Let’s face it—planning for an eventual illness or death is an unpleasant topic that most couples avoid. But estate planning for LGBT couples is imperative because of one single reason: if you’re not married, you have no rights. Without legal documents, you can’t protect each other in illness, pass along your assets, or guarantee that your wishes are carried out. And that’s huge risk to take with your health, resources, and life-long partner. Even if you are married, estate planning is an important step to making sure your life is protected—so keep reading!

Consider each of these scenarios:

1. A life-threatening health issue arises or you’re in a bad car accident. Suddenly you are unable to make decisions for yourself. Who is there to act on your behalf?
2. You pass away and leave your partner with no will or instructions. Who will plan your funeral and receive your assets?

If you haven’t done any estate planning, the answer to both questions is: not your partner. In fact, the person who will have any legal rights will be your next-of-kin, like your parents or siblings. But maybe you’re thinking, “Well, I don’t have any money or a house so this doesn’t apply to me.” That could not be further from the truth! Estate planning is about taking care of the ones you love during the scenarios described above. A formal plan will help avoid making them even more difficult.

So what are your next steps? First and foremost, you need to seek out legal counsel to help you think through these choices and make the proper provisions in legal documents. While you can do much of your estate planning online, it’s worth the money to work with an LGBTQ-friendly attorney to make sure everything is by the book.

Estate Planning for LGBT Couples 

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1. Create your legal documents

Drawn up by your attorney, these will include:

• A will: This is a document with instructions about what will happen to your assets and any further instructions that you leave behind upon your passing.
• A power of attorney: This ensures that a loved one can act on your behalf (write checks, pay bills, etc.) should you become incapacitated.
• A living will: This is a document crafted with instructions for the type of care you’d like to receive if you become terminally ill.

2. Confirm all your account titling

Do you have an old IRA with no beneficiary on it? Or another account where an ex-partner is still the beneficiary? If so, you need to make some updates to the titles of your accounts. Why? Because at your death, the titling of accounts supersedes your will. These designations are what’s known as “will substitutes.” In other words, if you have an IRA beneficiary as a parent, but your will states that everything goes to your partner, the IRA will pass your assets on to your parent—not your partner. So be sure that everything is titled correctly. That includes property, too!

3. Communicate your estate plans to your loved ones

Once you have your estate plans in place, be sure to let all relevant parties know what those plans are and how they’re involved. That may mean emailing copies of the documents to your close family or friends, letting them know where you’ve stored your documents, or making your doctor aware of your medical wishes.

Keep in mind, this is an extremely simplified version. I’m not an attorney, and this is not legal advice but more informational guidance to get you started.

Given the fact that someone can still refuse to make you a wedding cake, estate planning for LGBT couples is even more important to ensuring your wishes are respected. Think of estate planning like you would insurance: No one ever wants to have to use it, but they’re sure glad they have it when they need it. As always, if you have any questions, please let me know. Estate planning is just one of many ways to build a solid, fundamental plan for your financial life. 

Interested in LGBTQ Financial Planning? Learn more here.