Live in Ontario

Making a legal will in Ontario

Wills in Ontario are governed by the Succession Law Reform Act — and it disagrees with the other provinces on things that matter. Here is the whole picture: what makes a will valid here, what happens without one, what probate costs, and how to sign so it sticks.

Start your Ontario will Read the rules first

Figures below reviewed 4 August 2026 against the sources cited at the foot of this page. General information, not legal advice.

The short version

You must generally be 18 or older to make a will in Ontario.
You need 2 witnesses aged 18+who are not beneficiaries.
Handwritten wills are valid here. Electronic wills are recognised.
Without a will: your married spouse receives the first $350,000 of your estate before anything is divided.
Estate Administration Tax: on a $600,000 estate, roughly $8,250.

What makes a will valid in Ontario

Under the Succession Law Reform Act (RSO 1990, c S.26), a valid formal will must be:

In writing. A recording or a video is not a will.
Made by someone 18 or older with the mental capacity to understand what they are signing. Under 18 you can still make a valid will if you are married, are contemplating marriage to a named person, are an active member of the armed forces, or are a sailor at sea.
Signed by you at its end.
Witnessed by 2 people aged 18 or older, both present when you sign, who then sign in your presence.A gift left to a witness — or generally to a witness's spouse — is void, though the rest of the will stands.

Handwritten (holograph) wills

A holograph will — written entirely in your own handwriting and signed by you — is valid in Ontario without witnesses. It is also far easier to challenge, which is why a properly witnessed will is the safer choice.

Electronic wills and remote witnessing

Ontario permits remote witnessing over audio-visual technology, provided at least one witness is a licensee of the Law Society of Ontario. This was made permanent by the Accelerating Access to Justice Act, 2021. Your will itself still has to be signed in wet ink on paper.

Marriage, separation and your will

Since January 1, 2022, getting married no longer revokes an existing Ontario will. Separation now generally treats your spouse as though they died before you.

If you die without a will in Ontario

Your married spouse receives the first $350,000 of your estate before anything is divided.

After the $350,000 preferential share: with one child, the remainder splits half to your spouse and half to the child. With two or more children, the remainder splits one-third to your spouse and two-thirds among your children.

Common-law partners

Common-law partners do not inherit anything automatically in Ontario, no matter how long you have lived together. Only legally married spouses are covered by the intestacy rules. If you have a common-law partner, a will is the only reliable way to provide for them.

Beyond who inherits: nobody has authority to touch your accounts until a court appoints an administrator, money left to minor children is paid into court until the age of majority (18 here), and nothing goes to anyone outside your family tree — no friends, no stepchildren you did not adopt, no charities.The full intestacy picture.

Estate Administration Tax in Ontario

When your executor applies to the court to confirm the will and their authority, Ontario charges. The schedule, under the Estate Administration Tax Act, 1998:

Estate value	Fee
Up to $50,000	No tax
Over $50,000	$15 per $1,000 (1.5%) of the value above $50,000

The $50,000 exemption has applied to deaths on or after January 1, 2020. Ontario's tax is uncapped, so large estates pay the most of the three provinces we serve.

Worked example: on a $600,000 estate, expect roughly $8,250. You can check any value with our Ontario probate calculator.

While you are alive: Ontario's incapacity documents

A will only operates at death. If you lose capacity while alive, the documents that matter in Ontario are the Continuing Power of Attorney for Property (money and property, from age 18) and the Power of Attorney for Personal Care (health and personal care, from age 16), under the Substitute Decisions Act, 1992. Witnessing: Two witnesses, neither of whom may be your attorney, your attorney's spouse or partner, your own spouse or partner, your child, or anyone under 18.

Both are included in your EstateCanvas plan at no extra charge. How the incapacity documents work.

The thing to know about Ontario

Ontario's probate tax is the reason to plan

Ontario charges 1.5% on everything above $50,000, with no upper cap. On an $800,000 estate that is $11,250 — more than twenty times what the same estate would pay in Alberta. Naming beneficiaries directly on registered accounts and insurance, and holding property jointly where it makes sense, can lawfully reduce what passes through probate.

What it costs here

$15 for a Ontario will, complete.

A lawyer-drafted simple will in Ontario commonly runs $400 to $1,200. The legal validity of the finished document is the same.

One will, one price

$29$15per will

Promotional price until October 31, 2026. Then $29. Nothing is charged until you have read your finished will and approved it.

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Everything is included

A complete last will and testament, drafted to your province's rules
Province-specific signing and witnessing instructions
Executors, backup executors, guardians and pet guardians
Specific gifts and percentage-based residue allocation
Funeral, burial and final-wishes instructions
Your estate record: assets, liabilities and uploaded documents
Read-only sharing with your executor
Free updates and re-downloads whenever life changes

There is no higher tier. Powers of attorney are not an upsell — they are part of the price.

Ontario questions, answered

Are online wills legal in Ontario?

Yes. Nothing in the Succession Law Reform Act requires a lawyer to draft or witness a will. A will made online and signed according to Ontario's rules — 2 witnesses aged 18 or older, neither of whom is a beneficiary — is fully valid.

What happens if I die without a will in Ontario?

Your married spouse receives the first $350,000 of your estate before anything is divided. After the $350,000 preferential share: with one child, the remainder splits half to your spouse and half to the child. With two or more children, the remainder splits one-third to your spouse and two-thirds among your children. Common-law partners do not inherit anything automatically in Ontario, no matter how long you have lived together. Only legally married spouses are covered by the intestacy rules. If you have a common-law partner, a will is the only reliable way to provide for them.

Can I write my will by hand in Ontario?

Can I sign my Ontario will electronically?

Does getting married cancel my Ontario will?

Since January 1, 2022, getting married no longer revokes an existing Ontario will. Separation now generally treats your spouse as though they died before you.

How do I name a guardian for my children in Ontario?

You can name a guardian for your minor children in your will. In Ontario the appointment is effective for 90 days, during which the guardian must apply to the court to be confirmed. The court decides based on the child's best interests.

Sources for this page

Reviewed 2026-08-04. Legislation changes; verify anything you are relying on. This page is general information about Ontario law, not legal advice about your situation.

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