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What the tax is, and when it is owed
Estate Administration Tax is what Ontario charges when the Superior Court of Justice issues an estate certificate, the document most people still call probate. Many people call it “probate fees“. Its legal name comes from the Estate Administration Tax Act, 1998, and section 2(1) makes it payable by the estate immediately upon the issuance of an estate certificate. It is a government charge, separate from any lawyer’s account. Our probate page explains when an estate needs a certificate in the first place.
Two points flow from that wording. First, no certificate means no tax: Ontario’s guidance says that if a certificate is not applied for, or is not issued, no tax is owed. Whether one is needed usually depends on the assets, and an estate with real property or money at a financial institution normally must be probated. Second, the tax belongs to the estate. Section 2(8) says the estate representative pays it in a representative capacity only, so it comes from estate money, not their own pocket.
“Estate certificate” covers a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee and a Small Estate Certificate (section 1). It excludes a certificate of succeeding estate trustee and a certificate of estate trustee during litigation, so no tax is charged on those. The probate and Estate Administration Tax overview on our estate planning page shows where the tax fits in a whole plan.
How to work out the tax, step by step
The arithmetic is simple. The hard part is getting the value right.
- List what the person owned at the date of death. Real estate, bank accounts, investments, vehicles, business interests and personal belongings all count, wherever they are, with one large exception: real estate outside Ontario is left out.
- Value each asset at the date of death. Ontario’s guidance asks for fair market value at the time of death, supported by documents such as statements or an appraiser’s opinion. For a house, use the appraised value at the date of death even if it later sells for more or less.
- Subtract only mortgages and other encumbrances on Ontario real estate. The Act defines the value of the estate as all property less the actual value of any encumbrance on real property (section 1). No other debt reduces it.
- Round the value up to the next $1,000. The rate applies to each $1,000 “or part thereof“, so $239,250 is taxed as if it were $240,000. That is the example Ontario itself uses.
- Take off the first $50,000 and multiply the rest by $15 per $1,000. Under section 2(6.1), for applications made on or after January 1, 2020, the tax is $15 for each $1,000 or part thereof by which the value exceeds $50,000. For $240,000, that is $190,000 over the threshold, or 190 times $15, which is $2,850.
- Pay it as a deposit with the application. Section 3 of the Act and Rule 74.13 of the Rules of Civil Procedure require the deposit when the application is filed. When the certificate is issued, the deposit becomes the tax.
A quick check: for any estate over $50,000, the tax is 1.5% of the rounded value, minus $750. For $240,000, that is $3,600 minus $750, again $2,850. Ontario also publishes an online calculator.
| Value of the estate | Value over $50,000, rounded up to the next $1,000 | Tax at $15 per $1,000 |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 or less | $0 | $0 |
| $50,001 | $1,000 | $15 |
| $75,000 | $25,000 | $375 |
| $100,000 | $50,000 | $750 |
| $150,000 | $100,000 | $1,500 |
| $239,250 | $190,000 | $2,850 |
| $250,000 | $200,000 | $3,000 |
| $500,000 | $450,000 | $6,750 |
| $750,000 | $700,000 | $10,500 |
| $1,000,000 | $950,000 | $14,250 |
| $1,500,000 | $1,450,000 | $21,750 |
| $2,000,000 | $1,950,000 | $29,250 |
What goes into the value, and what stays out
Ontario’s Ministry of Finance guidance includes Ontario real estate (less its mortgage, collateral mortgage or lien), bank accounts including foreign ones, investments, vehicles and boats wherever they are, business interests, property held in another person’s name, and insurance paid to the estate. It leaves out insurance paid to a named beneficiary, jointly held property that passes to the surviving owner, real estate outside Ontario, the CPP death benefit, and registered plans and TFSAs with a beneficiary designation. These are the reasons that two estates with the same total wealth can owe very different amounts of tax, and they are a large part of what planning your will with probate in mind is about.
