What is your question? That's very heavy-handed of them! What about interest, death, separation/divorce etc.2 - He has advised us it will take 4 years before money can be distributed since Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Finance have a 4 year window to assess/reassess estates. My bank, BMO, charges nothing for an estate account. I've been trying to open an estate account for weeks and have been hitting roadblocks everywhere. What is the harm of just dividing the money between the two of us and paying the last few estate bills from our own accounts? It has been a great help to our family.My question relates to your initial post at the top. I somehow doubt this, but if yes, what additional documentation would be required?2.What are the ramifications of moving money from her account as it is today to myself for repayment? Check the motor vehicles registry web page in your province. He was suppose to prove to the courts he had no money, but failed to do so, and a lawyer stated he would inform the courts of this, but I needed to pay him $2,000 first. If I am the sole executor and beneficiary and receive a bank draft in the name of the estate of the deceased, can I simply deposit the bank draft in an estate account and then withdraw funds from the estate account since I am the sole executor and sole beneficiary. It sounds as though one will be open longer because of your tax holdback. And, there is no online documentation about Estate Accounts that I can find anywhere on the TD website.Is this normal? I am executor of the will. My question is when can I close the estate accounts? Are you supposed to be supplying it? I opened up an estate account when my mother's CPP Death Benefit came in. Thanks, Yes, the executor has complete control over the bank account.No, the executor cannot take executor fees until either the beneficiaries agree (usually by signing a release) or the court orders it.Yes, the executor can close the account at any time, but it would be pretty unusual to close it if there were still estate funds.Lynne. In law, you have no right to do so because you've been given the cheque as executor, which means it's in trust for the beneficiaries of the estate. Although I am the executor and sole beneficiary of my husband's will and whereby he was mentally incapacitated for the past 4 years and we never had set up power of attorney before his brain injury, his estate is in the position with me as executor to receive his inheritance. I am executor for an estate of someone who lived and died in Alberta. We spoke with a tax specialist for the bank on the phone, and he said if the branch would update her accounts to show 'estate of' in the titles of the accounts he could reissue the slips to show the required information - however the branch is refusing stating probate requirement. I am just not sure how this is supposed to work?? I suggest you read the 2007 Supreme Court of Canada cases called Pecore and Saylor. investments of 25k held at multiple institutions), is it right for the bank to request probate for the operation of the estate account? The person you choose to administer your estate will use the account's funds to settle your debts, pay taxes and distribute assets. Her girlfriend/partner of 30 years passed away. If it is only bank policy and not law, however, I am going to protest this, as my brother was laid off a while back and could really use his share of the funds now. The lawyer handling his mother's estate wants to write the cheque to my name with Executor of the Estate of (my husbands name). I have generated expense report for the Estate, would that be sufficient for the bank to issue me payment?Thank you, You can repay yourself reasonable expenses without any prior approval from anyone. Meanwhile my brother received it but I did not. You were correct when you suggested an account set up as "Administrator of the estate of Jane Doe". We also own property that my mother as executor has never removed my Grandmother from. Sat-Sun 8 a.m.-8 p.m. ); Your joint executors might have a strained or non-existent . Banks drive me nuts, for exactly the kind of thing you've just described.Lynne. I don't know who works at the legal departments for banks, but they seem to know absolutely squat about estate paperwork. I'm so sorry to hear about your son. If it is simply her account, then you need to close it and open an estate account in your name as administrator. And I don't feel that I should be opening an account for this in my personal name. If all of that is paid up, the funds go to his beneficiaries. Earn a $300 welcome bonus with a new bank account 2. I have been sent a cheque as final payment for caregiving services. I was initially executor and stepped down due to personal reasons. The estate accounts themselves are different from the original receipts, cheques, bank statements, etc. None of that is true and I seriously have to wonder if banks have anyone working there who has any idea what is going on. Is this really 2017?Anything you can do to help would be greatly appreciated!Thanks.Fred, Personally, I don't see the difference in an online account for an estate and an online account for an