Your Spouse Couldn't Recover Your Bitcoin Without You: A Step-by-Step Plan

Say you've held bitcoin for years. After Voyager, Celsius and FTX failed in 2022, you moved everything into self-custody, and it has sat on a hardware wallet such as a Coldcard ever since. You know that setup well. Your spouse doesn't.

Then the question arrives: if something happened to you, could your spouse get to it? Not only if you died, but if you had a stroke. And you don't want to go back to an exchange to solve it.

Our team hears some version of this often. This page is the step-by-step plan for that situation.

What's at risk: one device and one person

Self-custody did its job. It kept your bitcoin away from the platforms that failed, and many holders run a hardware wallet well for years. The weak point here is that the whole plan runs through you. Your spouse would inherit a device, a list of words, maybe a passphrase they don't know exists, and no one to call.

That gap shows up two ways:

• Death. Your spouse has to execute a recovery once, while grieving, with no chance to practice.
• Incapacity. You're alive but can't manage your affairs. A will and a beneficiary designation do nothing yet.

Our deeper read, Could Your Family Recover Your Bitcoin Without You?, walks through what each custody model asks of your family.

Step 1: Test your current setup with your spouse

Before changing anything, sit down with your spouse and have them attempt a recovery while you watch and don't help. It costs nothing, and it tells you more than any article will. If they get stuck, note where. That's the part of the plan that depends on you.

Step 2: Move most of it somewhere your spouse doesn't have to operate

Three institutions protect your bitcoin. No one of them can lose it, move it, or use it, and nothing moves without your permission.

Multi-institution custody works like a bank vault that needs two keyholders to open: it takes two of the three (Onramp, BitGo, and CoinCover) to move your bitcoin. No hardware wallets, seed phrases, backups, or PINs to manage.

This isn't a return to an exchange. The bitcoin sits in its own segregated vault titled in your name, never pooled with anyone else's, and you can verify it on-chain at any time. The structure is designed to survive the failure of any one institution, including Onramp: the remaining two can coordinate recovery into a replacement vault. How multi-institution custody works

The move itself is a standard bitcoin transaction. You open a Core or Private account, select Move bitcoin, then Deposit, and send from your hardware wallet the way you always have. Send a small test amount first, confirm it arrived on a block explorer, then send the rest. Don't wipe the device or destroy the backup until the full transfer has confirmed. Moving bitcoin between wallets you own is generally not a sale, but confirm with a tax advisor before a large transfer. How the move works

Step 3: Name your spouse first, then your children

Once the account is open, you name beneficiaries and sign a transfer on death agreement. A common setup for a couple is your spouse as primary beneficiary and your children as contingent beneficiaries. You can update them anytime.

• No probate for the account. A transfer on death agreement moves the bitcoin directly to the named beneficiary, outside the court process a will goes through.
• If you both die together. Contingent beneficiaries are how the plan still works when the primary beneficiary can't receive it.
• If a child is a minor. A minor generally can't hold the account directly. That usually takes a trust or a named guardian, set up with an estate attorney.
• If you have a trust. The vault can be titled in the name of your trust, or the trust can be named as primary beneficiary.

How Onramp inheritance works

Step 4: Plan for incapacity

A transfer on death agreement only applies at death. If you're alive but can no longer manage the account, a beneficiary designation does nothing. That takes a durable power of attorney: one person named for the account, authority over financial accounts (ideally mentioning digital assets or bitcoin), and notarized. If it only takes effect on incapacity, expect to be asked for a doctor's letter.

For most couples, that one person is the spouse. Whether the document takes effect when you sign it or only on incapacity is a choice to make with your estate attorney.

Until then, nothing moves without your permission. Moving bitcoin out of a vault takes an identity check and two video calls, one with Onramp and one with BitGo. That protects your spouse too: no one can pressure them into moving bitcoin they don't control.

Step 5: Keep a smaller amount in self-custody, written down

Many holders keep a smaller amount on a hardware wallet alongside the vault. That's a reasonable choice. Keep it in one wallet, write down how your spouse would recover it, and never put a seed phrase in a will, since wills generally become public in probate. Our family recovery guide has the full checklist.

