Does my will or my beneficiary designation control who gets my RRSP when I die?

Your beneficiary designation — not your will — controls who receives your RRSP, RRIF, or TFSA when you die, provided a valid designation is on file with the financial institution. These registered accounts pass outside your estate directly to the named beneficiary, regardless of what your will says.

This is one of the most common and costly misconceptions in estate planning. A person might carefully draft a will leaving everything to their children equally, but if their RRSP still names an ex-spouse as beneficiary, that ex-spouse receives the RRSP on death. The will cannot override a valid beneficiary designation on a registered account.

The same is true of most life insurance policies: the beneficiary designation on the policy controls, not the will. Similarly, joint assets with right of survivorship pass to the surviving owner outside the estate.

The practical implication is that your estate plan must treat your will and your beneficiary designations as a coordinated whole. Review all of your registered accounts and insurance policies periodically, especially after major life events like marriage, divorce, separation, or the birth of a child. A lawyer can help you review the full picture and spot mismatches between your will and your designations.