individual, once you have established your credentials as the executor. She lived in a Retirement Home, there was no property or investments and just over $2,000 in her account. Lynne. Your mother's money wasn't safe because your brother is a crook. My mother's will has her 3 children as executors. Our mother had her checking and an investment account with them. I have having some real tough issues with TD Bank. As I said, not all banks are responding properly to the change in the law (from 2007) and some are paying out joint bank accounts between parent and child to the child. Hello My 24 year old son passed away oct 28 i found his gst cheque dated oct 5 that he signed is it ok to cash it or wat do i do ? Our property is the same size. I have opened an Estate Account for my father, but the bank will *NOT* give me an updatable bank book or online access to the account. Paying out of pocket should be the last resort. He had no assets. I have made sure his loan and funeral expenses have been paid for and any government cheques have been paid back. I recently opened an estate account at a bank and they refuse to give me online access. It's under $75,000. This is what the law says you are supposed to do. On to your question. She asked each bank was this a problem, each said it was not a problem. The estate accounts usually contain the amount of compensation claimed by the executor. Other terms for estate representative include estate trustee, executor, liquidator and administrator. Be cautious about disbursing funds until you have 100% control of the situation and know for sure what's out there.LynneLynne, Hi LynneMy mom passed away about a year ago, my sister and brother and I were all executors. Both executors should be on the account. Do I need to open up an estate account to transfer the money to myself. How many times do I hear that in a week? Your question is why the bank is refusing to add your name to an estate bank account. We have since sold her house and the lawyer is going to have the cheque made out "to the estate of" and would like us to agree on who will receive the cheque to deposit. Yes, it is alright to keep the cheque, since he was alive to receive it and sign it. My mother's partner has 3 sisters and a brother whom her partner didn't get along with and didn't have much to do with them. If the account is closed, you have to open a new one, as you have a legal obligation to deposit them and use them to pay any outstanding debts of the estate.Lynne. How can I keep track of what cheques have cleared? Her authority to deal with estate assets comes from the will itself, not the probate. Do I have any rights to see this paperwork? They are doing the right thing and you are ignoring how your father in law had things set up.Lynne. So what I'm saying is that they have no reason to try to supervise what you're doing once you have provided the proof that you're the executor. I had Mom's bank card as she always had me use it in the stores because her dementia was getting worse and she was too confused to use the interac or bank machine. Your bank manager will be familiar with the process.If you do that, you can take control of the account, so you will be able to pay the taxes from it. Have a great day. My lawyer has said the same thing. If you're using a bank account, you'd have to do the deposits and payments etc yourself but you wouldn't be paying legal fees on those transactions.I have occasionally used my trust account in this way but it's usually for a specific reason such as co-executors who don't work well together and want a neutral third person as a buffer. Until then I have to ask for a balance and any bills I need to pay out of the account will have to be by bank draft. All of our accounts are joint as are any debts ie mortgage and car. It's as if the deceased were being taxed, rather than their heirs. Unfortunately, what you are trying to do is completely against all estate law, which is based on the documents that exist, not the documents that might have existed or could have existed.Your father left the RRSP beneficiary form with named beneficiaries. My mother passed, without a will. I went to deposit them and was told by CIBC that they drained the account and closed it 5 months after death? When he passed, he had a bit of money in the bank. Does the annual audit of accounts reflect this inaction? We two are the only benficaiaries. All the TD bank did was phone the hospital, and that was good enough for them. I don;t know what is happening in this particular estate that might make the executor think that. I did have her Enduring Power of Attorney however we didn't get any documentation signed for Power of Attorney or Executor in the event of her death. Does this trust belong to my daughter, or is it part of the estate, and therefore to be caught up in limbo during the probate? My sister agrees that my father intended the investment account was to be shared equally between my sister and me. She also took forever to sell the property and never keeps us (or me) informed. This does seem like a genuine mistake, but certainly a preventable one. All Canadian banks apparently have their own rules regarding estate accounts