Dying without a will in Newfoundland and Labrador hands the distribution to a statutory formula. For a Muslim family this is the single most common way an estate ends up divided contrary to faraid.
What Newfoundland and Labrador does
| Item | Newfoundland and Labrador |
|---|---|
| Governing statute | Wills Act and Intestate Succession Act |
| Court | Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador |
| Handwritten (holograph) wills | Valid |
| Probate cost | Flat $60 for estates not exceeding $1,000, then $0.60 for every additional $100 of estate value above $1,000 (0.6% at the margin, with no cap). On a $500,000 estate that is $60 + (4,990 × $0.60) ≈ $3,054. The rate rose from $0.50 to $0.60 per $100 for grants made on or after 23 June 2015 — a Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador decision specifically had to clarify which rate applies to estates that straddle that date. |
| Spouse’s share on intestacy | Like Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador has NO preferential dollar amount at all — it is fractional from the first dollar of the estate. Where an intestate dies leaving a spouse and one child, the spouse takes 1/2 and the child 1/2. Where an intestate dies leaving a spouse and more than one child, the spouse takes 1/3 and the children share the remaining 2/3. Where there is a spouse and no issue, the spouse takes the whole estate. The Intestate Succession Act does not define 'spouse', so on its face this means a legally married spouse — contrast the separate Family Relief Act (next cell), which has expressly included a cohabiting partner as a dependant since a 2024 amendment. |
| Will registry | No general public will registry. As in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Prince Edward Island, the Wills Act's Part III requires the Minister to establish a registration (or registration-and-safekeeping) system, but only for 'international wills' made in the special UNIDROIT-Convention form — a mechanism almost no one uses, not a general findability tool. An ordinary will becomes searchable only once an estate file or a probate caveat/notice exists at the Supreme Court, which anyone can search for free through the court's e-filing system (a fuller search by court staff costs $20). The Law Society of Newfoundland and Labrador's own guidance for 'how do I find a copy of a deceased's will' does not mention any registry — it tells people to contact the drafting lawyer or email the Law Society to canvass its membership. |
| Claims against the estate | Family Relief Act claims. 'Dependant' is defined broadly: the deceased's spouse, the deceased's cohabiting partner (added by a 2024 amendment — a relationship of at least 2 years, or 1 year if the couple have a child together), and any child of the deceased. 'Child' carries NO age limit and no disability or dependency requirement — an adopted child and a child en ventre sa mere both qualify, and so does an independent, financially secure adult child, exactly as in Nova Scotia and unlike Ontario or PEI. The court's actual test is whether the will (or the intestacy share) makes 'adequate provision... for the maintenance and support' of the dependant — a real independent-adult-child claim can still fail on the merits, but the Act does not shut the door on standing the way Ontario's and PEI's definitions do. |
Why it does not match faraid
Provincial intestacy schemes are built around the surviving spouse and descendants. Faraid distributes more widely — parents take a share alongside children, and siblings can inherit in their own right. Three mismatches recur:
- Parents. Under faraid each parent generally takes one sixth where the deceased left children. Provincial intestacy usually gives parents nothing while a spouse and children survive.
- The spouse’s portion. Faraid fixes a wife at one eighth with children; a preferential share can hand a spouse the great majority of a modest estate.
- Sons and daughters. Provincial law divides equally among children; faraid gives a son twice a daughter’s share.
| Position | Hanafi | Maliki | Shafi’i | Hanbali |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Share of a daughter | Half a son’s share | Half a son’s share | Half a son’s share | Half a son’s share |
| Wife, with children | One eighth | One eighth | One eighth | One eighth |
| Wife, no children | One quarter | One quarter | One quarter | One quarter |
| Husband, with children | One quarter | One quarter | One quarter | One quarter |
| Husband, no children | One half | One half | One half | One half |
| Bequest cap (wasiyyah) | One third | One third | One third | One third |
| Bequest to a fixed heir | Needs heirs’ consent | Needs heirs’ consent | Needs heirs’ consent | Needs heirs’ consent |
| Distant kin (dhawu al-arham) | Inherit | Classically to the treasury | Classically to the treasury | Inherit |
| Surplus returned (radd) | Yes | Classically no | Classically no | Yes |
None of this is fixed by intention. Only a valid will — that can be found — changes the outcome.
A worked example: a $600,000 estate
Take a man who dies leaving a wife, two sons, one daughter and his mother, with a net estate of $600,000 after debts and funeral expenses. Here is what Newfoundland and Labrador does if he left no will, and what faraid does.
Under Newfoundland and Labrador intestacy law
| Heir | Basis | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Spouse | Takes the entire estate where all children are also the spouse’s; otherwise a preferential share applies first | Most or all |
| Mother | Nothing while a spouse and children survive | $0 |
| Each child | Equal shares of whatever remains — sons and daughters alike | Equal |
Exact figures depend on the provincial threshold and on whether all children are also the surviving spouse’s. Confirm against the statute.
Under faraid
| Heir | Qur’anic share | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Wife | One eighth | $75,000 |
| Mother | One sixth | $100,000 |
| Son (each of two) | Residue, two shares | $170,000 |
| Daughter | Residue, one share | $85,000 |
His mother receives nothing under the provincial formula and $100,000 under faraid. Provincial intestacy schemes are built around the spouse and descendants; they do not recognise a parent’s fixed share at all while a spouse and children survive. No amount of intention changes this — only a valid will does.
Figures are rounded to whole dollars and illustrate the structure only. Real estates involve debts, taxes, designations and jointly held property that change the arithmetic substantially.
Common questions
Do common-law partners inherit?
It depends on the province, and the differences are large. Some provinces treat a qualifying common-law partner as a spouse for intestacy; Ontario does not.
Do my parents inherit if I die without a will?
Generally not, if you leave a spouse or children. This is one of the sharpest departures from faraid, where each parent normally takes one sixth where the deceased left children.
Does an intestate estate get divided equally between sons and daughters?
Yes — provincial law divides equally among children. Faraid gives a son twice a daughter's share.
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.
- What to do when someone has died — Canada Revenue Agency
- Probate fees by province / territory — TaxTips.ca
- Surah an-Nisa 4:11–12, 4:176 — Quran.com
- Book of Wills (Wasaya) — Sahih al-Bukhari, Sunnah.com
- Religion by census metropolitan area, 2021 Census — Statistics Canada
- Preferential share spouse intestacy ontario — Treadstone Law
- Holograph handwritten will ontario — Treadstone Law
- What is preferential share ontario intestacy — Treadstone Law
- Intestacy spouse one child ontario — Treadstone Law
- Dying without a will intestacy ontario — Treadstone Law
- Wills & estates practice — Treadstone Law