How to Apply for Probate (BC)

Application Types

While the term "probate" is commonly used to refer to the court-supervised process of estate settlement (whether or not there is a will), technically speaking, "probate" refers to the submission of a will to the court for review, after which an estate goes through "administration". If there is no will, the estate just goes straight to "administration".

Consequently, in your initial application to the court, most provinces require you to explicitly specify one of the following application types:

• Administration (if the decedent died without a will)
• Administration with Will Annexed (if there is a will, but it does not name you as executor)
• Probate (if there is a will and it names you as executor... in this case, the term "probate" is shorthand for probating the will and then administering/settling the estate)

Some provinces have separate forms for each of these types of applications, while others use simple checkboxes within a common application form (and some don't provide forms at all, leaving it up to you).

BC Application Process

There are several steps you must take to obtain the court's permission to represent and manage a BC estate.

1. Probate Application: In British Columbia, start by submitting a Submission for Grant (Form P2) to the court: see application details ↧
   • As a part of preparing your submission, you must check with the Vital Statistics Agency to help in your search for the most recent will, using VSA Form 532. Include 2 copies of the results with your submission.
   • Once you know whether or not there is a will, you must provide notice to a number of interested parties at least 21 days before submitting your Form P2 to the court: include Affidavit of Delivery (Form P9) with your submission for grant (see Task: Notify Heirs). below).
   • If there is no will, or the will does not name you as first choice among executors (still living), then attach a Notice of Renunciation (Form P17) from anyone with equal or higher priority than you (alternatively, use Affidavit of Deemed Renunciation (Form P34)).
   • If there is a will, attach it, and attach an Affidavit for Applicant for Grant (Form P3) (if you intend to have more than one executor, each executor must submit one of these).
   • If there is no will, attach a Affidavit for Applicant for Grant without Will (Form P5) (if you intend to have more than one executor, each executor must submit one of these).
   • Include an Affidavit of Assets and Liabilities (Form P10).
   • Attach an official copy of the death certificate or the funeral director’s statement of death.
   • Note that the People's Law School has a nice guide for helping with this submission, and that more details can be found in Supreme Court Civil Rules, BC Reg 168/2009, s 25.
2. Notice of Probate: In British Columbia, if the estate will go through probate, at least 21 days before submitting your Form P2 to the court, you must provide a Notice of Application (Form GA 3) to the following:
   • Anyone named in the will as an executor with equal or higher priority to you, and anyone named in the will to inherit from the estate
   • Anyone named in the will to inherit from the estate
   • Anyone who would inherit if there were no will
   • If there is no will, any known creditor to whom the estate/decedent owes >$10,000
   • If the deceased was a Nisg̱a'a citizen, the Nisg̱a'a Lisims government; if the deceased was a member of a treaty first nation, the treaty first nation
   Once done, include an Affidavit of Delivery (Form P9) with your Submission for Grant to the court (note that the 1st question asks about a "Number": put "1" if this is the 1st P9 in your submission, "2" if it is the 2nd, etc.). See Supreme Court Civil Rules, BC Reg 168/2009, s 25_2.
3. Probate Hearing: The court will hold a hearing to officially consider and approve your application. Often this hearing is just a formality, and you may not need to attend at all.
4. Probate Bond: If required by the court, you must obtain a probate bond to protect the estate from any losses you may cause (up to a certain dollar amount). Requirements for such a bond can depend on jurisdiction, whether there is a will, size of estate, whether you reside in the same province, and other factors. See Probate Bonds for advice on how to potentially avoid the need fo such a bond.
5. Objections: Note that interested parties have the right to legally challenge your application (before your official appointment, or even afterwards).
6. Letters: Once the court approves your application, you will receive your "Letters", which are certified documents you can use to prove your authority to third parties. If you applied for "probate", you will officially be known as the "executor" of the estate. If instead you applied for "administration", you will be known as the "administrator". Many provinces also use the term "personal representative" to cover both cases, sometimes deprecating the uses of the more precise terms.

If you'd like, friendly and experienced EstateExec personnel can fill out your probate application forms for you: see Probate Form Service. If you just want answers to a few legal questions, you can talk to an experienced lawyer for a surprisingly modest fee – see Have a Question?

In British Columbia, the Supreme Court of BC handles probate and estate administration (see Supreme Court registry locations).

In case you're interested, instructions for probate application in other provinces can be found here: