How Long Does a Beneficiary Wait to Receive an Inheritance in Alberta?

You have been named in a will, or you are entitled to a share of an estate, and the money has not arrived. It is natural to wonder whether something is wrong. In most cases, the delay comes from steps the law requires before an estate can be paid out safely.

This article is written for beneficiaries, not executors. It explains which Alberta rules set the pace, what the personal representative may and may not do while they wait, and what you can do if an estate seems stuck.

This article covers the law of Alberta.

Is there a standard waiting period in Alberta?

The personal representative must act honestly and in good faith and in accordance with the will, and must distribute the estate as soon as practicable. That phrase is flexible. It does not give a fixed number of days, and what is practicable depends on the estate.

You may hear that an executor always gets a full year before anyone can be paid. Do not treat one year as a legal limit in Alberta. The timing rules that actually matter are the 6-month period after the grant, the creditor-claim process and the accounting interval, all covered below.

The personal representative also has real work to do first: identifying assets and liabilities, administering the estate, satisfying debts, and then distributing and accounting for the estate.

The six-month window after the grant

The personal representative must not distribute any part of the estate to a beneficiary until 6 months after the grant, unless all family members consent or the Court authorizes it. The reason is that dependants have a limited time to ask for maintenance and support. An application for a dependant's maintenance and support order may be made only within 6 months after a grant of probate or administration.

A personal representative who distributes early is personally liable for any maintenance and support that should have come out of the amount distributed. There is one further exception to the 6-month wait, which is the advances described below.

• Advances are possible: before the 6 months end, the personal representative may make reasonable advances for the maintenance of family members who are beneficiaries.
• A claim freezes things: once notice of a maintenance and support application is given, the personal representative must not distribute or dispose of the estate except in accordance with the Court's order.

Creditors and tax can slow things further

Debts are paid before beneficiaries receive their gifts. Creditors are advertised for, and the number of notices depends on the estate's size. For an estate with a gross value of $100 000 or less, the notice must be published at least once. For larger estates it must be published at least twice, with 5 days or more between publications. A claimant must notify the personal representative not more than 1 month after the last notice is published.

Tax is the other major factor. The legal representative should apply for a clearance certificate from the Canada Revenue Agency before distributing estate property, and a representative who distributes without one can be held personally liable for outstanding tax owing. A careful representative will therefore often hold back until the certificate arrives.

A person who dies is considered to have sold all their property just before death, and any gain or loss is reported on the final return. The estate pays that tax as part of the final return, not the beneficiary. There is an exception: the deemed sale is deferred for property transferred to a spouse or common-law partner who was a Canadian resident at death, if the property is locked in for them within 36 months after death.

For final return deadlines, a death from January 1 to October 31 means the return is due April 30 of the following year, and a death from November 1 to December 31 means it is due 6 months after the date of death. If the deceased or their spouse or common-law partner carried on a business, the deadline is June 15 of the following year for a death from January 1 to December 15. Payment deadlines do not move with filing deadlines. The estate may also need to file T3 returns, and a beneficiary may be taxed on income allocated to them.

What you can do if the estate stalls

Start by asking the personal representative for an update. Slow progress is not automatically a breach of duty, especially inside the first 6 months. If months pass with no explanation, the rules give you tools.

• Accounting: a personal representative must account at regular intervals with financial statements of property and money received, property distributed and money paid out. Unless the court orders otherwise, the accounting is due every 2 years after the date of death.
• Ask the court for an accounting: a person interested in the estate may apply to the court for an order requiring the personal representative to account at any time. A beneficiary of only a specific gift is entitled to an accounting only for that gift, and one who has already received it cannot apply for this order.
• Formal passing of accounts: a person interested in the estate may apply for an order requiring the formal passing of accounts (Forms ACC 6 and ACC 7).
• Court oversight: if a personal representative fails to give a required notice or perform a duty, the Court may order compliance, impose conditions, remove the representative, or revoke the grant.

If you receive accounts, read them before responding. A person who neither appears nor files a notice of objection on a passing of accounts is deemed to have consented to the administration of the estate as recorded in the financial statements. The personal representative may also ask residuary beneficiaries to sign releases in Form ACC 12 when presenting accounts.

What to do next

• Find out the date of the grant, since the 6-month period runs from it.
• Ask whether creditor notices have been published and whether the claim period has ended.
• Ask whether the final tax return has been filed and whether a clearance certificate has been requested.
• Ask for a written update and for the financial statements of money received and paid out.
• Keep notes of your communications, and do not sign a release until you understand the accounts.
• Speak with an Alberta lawyer before applying to court, or if a minor, a missing beneficiary or a possible maintenance claim is involved.

Frequently asked questions