The days after a death
Do I even need probate?
Whether you need probate is not one answer for the whole estate. It is decided asset by asset, by how each one was held. Here is how the three common cases work. This is general information, not legal advice.
Assets in the deceased's sole name
Assets in the deceased's sole name generally require a grant before anyone can deal with them. Whether a specific financial account needs one is set by the institution, not by a legal threshold (see the bank page).
Jointly held property
In many cases a joint account includes the right of survivorship, but survivorship is not automatic in practice: the surviving holder may have to show that the deceased intended a gift, which can delay access. Saskatchewan, Alberta, Manitoba, and the Northwest Territories publish that joint-with-survivorship assets pass outside the estate; Saskatchewan adds that a will may still apply where the survivor holds in trust for the estate.
In Quebec, a joint account is frozen on the death of one of the joint account holders. Quebec has no joint tenancy with right of survivorship, so the rest-of-Canada assumption that a joint account passes automatically to the survivor does not apply here.
Assets with a named beneficiary
A benefit payable to a named beneficiary does not form part of the estate: British Columbia states this in WESA s.95, and Quebec in article 2455 of the Civil Code (with a counter-rule in art. 2456 where the benefit is payable to the succession). Naming your estate as the beneficiary pulls the benefit into the estate, where creditors may claim it; naming no one usually defaults to the estate.
We do not state whether RRSP or TFSA beneficiary designations pass outside the estate. The sources that would confirm it are outside the scope of this cluster, so treat that as unconfirmed here, and confirm with your financial institution or an estates lawyer.
Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador
For Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador, we have not verified a general statement of when probate is not needed, so this page does not give one for those two provinces. Ask the estate registry or a lawyer in your province.
Common questions
What decides whether I need probate?
How the asset was held. Assets in the deceased's sole name generally need a grant. Joint-with-survivorship assets and assets with a named beneficiary can pass outside the estate, though not automatically and not everywhere.
Do RRSPs and TFSAs pass outside the estate?
We do not state that here. The sources that would confirm it are outside the scope of this cluster, so confirm with your financial institution or an estates lawyer.
Where to go from here
General information only, not legal advice. Guidepost is not a law firm. Full disclaimer. Last updated: July 2026.