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Pazos Law GroupPrenups · Divorce · Family Law

Marrying Soon? How a Florida Prenup and a Will Work Together — and the Order to Sign Them (2026)

By Nadia Pazos, Family Law Attorney, Pazos Law Group · Updated

Couples marrying on a short timeline often ask for exactly this: drafts of a prenup and a last will, reviewed, finalized and signed before the wedding. It is the right instinct — the two documents are built to work as a pair — but Florida executes them under different statutes with different formalities. The premarital agreement lives in the family code (§ 61.079), the will and the spousal death rights live in the probate code (§§ 732.502, 732.702), and the pairing only holds if each signature meets the standard the strictest right requires.

Quick Answer

Can we get a prenup and a will done together before the wedding — and in what order?

Yes. Florida sets no signing deadline for a premarital agreement, and § 61.079(4)(a) expressly permits the agreement to require the making of a will or trust to carry it out. The order matters: draft and sign the prenup first — before two subscribing witnesses if it waives rights at death (§ 732.702(1)) — then execute the will that the agreement contemplates, with the formalities of § 732.502.

What a Surviving Spouse Takes If the Prenup Never Waives It

A will alone cannot disinherit a spouse in Florida. Unless spousal rights are validly waived, the probate code hands the survivor a set of statutory claims that operate regardless of what the will says:

  • The elective share — 30 percent of the elective estate. § 732.2065
  • Its deadline — the election must be filed by the earlier of 6 months after service of the required notice or 2 years after death, and a filed election may be withdrawn within 8 months after death. § 732.2135
  • Exempt property — household furniture, furnishings and appliances up to $20,000, plus two motor vehicles of up to 15,000 pounds gross weight each. § 732.402
  • Family allowance — up to $18,000 during administration. § 732.403
  • Homestead rights — the constitutional protections on the family home run on their own track; see below.

This is why the prenup, not the will, is where disinheritance-by-consent actually happens. The waiver inside the agreement is what closes these statutory claims; the will then distributes what the waiver leaves free. Our page on what a Florida prenup waives at death walks each figure back to its statute.

Three Signatures, Three Standards

The reason the order of signing matters is that the same afternoon of paperwork runs through three different execution rules:

  1. The premarital agreement itself: a writing signed by both parties — nothing more. The words “notary” and “witness” appear zero times in the section. § 61.079(3)
  2. The waiver of rights at death inside it: the waiving spouse must sign in the presence of two subscribing witnesses. For a waiver executed before the marriage, no disclosure is required by the probate statute (§ 732.702(2)) — though disclosure still earns its keep, as the FAQ explains. § 732.702(1)
  3. The will: the testator signs at the end before two attesting witnesses, and the witnesses sign in the presence of the testator and of each other. § 732.502

The practical rule that falls out: a prenup meant to also waive estate rights is executed to the strictest standard it contains — two subscribing witnesses — even though the family-law statute alone asks for none. And the thing couples most often ask about, notarization, is not what any of these rules hinges on: a notary seal by itself does not supply the witnesses § 732.702(1) and § 732.502 require. The full contrast lives on our notary-and-witnesses page.

What the Prenup May Say About Your Estate — and the One Thing It May Not

Section 61.079(4)(a) enumerates eight subjects a premarital agreement may cover, and three of them are estate planning by another name: item 3, the disposition of property on separation, dissolution, death, or any other event; item 5, the making of a will, trust, or other arrangement to carry out the agreement; and item 6, ownership and disposition of the death benefit from a life insurance policy. A Florida prenup can therefore obligate both spouses to execute the wills the couple is planning — which is precisely the clause that ties the two documents into one plan.

The single subject the statute puts off limits is child support: the right of a child to support may not be adversely affected by a premarital agreement. § 61.079(4)(b)

The Pre-Wedding Sequence

  1. Draft the prenup first, with the estate waiver and the will-or-trust obligation (§ 61.079(4)(a) items 3 and 5) written into it — and life insurance (item 6) if the plan uses it.
  2. Exchange written financial disclosure. Not required for the pre-marriage death-rights waiver (§ 732.702(2)), but in a later divorce the § 61.079(7)(a) defenses pair unconscionability with inadequate disclosure — the schedules protect the agreement as a whole.
  3. Sign the prenup to the stricter standard: both signatures, each waiving spouse before two subscribing witnesses (§ 732.702(1)).
  4. Execute the wills after the prenup is signed, drafted to carry out the agreement: signed at the end, two attesting witnesses, everyone present together (§ 732.502). Signing the will first would mean executing a document the not-yet-signed prenup is supposed to govern.
  5. Run the licence in parallel. At the Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach clerks a standard marriage licence is $86, or $61 after the state-approved premarital course; Florida residents have a 3-day waiting period, and the licence is valid for 60 days. Our wedding-timing page maps these dates against the signing.

