Glossary
The words families run into, in plain Canadian English.
Executor or liquidator? Probate or notarial will? These are the terms that show up in the paperwork, defined without the legalese.
- Beneficiary
A person or organization named to receive something — under a will, or directly on a registered account or insurance policy.
A beneficiary designation on an RRSP, TFSA or life insurance policy generally overrides what the will says about that asset.
- Clearance certificate
A Canada Revenue Agency confirmation that an estate's taxes are settled, allowing an executor to distribute safely.
- Death box
An informal name for a physical box or binder holding important papers and instructions for the family.
- Digital legacy
Everything of yours that lives online: accounts, subscriptions, photos, domains, loyalty points and cryptocurrency.
- Digital Life Box
A secure, current record of the documents, accounts, contacts and instructions your family may need — the modern replacement for a paper death box.
- Estate Administration Tax
Ontario's probate charge, calculated on the value of the estate above a threshold.
- Estate trustee
Ontario's term for the executor of an estate.
- Executor
The person named in a will to settle an estate: gather assets, pay debts and taxes, and distribute what remains.
Called an estate trustee in Ontario, a liquidator in Quebec, and a personal representative in Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan.
- Guardian
The person named in a will to care for minor children. Courts consider the nomination but are not strictly bound by it.
- Holograph will
A will written entirely by hand and signed, without witnesses. Recognized in most Canadian provinces, but easy to get wrong.
- Intestate
Dying without a valid will. Provincial law then decides who inherits and who administers the estate.
- Joint with right of survivorship
A way of holding property so it passes automatically to the surviving owner rather than through the estate.
Not used the same way in Quebec.
- Legacy contact
A person you nominate inside a platform such as Apple or Facebook who can request access to that account after you die.
It only covers that one platform, and only if you set it up in advance.
- Liquidator
Quebec's term for the person who settles an estate under the Civil Code of Quebec.
- Notarial will
A will made before a notary in Quebec. It is entered in a register and does not require probate.
- Personal directive
A document naming who makes health and personal care decisions if you cannot. Called a representation agreement in BC, a mandate in Quebec, and a power of attorney for personal care in Ontario.
- PIPEDA
Canada's federal private-sector privacy law, which governs how organizations collect, use and disclose personal information.
- Power of attorney
A document naming someone to act on your finances or property while you are alive but unable to act yourself.
It ends at death — that is where the will takes over.
- Probate
The court process that confirms a will is valid and that the named executor has authority to act.
Fees and names vary: Ontario charges Estate Administration Tax, British Columbia charges probate fees above a threshold, and a Quebec notarial will avoids probate entirely.
- Successor holder
A spouse or common-law partner named on a TFSA who takes over the account itself, keeping its tax-free status.
General information for Canadian households, not legal or tax advice. Life Box is not a lawyer, notary, executor or adviser.
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