Skip to main content
The guardian is an optional safety layer for vaults where the owner wants a trusted party to intervene before heirs can claim. A guardian cannot control the vault, cannot withdraw funds, and cannot heartbeat — they have exactly one power: extending the claim deadline by 30 days, once, during the grace period.

​
What a Guardian Is

A guardian is a single Stacks address designated at vault creation time. It is typically a trusted person (a spouse, adult child, or close friend) or a professional (an attorney or trusted advisor) who would know if the vault owner is temporarily incapacitated versus permanently unavailable. The guardian’s role is narrow and non-custodial:
  • Can: Call guardian-pause(vault-owner-address) once, during the grace period.
  • Cannot: Withdraw funds, send heartbeats, update heirs, or take any other vault action.

​
When to Use a Guardian

Medical Emergency

If you’re hospitalized and unable to sign transactions, your guardian can buy an additional 30 days while you recover — preventing heirs from claiming prematurely.

Extended Travel

If you’re in a location without reliable internet access and your heartbeat window expires, a guardian can extend the deadline until you’re back.

Dispute Resolution

An attorney guardian can pause the clock while a will contest or estate dispute is resolved, preventing hasty distribution.

Family Coordination

A trusted family member who is not an heir can serve as guardian, providing a human checkpoint before assets are distributed.

​
How Guardian Pause Works

The guardian calls guardian-pause(vault-owner-address) during the grace period. The contract sets guardian-pause-used = true on the vault. 
(define-public (guardian-pause (vault-owner principal))
  (let (
    (vault (unwrap! (map-get? vaults vault-owner) ERR-VAULT-NOT-FOUND))
    (elapsed (get-elapsed vault))
    (interval (get heartbeat-interval vault))
    (total (+ interval (get grace-period vault)))
  )
    ;; Must be the guardian
    (asserts! (is-eq (some tx-sender) (get guardian vault)) ERR-NOT-GUARDIAN)
    ;; Must be in grace period (past interval, before full deadline)
    (asserts! (>= elapsed interval) ERR-NOT-IN-GRACE)
    (asserts! (< elapsed total) ERR-VAULT-NOT-CLAIMABLE)
    ;; Guardian can only pause once
    (asserts! (not (get guardian-pause-used vault)) ERR-GUARDIAN-PAUSE-USED)

    (map-set vaults vault-owner (merge vault { guardian-pause-used: true }))
    (ok true)
  )
)
Once guardian-pause-used is true, the get-effective-deadline helper adds GUARDIAN-PAUSE-BONUS (2,592,000 seconds = 30 days) to the vault’s effective deadline for all state computations: 
(define-constant GUARDIAN-PAUSE-BONUS u2592000)

(define-private (get-effective-deadline (vault ...))
  (let (
    (base-deadline (+ (get heartbeat-interval vault) (get grace-period vault)))
    (pause-bonus (if (get guardian-pause-used vault) GUARDIAN-PAUSE-BONUS u0))
  )
    (+ base-deadline pause-bonus)
  )
)

​
Guardian Pause Requirements

All three conditions must be met for guardian-pause to succeed:
RequirementError if violated
tx-sender matches the vault’s guardian fieldERR-NOT-GUARDIAN (u102)
elapsed >= heartbeat-interval (vault is in grace)ERR-NOT-IN-GRACE (u112)
elapsed < heartbeat-interval + grace-period (grace not yet expired)ERR-VAULT-NOT-CLAIMABLE (u104)
guardian-pause-used == falseERR-GUARDIAN-PAUSE-USED (u111)
The guardian can only act during the grace period — after the heartbeat interval expires but before the grace period ends. If the guardian waits until the vault is already claimable, the pause opportunity is gone.

​
Setting a Guardian

The guardian is set at vault creation by passing a principal wrapped in some: 
(create-vault
  u604800     ;; heartbeat-interval: 1 week in seconds
  u259200     ;; grace-period: 3 days in seconds
  (list { heir: 'SP_HEIR_ADDRESS, split-bps: u10000 })
  (some 'SP_GUARDIAN_ADDRESS)  ;; guardian
)
To create a vault without a guardian, pass none: 
(create-vault u604800 u259200 (list ...) none)
There is no function to change the guardian after vault creation. If you need a different guardian, you must emergency-withdraw and create a new vault.

​
Guardian vs. Heir: Key Differences

PropertyGuardianHeir
PurposeEmergency pause during grace periodReceive assets after vault becomes claimable
Receives assets?NoYes
Can act in active state?NoNo
Can act in grace state?Yes (pause only)No
Can act in claimable state?NoYes (claim)
Number allowed per vault1Up to 10
Can heartbeat?NoNo
Can emergency-withdraw?NoNo
One-time action?Yes (one pause per vault)No (claim once per vault)

​
Choosing the Right Guardian

Because the guardian’s power is limited to one extension of the deadline, the bar for trust is lower than for an heir or co-signer — but the guardian should still be someone who:
  • Knows your situation well enough to judge whether to pause or let the vault proceed.
  • Will actually monitor the vault (or be notified when the grace period begins).
  • Is reachable and able to sign a Stacks transaction during the grace window.
  • Is not a sole heir (a person who is both guardian and the only heir has no incentive to pause).
An attorney or estate executor is a natural fit for the guardian role: they have professional accountability, knowledge of your estate plan, and no direct financial incentive in the vault’s assets.

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Get started for freeTalk to us