How to Find Out If You Are a Beneficiary of an Estate in BC

Sometimes a relative dies and months pass without word from anyone. You may suspect you were left something, or that you might inherit if there was no will. It is a common and uncomfortable position to be in.

This article walks through how people in British Columbia can usually confirm whether they are a beneficiary, who they can ask, and what limits to expect.

This article covers the law of British Columbia.

Start by asking the likely executor

The simplest step is to contact the person most likely to be the executor, often a spouse, adult child or close friend. Ask whether there is a will and whether probate is being applied for. A personal representative has authority to administer and distribute the estate and must account to the people they owe a duty to account to.

Executors are sometimes slow, grieving or unsure of the process. A short, polite written message is usually more productive than a confrontation.

The probate notice will tell you

Before applying for probate or administration, the applicant must give notice to the persons the Civil Rules specify. That includes each beneficiary under the will, and living executors and alternate executors.

The notice is delivered with a copy of the will, and the application cannot be filed until at least 21 days after delivery. If the notice reaches you, you will see exactly what the will says about you.

The notice must also tell beneficiaries or intestate successors that the applicant has to provide an accounting of how the estate was administered and how its assets were distributed. An intestate successor is a person who inherits by law because there is no will.

Searching for a wills notice

Once the will-maker has died, anyone who provides the required documents and payment can apply to the Vital Statistics Agency for a search for a wills notice. A lawyer or notary may also search under WESA s. 77, and other applicants must provide a death certificate or a signed statement proving the death.

The search costs $20, plus $5 for each additional name the will-maker may have used, with courier delivery costing an extra $33. Apply using form VSA 532, by mail to Victoria or in person at a Service BC counter (not in Vancouver, Burnaby or Surrey), with a photocopy of the death certificate. Fees and locations can change, so check before you apply.

Be realistic about what you will learn. The result shows only the date the registered will was signed, where it was kept at that time, and the date Vital Statistics received the wills notice. It does not name beneficiaries, and Vital Statistics does not keep a copy of the will.

Why being named may not be the full picture

• If a beneficiary dies before the will-maker, the gift generally goes first to any alternative beneficiary named in the will.
• A person who does not survive the deceased by 5 days is treated as having died first, unless the document sets a longer period.
• If the will-maker and a spouse ceased to be spouses after the will was made, gifts to the former spouse are revoked, unless the will shows a contrary intention.
• Married spouses cease to be spouses when an event such as separation creates an interest in family property under the Family Law Act. Common-law partners are spouses only after living together for at least 2 years, and they cease to be spouses when one or both end the relationship.

If you think a gift to you or someone else may have changed because of these rules, a lawyer can look at the will and the family facts.

What to do next

• Write down what you know: full name of the deceased, date and place of death, and any other names they used.
• Contact the likely executor in writing and ask about probate.
• Consider a wills notice search, and obtain a death certificate copy first.
• Keep the executor informed of your current address so notice can reach you.
• If you are a spouse or child who feels the will does not adequately provide for you, act promptly, since the deadline to start a wills variation claim is 180 days from the date the grant is issued in BC.

Frequently asked questions