, and an outdated one stays in force whatever the other documents say.
Yes. Idaho automatically revokes an ex-spouse as beneficiary on divorce for these asset types: life insurance, retirement accounts, pod accounts, tod accounts, annuitiesIC § 15-2-804Verified Sep 15, 2026View source. An ERISA-governed employer plan (a 401(k), a pension) follows federal law instead and must be updated by hand whatever the state rule says.
Idaho is a community property state, but it does not require a spouse's consent to name a non-spouse beneficiaryIC §§ 32-906, 32-906A, 32-912, 32-913, 11-604A(6), 15-6-114; 29 U.S.C. § 1055 (ERISA § 205)Verified Sep 15, 2026View source: each spouse manages their own community property, and the other spouse's claim to half of a community-funded asset is raised after death rather than through a consent form. The federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) preempts state law for an employer-sponsored plan such as a 401(k), a pension or group life insurance: the plan pays the designation on file with the plan administrator, and a qualified plan requires the spouse's consent to name anyone else (Egelhoff v. Egelhoff, 2001; Kennedy v. Plan Administrator, 2009).
Idaho gives inherited IRAs partial protection from creditorsIC § 11-604AVerified Sep 15, 2026View source; the reach can depend on whether the IRA came from a spouse and whether the case is in state or federal court. After Clark v. Rameker (2014), federal bankruptcy law does not protect an inherited IRA on its own.
No. Idaho does not default to per stirpes for beneficiary designationsIC § 15-2-605; §§ 15-6-104, 15-6-307, 15-6-310Verified Sep 15, 2026View source: when a named beneficiary dies before the account holder, the share lapses unless the designation says per stirpes or names a contingent beneficiary.
Is this your situation?
Get a complete guide for your specific circumstances.
Divorce
What divorce does and does not undo: beneficiary designations, your will, powers of attorney, and the one account your ex stays on until you change it.
Learn more
Marriage
What married couples need in place: one joint trust or two, wills, beneficiary updates, and the spousal rights your state grants you automatically.
Learn more
Retirement
Retirement changes your financial picture. Healthcare directives, beneficiary reviews, long-term care planning, and protecting what you've built.
Learn more
Serious Diagnosis
A serious diagnosis changes priorities. Healthcare proxies, financial powers of attorney, and the documents that ensure your wishes are honored.
Learn moreForms for Planning Your Estate in Idaho
Free forms for planning your estate in Idaho: a will, living trust, pour-over will, both powers of attorney, living will, and TOD deed.
Last Will and Testament
In Idaho, a will is signed before 2Idaho Code § 15-2-502Verified Oct 18, 2026View source witnesses, and a self-proving affidavit signed with it lets the court admit it without witness testimonyIdaho Code § 15-2-502Verified Oct 18, 2026View source.
Healthcare Power of Attorney
Idaho requires neither witnesses nor a notaryIdaho Code § 39-4510Verified Oct 15, 2026View source for a healthcare power of attorney.
Financial Power of Attorney
Idaho treats a power of attorney as durable by defaultIdaho Code § 15-12-101, § 15-12-104, § 15-12-105, § 15-12-106, § 15-12-107, § 15-12-109, § 15-12-113, § 15-12-119, § 15-12-120, § 15-12-201, § 15-12-301, § 15-12-302; Idaho Code § 55-805, § 55-806Verified Sep 18, 2026View source, and it is signed with no witness or notary requirementIdaho Code § 15-12-101, § 15-12-104, § 15-12-105, § 15-12-106, § 15-12-107, § 15-12-109, § 15-12-113, § 15-12-119, § 15-12-120, § 15-12-201, § 15-12-301, § 15-12-302; Idaho Code § 55-805, § 55-806Verified Sep 18, 2026View source.
Living Will
In Idaho, the living will is the Advance Care Planning DocumentIdaho Code Title 39, Ch. 45 (The Medical Consent and Natural Death Act), §§ 39-4501 to 39-4517; § 39-4510 (advance care planning document)Verified Sep 27, 2026View source, a written instruction that is valid with no agent named.
Tools for Planning Your Estate in Idaho
Free tools for planning your estate in Idaho: what a will or trust costs, whether you need a trust or TOD deed, and how documents are signed.
What Does Estate Planning Actually Cost?
An attorney-prepared revocable trust in Idaho runs $3,280Estimate: 10 hours at $328, Clio's Idaho Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $4,920Estimate: 15 hours at $328, Clio's Idaho Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source and a simple will $933Estimate: 3 hours at $311, Clio's Idaho Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $1,866Estimate: 6 hours at $311, Clio's Idaho 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 Idaho, four years at a public university cost about $71,828NCES 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 near 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, inheritance, or gift tax. Idaho Code Title 14, ch. 4 (Estate and Transfer Tax Reform Act of 1988) was repealed in full by H.B. 381, 2020 Idaho Sess. Laws ch. 65 (eff. July 1, 2020); the estate tax had applied only to deaths before Jan. 1, 2005. Idaho State Tax Commission: "Idaho has no gift tax or inheritance tax, and its estate tax for deaths expired in 2004."Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.
How Much Does Probate Cost?
Probate on a $500,000 estate in Idaho costs an estimated $24,719Idaho Code § 15-3-721 (court reviews reasonableness of attorney compensation; no statutory percentage) — see also § 15-3-720 (reasonable attorney fees in estate litigation)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source. Attorney fees run 1.8%Idaho Code § 15-3-721 (court reviews reasonableness of attorney compensation; no statutory percentage) — see also § 15-3-720 (reasonable attorney fees in estate litigation)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source to 2.8%Idaho Code § 15-3-721 (court reviews reasonableness of attorney compensation; no statutory percentage) — see also § 15-3-720 (reasonable attorney fees in estate litigation)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate under a reasonable-compensation standard.
Who Inherits Without a Will?
Idaho is a community property state, so the surviving spouse already owns half of what the couple acquired during the marriage. Without a will in Idaho, descendants divide what passes to them per capita with representationIdaho Code § 15-2-106Verified Sep 10, 2026View source, and an heir must survive the decedent by 120 hoursIdaho Code § 15-2-104Verified Sep 10, 2026View source to inherit.
How Much Does a Revocable Living Trust Cost?
An attorney-prepared revocable living trust in Idaho runs $3,280Estimate: 10 hours at $328, Clio's Idaho Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $4,920Estimate: 15 hours at $328, Clio's Idaho Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source for an individual, against $0 to $549 up front plus a subscription with an online service.
How Much Does a Will Cost?
An attorney-prepared will in Idaho runs $933Estimate: 3 hours at $311, Clio's Idaho Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $1,866Estimate: 6 hours at $311, Clio's Idaho 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 $24,719Idaho Code § 15-3-721 (court reviews reasonableness of attorney compensation; no statutory percentage) — see also § 15-3-720 (reasonable attorney fees in estate litigation)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source.
How Does SimplyTrust Compare to LegalZoom, Trust & Will, and Other Services?
Compare what it costs to make a trust official across SimplyTrust, LegalZoom, Trust & Will, Rocket Lawyer, and Quicken WillMaker.
How Do I Name a Guardian for My Minor Children?
In Idaho, a parent names a guardian for a minor child in a willIdaho Code §§ 15-5-202, 15-5-204, 15-5-410Verified Sep 15, 2026View source, and the nomination covers the child until the age of majority, 18Idaho Code § 32-101Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.
When you're ready, we're here.
Idaho Estate Planning Resources
In-depth guides covering Idaho probate laws, trust requirements, and estate planning strategies.