Understand what a Legacy Contact can and can't do
A Legacy Contact is a person your parent chooses in their Apple Account settings. After your parent's death, that person can ask Apple for access to data stored in iCloud, using an access key and a death certificate. That can include photos, messages, notes, files, contacts, calendars and device backups.
It has limits, and it helps to know them before you start. A Legacy Contact does not get your parent's passwords from iCloud Keychain, their purchased movies, music or books, or their payment information. Access also lasts for a limited time after Apple approves the request. And it does not unlock the phone itself. Apple can't remove a passcode lock without erasing the device, so the phone passcode still needs its own plan.
Nothing changes while your parent is alive. The contact can't see anything, and your parent can remove them at any time.
Your small next steps
Add the Legacy Contact on your parent's iPhone
Your parent needs iOS 15.2 or later and an Apple Account with two-factor authentication. Sit next to them and let them tap through it themselves:
- Open Settings and tap their name at the top.
- Tap Sign-In & Security (on older versions, Password & Security).
- Tap Legacy Contact, then Add Legacy Contact.
- Choose someone from Family Sharing, or tap Choose Someone Else to pick from Contacts.
- Choose how to share the access key.
The person they choose doesn't need an iPhone or an Apple Account. Your parent can add more than one Legacy Contact, and each one can act on their own.
Your small next steps
Keep the access key where it will be found
The access key is what makes the request work. Without it, the Legacy Contact can't use the feature. If your parent sends it by iMessage and the contact accepts, a copy is saved on the contact's device automatically. If the contact doesn't use iMessage, your parent can print the key or save it as a PDF.
Keep a printed copy with your parent's important papers, such as their will or estate documents. If your parent can't find it later, they can view it again in Settings → [their name] → Sign-In & Security → Legacy Contact, then tap the contact's name and View Access Key.
Your small next steps
Write down what the Legacy Contact won't cover
Since a Legacy Contact doesn't include passwords, purchased media or the phone passcode, your parent needs a plan for those too. Note where the passcode for the phone is kept, who manages your parent's other accounts, and which photos the family would want first. Many families also start an iCloud Shared Photo Library so the most important pictures already live in more than one account.
Your small next steps
The thing to remember
A Legacy Contact covers iCloud data. The phone passcode and passwords need their own plan, so set up the contact, print the key, and write down the rest.
Official pages
General educational information only—not legal, financial, or security advice. Provider features and local laws can change. Use official provider guidance and consult a qualified professional for your circumstances.