Making a will province by province: formal and holograph wills, witness counts, executor and guardian roles, from each province's official pages.
Applies in: CA
A will is a written document that states how property is distributed after death, names the person who will carry out the will, and can name a guardian for minor children. There is no single Canadian will. Wills law is provincial and territorial, the formal requirements differ by province, and a form that is valid in one province may not meet the requirements of another. This guide routes six jurisdictions, each on its own official page: Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Quebec. It states each routed province's rule from that province's page, never a national average. Provinces and territories not routed here, including the Atlantic provinces and the territories, are not covered, and no rule is stated for them. Check the wills legislation of the province or territory where the will is made before signing.
This guide walks the reader to the requirements and to the lawyer or notary who handles complex estates. It gives no personalized legal advice and assesses no one's situation. Wording, capacity, blended families, business property, property in more than one province, and any doubt about whether a document meets the formal requirements are reasons to see a lawyer in the province concerned, or a notary in Quebec, before signing.
Ontario's Succession Law Reform Act states a will is valid only when it is in writing, and sets out execution in section 4 and holograph wills in section 6, in the consolidation. British Columbia's Wills, Estates and Succession Act, in force March 31, 2014, sets out making a will in Part 4, Division 1, with section 36 on age, section 37 on writing and witnessing, section 39 on signatures and formalities, and section 40 on witness age. Alberta's Wills and Succession Act sets out who can make a will in section 13, the requirements of a valid will in section 14, the formal will in section 15, and the holograph will in section 16. Manitoba's Wills page states three requirements for validity: the maker ordinarily at least 18 and of sound mind, the will in writing, and the signature witnessed by at least two people, subject to the armed forces, sailor, and holograph exceptions. Saskatchewan's Making a Will page points to The Wills Act and states the holograph requirements directly. Quebec's Civil Code, in the wills title, lists chapters for the nature of wills, capacity, and forms of wills, with divisions for notarial wills, holograph wills, and wills made in the presence of witnesses.
Read the page for the province where the will is made, in full, before drafting. Later amendments to Ontario's Act, including video witnessing and court validation provisions reported in secondary sources, could not be verified on an official page and are not stated in this guide. The same caution applies to British Columbia electronic wills: no electronic-will claim is made in this guide, because none could be verified on a British Columbia page.
Alberta's wills page lists what a will allows a person to do: direct how property will be distributed after death, name a personal representative to represent the estate and carry out the wishes stated in the will, and name a guardian for minor children. Manitoba's page adds that laws can affect whether property is inherited as directed in the will, and that laws set out what an executor can and cannot do. List the property, the people who are to receive it, the executor and an alternate, and guardianship wishes for minor children, and confirm each person named is willing and able, as Manitoba directs for both executor and guardian appointments.
Alberta recommends consulting a lawyer to prepare a will, so that wishes are represented accurately. Saskatchewan states a self-help kit exists for a simple or uncomplicated will, that the kit is not designed for complex wills involving estate planning, tax planning, or complicated divisions of property, and that the kit is not a substitute for professional legal advice. Use a kit, if at all, only for a simple will, and only after reading the requirements for the province concerned. A will that is unclear, incomplete, or signed the wrong way can cost the estate time and money to resolve, and the Saskatchewan page states that risk directly.
For a formal will, the witness count is two in every province routed. Ontario requires the will to be signed at its end by the testator, or by another person in the testator's presence and by the testator's direction; the testator must make or acknowledge the signature in the presence of two or more attesting witnesses present at the same time; and two or more attesting witnesses must subscribe the will in the testator's presence. Alberta requires a formal will to be signed by the testator with the testator making or acknowledging the signature in the presence of 2 witnesses present at the same time, and each witness signing in the testator's presence. Manitoba requires at least two witnesses to the signature, with the same two-witness rule for a codicil. British Columbia requires the will to be in writing and signed at its end in the presence of at least two witnesses, and a witness must be 19 years old.
