How to Apply for Probate in Manitoba
Apply for probate in Manitoba: Form 74A, the inventory in Form 74B, the 7-day minimum wait, the $10,000 small-estate order, and filing at the Court of King's Bench.
How to Apply for Probate in British Columbia
Apply for probate in British Columbia: when a grant is needed, the Form P1 notice and 21-day wait, the P-forms, the probate fee, and filing at a Supreme Court probate registry.
Applies in: British Columbia
The short answer
Give notice first, wait 21 days, then file the P-forms with the original will at a Supreme Court probate registry. Probate in British Columbia is the court process that confirms a will is valid and that the executor named in it has the right to carry it out. The executor applies to the probate registry of the Supreme Court of British Columbia, and if the court is satisfied it issues a grant of probate. This guide covers process only. It is not legal advice, and it gives no advice about whether a particular estate needs a grant.
The rules come from the Wills, Estates and Succession Act and the Supreme Court Civil Rules, Part 25 — Estates. The forms are published by the Government of British Columbia, and you should use the latest version of each form.
When a grant is needed, and when it is not
Not every estate needs probate. If everything the person owned is worth under $25,000, you usually do not need to apply for probate, unless there is a dispute or a bank or another organization requires it. Some things pass without probate, such as jointly owned property and some bank accounts.
In practice, a grant is usually needed when an institution will not release an asset without one — most often a bank holding accounts in the deceased's name alone, or the Land Title Office for real property held in the deceased's name alone. The $25,000 figure is the threshold for fees, not a rule about when a grant is required: an estate under $25,000 can still need a grant if a bank or another organization asks for it, and an estate over $25,000 does not automatically need one if every asset passes another way. If you are not sure, get legal advice before you decide.
Step 1: Search the wills notice registry
Before you file, apply to the Vital Statistics Agency for a certificate of wills notice search. British Columbia runs a wills notice registry where people can file a notice recording where their will is kept, and the search certificate shows whether a notice was filed and where the most recent will is. You need two copies of the certificate for the application package.
Order the search early. It is one of the documents the registry checks before a grant issues, and waiting for it after the rest of the package is ready only adds delay.
Step 2: Deliver Form P1 notice and wait 21 days
Before you can apply, you must give notice of the proposed application. Complete Form P1, Notice of Proposed Application in Relation to Estate, and deliver it with a copy of the will to everyone entitled to notice: the people named in the will, anyone who would inherit if there was no will, and the others the rules list. The Form P1 itself also notes that extra information must go to the Public Guardian and Trustee where the rules require it, for example where a beneficiary is a minor or an incapable adult.
Then wait. The grant may issue on any date that is at least 21 days after the date the notice was delivered to a recipient, unless the court orders an earlier date. Do not file the application before that waiting period has run. Anyone who receives the notice has the right to oppose the grant by filing a notice of dispute, and filing one stops a grant from issuing until the dispute is dealt with.
Step 3: Complete the application forms
The full set of probate forms is published on the Government of British Columbia website, last updated October 1, 2026. For a typical application where there is a will, you need:
- Form P1 — Notice of Proposed Application, already delivered in step 2.
- Form P2 — Submission for Estate Grant. This is the application itself, with the details of the deceased and the estate.
- Form P3 or Form P4 — Affidavit of Applicant for Grant of Probate. Use the short form, P3, for a straightforward application. Use the long form, P4, if you think there will be issues with the will.
- Form P9 — Affidavit of Delivery. This confirms that the Form P1 notice was delivered to everyone who needed to be notified. Attach another copy of the Form P1 that was delivered.
- Form P10 or Form P11 — Affidavit of Assets and Liabilities. Use P10 if the person lived in British Columbia when they died. Use P11 if they did not live in British Columbia but had assets here.
You also need the originally signed version of the will, or a copy of it if the original is lost, and two copies of the certificate of wills notice search from step 1.
Other forms apply in non-standard situations. If an executor named in the will gives up the role, use Form P17, Notice of Renunciation. If there is no will at all, the application is for a grant of administration, and the applicant's affidavit is Form P5 instead of P3 or P4. If the will is an electronic will, Forms P45 and P46 cover the affidavit and the demand for the electronic will. Use the latest version of every form: outdated forms are rejected.
Step 4: File at a Supreme Court probate registry and pay the fees
File the completed package at a probate registry of the Supreme Court of British Columbia. Make copies of everything for your own records before you file. The fees are due when you file, and the grant cannot issue until they are paid.
There are two separate charges:
- The court filing fee. Under Schedule 1, Item 1 of Appendix C to the Supreme Court Civil Rules, the fee for commencing the proceeding is $200. No fee is payable under that item to file for and obtain a grant of probate or administration if the person died leaving an estate worth $25,000 or less.
- The probate fee. Under section 2 of the Probate Fee Act, no fee is payable if the value of the estate does not exceed $25,000. Above that, the fee is $6 for every $1,000 or part of $1,000 by which the value of the estate exceeds $25,000 but is not more than $50,000, plus $14 for every $1,000 or part of $1,000 by which the value exceeds $50,000. The fee must be paid to the government before any grant issues, and the personal representative pays it in that representative capacity only.
Worked example, from those two provisions: for a $100,000 estate, the probate fee is $150 on the $25,000 between $25,000 and $50,000, plus $700 on the $50,000 above $50,000, for $850 in probate fees. Add the $200 filing fee, and the total is $1,050. The fee is charged on the gross value of the estate that passes under the grant, with values rounded up to the next $1,000.
