Afterwards Legacy” or “Afterwards” (https://afterwards.sg) operated by Cashflow Clinic Pte Ltd (UEN: 201911800G, Address: 7 Temasek Boulevard #12-07 Suntec Tower One, Singapore 038987), and is an Estate Planning intermediary to varius Will Writing, Estate and Legal Partners to help our clients carry out estate planning services. We work with licensed financial adviser representatives from Synergy Financial Advisers Ltd (UEN: 201217738K), a MAS-licensed financial advisory firm (www.synergy.com.sg), who are licensed to give financial advice with regards to wealth distribution. As advocates for holistic financial planning – of which estate planning is an integral part- we believe that everyone should have access to a basic Will and guidance at an affordable and accessible price point. In almost all conceivable cases, having a basic Will leaves an individual better off than not having one at all.

Yes you may. In our experience the cost will be higher, and the approach will not be as holistic, given that we focus on a holistic approach and consider how assets, investments, and insurance will flow to your beneficiaries.

• A Will is just a tool to meet your Wealth Transfer objectives and is only as good as the strategy and planning behind it. Instead of solely taking in details to deliver a Will, our consultants are versed in aspects of Wealth Accumulation, Wealth Protection and Wealth Transfer, and can provide:
  1. A holistic perspective on your assets pertaining to your Investments, Insurance, Properties and how to enhance the total value of assets you can transfer to your beneficiaries
  2. Structuring your Will to be as future-proof as possible to minimize re-writing in the future and incurring re-writing costs
  3. Continued consultation support as your life stage evolves
• Some legal avenues charge by time cost, which if added up after a holistic discussion, will be costly. Conversely, there are Will writing platforms that offer a Will to be done for cheap (or free).
• Other avenues are often fronted by insurance agents or financial advisers who took up a few days course on estate planning and market estate planning services as a foot-in-door topic, but may not have the depth of experience in how to best plan your Will or Wealth Distribution.
• Generally, our experience from reviewing our clients’ Wills is that some of these avenues may lack discussion and planning regarding several points, including but not limited to the following:
  • Accommodating for Common Disaster Scenarios
  • Debt-cancellation plans to cancel off crucial Debts you may carry
  • Option to use 3rd party entities to step in to assist your loved ones
  • What distribution frequency of inheritance to beneficiaries is the most appropriate
  • “Future-proofing” the Will as much as possible to minimize future re-writing costs
  • Clear instructions on whether Property(ies) are to be sold or to be retained
  • Whether a person should be appointed a Role (Executor, Trustee)
  • Customizable Substitute arrangements for beneficiaries
  • For cases involving Minors: Guardian remuneration and specifically stating how much the Guardian can use to raise the child (Guardians, by default, are not supposed to use the child’s inheritance to raise them)
• A proper Wealth Transfer Plan is the bridge between your hard-earned assets over the entire course of your lifetime and your loved ones. Whichever service provider you use, ensure that salient points are discussed and thought out.

• It depends on 1) Your life circumstances and 2) How your Will was structured.
• Our Wills are structured to be as future-proof as reasonably possible so as to minimize the need for rewriting. Doing so can save you costs in the long run compared to Wills which do not accommodate this.
• Generally speaking, if your broad instructions and wishes pertaining to an asset class/group remain unchanged, there is no need to re-write your Will, even if a particular asset has been changed.
  • (e.g. a change of principal residence due to property upgrading/downsizing)
• However, for Specific Gifts that are no longer present and have been redeployed/repurposed/changed, a re-write is necessary.
  • (e.g. I want to give Property of to my child, but this property was later sold and the proceeds were used to buy a new one.)
• While our Wills are not meant to be changed and re-written often, there needs to be an acceptance and understanding that we may face notable changes in the future, either to our world-views or to our circumstances, and a full re-write at that juncture is advisable and needed.

• Based on current law in Singapore, a Will has to be ink-signed in hardcopy in presence of 2 Valid Witnesses to be properly effected.
  • Upon the death of the Testator, will need to be produced in hardcopy for probate purposes.
• Your Will can be kept by yourself at home or with Custodian Services for a fee. The main reason for Custodian Services would be due to privacy concerns.
• In the event of a hardcopy Will going missing: if there is overwhelming evidence that a softcopy reflects the final wishes of the Testator, the Courts may still grant the probate based on a copy/draft of the Will under Section 9 of the Probate and Administration Act. Assuming that the Court accepts the application, the Executor can then make an application for the Grant Of Probate (i.e. a Court order allowing the administration of the assets by the executor)
  • This is another reason to have us as your Case Manager in doing up your Wealth Transfer Planning. In engaging us, you have 1) Us and 2) the writer of your Will / appointed Professional Trustee who has copies and receipts of the softcopies of your Will which we can release to your loved ones. It is also our unique practice to have the Will Attestation (signing) session videoed for extra security.

• It is not compulsory, and it is a personal choice. Note that the original Will (or its copy) will not be kept here. It is a information depository about the existence of a Will done by you.
• As of writing, it costs $50 to register your Will in the Wills Registry. Note that this merely lodges the existence and last known location of your Will, but is not a safekeeping service for your Will.
• Note that a properly written Will is a valid Will even if you did not register it, while an invalid Will doesn’t become valid by registering it.

• The pros of doing a Will, even a basic one, far outweighs the cons of not having done one (and thus by default, relying on the Intestate Succession Act. It will cost your estate less money and time cost if you have a Will.

• No Will: Requires every other beneficiaries to renounce that they do not want to be the Administrator. The issue is magnified when the other beneficiaries are stuck overseas. There might also be disagreements between who that trusted individual(s) is, ending up to be resolved through litigation. This is as compared to having a Will where the Executor is already pre-decided and hence no renunciation is needed.
• No Will: “Someone” needs to apply for the Letter of Administration to have access to your assets. This person, also known as the Administrator, is usually one of the to-be beneficiaries of your Estate, or someone else if every beneficiary agrees for him/her to be so. As the Administrator, he/she will be the one managing / distributing your Estate. This also means that it is entirely possible that someone you distrust be in-charge of managing and distributing your assets after you pass on. Unlike common belief, the Courts do not actively monitor to ensure it is distributed correctly, rather someone has to report before the Courts step in in the event of foul play. Rather than leaving to chance, having a Will allows you to choose and decide beforehand who this trusted individual is.
• No Will: Where minors are involved, 2 co-administrators are required instead where in the case with a Will, only a minimum of 1 executor is required. Also, 2 sureties (guarantors) are also needed, and it costs higher and takes longer.

• No Will: No Schedule Of Assets done beforehand. Part of the process of doing a Will is to have an accompanying Schedule Of Assets. By doing up a Will with Schedule Of Assets, you save on the eventual estate lawyer needing to write to each financial institution which takes more time, and insodoing, incur more cost to your estate.

• No Will: Does not accomodate for Common Disaster Scenario and Substitute Beneficiaries. If you have a beneficiary that passes on before you or together with you, you are able to specify who inherities that benefit instead via a Will. Not doing so might result in unintended asset flows to people that you do not want to benefit.
• Even if you wish to do a more comprehensive Will for greater security and contengenies planning, you should get a basic one done up ASAP first, while working on the next one.