Do not use a beneficiary as a witness. Ontario voids a beneficial gift to an attesting witness or the witness's then spouse, so far as it concerns them. Manitoba states a witness usually cannot benefit, and neither can the witness's spouse or common-law partner. Use two adults who inherit nothing under the will, who are present at the same time, and who sign in the testator's presence. For Quebec wills made in the presence of witnesses, confirm the witness count, presence, and initialling rules with a notary or lawyer in Quebec, because those details could not be verified on a Légis Québec page.
For a holograph will, the test is wholly handwritten. Ontario, Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan each allow a holograph will with no witnesses, as stated in the answers above. Saskatchewan adds that the will must be signed and dated, that printing by hand is allowed but typing, even partly, disqualifies it, and that no witnesses are required or permitted. Manitoba requires the holograph will to be signed and dated. Alberta requires the holograph will to be wholly in the testator's own handwriting and signed, without the presence or signature of a witness or any other formality. Ontario requires the will to be wholly by the testator's own handwriting and signature, without formality and without a witness. A typed or partly typed document is not a holograph will. A holograph will is not a shortcut for a complex estate, and handwriting, clarity, and proof of the maker's handwriting can become issues later, so treat it as an emergency form, not a plan, unless a lawyer advises otherwise.
Quebec's Civil Code provides a further route in article 714, on Légis Québec: a holograph will or a will made in the presence of witnesses that does not fully meet the requirements of that form is valid nevertheless if it meets the essential requirements and unquestionably and unequivocally contains the last wishes of the deceased. Article 772 provides that a holograph will or a will made in the presence of witnesses is probated, on the application of any interested person, in the manner prescribed in the Code of Civil Procedure. Those two articles are stated for Quebec only, and no equivalent court-validation claim is made for any other province in this guide.
Age and capacity differ. British Columbia allows anyone over the age of 16 to make a will under section 36 of the Wills, Estates and Succession Act, as the Part 4 summary states. Alberta allows an individual 18 or older with mental capacity to make, alter, or revoke a will. Manitoba requires the maker ordinarily to be at least 18 and of sound mind, with very few cases where the person may be younger. Ontario's Act states a will made by a person under 18 is not valid unless, at the time of making it, the person is or has been married, is contemplating marriage to a named person with the stated conditions, is a member of a regular force or on active service, or is a sailor at sea or in the course of a voyage. No age rule is stated for Saskatchewan or Quebec in this guide, because none could be verified on an official page.
No storage or registration rule is stated in this guide for any province, because none could be verified on an official page. Do not assume a will must be filed with a court, registered with a government office, or kept in a safety deposit box that the executor cannot open. Ask the lawyer or notary who prepared the will where the original should be kept, who should know its location, and whether a copy should be held separately. Tell the executor where the original is, and tell the executor that the appointment has been made, before the will is needed.
Review the will regularly and after major life events. Alberta directs review after marriage, divorce, children, acquiring or selling property, and other changes, and states a will that is out of date could create problems. Manitoba states a will is revoked if the maker prepares a new will, destroys the original copy, indicates an intention to revoke in writing with witnesses, or, in all but a few cases, marries after preparing it, and states a will is almost always invalid if the maker marries after signing it. A separated spouse can still receive bequests under a will in Manitoba, so separated spouses must revise or revoke wills if they want to limit what a spouse inherits. For a minor change, a codicil executed the same way as the will is the Manitoba route; for many changes, a new will is easiest. Alberta allows a person 18 or older with mental capacity to alter or revoke a will. Make any change with the same formalities as the original will, and do not alter the signed original by hand, because alterations have their own execution rules that this guide does not state.
Figures not stated in this guide: no lawyer, notary, or will-kit cost is stated, because no fee could be verified on an official page. No probate fee, estate administration tax, or processing time is stated for the same reason. No storage, registration, or electronic-will rule is stated, because none could be verified on an official page. No rule is stated for New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, Yukon, Northwest Territories, or Nunavut, because the rule for those jurisdictions could not be verified on an official page. Confirm the rule for the province or territory concerned on its own official page before signing.