and probate. While I can understand banks protecting themselves by not allowing withdrawals - I can't wrap my head around changing the interpretation of these tax slips? What do I need to do to prove that I am the only beneficiary?thanks. That really is an awful story. Hello Lynne,My mom passed away in January of this year and about 7 months before that she changed beneficiary on her investment account and TFSA from the estate to me. The bank is treating my moms registered accounts with no beneficiaries (rrsp/lif/rrif) as frozen until probate is received. Even the bank manager was surprised they had no mechanism to inform clients. Score: 4.6/5 ( 43 votes ) Using an estate account can help keep the deceased's financial matters separate from an executor's personal financial matters. Hi Boobes,Trying to understand your question. I'm not an expert on criminal law but it seems to me that if she is pretending your grandmother is alive and depositing a cheque made to your grandmother, that is fraud. My mother passed away January 19, 2020. That's why they're dragging their feet. Isn't it the point? These taxes are applied before the estate is distributed. Your estate includes what you own (assets) and what you owe (liabilities). Can the power of attorney for his will assume control of our mothers estate? TD bank says it can take "two, three sometimes even six months" to set up an Estate Account for me. I can completely sympathize with your situation because I have my own ongoing battles with banks' legal departments on my client files.Whether or not the people at the legal department can read the signatures, the judge of the probate court could, and did. is there any legislation preventing them from doing so? However in the last through s of her life when I could see the end was at hand I put as much available cash in this account because I knew joint accounts would avoid probate. And has instructed the last lawyer to not do anything even though he's the one who sent it without tracking by regular mail. Something like that might make a bank reluctant to accept the will without the backing of the court. Find more information at Canada Pension Plan Death Benefits, or call Service Canada at 1-800-277-9914. Did the TD bank error in allowing this as she was only one of three executors? The alberta bank is insisting on probate. This risk is eliminated (for the bank) by the probate process. She was living with me and we have a joint bank account. An alternative might be to purchase bank drafts rather than cheques. There is still estate activities going through her bank account and I recently switched her mortgage company. A friend passed and named myself or my husband executor and also sole beneificiaries. You tell them. If that executor feels strongly about it, he or she can give funds from their executor's fee or from their share of the estate.Lynne. Other banks are also refusing to open estate accounts. Excellent blog and thank you for writing the Self-Counsel press document "How Executors Avoid Personal Liability" in BC, published in 2014. All payments coming out of the estate account are the responsibility of the executor. I am an only child. Do you mind if I place your article on my blog and reference your site to it?Cheers,Larosabelle, Hi Larosabelle,Thanks! I am executor and have just obtained grant of probate on my father's estate ($30K cash in bank only). Mom's bank had temporarily closed here in this town due to the Covid-19 so I would have to go to the City talk to them in the branch. Hi Lynne, my deceased father's will dated 2015 names my Mother as a sole beneficiary of his entire estate, however does not list every single account he had. These 'source documents' are the back up for the estate accounts but are not usually provided to all beneficiaries. Since I am solely responsible for doing this, am I able to disburse some of the funds right away as long as enough is left in the account to cover income tax and any unpaid bills? She only gets $60 back because that is what she had deducted every year. If it's not going to the named beneficiaries, then it has to go to the estate and be taxed. The local manager was extremely helpful in rescanning the problem documents but now I must wait up to 10 business days until this is approved! To open an estate account, you need to go to the bank and request that they open an estate account. However, a year has passed and she is reluctant to distribute half of the account to me. Otherwise, this could end up being worked out with lawyers for the bank, which in my experience is like hitting your head repeatedly on a brick wall.Lynne. I fear they are aware we will be transferring all the money to another bank and that is the hold up. My dad had no will, no spouse and i am his only child. Hi Lynne, our mother passed away in February this year. I've read many comments here that suggest that RBC may insist on a probated will, and I'm wondering if this process is truly necessary? Every time I get another unsatisfactory response causes more stress at an already difficult time. Depending on how long you keep the funds untouched and whether you pair it with a premium chequing account, you can earn