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nellamae
User level: Level 1 (4 points)

Transferring iCloud data and Apple One after a spouse's death

My husband passed away...


Among the many horrible admin things that come after death, I haven't been able to sort out how to deal with our Apple1 account and icloud.


  • He is the account holder for our shared family account.
  • We have an Apple1 subscription.
  • I have access to his account, email and phone.
  • I am his Apple Legacy contact.


My goal is to cancel his Apple1 account without losing photos, contacts, music, etc. and sign up for my own Apple1 account.


My understanding is I cannot just have his Apple1 account be transferred to me.


I need to shut down his account because it is associated with his phone number, which I need to turn off.


I would like to know the order of operations to keep all our photos, music, etc in iCloud, get a new Apple1 account, add my daughter, and then shut down his account.


Thank you.


Posted on Nov 1, 2026 11:46 AM

1 reply

Limnos
User level: Level 10 (462,771 points)

Nov 2, 2026 9:09 PM in response to nellamae

First, my commiserations.


In a general sense you may find this article to be useful: Request access to a deceased family member’s Apple Account - Apple Support It includes information about closing an account.


To address your specific question about Apple One, read this article about what happens when you downgrade storage Downgrade or cancel your iCloud+ plan - Apple Support


It doesn't actually say anything about deleting content, only that if you downgrade that you won't be able to add anything more. If that wording is to be trusted then as long as you are ready to set up a new Apple One account as soon as leaving the old family and joining a new one then you should be okay. If you are not comfortable about that interpretation then each person in the family group should take out an individual storage plan to cover their needs until they can join a new family that has Apple One.


So:


  1. One person to be the new Organizer leaves the current family How to leave or remove a member from a Family Sharing group - Apple Support and starts their own family How to set up Family Sharing on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac - Apple Support
  2. That person or another person will start an Apple One subscription. What happens to your iCloud storage when you sign up for Apple One - Apple Support
  3. Others will leave the old family and join the new family.


If you are not comfortable with not having a storage plan to cover your needs during the transition then take out a personal plan before leaving the first family. Relevant information -->

Share iCloud+ with your Family Sharing group - Apple Support

"When you share iCloud+, any family members using the free 5GB plan are added to your family plan automatically."

"If a family member is already paying for their own iCloud+ plan, they can choose to switch to your plan or keep their own and still remain part of the family. When they switch to the shared family plan, they get a refund for the remainder of their personal plan. They can't keep their current plan and use the shared family plan at the same time."


Note that you will need to be able to manage things in your husband's account (and the new one too if you are to be the Organizer) to be able to perform the necessary actions, particularly if your daughter is a minor child. Read this article about how to move a child to another group using Family Sharing - How to transfer a child to another Family Sharing group - Apple Support



Originally posted at discussions.apple.com/thread/256387110