How to Apply for Probate in the Northwest Territories

The short answer

In the Northwest Territories, probate means asking the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories for a grant, under the Estate Administration Rules. The Supreme Court is the superior court of record in the territory, based in Yellowknife, and it also sits in other communities as need arises. Its own page states that it has jurisdiction over divorce, probate and estate administration.

This guide is process only. It states the steps the territorial government and court pages set out. It gives no legal advice, and it does not advise you on whether you should apply, who should be executor or administrator, or how an estate should be divided. Court staff cannot provide legal advice. If the estate is contested, or if a caveat, a bond, or a judge's decision is involved, speak to a lawyer.

The rules that govern the application

The Estate Administration Rules under the Judicature Act govern probate and administration in the territory. Rule 2 states that probate and administration follow the Supreme Court Rules. The rules cover the grant forms, the small-estate declaration, notices, caveats, resealing of grants from elsewhere, and the passing of accounts.

The two routes

There are two routes in the rules, and which one fits depends on the size and shape of the estate:

• Grant of probate or administration. The full route, using the application and affidavit forms below.
• Declaration of small estate. Rule 10 sets out a declaration instead of a grant, with an application, a declaration of small estate, an order, proof of administration, and the effect of the declaration. The forms are Form 2 (application for a declaration of small estate), Form 3 (memorandum and affidavit in support), and Form 4 (the order). The opened pages do not state the dollar threshold that defines a small estate, so this guide states none. Do not rely on a threshold figure from an unofficial site.

The grant forms

Schedule A of the rules lists the forms for a grant:

• Form 5 — the grant itself
• Form 6 — application for a grant
• Form 7 — affidavit in support of the application for a grant
• Form 8 — Schedule 1, the deceased
• Form 9 — Schedule 2, the will
• Form 10 — affidavit of a witness to the will
• Form 11 — Schedule 3, the personal representatives
• Form 12 — Schedule 4, the beneficiaries
• Form 13 — Schedule 5, the value of the estate in the Northwest Territories

Rule 14 sets out which forms a grant of probate, a grant of administration with will annexed, or a grant of administration or limited grant of administration needs. Other forms in the schedule cover renunciations (Forms 20, 21 and 25), nomination and consent to appointment (Form 26), double probate (Forms 31 and 32), resealing (Forms 33 to 36), formal proof of will (Forms 49 and 50), and the passing of accounts (Forms 56 to 67).

Notice

The rules set out a full notice scheme. Rule 27 covers notice of application, Rule 28 covers notice of application to the Public Trustee, Rule 29 covers an unknown beneficiary, and Rule 40 covers notice to claimants, including publication in a newspaper. The notice forms are:

• Form 14 — notice to beneficiaries (residuary)
• Form 16 — notice to beneficiaries (non-residuary)
• Form 18 — notice to spouse
• Form 19 — notice to dependant
• Form 22 — notice to Public Trustee of application for a grant
• Form 27 — notice to beneficiaries (intestacy)
• Form 41 — notice to creditors and claimants
• Form 15 — affidavit of service

Timing

Rule 13(3) is headed "Minimum time before issue", which means the rules set a minimum wait before a grant issues. The opened document is only the rules table of contents, and it does not state the number of days. This guide states no waiting period. Confirm the current minimum wait with the registry before relying on a figure from another source.

Opposing a grant

The rules provide for caveats: Form 46 is the caveat, Form 47 is the warning to a caveator, and Form 48 is the notice of objection. The opened pages do not state a caveat fee or how long a caveat stays in force, so this guide states neither.

The Public Trustee

The Public Trustee administers the estates of people who have died in the Northwest Territories with no one else capable or willing to act as administrator or executor, under the Public Trustee Act, the Estate Administration Rules and other legislation. Form 38 is the memorandum from the Public Trustee, and Form 39 is a consent to waive a bond.

What the opened pages do not state

No fee amount is stated on any opened official page. Rule 46 of the rules is headed Fees, but no amounts appear in the opened table of contents. No small-estate dollar threshold is stated. No plain-language statement of when a grant is or is not needed was found on an opened official page. No notice period in days, no overall processing timeline, and no caveat duration or fee are stated. The opened pages support the court, the rules, the form numbers, and the notice scheme — and this guide states only that much.

Related guides:

• How to Apply for Probate in Yukon — Yukon's Rule 64 probate process, the other territorial comparison.
• How to Apply for Probate in Nunavut — Nunavut's probate process through the Nunavut Court of Justice.
• How to Apply for Probate in British Columbia — British Columbia's grant process, for comparison with the territorial rules.
• How to Apply for Probate in Alberta — Alberta's grant process through the Surrogate Digital Service.
• How to Write a Will in the Northwest Territories — the territory's own will execution and witness rules, which decide who the executor is in the first place.
• How to Order a Death Certificate in Canada — the death certificate the executor needs as proof of death.

The small estate threshold

The declaration route has a dollar limit. In Estate of Bourque, 2025 NWTSC 70, the Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories described Rule 10 of the Estate Administration Rules, R-123-2016, as an expedited process for the administration of small estates: estates having a net value of less than $35,000. The court in that case granted a declaration that the estate was a small estate as defined by the rules and authorized the applicant to administer it. If the net value of the estate is $35,000 or more, the declaration route does not fit: use the grant route, with Form 6 and Form 7 and their schedules.

Sources

• Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories, Estate of Bourque, 2025 NWTSC 70: Rule 10 of the Estate Administration Rules described as an expedited process for estates with a net value of less than $35,000, and a declaration of small estate granted on that basis
• Supreme Court of the Northwest Territories, Supreme Court — the court's jurisdiction over probate and estate administration, and its base in Yellowknife.
• Government of the Northwest Territories, Estate Administration Rules — Table of Contents — Rule 2 on the Supreme Court Rules applying, Rule 10 on the small-estate declaration, Rule 13(3) on the minimum time before issue, Rule 14 on the forms each grant needs, Rules 27 to 29 and 40 on notice, Rule 46 on fees, and the Schedule A form list (Forms 2 to 67).
• Government of the Northwest Territories, Justice Minister announces appointment of new Public Trustee — the Public Trustee administering estates where no one else is capable or willing to act.