A will nobody can find is, in practice, a will that does not exist. Here is how wills are located in Quebec, and what the law expects of an executor who cannot find one.
Where to look in Quebec
| Item | Quebec |
|---|---|
| Governing statute | Civil Code of Québec |
| Court | Superior Court of Québec |
| Handwritten (holograph) wills | Valid. Quebec recognises three forms: notarial, holograph, and witnessed wills. |
| Probate cost | No probate tax based on the value of the estate. A notarial will requires no probate at all because it is an authentic act. A holograph will or a will made in the presence of witnesses must be probated, before either the Superior Court or a notary, and a flat judicial fee of $241 applies (plus $60.25 to file the notary’s minutes where the notarial route is used). Notary or lawyer fees are separate and professional. |
| Spouse’s share on intestacy | There is no preferential dollar amount in Quebec. Two things happen before the succession is divided: the family patrimony is partitioned and the matrimonial or civil union regime is liquidated. What is left devolves by fractions — where the deceased leaves a spouse and descendants, the spouse takes one third and the descendants two thirds; with no descendants but surviving parents, the spouse takes two thirds; with no descendants, parents, siblings or nieces/nephews, the spouse takes everything. IMPORTANT AND NEW: since 30 June 2025 a "parental union spouse" — an unmarried couple who become the parents of a child born or adopted on or after that date — is an heir alongside married and civil union spouses. Other de facto spouses still inherit nothing on intestacy. |
| Will registry | Two mandatory registers — the Chambre des notaires (notarial wills) and the Barreau du Québec (wills made before witnesses). Since 2 September 2025 a joint portal searches both on one application for about $30 online or $40 by mail. Search certificates from both are required documents when probating a non-notarial will, so this is a step you cannot skip in Quebec — and again, cheaper than any private alternative. |
| Claims against the estate | Quebec has no wills-variation regime. Testamentary freedom is otherwise near-absolute, but the obligation to provide support survives death: a creditor of support may claim a financial contribution from the succession within six months of the death. The claim is capped — for a spouse or a descendant, at half of what they would have received had the whole estate devolved on intestacy, less whatever they actually take; for a former spouse, twelve months’ support; for anyone else, six months’ support, and in those two cases never more than 10% of the succession. |
A diligent search
- The deceased’s lawyer, and the firm’s successor if it has closed.
- Safety deposit boxes at every bank they used.
- Home safes, filing cabinets, and digital storage.
- Will registries — government where one exists, private otherwise.
- The provincial law society, which may hold records for a wound-up practice.
Where an original will was last known to be with the deceased and cannot be found, a court may presume it was destroyed deliberately — and administer the estate as an intestacy. Documenting the search is what rebuts that.
Why this is a religious question too
The hadith on wills speaks of the document being "kept ready with him" — findability is part of the obligation, not an administrative afterthought. Recording that a will exists, and where, is the gap the Islamic Will Registry exists to close.
Common questions
What if we cannot find the original?
A copy may be admissible, but where the original was last known to be with the deceased a court may presume it was destroyed deliberately and treat the estate as intestate.
Who is allowed to search for a will?
Typically the executor named in a will, or a family member applying to administer the estate.
Does registering a will make it valid?
No. A registry records that a will exists and where it is kept. Validity is a separate question governed by the province's formal requirements.
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
- Searching for a will — Gouvernement du Québec
- Search the registers of wills and mandates — Chambre des notaires du Québec
- 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
- Executor claims against estate creditor — Treadstone Law
- Half siblings intestacy ontario — Treadstone Law
- Preferential share spouse intestacy ontario — Treadstone Law
- Holograph handwritten will ontario — Treadstone Law
- What is preferential share ontario intestacy — Treadstone Law
- Wills & estates practice — Treadstone Law