Provincial probate forms
Every province publishes estate administration forms for the executor. Ontario uses Form 74A/74.1A; BC uses probate grant forms through the Supreme Court; Quebec uses notarial succession where applicable.
Stage · Estate planning in Canada
Foundations: will, POA, beneficiaries
The cheapest stage, and the one most Canadians skip. Without a will, the province decides who gets your assets and who raises your children. Beneficiary designations on registered accounts and insurance override your will, so both documents must be coordinated.
What to do this week
- Draft or update your will. For straightforward situations (no business, no blended family), online services (Willful, Epilogue, LawDepot) produce legally valid wills in your province for under $200. For anything complex, hire a provincial estate lawyer.
- Name a guardian for minor children and an alternate guardian. The alternate matters, you cannot know which guardian will be available 20 years from now.
- Execute Powers of Attorney: one for property (financial decisions) and one for personal care (health decisions). Separate documents; typically named to different people.
- Review and update beneficiary designations on RRSP, RRIF, TFSA, FHSA, life insurance, pension. Designations override your will.
- For TFSA specifically: name your spouse as SUCCESSOR HOLDER, not beneficiary. Successor holder keeps the TFSA intact; beneficiary collapses it to cash.
What to avoid
- A will without POA. If you're incapacitated but alive, the will does nothing. Without POA, family applies to court for guardianship, slow and expensive.
- Using joint-with-right-of-survivorship to avoid probate with adult children. Triggers deemed disposition, potential capital gains, and can expose the property to the child's creditors and divorce.
- Leaving RRSP or RRIF to adult children as beneficiaries when you have a surviving spouse. Spousal rollover defers tax; non-spouse beneficiary means full balance hits your final return.
- Hand-written wills (holograph). Legal only in some provinces, easy to challenge, and routinely contain fatal drafting errors.
Calculators for this stage
Forms to file at this stage
CRA: Preparing returns for deceased persons
Canonical reference for the final tax return (T1 Final), rights or things returns, and estate T3 returns.
CRA: Death of a taxpayer →Frequently asked
Is an online will good enough?
For simple situations, yes. Online will services (Willful, Epilogue, LawDepot) produce wills valid in every common-law Canadian province when signed and witnessed correctly. Complex situations, business interests, blended families, trusts, US ties, dependents with disabilities, warrant a lawyer.
Do I need a separate will for each province I own property in?
Generally no for common-law provinces. One Canadian will typically handles property across common-law provinces. Quebec's civil law system is different; Quebec property often benefits from a Quebec notarial will. US property needs US estate planning; cross-border situations warrant specialist advice.
What happens if I die without a will in Canada?
Provincial intestacy rules distribute your estate. Each province has a formula based on spouse, children, parents, siblings. None matches most families' actual preferences. The court also appoints an administrator, not someone you chose.
How often should I update my will?
Every 3–5 years at minimum, plus after any major life event: marriage, divorce, death of a beneficiary, birth of a child, move to a different province, significant change in assets.
Next stage
Building: asset-specific tax planning →