Step 6: Show your spouse how they would reach Onramp

This is the part that replaces the device. Your spouse doesn't need to learn anything technical. They need to know three things:

• That the account exists. Several of our clients describe the plan simply: my family knows we have an account here, and they know who to call.
• Where the recovery kit is. Every account includes a recovery kit with plain-English instructions. Keep it with your estate documents.
• Who to call. Onramp's team is at 737-260-7979 and hello@onrampbitcoin.com. Private accounts include a dedicated account manager.

If you die, your spouse contacts Onramp, presents a death certificate and identification, and the Onramp team guides them through the transfer. There is no seed phrase to find and no device to unlock. The team also works directly with estate attorneys when one is involved.

Step 7: Plan for the first death, not just the last

Most couples plan for the children and skip the step in between: what happens when one of you dies first. Four things are worth knowing.

• Your spouse usually owes no federal estate tax. Anything that passes to a spouse who's a US citizen falls under the unlimited marital deduction. If your spouse isn't a citizen, the rules are different, so raise it with your estate attorney.
• The cost basis resets. If the bitcoin is in your name, your spouse inherits it at its value on the day you die, not what you paid. For bitcoin bought early, that can remove most of the taxable gain. In community property states, both halves can reset.
• Your unused exemption can carry over, but only if someone files for it. Your executor has to file an estate tax return to pass it to your spouse, even when no tax is due. Bitcoin estate tax rules in 2026 has the numbers.
• Your spouse then makes their own plan. Once the bitcoin is in their name, they name the children as beneficiaries and update their own power of attorney.

Your estate attorney and tax advisor can confirm how this applies to you.

What a finished plan looks like

• Your spouse has tried a recovery of your current setup, and you've fixed what broke.
• Most of the bitcoin is in a vault titled in your name or your trust's, protected by three independent institutions.
• Your spouse is primary beneficiary, your children are contingent, and any minor's share runs through a trust or guardian.
• A durable power of attorney names your spouse for the account.
• Any self-custody amount is in one wallet, with instructions your spouse has read back to you.
• Your spouse knows the account exists, where the recovery kit is, and who to call.
• Your estate attorney has looked at the first death as well as the second.

FAQ

Does my spouse need to learn how to use a hardware wallet?

No, not for the bitcoin in the vault. With beneficiaries named, your spouse presents a death certificate and identification, and the Onramp team guides them through the transfer. There's no seed phrase or device to find. Any amount you keep in self-custody still needs its own written instructions.

Can my spouse act on the account while I'm alive?

Only with legal authority. The account is yours, and nothing moves without your permission. If you want your spouse to be able to act for you, a durable power of attorney is the instrument: one person named for the account, authority over financial accounts (ideally mentioning digital assets or bitcoin), and notarized.

What happens if we both die at the same time?

That's what contingent beneficiaries are for. If your spouse can't receive the bitcoin, it passes to the contingent beneficiaries you named, such as your children. A minor child usually needs a trust or a guardian rather than a direct designation.

Will my spouse owe tax when they inherit?

Generally, bitcoin passing to a US citizen spouse qualifies for the unlimited marital deduction, so no federal estate tax is due at the first death, and bitcoin held outside a retirement account generally gets a stepped-up basis on the date of death. State rules and a non-citizen spouse can change that, so confirm with your estate attorney and tax advisor.

Isn't this just going back to a custodian I have to trust?

Your bitcoin sits in a segregated vault titled in your name, never pooled, and you can verify it on-chain at any time. It takes two of three institutions to move your bitcoin, and nothing moves without your permission. The structure is designed to survive the failure of any one institution, including Onramp.

Can I keep some bitcoin on my hardware wallet?

Yes. Many holders keep a smaller amount in self-custody alongside their vault. Keep it in one wallet and write down how your spouse would recover it.

Does Onramp carry insurance?

Onramp maintains custody insurance through Canopius, a Lloyd's of London syndicate: up to $50M in aggregate coverage across our custody operations. Onramp pays the premium. Eligible clients can elect dedicated cover in their own name. Terms and exclusions apply.

What does this cost?

Multi-Institution Custody starts at $100 a month. Core, which includes a vault in your name and inheritance planning, is $250 a month or $2,400 a year. Private, for balances of 10 BTC and up, starts at 0.04% a month. See pricing

This page is educational and is not legal, tax or investment advice. Onramp is not a law firm or tax practice. Consult your own attorney and tax advisor before acting.