Gathers assets, notifies institutions, pays debts and taxes, keeps records, and distributes — usually over many months.
The Canadian position
Expect correspondence with banks, insurers, CRA, the land registry and beneficiaries.
Open a dedicated estate account immediately; mixing funds is a serious breach.
The Islamic position
The wasi role is described as an amanah, and record-keeping is how that trust is demonstrated.
Heirs are entitled to an accounting, so keep one from day one.
All four schools want the same qualities in a wasi — adulthood and legal capacity, Islam, integrity and the ability to do the job. They differ on what failing one of them does. Three schools treat them as conditions of validity, so an appointment that fails one is void. The Hanafi school treats the appointment as valid and puts the remedy in the judge’s hands.
All four Sunni schools researched and sourced. Reviewed 2026-08-19. Full positions, evidence and sources — Who may be appointed wasi (executor and guardian).
Making an Islamic will in Canada — province by province, and what makes one valid where you live →
What to do about it
- Open an estate bank account.
- Keep every receipt and statement.
- Send beneficiaries a written update at least quarterly.
- Do not distribute before debts and taxes are settled.
This is legal information only. For advice on your own circumstances, speak to a lawyer.
Citations & sources
Every factual claim on this page traces to a source below. Details change — check the original source before relying on any figure, fee or legal position. Anything under “further reading” is related material, not a source for what is stated here.
- Apply for probate of an estate — Government of Ontario
- Estate Administration Tax — Government of Ontario
- Estates Act, RSO 1990, c E.21 — Government of Ontario
- Administering estates — Government of Ontario
- Executor open estate bank account ontario — Treadstone Law
- How executor notifies beneficiaries ontario — Treadstone Law
- Who pays estate debts intestacy ontario — Treadstone Law
- Ontario land titles vs registry system — Treadstone Law
- Wills & estates practice — Treadstone Law