Debts are where most home calculations go wrong. The only deduction is an encumbrance on real property included in the estate. Ontario’s guidance names costs that cannot be deducted, including funeral expenses, the lawyer’s fee, loans, a car loan, credit card debt, real estate commissions and lines of credit. The estate still pays them; they just do not shrink the taxable value.
| Item | Included in the value? |
|---|---|
| House in Ontario in the deceased’s sole name | Yes, at appraised value at death, less the registered mortgage or lien |
| Cottage or condo outside Ontario | No |
| Bank account in the deceased’s sole name | Yes |
| Joint account that passes to the surviving owner automatically | No |
| RRSP, RRIF or TFSA with a named beneficiary | No |
| RRSP, RRIF or TFSA payable to the estate | Yes |
| Life insurance paid to a named beneficiary | No |
| Life insurance paid to the estate | Yes |
| Car, boat or trailer | Yes, in or outside Ontario |
| Funeral costs, credit cards, car loan, line of credit | Cannot be deducted |
What changes the answer
When the application was made
The rate depends on the date of the application, not the date of death. Under section 2(6), an application made after June 7, 1992 and before January 1, 2020 was charged $5 per $1,000 on the first $50,000 and $15 per $1,000 above that, and section 2(2)(a) exempted only estates of $1,000 or less. For anything filed today, section 2(2)(b) exempts estates of $50,000 or less and section 2(6.1) applies.
Values you can only estimate
If you can only estimate the value when you apply, section 3(3) lets you base the deposit on the estimate. The certificate will not issue until you give the court a signed undertaking that, within six months, you will file a sworn statement of the actual total value and pay any additional tax if the real value is higher (section 4(3) and Rule 74.13(2)). If the estimate turns out too high, section 3(7) refunds the difference. If the undertaking is not kept, section 4(4) lets the court order compliance at the registrar’s request.
Property found after the certificate
Assets that turn up later are taxed too. Section 32(2) of the Estates Act requires the estate trustee to deliver a sworn statement of newly discovered property to the registrar within six months, and section 2(7) of the tax Act makes the tax on it payable when that statement is delivered. The same discovery also has to be reported on an amended Estate Information Return.
Multiple wills and limited certificates
Some people sign two wills, one for assets that need probate and one for assets that do not, such as shares of a private company. Ontario’s guidance says that when the court issues a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee with a Will Limited to the Assets Referred to in the Will, only the assets in that will are counted. If you own a business, our article on a secondary will for private company shares explains how that structure works.
Foreign estate trustees
For a resealed or ancillary appointment, or a foreign estate trustee’s nominee, the guidance says only assets located in Ontario are counted.
Small estates
A Small Estate Certificate, for estates of $150,000 or less, attracts exactly the same tax. An estate of $50,000 or less pays nothing, but anything above that is taxed at the same rate. We explain the simplified process in how Ontario’s small estate certificate works.
Urgency and hardship
The certificate normally waits for the deposit. Section 4(1) and (2) allow a judge to issue it first only if the certificate is urgently required, financial hardship would result otherwise, and sufficient security for the tax has been given to the court.
Property on a reserve
Ontario’s guidance notes that certain property situated on a reserve may be exempt, and asks First Nations people with questions about the exemption to contact the Ministry of Finance.
Example
For example, imagine Doris, a widow in Richmond Hill, dies with a will naming her son Victor as estate trustee. Her house is appraised at $1,150,000 at the date of death, with a registered mortgage of $210,000. She also has $62,400 in a bank account in her own name, $48,350 in a non-registered investment account and a car worth $14,500. Her RRSP of $180,000 names her daughter as beneficiary, her $250,000 life insurance policy names both children, and a $30,000 joint account with Victor passes to him automatically. She owed $6,200 on a credit card, and the funeral cost $11,000.
Victor’s value is the house less the mortgage ($940,000), plus $62,400, $48,350 and $14,500, for a total of $1,065,250. The RRSP, the insurance and the joint account stay out. The credit card and funeral costs cannot be deducted. Rounded up, the value is $1,066,000. Take off $50,000 and the taxable amount is $1,016,000, or 1,016 units of $1,000. At $15 each, the tax is $15,240, deposited with the application. Had Victor wrongly deducted the $17,200 of card debt and funeral costs, he would have deposited $14,985, which is $255 too little, and the Ministry could assess the estate for the difference.
Paying the tax, refunds and penalties
The deposit is paid to the court office where the application is filed, by cash or debit where available, certified cheque, lawyer’s trust account cheque, trust company cheque, bank draft or money order, with cheques payable to the “Minister of Finance“. For an estate in York Region, our page on probate at the Newmarket courthouse covers the local practicalities. The rest of the application is covered in how to apply for a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee.