Step 5: Receive the grant and get certified copies
If the registry is satisfied with the application, the court issues the grant of probate. The grant is the court order that confirms the executor's authority to deal with the estate: to collect assets, pay debts, and distribute what is left under the will.
Order court-certified copies of the grant when it issues. Banks and the Land Title Office commonly ask for a certified copy rather than a plain copy, and the registry charges for each certified copy. After the grant issues, the executor must provide an accounting of how the estate was administered and distributed to the beneficiaries, or to the intestate successors if there was no will.
If there is no will
If there is no will, or if the executor named in the will cannot perform their duties, the process is called administration. You apply for a grant of administration instead of a grant of probate. The notice step, the 21-day wait, the assets and liabilities affidavit, and the fees work the same way. The applicant's affidavit is Form P5, Affidavit of Applicant for Grant of Administration without Will Annexed. If there is a will but the person named as executor cannot act, the application is for a grant of administration with will annexed, and the affidavit is Form P3 or P4.
What the linked pages do not state
No processing time for a grant is stated in this guide, because no processing time was verified on an official page. Registry processing times vary by location and workload. No lawyer fee or legal cost is stated. No fee for a court-certified copy of a grant is stated, because no amount was verified on an official page. No rule about how long estate administration takes after the grant issues is stated. Confirm current timelines and copy fees with the probate registry before you plan around them.
Related guides
Applying for probate in British Columbia, in five steps
- Search the wills notice registryApply to the Vital Statistics Agency for a certificate of wills notice search before you file
- Deliver Form P1 and wait 21 daysSend the notice of proposed application, with a copy of the will, to everyone entitled to notice, then wait at least 21 days
- Complete the application formsForm P2, Form P3 or P4, Form P9, and Form P10 or P11, plus the original will and the search certificates
- File at a Supreme Court probate registry and pay the feesFile the package at a probate registry; the filing fee and the probate fee depend on the value of the estate
- Receive the grant and get certified copiesThe court issues the grant of probate, which confirms the executor's authority to deal with the estate
Questions people ask
What is probate in British Columbia?
Probate is the Supreme Court of British Columbia process that confirms a will is valid and that the executor named in it has the right to carry it out. If the court is satisfied, it issues a grant of probate, which is the court order that gives the executor legal authority to deal with the estate. The process is governed by the Wills, Estates and Succession Act and the Supreme Court Civil Rules, Part 25 — Estates.
Do I always need probate in British Columbia?
No. If everything the person owned is worth under $25,000, you usually do not need to apply for probate, unless there is a dispute or a bank or another organization requires it. Some things pass without probate, such as jointly owned property and some bank accounts. If you are not sure whether a grant is needed, get legal advice before you decide.
How long must I wait after sending the Form P1 notice?
At least 21 days. The notice of proposed application, Form P1, must be delivered with a copy of the will to everyone entitled to notice, and the grant may issue on any date that is at least 21 days after the date the notice was delivered, unless the court orders an earlier date. You cannot file the application before that waiting period has run.
Which forms do I need for a typical probate application in British Columbia?
For a typical application with a will, you need Form P1 (Notice of Proposed Application), Form P2 (Submission for Estate Grant), Form P3 or Form P4 (Affidavit of Applicant for Grant of Probate — use P4 if you think there will be issues with the will), Form P9 (Affidavit of Delivery), and Form P10 or Form P11 (Affidavit of Assets and Liabilities — use P11 if the person did not live in British Columbia when they died). You also need the originally signed will and two copies of a certificate of wills notice search from the Vital Statistics Agency.
How much does probate cost in British Columbia?
There are two separate charges. The court filing fee is $200 when the estate is worth more than $25,000, and no filing fee is payable if the estate is worth $25,000 or less. The probate fee under the Probate Fee Act is nothing if the estate is worth $25,000 or less, $6 for every $1,000 or part of $1,000 of value between $25,000 and $50,000, and $14 for every $1,000 or part of $1,000 above $50,000. For a $100,000 estate that works out to $850 in probate fees plus the $200 filing fee, or $1,050 in total.
What if there is no will?
Then the process is called administration, not probate. You apply for a grant of administration instead of a grant of probate, using Form P5, Affidavit of Applicant for Grant of Administration without Will Annexed. The same notice, waiting period, and fee rules apply. If there is a will but the executor named in it cannot act, the application is for a grant of administration with will annexed.
Sources
- Clicklaw, How do I apply for probate? — when probate is not required, the typical forms P1, P2, P3 or P4, P9, and P10 or P11, the original will, two copies of the wills notice search certificate, and the Supreme Court Civil Rules Part 25 — Estates. Last reviewed October 2025.
- Government of British Columbia, Supreme Court Civil Rules — probate forms — the complete list of probate forms, including P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, P9, P10, P11, P17, P45, and P46. Last updated October 1, 2026.
- BC Laws, Supreme Court Civil Rules — the Form P1 text stating a grant may issue on any date at least 21 days after the notice is delivered, and the Appendix A.1 list of probate forms. Consolidation current to November 3, 2026.
- BC Laws, Supreme Court Civil Rules, Appendix C, Schedule 1 — the $200 filing fee for commencing the proceeding, and no fee where the estate does not exceed $25,000.
- BC Laws, Probate Fee Act — section 2: no fee where the estate does not exceed $25,000; $6 per $1,000 between $25,000 and $50,000; $14 per $1,000 above $50,000; payable before any grant issues. Current to August 25, 2026.