How often to review your record

The short answer

There is no rule, and the tool sets none. You can look at your record once a year, or after a change such as a move or a new account. You can review it whenever you wish, at your own pace.

What official pages suggest

• The National Institute on Aging suggests reviewing your plans at least once each year, and when a major life event occurs, such as a divorce, a move or a major change in your health.
• For advance directives, the same institute suggests a review at least once each year, and an update after a major life event such as retirement, moving out of state or a significant change in your health.
• The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau suggests keeping your information as current as possible when something changes, such as opening a new account.
• For funeral wishes, the Federal Trade Commission says it is a good idea to look at your decisions again every few years.

These are suggestions from those agencies. They are not rules, and this site adds none of its own.

How a review works in the tool

"Review my record" shows one part at a time, with two choices: "Still right" and "Change it". When you have been through the parts, the record's "Last reviewed" date is set.

Each part also keeps its own reviewed date. Part 12, the review log, lists every review.

The "Last reviewed" date is on the cover sheet and on every printed page, written in words.

A review can be stopped at any point and picked up another day.

After a change

After a change, you can open only the part it touches. For example:

• A new account, or one that has closed: Part 5, Accounts and policies.
• A paper that has moved: Part 3, Where things are kept.
• A new phone number, a new doctor or a new attorney: Part 2, People to contact.
• A move to a new home: the cover sheet, and Part 6, Property and vehicles.

A print-out made earlier stays as it was. The date on each page shows which print-out is the newer one.

Reminders

The tool sends no reminders. It has no email address for you and no way to reach you.

When the record was last reviewed 12 months ago or more, the home screen shows one calm line with the date. There is no badge and no color, and the line does not repeat.

If you wish, you can add a reminder to your own calendar. The tool saves a calendar file titled "Review my family record", with nothing else in it. It is yours to keep, move or delete.

If a long time has passed

Nothing has gone wrong. The tool gives no score, and it does not tell you that you are behind.

If a legal document itself has to change, such as a will or a power of attorney, that is for your own attorney. Changing the record changes only the record.

Rules differ by state and country. For a will, a power of attorney or an advance directive, see your own attorney and your state's official sources.

Sources

A sentence on this page that states a fact about the world rests on one of the official pages below. A sentence that only describes this record rests on no outside page.

If something on this page looks wrong, or an official page has changed since the date shown, please say so. The contact page explains how.