In more than 60 years of helping Ontario families through estate settlement, I’ve met a lot of people in the days right after a loss. Almost all of them have the same look. They’ve just been handed a role they didn’t ask for, often while they’re grieving, and they have no idea what they’re supposed to do first.
If you’ve been named executor, also called an estate trustee in Ontario, that feeling is normal. The good news is that the early weeks are more manageable than they appear once you know the order of operations. You don’t have to do everything at once, and you certainly don’t have to figure out how to divide the estate on day one.
This executor checklist for Ontario walks through what to do when someone dies in Ontario, roughly in the order these steps tend to happen, and explains why each one matters.
The First Few Days: Funeral Wishes, the Will, and the Home
In the first days, your focus is narrow and human. Start with the deceased’s wishes. The will, and sometimes a separate letter, may set out instructions for the funeral, burial, or cremation. Find those wishes before arrangements are finalized so you can honour them.
Locating the will is the next priority. Check the obvious places first: a home safe, a desk, a safety deposit box, or with the lawyer who drafted it. The will names you as executor and is the document your authority flows from, so you can’t move far without it.
Then secure the property. An empty home is vulnerable, so make sure it’s locked, insured, and looked after: heat on in winter, mail collected, valuables noted, and any pets cared for. If the home will sit empty for a while, tell the insurer, because many policies change once a property is unoccupied. Keeping an estate home safe while it sits empty is its own job, which is why we offer vacant home management as part of our Estate Services.
Getting the Paperwork Started
Once the immediate days have passed, the paperwork begins. A few early tasks make everything that follows smoother.
Get plenty of death certificates. The funeral home can provide a Statement of Death, and you can apply to the province for the official Death Certificate. Order more copies than you think you’ll need, because banks, insurers, and government offices each tend to want their own. Many executors find that close to a dozen copies is not too many.
Notify the right institutions. Government is the priority here. You’ll generally need to contact Service Canada to stop and, where required, return Old Age Security and Canada Pension Plan payments, and to deal with the Social Insurance Number. A payment that arrives after the month of death usually has to be returned, so the sooner this is handled, the fewer complications later. You may also be eligible to apply for the CPP death benefit on behalf of the estate. From there, work outward: banks, insurers, pension providers, and any agencies that were paying or billing the deceased.
Understanding Your Authority: Probate and the Certificate of Appointment
This is the step that confuses people most, so it’s worth being clear about it. In Ontario, the executor is formally called the “estate trustee,” and your authority comes from the will. But many institutions, and any sale of real estate, will require formal confirmation of that authority from the court. That confirmation is the Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee, which most people still call “probate.” To apply, you’ll generally need the original will, proof of death, and court forms that set out the estate’s assets and beneficiaries.
Probate is also where the estate’s assets have to be valued, because the application and the related Estate Administration Tax are based on the value of the estate. Accurate, properly documented appraisals matter here, and this is the part of the process we help with most often. Our probate support page explains what’s involved in plain language, and our certified probate appraisals provide the valuations the court expects.
Don’t be discouraged if probate feels slow. The court’s processing time is largely outside your control, and it’s one of the most common reasons an estate takes longer than families expect. Our step-by-step executor’s roadmap lays out the full sequence of duties if you want the bigger picture.
Taking Stock: Inventorying and Valuing the Estate
While probate is underway, you can begin building a complete picture of the estate. This means listing the assets (real estate, bank and investment accounts, vehicles, and personal property) along with any debts and liabilities. Most executors spend the first month or two simply gathering this picture, because you cannot settle what you have not yet found.
Two parts of this tend to surprise executors. The first is the home’s contents: decades of furniture, collectibles, and personal belongings that all have to be sorted, valued where relevant, and dealt with responsibly. The second is anything that exists only online, from banking to photos, which is easy to miss entirely. Both deserve attention early, because both take time.
Here’s a quick-reference summary of how the early weeks usually unfold.
| Timeframe | What to do | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| First few days | Honour funeral wishes, locate the will, secure and insure the home | Time-sensitive; protects the estate from the start |
| First few weeks | Order death certificates, notify Service Canada and financial institutions | Stops payments, prevents complications, unlocks the next steps |
| Weeks to a few months | Apply for the Certificate of Appointment (probate); arrange appraisals | Gives you the authority and valuations needed to act and to sell |
| Ongoing | Inventory all assets, contents, and debts; begin estate administration | Builds the full picture required to settle and distribute the estate |
The Pace of It All: A Realistic Timeline
One of the kindest things I can tell a new executor is this: it takes longer than you think, and that’s normal. From start to finish, fully administering an estate, including gathering assets, completing probate, filing the final tax returns, and waiting for the clearance certificate from the Canada Revenue Agency, commonly takes somewhere in the range of 12 to 18 months.
Knowing that upfront helps in two ways. It keeps you from feeling like you’re failing when things move slowly, and it gives you something honest to share with beneficiaries who are waiting. A great deal of family tension comes simply from people not understanding why the process takes as long as it does, something we explore in our guide to how a professional can help you face the challenges of settling an estate.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the first things an executor should do in Ontario?
Start with the deceased’s funeral wishes, locate the original will, and secure and insure the home. In the first few weeks, order several death certificates and notify Service Canada and the financial institutions. These early steps protect the estate and set up everything that follows.
How long does an executor have to settle an estate in Ontario?
There is no single deadline, but fully administering an estate commonly takes about 12 to 18 months, largely because of probate processing and the wait for a CRA clearance certificate before final distribution. Executors are generally expected to act in a reasonable and timely way rather than by a fixed date.
Do you always need probate in Ontario?
Not always, but you usually do when the estate includes real estate to be sold or transferred, or when financial institutions require the Certificate of Appointment before releasing assets. Whether probate is required depends on the specific assets and how they were held.
Does an executor get paid in Ontario?
Yes, an estate trustee is generally entitled to reasonable compensation for the time and effort of administering the estate, often discussed as a percentage of the estate’s value. Many executors who are also beneficiaries choose not to take a fee because the compensation is taxable as income.
What is the difference between an executor and an estate trustee in Ontario?
They are the same role. Ontario law uses the term “estate trustee,” while “executor” is the everyday word most people still use. Both refer to the person named in the will to administer the estate.
You Don’t Have to Carry It Alone
Reading a checklist like this, it’s easy to feel the weight of it. A property to prepare and sell, a houseful of contents to manage, government and financial institutions to notify, probate to navigate, and beneficiaries to keep informed, all at once, and usually while you’re grieving.
This is exactly the situation we built our service around. At Gordons, we manage the physical side of the estate, the real estate and the contents together, as one coordinated process with a single point of accountability. We arrange the certified probate appraisals, handle the sorting and sale of contents, prepare and sell the property, and fund approved project costs along the way so the estate isn’t out of pocket. You can see how our estate settlement service fits together, and our executors and trustees hub gathers everything an estate trustee needs in one place.
You’ll still work with your own estate lawyer on the legal pieces, and that’s as it should be. But the heavy, time-consuming, physical work of settling an estate is something you don’t have to shoulder by yourself.
If you’ve just been named executor and you’re not sure where to start, reach out to the Gordons team or call 1-800-267-2206. The initial consultation is free, and sometimes a single conversation is enough to turn an overwhelming task into a clear, manageable plan.
