Applying for Probate in BC: The Process From Start to Grant

Once you know an estate needs probate, the next question is how to get the grant. In BC the process is mostly paperwork, but it follows a fixed order, and a missed step can send the application back to you.

This guide walks through the application itself: the searches, notices, forms and fees, and what happens once the court issues the grant. It is written for executors named in a will.

Before you start

This guide covers the application itself. If you are still working out whether the estate needs a grant at all, start with our guide on whether you need probate in BC. For the executor's role from start to finish, see our step-by-step guide to executor duties.

Probate is a court process that confirms the will is genuine, was made without fraud or undue influence, and is the last will the person left. The court document that results is a grant of probate. If there is no will, or no executor able to act, the process leads instead to a grant of administration; the steps are similar, but some forms differ.

Applications are made to the Supreme Court of British Columbia, at any of its registries in the province. Before you begin, have the original signed will and start a list of everything the person owned and owed, with values.

Step 1: Search for a wills notice

Every application must include the results of a search of the Wills Registry kept by BC's Vital Statistics Agency, even if you already hold the original will. The search shows whether the person filed a wills notice recording where a will was kept and when it was signed, which can point you to a later will.

The search costs $20, plus $5 for each additional name the person used. Vital Statistics does not keep wills or record their contents, so the search tells you where to look, not what a will says.

Step 2: Give notice of the proposed application

Next, you deliver a notice of proposed application (Form P1) to the people the court rules require. In general, that includes anyone named as executor or alternate executor, the beneficiaries under the will, and the people who would inherit if there were no will (the intestate successors), even if the will leaves them nothing. In some situations others must also receive notice, such as the Public Guardian and Trustee where a beneficiary is a minor or a person who cannot manage their own affairs.

A copy of the will goes with the notice, and the notice names the registry where you plan to file. You can deliver it in person, by ordinary mail, or electronically to an address the recipient has provided.

You must then wait at least 21 days after delivering the notices before you submit the application. The 21 days count from delivery, so a missed or late notice pushes back the date you can file. Confirm names and addresses early.

Step 3: Prepare and file the application

Once the 21 days have passed, you file the application at the registry named in your notice. A standard application for a grant of probate usually includes:

• Submission for estate grant (Form P2). The document that opens the application.
• Affidavit of applicant. Form P3 (short form) or Form P4 (long form) for a grant of probate. An application for administration without a will uses Form P5.
• Affidavit of delivery (Form P9). Confirms that the notices were delivered.
• Affidavit of assets and liabilities (Form P10). Lists the estate's property and debts with their values. Form P11 is used where the person was not domiciled in BC.
• The original will and the wills notice search results.

The asset statement is where many applications run into trouble. The Wills, Estates and Succession Act requires you to make a diligent search for the deceased's property and debts, and to disclose the property that passes to you as executor, whatever its nature, location or value, subject to a limited exception for property outside BC belonging to someone who did not live here. If you later find an asset that was missed, you must disclose it to the court and pay any additional probate fee.

Step 4: Pay the probate fee

Before the grant issues, the estate must pay a probate fee under BC's Probate Fee Act, in addition to the court's filing fees. The fee is based on the value of the estate shown in the asset statement. That covers the person's real estate and tangible personal property in BC and, if they ordinarily lived in BC, their intangible property, such as bank accounts and investments, wherever it is held.

• Up to $25,000: no probate fee.
• Over $25,000, up to $50,000: $6 for every $1,000 or part of $1,000 above $25,000.
• Over $50,000: $14 for every $1,000 or part of $1,000 above $50,000.

For example, on an estate valued at $500,000, the fee would be nothing on the first $25,000, $150 on the next $25,000 and $6,300 on the remaining $450,000, for a total of $6,450. The executor pays it on behalf of the estate, not personally.

Step 5: Registry review and the grant

The registry reviews the application. If anything is missing or defective, the registrar will tell you in writing what is needed, and you can file further material or, in some cases, ask the court to decide. Processing times vary, and a complete, consistent package is the most reliable way to avoid delay.

Once the application is accepted and the probate fee is paid, the court issues the grant. Institutions holding estate assets will usually ask to see it. If the estate includes land, a court-certified copy of the grant is needed to transfer the property into your name as executor at the Land Title Office before it can be sold or transferred to a beneficiary.

After the grant

The grant lets you collect and deal with the assets, but distribution has its own timing. The Act generally prevents you from distributing the estate within 210 days of the grant unless the required consents are given or the court authorizes it. Our article on the 210-day rule for executors explains why the wait exists. There is usually plenty to do in the meantime, such as paying debts, filing tax returns and preparing accounts for the beneficiaries.

Applying for probate? Get the application right the first time

Our probate and estate lawyers can run the wills search, prepare and deliver the notices, draft the forms and affidavits, help you value and list the assets, and file the application at the registry. We can also guide you through the steps that follow the grant.

Call 604-259-2844 or send us a message to arrange a consultation at our Vancouver office.