Time Limits to Challenge a Will in Each Canadian Province

An adult son in Vancouver learns of his father's death three weeks after it happens. He has been estranged for several years and was not contacted by the family. The father's will leaves the entire $1.6 million estate to a second wife and her two children, with nothing to the son or his sister from the first marriage. The son consults a lawyer four months after death. He is told the BC Wills, Estates and Succession Act allows a "wills variation" application by an adult child of the deceased — but he must file in BC Supreme Court within 180 days of the grant of probate. The grant was issued nine days after his consultation. He has eight months to act. He files in time and eventually settles for roughly $400,000.

The sister, who learns of the death from him a month later, also has eight months to act on the same clock. She delays. Eleven months after probate, she files. Her application is dismissed without hearing the merits — the clock has run.

That difference in outcome between two siblings with identical claims is what limitation periods do in Canadian estate law. They are mostly absolute, often shorter than expected, and they start running long before most beneficiaries are ready to take action.

The three categories of will challenge #

Different types of will challenge have different limitation periods. The categories matter because they trigger different statutes:

Challenge to the will's validity. Capacity, undue influence, fraud, improper execution, or formal defects. The argument is that the document is not legally a valid will at all. Limitation periods generally follow the province's general civil limitations statute, often two years from discovery in most provinces.

Dependants' relief claim. The will is conceded to be valid, but a spouse, child, or other dependant argues it failed to make adequate provision for them. The province's succession-law statute sets a specific, usually shorter, limitation period.^[1][2]

Family Law Act / matrimonial property claim. In Ontario, a surviving married spouse can elect against the estate to take their equalization entitlement under the Family Law Act rather than what the will gives them. The election must be made within six months of death.

Construction or interpretation application. Where the will is valid but ambiguous. Not strictly a "challenge" — typically brought by the executor for directions on a clause. No strict limitation, though the question becomes practical once the estate is distributed.

Province-by-province time limits #

The numbers below are approximate guides — the exact wording of each provincial statute matters in any actual case, and recent reforms in several provinces have shifted some of these limits.

Ontario. Dependant's relief under the Succession Law Reform Act: 6 months from grant of probate.^[1] Family Law Act spousal election: 6 months from death. General will-validity challenge: 2 years from discovery under the Limitations Act, 2002.^[3]

British Columbia. Wills variation under WESA section 61: 180 days from grant of probate.^[2] Public notice of the grant must be given before the will can be challenged; the 180 days runs from the grant date. Validity challenge: 2 years under the Limitation Act.

Alberta. Family maintenance and support under Part 5 of the Wills and Succession Act: 6 months from grant of probate.^[4] Validity challenge: 2 years under the Limitations Act.^[5]

Saskatchewan. Dependants' relief under The Dependants' Relief Act, 1996: 6 months from grant. Validity challenge: 2 years.

Manitoba. Dependants' relief under The Dependants Relief Act: 6 months from grant. Validity challenge: 2 years under The Limitations Act (substantially revised in 2022 to a more general 2-year discovery model).

New Brunswick. Dependants' relief under the Provision for Dependants Act: 6 months from grant. Validity challenge: 2 years.

Nova Scotia. Dependants' relief under the Testators' Family Maintenance Act: 6 months from grant. Validity challenge: 2 years.

Newfoundland and Labrador. Dependants' relief under the Family Relief Act: 6 months from grant. Validity challenge: 2 years.

Prince Edward Island. Dependants' relief under the Dependants of a Deceased Person Relief Act: 6 months from grant.

Territories (YT, NT, NU). Each has dependants' relief legislation with limitation periods generally 6 months from grant.

The recurring pattern: six months from grant of probate for dependants' relief, two years from discovery for will-validity challenges. The 6-month dependants' relief clock is the trap most beneficiaries fall into.

What "from grant of probate" really means #

The 6-month dependants' relief clock starts the day the certificate of appointment of estate trustee (Ontario), grant of probate (BC), letters probate (other provinces), or equivalent is issued by the court.

It does NOT start at death. It does NOT start at the funeral. It does NOT start when the family learns of the will's contents. It starts at the formal grant.

This creates two practical issues. First, a potential claimant may not learn of the grant for weeks or months — the executor is not generally required to send personal notice to people whom the will does not benefit. Second, sophisticated executors sometimes accelerate the probate filing in part to start the dependants' relief clock running.

The cautious posture for any disappointed beneficiary or potential dependant is to contact a lawyer within 60 days of learning of the death, regardless of whether probate has happened. The lawyer can monitor the probate filing and ensure the clock is not missed.

What "from discovery" means for validity challenges #

Modern provincial limitations statutes generally use a "discoverability" trigger — the 2-year clock starts running when the claimant knew, or with reasonable diligence ought to have known, the material facts giving rise to the claim.

For a will-validity challenge, those facts often include: who the testator was, when the testator died, what the will says, and the grounds for believing the will is invalid (capacity issue, undue influence, suspicious circumstances at signing).

A claimant who first learns of a possible capacity issue three years after death may still be within the limitation period, because the discoverability clock may not have started until then. Discoverability is genuinely a discrete area of law and the rules vary from province to province. The general principle, however, is that discoverability is forgiving of innocent ignorance and unforgiving of strategic delay.

When the limitation can be extended #

A handful of provinces allow late dependants' relief applications with leave of the court. Common factors the court weighs:

Whether the estate has been distributed. Once distribution is complete, recovering funds from beneficiaries is much harder and the court is reluctant to disturb the status quo.

Whether the applicant had a reasonable explanation for the delay. Serious illness, disability, language barriers, and absence from the province sometimes justify late applications. Strategic delay does not.

Whether the executor or other beneficiaries would be prejudiced by the late application.

The threshold for extension is high. Most late applications are dismissed. Filing on time is dramatically more reliable than relying on the extension power.

What a potential claimant should do in the first week #

Concrete steps for anyone considering a will challenge after a Canadian death:

Obtain a copy of the will. The executor (or estate trustee) is generally required to provide a copy on request, though the formal entitlement varies by province.

Note the date of the grant of probate. Provincial probate registries publish this; the executor can confirm it.

Calendar the limitation deadlines from that grant date — typically 6 months for dependants' relief and family-law elections.

Consult a Canadian estates litigation lawyer within 60 days, even if you are uncertain whether to proceed. An initial consultation is generally inexpensive and the lawyer can confirm the deadlines and the strength of the claim.

If the estate is being distributed, request that distribution be paused pending your decision. The executor is not always required to wait, but most will, particularly if litigation seems likely.

What we focus on at It's Simple Will #

It's Simple Will is built for the testator side — drafting wills that are well-supported, properly executed, and unlikely to invite a challenge in the first place. A clear will, with appropriate dependants' provision, dramatically reduces the chance any of these limitation periods will matter.

For the structural rules, see our pillar on how to write a will in Canada and what does an executor do in Canada. For the related interpretive issues, see ambiguous wording in a will and substantial compliance — when courts save a botched will.