Who can witness my Will? (in Ontario)
Signing a Last Will and Testament in Ontario? Not sure about who can be your witness? Here are the rules:
- A typed Will has to be dated and signed in front of two witnesses.
- The two witnesses must also sign the Will. All three (you and your two witnesses) must be together when signing.
- The two witnesses cannot be a beneficiary of your estate. This means the witnesses cannot be people who will receive something (i.e. a benefit) from your estate when you die.
Update April 2020: Virtual witnessing of Wills and Powers of Attorney is now permitted due to the coronavirus. Click here to learn more.
Do I need to initial each page of my Will and/or Power of Attorney?
In addition to signing the last page where indicated in the Will, Notary Pro recommends that you and the two witnesses to write your initials in the bottom right-hand corner of each of the pages of the Will, except the last page where the signatures are.
Adding your initials is another way of demonstrating that everyone saw each and every page of the Will on the date it was signed. However, initialing is not a legal requirement.
Notary Pro can witness your Will, in accordance with the Ministry of the Attorney General. You must bring witnesses with you. As a business practice, our Notary Publics do not sign as witnesses, however this is acceptable if there absolutely no one else available.
To have your Will notarized, Notary Pro Canada’s service fee is $99 including HST.