up to 4.60% on your savings (includes limited-time bonuses). I opened an Estate account with TD as well. Hi there If I was listed as executor as per cra but they dont give you anything to prove that, can I still open the account get the refunds from cra and close the account without this probate? She has no real assets. The simple answer is that the people in the branch have no idea how to deal with estates. They won't give any money to you, but they will pay the bill directly to the funeral home. Thank you. This had to go to their Head Office and it would take about 2 weeks. Take the will, a copy of the death certificate (or funeral director's statement) and your I.D. Hi Braeby,Who on earth are the people telling you that assets are in or out of the estate? I went into the bank again and asked to see her but she was in a meeting so another representative took my name and number. My father was a street person, so they helped to budget his money. By this I mean a proper account set up, funds properly deposited, interest properly paid to the account, nobody else with access to it, and a full, accurate accounting of every penny. There are two other executors and decisions are to be made unanimously. Two witnesses, however, signed the will as witnesses and swear that the maker of the will (now deceased) made the will, and somehow no one noticed that the maker did not sign it. My brother lives two provinces away. You can't just add your name to an existing account, as that would suggest that your sister is alive and you two are joint owners, which obviously cannot be the case.This is the only thing that makes sense to me in the context of your question. (I was not asking any info on the account only about their requirements for an Estate Account) but she jumped on him immediately and would not listen. Without more facts, I don't know for sure that this is what they are getting at, but there should be no bank policy to say an executor must wait 6 months. Should we be concerned? Hi lynne,My mother passed away in late October. My husband recently died before he could receive (as sole beneficiary) money from his mother's estate who had predeceased him by 2 years. I just received an insurance cheque made out to " The Estate of ". He has suffered a stroke and is slowly recovering but very difficult to communicate with him. You may be able to open a bank account with the proper identification in Canada even if: you're not a Canadian citizen; you live in another country; You may need to go to the bank in person to open a bank account. Lynne. Now the bank is on the hook for the full funds because they released the funds to the wrong person. Getting a Taxpayer ID Number From the IRS. Lynne. I don't need the money but want this to be resolved. slips. HI Lynn, My case is very complicated,it started with the land my mum bought 5 acres of land in Fiji and she got her first cousin Vana to handle things to sell the land which mum got many offers even for $450,000.00 but mum trusted her daughter-in-laws family the lawyer she hired and her cousin in Fiji.when our beloved mother passed away notary Sublock Sublock never even got mum to sigh her Will even though we paid $170 fee for that one home visit Mr.Sublock refused to help us and we sent mum's old Will which was Notarized and the Fiji Courts refused to accept it and my dad was next of kin now they said Vana and fiji lawyer Ulamila Tuipuku said that my dad needs to do a Probate and I sent $3,500 for court/lawyer/probate and months down the road Vana and Ulamila said that the court won't accept the Probate that they wanted her in my Dad's WIll which he "WE HAD A DEAD LINE OR LOSE THE LAND " we said that was crazy and we went through with that and so so and we went through Mr. Sablock again because he had the history regarding the land and my mum's information etc.My dad wanted to sell the land because there was squatters on the land and two churches was already built on land without permission and you wonder who was minding the place.When I made an offer to a performance on the land Vana was so upset she was yelling and I said okay you have 6 weeks and she said she already had the money and we'll we waited and waited for the paper work.When I tried from May 2012 til Feb 2013 to get the lawyer to send papers yo sell the land she was making all kinds of excuses and we sent thousands of dollars for court cases and the land .The thing is after my dad passed away the first thing Vana said is remember that I'm the excutor on the Will and no one can go above me and I was do she said none of your kids can go above my head and this just to show she knew what she was doing .We'll after all that she said that the land is in her name and the lawyer who was supposed to be working for my dad was working for her and went against both my parents. If so, it will pose quite a hardship on her as a student. Unfortunately, often the only feasible solution is for the accountant to prepare worksheets, pieced together from whatever data can be determined, allocating assets and incomes into pre- and post-death portions, for reasonable, if not precise, tax reporting.
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