Updated September 7, 2026. Quick answer: In Virginia, you have 1 year to contest a will that has already been admitted to probate, running from the date of the probate order (2 years if you were only reached by publication, not personally served).
How long do you have to contest a will in Virginia?
| Deadline to contest an admitted will | 1 year |
| What starts the clock | the date of the probate order (2 years if you were only reached by publication, not personally served) |
| Dedicated will-contest statute? | Yes |
“within one year from the date of the order entered by the court…[those served only by publication have] two years from the date of the order…a minor at the time of the order may file within one year after such person reaches the age of maturity…an incapacitated person may file within one year after such person is restored to capacity.”
Source: Va. Code § 64.2-448
What makes Virginia different
Virginia runs a genuine two-tier deadline by notice method: anyone reached only by publication (rather than personally served) gets double the ordinary window, 2 years instead of 1, on top of separate minority and incapacity tolling. The controlling authority is Va. Code § 64.2-448, and the window runs from the date of the probate order (2 years if you were only reached by publication, not personally served).
What happens once this deadline passes?
Once the window above closes, Virginia’s probate of the will generally becomes final and binding on everyone who had the chance to object, subject only to the tolling or discovery exceptions described above; a separate objection Virginia allowed at the original probate hearing does not reopen or extend it.
Sources
| Statute / rule | Va. Code § 64.2-448 |
| Virginia courts (general reference) | Virginia judicial branch |
| Confidence | High |
Every statute or rule quoted on this Virginia page was read directly from the state’s own legislature/court/code site this session, or, where that site blocked automated access, from a reputable legal-citation mirror quoting the same official text with its official citation (disclosed below). General information, not legal advice; whether a specific contest is still timely can turn on facts (exactly when notice was given, how the will was probated, whether a disability applies) that only your own Virginia probate court file can confirm.