Is my will still valid after a divorce?

Yes — minus everything involving your ex-spouse. The will itself survives; gifts to your ex and their appointment as executor lapse, and all other clauses remain valid and enforceable.

My ex is my executor — what happens now?

Their appointment lapses automatically. A substitute executor, if you named one, steps in. If you never named a substitute, the court appoints an administrator instead.

Does separation without divorce affect my will?

No. Until the marriage or civil partnership is legally ended, your spouse keeps every right the will gives them — however long you have lived apart. If you want them out before the divorce is final, you need a new will.

When exactly does the ex-spouse rule kick in?

When the marriage is legally dissolved — the final order in a divorce or dissolution. The earlier conditional order and the separation itself do not trigger it.

Should I wait for the divorce to finalise before making a new will?

No — and waiting is often the riskier option. A new will takes effect as soon as it is signed and witnessed, revoking the old one, so you can put your affairs in order at any point.

Does Divorce Affect a Will? UK Rules (2026)

Does divorce affect a will?

Quick answer

Divorce does not revoke your will — but the law treats your ex-spouse as if they had died on the date the marriage legally ended. Any gift to them lapses, and so does their appointment as executor. Everything else in the will remains valid, which is exactly why you should rewrite it.

What divorce changes automatically

Unlike marriage, divorce does not revoke a will. Instead, once a marriage or civil partnership is legally ended, the law treats your ex-spouse as if they had died on that date. Two things lapse automatically:

Gifts to your ex-spouse — anything left to them fails and passes to whoever is next in line under the will.
Their appointment as executor — if you named them to administer your estate, that appointment is cancelled.

What stays exactly as it was

Every other clause — gifts to children, family, friends and charities, guardian appointments, funeral wishes, the residue — remains valid and enforceable. This catches people out in both directions: some assume the whole will is dead and do nothing, while others assume nothing changed and leave in place a document that no longer reflects their life.

Why you should still rewrite it

Even after the automatic tidy-up, what remains is rarely what you would choose fresh:

If your ex was your only executor, the job falls to a substitute — or, if you never named one, to the courts. See what an executor does and why substitutes matter.
Lapsed gifts may land in the residue, or pass to people you only included to please your ex.
Guardianship clauses, trustees and substitute beneficiaries often assume a family structure that no longer exists.
A new partner you now want to provide for inherits nothing unless you say so — unmarried partners have no automatic rights at all.

The clean fix

A new will revokes the old one completely and lets you rebuild around your life as it is now. Our guide to changing your will covers the mechanics. With SwiftWill, updates are free for life, so you can make your will in about 15 minutes today and adjust it again whenever things change — one-time £35, no subscriptions.