On timing: § 61.079 sets no minimum interval between signing and the ceremony. Timing bears instead on voluntariness under § 61.079(7)(a)1. — the closer to the wedding, the more carefully the execution should be papered.

Homestead, and Changing Course After the Wedding

The family home is the one asset with its own constitutional lane. The devise restrictions of Article X, Section 4(c) of the Florida Constitution limit who homestead property can be left to when there is a surviving spouse, and homestead is among the spousal rights § 732.702 addresses. Florida also provides a second, narrower route: under § 732.7025, a spouse waives the surviving-spouse devise restrictions if a deed includes specific statutory waiver language — and the statute is explicit that this deed language does not waive the owner’s lifetime creditor protection or the requirement of spousal joinder to mortgage, sell, gift or deed the property. If the plan involves the house, homestead should be addressed deliberately in the agreement, not assumed.

After the wedding, the exit is narrow by design: a premarital agreement may be amended, revoked or abandoned only by a written agreement signed by both spouses. § 61.079(6) A couple that marries first and papers later is negotiating a postnuptial agreement, on different footing.

Frequently Asked Questions

We're getting married next month — is there still time for a prenup and a will?

Florida sets no minimum period between signing a prenup and the wedding: § 61.079 contains no signing deadline. Timing bears instead on voluntariness under § 61.079(7)(a)1., so a short runway calls for careful, well-documented execution rather than abandonment of the plan. The will has no wedding-linked deadline at all. What matters is sequence: agreement, disclosure, witnessed signatures, then the will.

Does the prenup need a notary or witnesses if it also covers what happens at death?

The base rule is § 61.079(3): a premarital agreement must be in writing and signed by both parties — the words “notary” and “witness” do not appear in the section. But a waiver of spousal rights at death runs through § 732.702(1), which requires the waiving party’s signature before two subscribing witnesses. A prenup meant to do both jobs should be executed to the stricter standard.

My will leaves everything to my children from my first marriage. Isn't that enough?

No. Without a valid waiver, a surviving spouse may take an elective share of 30 percent of the elective estate under § 732.2065 regardless of the will, plus exempt property under § 732.402 and a family allowance of up to $18,000 under § 732.403. A will directs; only a properly witnessed waiver under § 732.702 closes those statutory claims against the estate.

What exactly would my spouse be entitled to if I die without a waiver?

Four checkable items. The 30 percent elective share (§ 732.2065), elected by the earlier of 6 months after service of notice or 2 years after death, withdrawable within 8 months (§ 732.2135). Exempt property: household furniture, furnishings and appliances up to $20,000, plus two motor vehicles up to 15,000 pounds each (§ 732.402). And a family allowance of up to $18,000 (§ 732.403).

Can our prenup require each of us to make a will?

Yes. Among the eight subjects § 61.079(4)(a) permits, item 5 is the making of a will, trust or other arrangement to carry out the agreement, and item 6 covers ownership and disposition of a life-insurance death benefit. That is the clause that binds the estate plan to the prenup. The one subject the statute forbids: a child’s right to support may not be adversely affected (§ 61.079(4)(b)).

Do we have to exchange financial disclosure before signing?

For the death-rights waiver itself, no: § 732.702(2) states that no disclosure is required for an agreement, contract or waiver executed before marriage. But in a divorce, the § 61.079(7)(a) defenses pair unconscionability with inadequate disclosure as a ground to set the agreement aside — so exchanging written disclosure before the wedding remains the prudent course for the prenup as a whole.

Official Sources & Related Reading

The information on this page is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice, and it does not address the law of any state or country other than Florida except as expressly noted. Reading or sharing this content does not create an attorney-client relationship with Pazos Law Group. Immigration law is federal and highly fact-specific; consult an immigration attorney about visa matters. Florida law and the application of statutes change over time; please consult a licensed Florida attorney about your specific situation, and counsel licensed in any other state or country whose law may apply.