“In this world, nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes.”

The above quote, attributed to Ben Franklin, still holds true today. While you can’t avoid either of these inevitabilities, you can do something to make it easier for the friends and family members you leave behind you when you die. 

First and foremost, MAKE A WILL. 

And when I say “make a will”, I don’t mean just cobbling something together. For most, estate planning should not be a DIY exercise.

Why is it important to have a will? In a nutshell, a will allows you to thoughtfully set out your wishes for your assets to ensure that they go to the people or organizations of your choosing.  If you die without a will, you could be leaving your family with a fine mess on their hands. Rather than simply applying for a grant of probate, one of your loved ones will have to apply to the probate registry for a grant of administration “without will annexed” to allow them to deal with your estate. This is a more onerous procedure than probating a will. Once the grant of administration is issued by the probate registry, your assets will be dispersed based upon legislation rather than based on your wishes. Perhaps you wanted certain friends or family members to inherit specific items which you knew would be important to them, or reward them with a nice gift. Without a will, none of that may happen unless those individuals are in the specific line of inheritance set out in the Wills, Estates and Succession Act. You might have intended to contribute to a favorite charity that does valuable work that you truly admire, or you might have a beloved fur baby whose care you wanted to ensure. Without a will, those things won’t happen either. The worst case scenario under the legislation is that your estate could end up in the hands of the provincial government. 

While having a will is extremely important, there is more to estate-planning than simply having a will. There are many factors that need to be considered when you make your estate plans. Ben Franklin’s above quote about death and taxes is quite apt because estate planning also involves tax issues. You may need to consult an accountant to make sure that you have a clear understanding of the tax laws that will affect the distribution of your estate. It is a must to take those laws into account when you are making your plans. 

You may wish to consider other estate-planning vehicles, depending upon the tax advice that you receive. You may wish to set up a trust for certain asset or to make inter vivos gifts (gifts made while you are still alive) of various assets rather than waiting until after you have passed. These are just a handful of the various considerations to be made when deciding how to set up your estate as effectively as possible given your wishes and the governing laws. 

Lastly, don’t put off your estate-planning to a later date. You may see it is an overwhelming task which is all too easy to put on the back burner. I can assure you that once you get proper advice and really tackle the issue head on, you will actually feel much better. Put your mind at ease and reach out today!