Does a BC Executor Have to Notify the CRA of a Death?

If you are the executor of an estate in British Columbia, one of the early tasks is telling the Canada Revenue Agency that the person has died. It can feel like one more form during a hard time, but it affects whether benefits keep being paid and whether the family may have to pay them back.

This article explains who the CRA treats as the legal representative, how to give notice, what information to have, and what happens to common benefits. Your own circumstances may differ, so a lawyer can confirm your duties.

This article covers the law of British Columbia.

Who is the legal representative?

The legal representative of a deceased person is typically the executor named in the will. If there is no will or executor, a person can be appointed through the courts, or can register with the CRA using Form RC552. That approval is for CRA purposes only and does not cover other estate duties.

The legal representative must file the final return for the year of death, file any returns the deceased had not filed for earlier years, and file T3 returns if required. They must also notify the CRA of the death, confirm all CRA balances are resolved, and cancel or transfer benefit payments.

How to notify the CRA

You can call Individual Tax Enquiries at 1-800-959-8281 or Benefit Enquiries at 1-800-387-1193, or mail Form RC4111, Notify the Canada Revenue Agency of a Death, to the deceased's tax centre. The CRA asks you to do this as soon as possible to avoid benefit repayment.

Notifying the CRA is separate from notifying Service Canada about CPP and OAS, which has its own number and process.

Service Canada must be notified of a death as soon as possible, at 1-800-277-9914 in Canada and the US. CPP and OAS benefits are payable for the month of death, and all payments issued after the month of death must be returned.

What information you need

• The date of death.
• The deceased's SIN or Temporary Tax Number, full name, date of birth, and complete address.
• An assessed tax return or notice of assessment.
• Your own name, phone number and relationship to the deceased.

How benefits are affected

Canada Workers Benefit advance payments run only to the date of death, and the final-year benefit is claimed on line 45300 of the final return. The Canada Child Benefit usually transfers to a surviving parent-spouse. Otherwise the new primary caregiver applies, through My Account or Form RC66.

For the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit and the Canada Carbon Rebate, the timing matters. If the person died before the scheduled payment month, payments are no longer issued in that person's name or to the estate. If the person died during or after that month and the payment was not cashed, it must be returned to the CRA.

The legal representative also has to cancel or transfer benefit payments such as the GST/HST credit.

Returns, deadlines and the clearance certificate

Notifying the CRA is only the first step. The final return reports all of the deceased's income from January 1 of the year of death up to the date of death, and income earned by the estate after death may have to be reported on a T3 Trust Income Tax and Information Return. The due date depends on when the death happened:

• Death between January 1 and October 31: the final return is due April 30 of the following year.
• Death between November 1 and December 31: the return is due 6 months after the date of death, and any balance owing is due on that date too.
• If the deceased, or a spouse or common-law partner living with them, was carrying on a business: for a death from January 1 to December 15 the return is due June 15 of the following year, and for a death from December 16 to December 31 it is due 6 months after the date of death. Any balance owing is still due on the regular payment date.

The later business filing date is not available where the business's expenditures were mainly the cost of tax shelter investments.

The late-filing penalty on the final return is 5% of the balance owing plus 1% of the balance for each full month the return is late, to a maximum of 12 months, and compound daily interest applies to unpaid amounts. The penalty may be higher if a late-filing penalty was assessed for any of the 3 previous tax years, and the CRA may cancel penalties or interest where lateness was due to circumstances beyond the person's control.

Before distributing estate assets, the legal representative should apply for a clearance certificate on Form TX19. If the deceased or their business had a GST/HST account, Form GST352 must be completed together with Form TX19, and a separate certificate is needed for any trust. If assets are distributed without a certificate and tax is owing, the representative can be held personally liable, up to the value of the assets distributed. The CRA sends an acknowledgement within 45 days, and the assessment can take up to 120 days.

What to do next

• Confirm you are the legal representative, whether as named executor or by court appointment or Form RC552.
• Collect the details the CRA asks for, including the SIN and a notice of assessment.
• Notify the CRA by phone or Form RC4111 as soon as possible.
• Notify Service Canada separately about CPP and OAS.
• Keep a note of the date and method of each notification.
• Plan for the final return and any T3 return, and speak with a lawyer or accountant if the estate is complicated.

Frequently asked questions