Apple digital legacy
Apple Legacy Contact setup: what to prepare
Apple's Legacy Contact feature provides a provider-approved path for a chosen person to request access to eligible Apple Account data after your death.
General educational information only. Requirements vary by document, jurisdiction, institution, and individual facts.
Choose and inform the contact
Select someone you trust to handle private digital information and ask whether they are willing. The person does not necessarily need an Apple device, but they will need the access key and Apple's required documentation when making a request.
Add the contact through Apple
Follow the current steps in Apple's Sign-In & Security settings. Provider interfaces change, so use Apple's official instructions rather than relying only on an older screenshot or third-party walkthrough.
Store the access key safely
Share or print the access key as Apple permits and record where the trusted person can find it. Treat it as sensitive planning information and verify after device or account changes that it remains available.
Understand the boundary
Legacy Contact does not necessarily provide every password, licensed item, or account capability, and it does not replace an executor or a complete digital estate plan. Review Apple's current eligible-data and access-period rules.
Connect Apple to the family plan
Record the Apple Account identifier, the chosen contact, access-key location, devices, data-preservation wishes, subscriptions, and who should handle hardware or family-sharing arrangements.
Sources and further reading
Provider interfaces and institutional requirements can change. Confirm current instructions with the organization involved.
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