Making a will in Mexico: the public open will

What the law says a will is

The Mexico City Civil Code defines a will in article 1295 as “un acto personalísimo, revocable y libre, por el cual una persona capaz dispone de sus bienes y derechos, y declara o cumple deberes para después de su muerte”. Three consequences follow from the text:

• Personal. Nobody can make it for you, and article 1296 forbids two people from making a will in the same act, whether for each other or for a third party.
• Revocable. You can change it. A later will replaces the earlier one in the clauses it covers.
• Free, with one limit. Article 1368 obliges the testator to leave maintenance (alimentos) to certain people: descendants under 18 whom the testator had a legal duty to support, descendants unable to work at any age, a surviving spouse unable to work who lacks sufficient property, and others listed in the article. A will that leaves out the maintenance is called inoficioso (art. 1374); the person left out is entitled only to the maintenance, and the rest of the will stands (art. 1375).

Who may make one

Article 1306 lists those who cannot: minors under sixteen and people who, habitually or at the time, lack full judgement. A will made during a lucid interval by a person who lacks judgement is valid if the formalities of article 1307 are followed. The text speaks of “habitantes”, with no nationality requirement, but this is the Mexico City code; check the code of any other state before relying on it.

The public open will, step by step

1. You tell the notary your wishes clearly (art. 1512). The notary drafts the clauses, “sujetándose estrictamente a la voluntad del testador”, and reads them aloud so that you confirm.
2. Signature. You, the notary and, where needed, the witnesses and interpreter sign the deed, recording place, year, month, day and hour.
3. Witnesses. Two witnesses attend in the cases listed in articles 1514-1517 (a person who cannot sign, who is deaf or mute, blind, or who cannot read) and whenever you or the notary ask for them (art. 1513).
4. Language. A testator who does not know Spanish may write the will in his or her own language. An interpreter named by the testator attends and signs (art. 1503); the translation is entered in the notary’s protocol (art. 1518). This is the provision that matters to a foreign owner who does not speak Spanish.
5. Electronic form. Since a reform of 4 August 2021, Mexico City allows the notary to receive a public open will digitally, under the notarial law’s digital procedure (arts. 1520 and 1520 bis).

Other forms exist (closed, holographic, simplified, private), described in the CONDUSEF consumer magazine; the open will is the one most often used because the notary drafts and keeps it.

The notice registry

The notary does not keep the will secret. Article 123 of the Mexico City notarial law says that every time a will is made before a notary, the notary must send a notice to the archive within five working days, stating date, notary’s number, type of will, deed number and the testator’s details. In Quintana Roo, article 124 of its notarial law sets ten working days and requires the notary to record the will in the local register and have the notice entered in the Registro Nacional de Avisos de Testamento, the national database run by the federal Secretaría de Gobernación (Mexico City law, art. 2 XXIX). A judge or notary handling a succession must obtain a report from these archives to learn whether a will exists (Mexico City law, art. 125). See probate and succession in Mexico.

The “Mes del Testamento”

CONDUSEF’s consumer magazine explains that September has been the “Mes del Testamento” since 2003, a campaign started by the Secretaría de Gobernación and the national notaries’ body, in which notaries extend hours, give free advice on wills and reduce fees “hasta un 50%”. That description comes from the September 2022 issue. I did not find an official 2026 edition or a 2026 price list, so ask the notary what terms apply today.

Which professional to consult

• A notary (notario público, a state-appointed notary, a senior lawyer) drafts and records the will.
• A real estate lawyer can explain how the will interacts with a property held in a fideicomiso, a condominium or a business.
• For a foreign owner who does not speak Spanish, the Civil Code requires an interpreter named by the testator.

You check a notary’s status with the state authority that appoints notaries; see the notary profession page.