Planning a trip can be exciting, but before you jet off, it’s essential to ensure that your estate plan is up-to-date. Life is unpredictable, and having a current estate plan provides peace of mind, knowing that your wishes will be honored if anything unexpected happens. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you ensure your estate plan is current before traveling.
Review Your Will Before You Depart
Your will is the cornerstone of your estate plan. It dictates how your assets will be distributed and who will take care of your dependents. Often we meet people who haven’t updated their wills for decades – sometimes since their children were young. If they pass away while traveling, their heirs may be faced with a messy estate plan battle due to outdated provisions.
- Update Beneficiaries: Ensure all beneficiaries listed are current. Life changes like marriage, divorce, or the birth of a child can necessitate updates.
- Appoint an Executor: Confirm your chosen executor is still willing and able to serve. This person will handle the distribution of your estate.
- Reflect on Assets: Consider any new assets acquired since you last updated your will and ensure they are included.
Check Your Trusts Before You Book Your Trip
If you have a living trust, review its terms to ensure they still align with your wishes. Sometimes a change is needed due to a Trustee or alternate Trustee moving away, becoming incapacitated, or even just experiencing health or other challenges. At other times, a change may be needed because you have acquired new assets.
- Trustees: Ensure your appointed trustees are still appropriate choices.
- Assets: Verify that any new assets have been transferred to your trust to avoid probate.
- Beneficiaries: Update beneficiary designations as needed.
Update Powers of Attorney Before Traveling
Powers of attorney (POA) allow designated individuals to make decisions on your behalf if you are unable to do so. The person you designate as your Agent must be willing and able to act if needed. You can designate the same person to act as your Agent for both Medical and Financial decisions, or have two people split those responsibilities.
- Health Care POA: Ensure the person you’ve chosen to make medical decisions for you is still a suitable choice and aware of your medical preferences.
- Financial POA: Verify the individual responsible for your financial decisions is still appropriate and understands your financial situation.
Review Your Health Care Directive
Your health care directive, or living will, outlines your wishes regarding medical treatment if you’re incapacitated. The Power of Attorney appoints a person to make healthcare decisions, but the Living Will explains your wishes if you are in a terminal condition. The Living Will provides the Agent and Physician with written directions, so there is no confusion about treatment preferences.
- Treatment Preferences: Confirm your treatment preferences are still valid and make any necessary updates.
- Physician Information: Ensure your primary care physician has a copy of your updated health care directive.
Verify Beneficiary Designations Before You Embark
Many assets, such as retirement accounts and life insurance policies, pass directly to beneficiaries. A beneficiary designation supercedes any provisions of your will, make the needed changes before you begin traveling to ensure you don’t disinherit a loved one!
- Accounts: Review all accounts to ensure beneficiary designations are current.
- Life Insurance: Confirm life insurance beneficiaries and consider any life changes that might affect your choices.
- Payable-on-Death Accounts: Ensure all POD accounts have the correct beneficiaries listed.
Organize Important Documents Before Leaving Town
Having all your important documents organized and accessible is crucial. All your planning won’t do anyone any good if no one can find your documents. Your executor will need access to the original, signed will. Copies of other documents are usually sufficient.
- Estate Plan Copies: Make copies of your will, trusts, POAs, and health care directives. Store them in a safe place, and let a trusted individual know their location.
- Contact Information: Provide your executor, trustees, and POA agents with your attorney’s contact information.
Consult Your Attorney Before Traveling
You may want to consult with an experienced estate planning attorney at the beginning of this process. He or she will have council about which parts of your plan need to be updated, and how. Once they’ve completed your planning updates, they will keep copies of your updated documents in case they are needed.
- Legal Advice: Your attorney can provide guidance to ensure all documents are legally sound and reflect your current wishes.
- Updates: Have your attorney review and approve any changes to ensure they are correctly executed.
Summary
Ensuring your estate plan is current before traveling can provide you reassurance, and save your family and friends heartache and stress. Follow these important steps, and you can travel with a clear conscience.
- Review and update your will.
- Check and adjust any trusts.
- Update powers of attorney.
- Review your health care directive.
- Verify beneficiary designations.
- Organize important documents.
- Consult with your attorney.
Contact our office to get started. Taking these steps will give you peace of mind, knowing your estate plan is in order before you embark on your holiday. Safe travels!