No province routed in this guide states that a lawyer or notary is required for every will. Alberta recommends consulting a lawyer, Saskatchewan states it is possible to make a will yourself but usually a good idea to talk to a lawyer, and Manitoba directs readers to the Wills Act requirements rather than to a professional. Quebec notarial wills are executed by a notary, and that is one of the Civil Code forms, not a general requirement. For a complex estate, property in more than one province, a business, children from an earlier relationship, or any doubt about capacity or wording, a lawyer in the province where the will is made, or a notary in Quebec, is the person to see. This guide gives no personalized legal advice and assesses no one's situation.
Two, in every province routed in this guide. Ontario requires the testator to make or acknowledge the signature in the presence of two or more attesting witnesses present at the same time, with two or more witnesses subscribing the will in the testator's presence. Alberta requires the testator to sign in the presence of 2 witnesses present at the same time, with each witness signing in the testator's presence. Manitoba requires the signature to be witnessed by at least two people. British Columbia requires the will to be signed at its end in the presence of at least two witnesses, and a witness must be 19 years old. Quebec wills made in the presence of witnesses are one of the Civil Code forms, and the witness details for that form could not be verified on a Légis Québec page, so confirm them with a notary or lawyer in Quebec.
Yes, without witnesses, in Ontario, Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan, under their legislation. Ontario allows a will wholly by the testator's own handwriting and signature, without formality and without a witness. Alberta allows a will wholly in the testator's own handwriting and signed, without the presence or signature of a witness or any other formality. Manitoba allows a will written entirely in the maker's handwriting, signed and dated by the maker. Saskatchewan requires the will to be completely in the testator's handwriting, signed and dated, with no witnesses required or permitted, and states a typed document, even partly typed, does not qualify. British Columbia is not stated as having a holograph form in the Wills, Estates and Succession Act summary, and no holograph claim is made for British Columbia, Quebec's holograph form, or any province or territory not routed here. A partly typed form filled in by hand is not a holograph will in Saskatchewan, and the same wholly-handwritten test applies in the other three provinces named.
Do not use a beneficiary as a witness. In Ontario, a beneficial gift to a person who attests the will, or to that person's then spouse, is void so far as it concerns the attesting person, the spouse, or a person claiming under either of them. In Manitoba, a witness usually cannot receive benefits under the will, and neither can the witness's spouse or common-law partner, although a witness can ask a court for an order that the gift is valid if the judge is satisfied there was no improper influence or pressure. No witness-benefit rule for Alberta is stated in this guide, because none could be verified on an Alberta page. Use two witnesses who inherit nothing under the will, in every province.
The executor, called a personal representative in Alberta, carries out the directions in the will. Manitoba states the executor must look after paying the person's debts and other expenses of the estate out of the estate, and is responsible for distributing the estate as set out in the will, subject to laws that can affect inheritance. Alberta states the personal representative is responsible for administration from locating assets, paying debts and funeral costs, to distributing estate property to beneficiaries, and can name a guardian for minor children. Manitoba states a will should appoint a guardian for children under 18 if both parents die, and that naming a guardian does not guarantee that person will be chosen if there is a dispute, although it gives the court a clear indication of the parent's wishes. Check and confirm each person named is willing and able to assume the responsibilities, as the Manitoba page directs, and name an alternate where the will allows it.
If a person dies without a will, the province's intestacy rules decide distribution. Alberta states the Wills and Succession Act sets out how and to whom property is transferred, and the Estate Administration Act lists who is given preference to apply for a grant of administration. Ontario's end-of-life guide states the estate is distributed according to the Succession Law Reform Act if a person dies intestate. To change a will, Manitoba states a new will is easiest for many changes, and a codicil, a simple document for a minor change such as naming a new executor, must be witnessed by two or more people unless it is entirely in the person's own handwriting and signed and dated. Alberta states a person 18 or older with mental capacity may make, alter, or revoke a will. Review the will regularly and after marriage, divorce, children, or property changes, as the Alberta page directs.