The ADJD will template explained, section by section

By MyHaven Team·Published 28 October 2026·8 minute read

The Abu Dhabi Judicial Department publishes its own will template for non-Muslims, free, in English and Arabic. It is a good document and most people have never seen one before, so this guide walks through it section by section: what each part asks, what the fixed wording does, and the decisions you have to make before a single blank is filled.

What the ADJD will template is

The Abu Dhabi Civil Family Court prepared a standardised last will and testament so that a non-Muslim could put their wishes on record without instructing a lawyer. The current form carries the reference ADJD-NM0723-07-03 and runs to eight pages, with English and Arabic side by side on every page. It is organised into ten numbered sections, from the opening declaration to the signature block, and every registered ADJD civil will follows that order.

The court describes it as a cost-effective way to prepare a will, and it is. The court fee to register one is 950 AED. What the template does not do is make the decisions for you, and some of the blanks carry more weight than they look.

Where to download it

The form is on the Civil Family Court forms page of the ADJD website, listed under Inheritance as “Last Will and Testament” in both PDF and Word. The same page carries the civil will revocation form. The court asks for applications through its Interactive Case Registration service.

• Forms page: adjd.gov.ae, Civil Family Court forms
• Civil wills overview: adjd.gov.ae, Civil Family Court

The ten sections, explained

Six of the ten sections are fixed wording that you should not change. The court has accepted that wording thousands of times, and a hand-edited clause is the surest way to have an application sent back. The four sections you fill in, the opening, executors, distribution and guardianship, are where every decision lives.

What you have to decide before you fill it in

1. Who is in charge.Your executor, and at least one backup. Full name as on their passport, nationality, date of birth, passport number and address. The form never describes anyone by relationship, so “my wife” is not an answer; her name is.
2. Who gets the residue.Section seven names one person to take the whole of what is left after debts and expenses, and then says what happens if that person dies before you: shares, by percentage, between the people you name next, with the form’s own rules passing a share down to a beneficiary’s children if they are gone too.
3. Who raises your children. Section nine asks for a permanent guardian, a backup, and interim guardians who are in the UAE. The interim role is the one people most often leave blank, and it is the one that matters on the day: a permanent guardian in London cannot collect a child from school in Dubai. Our guide to guardianship for expat children goes through the choice.
4. Your domicile. Section ten asks you to declare your country of domicile, which is a legal concept and not the same as where you live or the passport you hold. For most expats the sensible answer is the country they regard as their permanent home, usually the one on the passport.

Where the blank form runs out

The template is built for the common case: one person inherits everything, with a backup plan behind them. Several ordinary family arrangements do not fit its blanks without adaptation.

• Specific gifts.The form has no clause for “the flat to my daughter, the car to my son, the rest to my wife”. A gift of a particular asset to a particular person has to be drafted in, identified by title deed number, plate number or account number.
• Dividing the residue between several people. A widowed parent who wants everything split equally between two children is asking for a percentage division at the first tier, which the form only offers at the backup tier.
• Different guardians for different children. A blended family may want each child’s other parent named for that child. The form provides one set of appointments for all the children listed.
• A couple. The form is one will for one person. A couple needs two, written to mirror each other, and the guardianship section of each has to be arranged so that neither parent is appointed guardian by their own will. Mirror wills explains how that works.

None of these is a reason to avoid the ADJD route. They are the reasons a will drafted to your situation, in the court’s own structure and wording, exists as a service. MyHaven’s wills are assembled on this template, section for section, with those arrangements drafted in where you need them and the fixed wording left exactly as the court wrote it.

From a filled form to a registered will

A completed form is not yet a will. The court is clear that a civil will is legally valid only once it is registered, and registration is its own process.

1. The English and Arabic columns must match. If you have changed or added anything in English, the Arabic beside it must be translated by a translator certified by the Ministry of Justice, with the stamp on the pages.
2. You apply through the court’s online case registration, attaching the will, your passport and your Emirates ID.
3. A court officer reviews the application. The fee of 950 AED per will is paid once it clears.
4. You attend a short video appointment with the notary, with your original documents in hand, confirm the will and sign.
5. The court issues the registered copy. Keep it where your executor can find it.

The full walk-through, including what to prepare and how long each stage takes, is in ADJD will registration step by step.

Changing or cancelling it later

A registered will stays in force until it is replaced or revoked. To change it, you register a new will; the new one’s section one cancels the old one for UAE assets. To cancel it outright, the court provides a separate civil will revocation form on the same forms page. Marriage, divorce, a new child, a property bought or sold, or a guardian who has moved away are the usual reasons to look again.

If you would rather not work through the form alone, our free assessment takes a few minutes and tells you what your will needs before you pay anything. What it costs, with the court fee and the service fee kept separate, is on the pricing page.

MyHaven is not a law firm and this guide is not legal advice. It explains how the process works so you can make your own decisions. What that means