Newfoundland and Labrador
What to do when someone dies in Newfoundland and Labrador: a step-by-step checklist
A Newfoundland and Labrador checklist for the first days after a death: registering the death, ordering certificates, applying for probate in the Supreme Court, and provincial notifications.
- Called
- executor
- Court authority
- Grant of Probate
- Death registered with
- Newfoundland and Labrador Vital Statistics
In Newfoundland and Labrador, estates are administered under the Judicature Act and the Rules of the Supreme Court. The person named in a will is the executor; where there is no will, an administrator is appointed. Grants are issued by the Supreme Court, General Division.
Registering the death
The funeral director files the medical certificate of death and the registration with the Vital Statistics Division of Digital Government and Service NL. Death certificates are ordered from that division once registration is processed.
Probate in Newfoundland and Labrador
- The application is filed with the Supreme Court, General Division, in the judicial centre serving the deceased's community.
- Court fees are charged on a sliding scale based on the value of the estate, with a percentage applied above the base amount.
- An inventory of assets and liabilities with date-of-death values accompanies the application.
- Real property is transferred through the Registry of Deeds.
Provincial notifications
- MCP — the Medical Care Plan health card.
- Motor Registration Division — driver's licence, vehicle registration and plates.
- The Registry of Deeds, where real property is held.
- Income Support through Children, Seniors and Social Development, if received.
- Newfoundland Power or Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro, and municipal tax accounts.
Steps that are the same everywhere in Canada
- 1Get the legal pronouncement of death. In hospital or long-term care, staff handle it. At home, call 911 unless the death was expected and a plan is in place.
- 2Contact the funeral home or crematorium. They register the death and file the paperwork that produces the death certificate.
- 3Find the will and any funeral or burial wishes before arrangements are finalized.
- 4Tell close family and the person's employer. Ask the employer about group life insurance, a final pay period and benefits for a surviving spouse.
- 5Secure the home, pets, vehicles and anything of value. Redirect the mail once you have authority to do so.
- 6Do not cancel anything paid automatically until you know what it covers — insurance especially.
Federal notifications
- Service Canada — cancel the Social Insurance Number, Old Age Security and Guaranteed Income Supplement, and apply for the Canada Pension Plan death benefit, survivor's pension and children's benefit. In Quebec, this is Retraite Québec instead.
- Canada Revenue Agency — report the date of death, stop benefit payments such as the GST/HST credit and Canada Child Benefit, and file the final T1 return.
- Passport Canada — return the passport for cancellation.
- Veterans Affairs Canada, if the person served.
- Any federal pension plan the person contributed to.
General information about public processes in Newfoundland and Labrador, not legal or tax advice. Confirm current requirements with the province or a lawyer.
Everything above starts with finding information.
A Life Box holds the documents, accounts, policies, property and people your executor would otherwise have to go looking for — organized while you're here, released only after authority is verified.