Before the certificate issues, a deposit is refunded if no certificate is issued (section 3(6)), and you ask the court office where you applied. After it issues, refunds of overpaid tax come from the Ministry of Finance. Under section 4.5.1, the Ministry refunds an overpayment if the Estate Information Return was given within four years after the certificate issued, and the written request arrives within 12 years after the certificate issued or within two years of a notice of assessment.
The Ministry can assess the tax within four years after it became payable (section 4.5(1)). It can assess at any time it considers reasonable if anyone failed to give the required information, or made a misrepresentation through neglect, carelessness or wilful default, or committed fraud (section 4.5(2)). Failing to file the return, or making a false or misleading statement on it, is an offence under section 5.1, with a fine of at least $1,000 (up to twice the tax payable by the estate, where that is more than $1,000), imprisonment of up to two years, or both.
Common mistakes
- Deducting ordinary debts. Only mortgages, liens and other encumbrances on included real estate reduce the value. Credit cards, funeral bills and lines of credit do not.
- Using the sale price instead of the date of death value. If the house sells months later for a different figure, the tax is still based on its value at death.
- Counting assets that pass outside the estate. A designated RRSP, insurance with a named beneficiary or a true joint account does not belong in the value, and including it overpays the tax.
- Forgetting the return after the tax is paid. Paying the deposit is not the end. The return is due within 180 calendar days of the certificate, even when the tax is $0.
- Missing the six-month undertaking. If you applied on an estimate, the sworn statement of actual value and any extra tax are due within six months of giving the undertaking.
- Assuming that probate is always needed. No certificate means no tax. Check first whether the institutions holding the assets actually require one.
What to do this week
- Make a list of every asset the person owned at death, with who it was held by and whether it names a beneficiary or a joint owner.
- Ask each bank, investment firm and insurer for a date of death statement, and whether they will need a probate certificate.
- Order a date of death appraisal for any Ontario real estate, and get the mortgage balance as of that date.
- Separate the assets that pass outside the estate from those that do not, and add up the estate assets only.
- Round up to the next $1,000, subtract $50,000 and multiply the remaining thousands by $15. Check your figure with Ontario’s online calculator.
- Diarize the 180-day deadline for the Estate Information Return from the day the certificate is issued.
- If the numbers are large or the assets are unusual, ask a lawyer to review them before you file. A first consultation takes 30 minutes, by video or in person, and you can request one here.
Frequently asked questions
Is there any tax on an estate worth less than $50,000?
No. For applications made on or after January 1, 2020, an estate of $50,000 or less is exempt under section 2(2)(b). The estate representative must still file an Estate Information Return within 180 calendar days after the certificate is issued.
Do I pay the tax personally as estate trustee?
No. Section 2(8) says the tax is payable by the estate representative in a representative capacity only, and Ontario’s guidance says it is paid by the estate, not by the estate representative. The money comes out of the estate’s assets.
Is a joint bank account counted?
Not when it passes automatically to the surviving joint owner. The guidance excludes jointly owned assets that become the other owner’s on death. Whether a particular joint account truly passes that way can depend on the facts, so it is worth checking before you leave it out.
Is the tax different if there was no will?
No. The same rate applies to a certificate with or without a will. What changes without a will is who may apply, whether a bond is needed and who inherits, which we explain in who inherits if you die without a will in Ontario.
When exactly is the tax due?
The tax becomes payable on the day the estate certificate is issued (section 2(1)), but you pay it in advance as a deposit when you file the application. The deposit is then applied to the tax when the certificate issues (section 3(5)).
Can the tax be paid later, after assets are sold?
Only in narrow cases, set out in section 4(2) and described above under urgency and hardship. Otherwise the deposit comes first.
Sources
- Estate Administration Tax Act, 1998, S.O. 1998, c. 34, Sched., ss. 1, 2, 3, 4, 4.5, 4.5.1 and 5.1
- Ontario.ca: Estate Administration Tax (assets to include and exclude, deductions, calculation, refunds, penalties)
- Ontario.ca: Calculating the Estate Administration Tax (online calculator)
- Ontario.ca: Apply for probate of an estate (paying the tax at the court office)
- Ontario.ca: Administering estates (no tax if no certificate is issued)
- Estates Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. E.21, s. 32 (statement of value and newly discovered property)
- Rules of Civil Procedure, R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, Rule 74.13 (deposit equal to tax)
This page is general information about Ontario law, not legal advice for your situation. It reflects the law as of October 25, 2026.