How do I prove I am entitled to an inheritance as a beneficiary in Ontario?

How you prove your right to an inheritance depends on how you are entitled in the first place: a will, the intestacy rules, or a named designation on a policy or plan. The estate trustee and any institution holding assets will each decide what they need, and practice varies, so expect requests for identification and for evidence of your relationship to the deceased.

On an intestacy, the rules in the Succession Law Reform Act set who takes. With no issue, the spouse takes everything; with issue, the spouse takes the preferential share and then one-half of the residue for one child or one-third for two or more children, and the rest goes equally among the issue. The preferential share is $350,000 for deaths on or after March 1, 2021. A common-law spouse does not inherit on intestacy; their remedy is a dependant support claim. A separated spouse also loses intestate entitlements.

If you are named on an insurance policy, the beneficiary may enforce payment in their own name, but the insurer can raise any defence it could have raised against the insured. Ask the estate trustee what they need and keep copies. A lawyer can confirm what proof fits your situation.