Mirror Wills — matching Wills for couples
Mirror Wills let spouses or partners make matching, coordinated Wills at the same time. They are drafted together, reviewed together, and stored together in your Deedbox.
from AED 2,999 · Our professional fee · Arabic + English included · Government fees quoted separately
What it is
Each partner has their own Will, but the provisions mirror each other. This is common when both partners want the same distribution pattern, guardianship choices and executors.
Who it is for
Married or partnered couples who want aligned, coordinated Wills under the same registration route.
A Mirror pair is two Wills, not one joint document
There is no such thing as a single Will signed by two people. A Mirror pair is two separate Wills, each made by one person, whose provisions are written to match. Each of you can be asked about your own document, each is registered in your own name, and each is changed or withdrawn on its own.
That matters more than it sounds, because almost every practical question couples ask about Mirror Wills - who can change them, what happens when one of us dies, whether they have to say exactly the same thing - follows from this one fact. Two documents that agree with each other are not the same as one document binding two people.
What the registries charge for a Mirror pair
DIFC Courts publishes a Mirror figure alongside the single figure on each will type's own service page. A Mirror pair is not simply double: the Full Will is published at "AED 10,000" single and "AED 15,000" Mirror, and each of the narrower wills - Financial Assets, Business Owners, Guardianship and Digital Assets - at "AED 5,000" single and "AED 7,500" Mirror. The Property Will sits between them at "AED 7,500" and "AED 10,000".
The figures above are DIFC's. Dubai Courts and the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department set their own, and we do not restate a figure for either route here unless we can point at where that authority published it. That is why there is no single "mirror will cost" for the UAE on this page: ask for the figure for the route you are actually using, and we will tell you where it comes from.
These are the registries' fees, not ours. They are paid to the registry, they are quoted separately from our professional fee, and they are never added together into one number.
Source: DIFC Courts Wills Service, fee published on each will type page
Changing one of them later is priced per Will
This is the fact most worth knowing before you register, and it is the one most often missed. The DIFC Courts Wills FAQ states that a modification is made by signing a new will at "AED 550 per Will", and that a cancellation fee of "AED 1,000 per Will is non-refundable".
Per Will. If the two of you decide later to change the same provision in both documents, that is two modifications, not one. A Mirror pair is cheaper to register than two separate registrations and no cheaper to amend.
The FAQ also states that "A Will and any other documents may be withdrawn from the Registry by the Testator by an application" - by the Testator, meaning each of you acts on your own document.
Source: DIFC Courts, Wills FAQ
What the appointment asks of both of you
The published conditions apply to each testator separately, so a couple needs to satisfy them twice. DIFC Courts states that you will need "two (2) Witnesses who are not named as a beneficiary or guardian", at least 18 and holding valid government-issued photo ID. For a virtual appointment those witnesses may be located anywhere in the world.
The appointment itself is booked online, may be held by video conference or in person, is signed electronically either way, and "should take approximately 20 minutes". There is one language condition worth planning around: the service "presently does not accept translators or POA for Will signing appointments", and testators and witnesses "must have a basic grasp of the English language".
The registered Wills are electronic. DIFC Courts states that "The Wills, in their electronic format, are considered to be the original Wills" and that the service "does not register or hold any hard copies".
Source: DIFC Courts, Wills FAQ
The question we do not answer, and why
The most-asked question about Mirror Wills is whether the survivor is bound by the pair - whether, after one partner dies, the other may rewrite their own Will and leave the estate somewhere else entirely.
We do not answer that, and we would be suspicious of a document-preparation service that did. It is a question about legal effect, not about procedure, and the honest answer depends on what was agreed between you, under which law, and how a court would read it. What we can tell you is the procedure the registry publishes: each Will is the Testator's own, a modification is a new will signed at the published fee, and a withdrawal is by the Testator's own application.
If being able to rely on the survivor keeping to the agreement matters to you, that is the conversation to have with a lawyer before you register - not after. It is one of the few places on this site where we would tell you to spend money on advice rather than on a document.
How it works
- Both partners complete the questionnaire.
- We draft the two Wills side by side.
- We read the two documents side by side to make sure they align.
- Both Wills are signed and registered together.
- Both originals are stored in the shared Deedbox.
What is included
- Two bilingual Wills
- Both documents checked side by side
- Joint signing and registration session
- Shared Deedbox vault
What is not included
- Separate, unaligned distribution instructions (those are not Mirror Wills)
- Registration fees for two separate routes unless agreed
- Registry fees. DIFC Courts publishes its own Mirror figure per will type, and modification and cancellation are charged per Will
What this page does not tell you
- The DIFC figures above are the registry's own published fees and change without notice. Each is dated in our source registry, and DIFC Courts' own service pages are the version that counts on the day you register.
- Everything on this page describes DIFC Courts' published process. Dubai Courts and the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department publish their own conditions, and nothing here is a statement about either.
- We can tell you what a registry publishes. Whether a Will is valid, enforceable, or sufficient for a particular estate is a legal question, and we do not answer it.
- The Deedbox is not a law firm and not a notary. We prepare documents, we do not advise on succession.
Common questions
Do Mirror Wills have to be identical?
They have to match in the sense that matters to you, not word for word. In practice couples align the distribution pattern, the executors and the guardianship choices, and differ on the details personal to each of them. For DIFC's published Mirror pricing the two Wills need to be the same will type - two Full Wills, or two Property Wills - because the fee is published per type. What the two documents say is yours to decide.
Can Mirror Wills name different executors?
Nothing in DIFC Courts' published conditions requires the two Wills to name the same executor, and couples do sometimes differ - most often where one partner's estate includes a business the other is not involved in. We align them unless you tell us otherwise, and we will say so plainly in the draft if you ask for a split. Whether a particular appointment works for your circumstances is a legal question rather than a procedural one.
Can one of us change a Mirror Will without the other?
Procedurally, yes - each Will belongs to its own Testator. DIFC Courts states that a Will "may be withdrawn from the Registry by the Testator by an application", and a modification is made by signing a new will at "AED 550 per Will". Whether doing so breaches something agreed between you is a legal question about effect, not procedure, and we do not answer it.
Can a Mirror Will be changed after one partner dies?
The surviving partner's Will is still their own document and the registry's published modification procedure still applies to it. Whether the survivor is free to change where the estate goes is exactly the question that mutual-wills disputes turn on, it depends on what was agreed and under which law, and it is one for a lawyer before you register rather than after.
What does a Mirror pair cost in total?
Two figures, never merged. Our professional fee for the pair starts at AED 2,999. The registry fee is separate and depends on the route: DIFC Courts publishes "AED 15,000" for a Full Will Mirror pair and "AED 7,500" for each of its narrower Mirror pairs. We quote the registry figure for your route alongside ours, and we do not present them as one price.
Do Mirror Wills still go through probate?
A registered Will is a will, not a way around probate. DIFC Courts states that on death "your executor should contact the DIFC Courts with a copy of the death certificate, following which they will be guided through the Probate process", and publishes a Grant of Probate fee of "USD 1,500". It also says a grant is "normally issued within a matter of a few weeks" in straightforward cases - that is the court's wording about straightforward cases, and not a timescale anyone can promise you.
Can we use different registration routes for each Will?
Usually not as a Mirror pair. Mirror pricing is published for two Wills of the same type registered together, so a couple splitting across DIFC and ADJD is two separate registrations. If that is what you need we will say so and quote it as two Wills rather than sell you a package that does not fit.
Do we both have to attend, and can we do it from outside the UAE?
Each of you registers your own Will, so each of you attends your own appointment. DIFC Courts publishes that appointments are booked online and may be held by video conference, signed electronically, and states "You do not need to be a resident of the UAE to register a DIFC Courts Will". Each appointment needs its own two witnesses, who for a virtual appointment may be anywhere in the world.
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