Does a Will or Codicil Need to Be Notarized in Ontario?

Last updated: October 20, 2026

Does a Will or Codicil Need to Be Notarized in Ontario?

Quick answer: Not for use in Ontario. A will is valid when you sign it at its end in front of two witnesses who are there at the same time, and both of them then sign it in your presence (Succession Law Reform Act, s. 4(2)). A codicil counts as a will under the same Act (s. 1(1)), so the same rule applies. A notary's seal adds nothing to validity, and it cannot stand in for a missing witness. A notary matters in three other places: the affidavit of execution (Form 74D) a witness swears for probate, notarized copies a bank may ask for, and a will that has to be used in another country, where the apostille needs a notary's signature and seal, or a recent Ontario court record, to rest on. Minute Notary witnesses wills and codicils on a mobile visit anywhere in Ontario and can file the apostille for you.

Search this question and much of what comes back is American, where many states attach a notarized "self-proving affidavit" to a will, or from Quebec, where a will made before a Quebec notary skips probate. Neither applies in Ontario. Here the answer is no, for a will and for a codicil. It stops being a plain no when the will has to work somewhere else: for a condo in Manila, farmland in Gujarat or a house in Đà Nẵng, the foreign office will usually want an apostille, which two private signatures cannot carry. If you have a question about your own document, contact us or call (613) 434-5555.

Property or family in another country? Sign your will with a notary as one of your witnesses on a mobile visit now. When the will has to be used abroad, we make the notarized copy from the original and take it to Ontario's Official Documents Services with our apostille service, filed for you.

Key Takeaways

The Ontario Answer: Two Witnesses, No Seal

The rules for a typed or printed will are in section 4(2) of the Succession Law Reform Act (SLRA):

• You sign at the end of the will, or someone signs for you in your presence and at your direction. A signature just below or beside the end also works, as long as it is clear you meant it to finish the will (s. 7).
• You sign, or acknowledge your signature, in front of two or more witnesses who are present at the same time.
• At least two of those witnesses sign the will in your presence.

No special wording is needed for the witnesses' part (s. 4(6)). The Act says nothing about a notary, a seal, registration or filing. A will that meets section 4(2) needs nothing more to be properly signed.

Who should witness. The Act has no list of people who may not witness a will, as the power of attorney rules do, but section 12 makes one choice expensive: a gift in the will to a witness, or to a witness's spouse, is void, although the rest of the will stands. The gift survives only if two other witnesses who inherit nothing also signed (s. 12(4)), or if a court later finds there was no undue influence (s. 12(3)). Choose two adults who inherit nothing and who can still be found in twenty years. A notary can be one of them. See who can witness a signature in Ontario for the wider rules.

Witnessing over video. The witnesses may be present by live video if at least one of them is a lawyer or paralegal licensed by the Law Society of Ontario and everyone signs at the same time (s. 4(3)), and each person may sign an identical copy (s. 4(4)). Minute Notary's practice is to witness wills in person.

Handwritten wills. A will written wholly in your own handwriting and signed by you needs no witnesses at all (s. 6). It is valid, but harder to prove at probate; our guide to the holograph will in Ontario explains the handwriting affidavit the court asks for instead.

Can a notary's seal replace the witnesses?

No, and this is the version of the question people actually type: "can a will be notarized instead of witnessed?" A seal looks more official than two signatures, but the Act counts witnesses, not seals. A will signed in front of a notary and nobody else has, at most, one witness, and section 4(2) asks for two. The notary can be one of them; the second has to be another adult who is there at the same time.

If a will turns up after a death with a witness missing, the remaining fix is an application to the Superior Court of Justice under section 21.1, which, for deaths on or after January 1, 2022, can declare a document valid even though it was not properly signed. That takes a lawyer, time and evidence of what the person intended, so treat it as a rescue, never as a plan.

Why so many pages say a will must be notarized

• American results. Many US states let you attach a "self-proving affidavit", sworn before a notary, so the court can accept the will without calling the witnesses. Ontario's counterpart is the affidavit of execution, sworn by one witness. It is a probate document, not a condition of the will being valid.
• Quebec. The Civil Code of Québec has a notarial will, made before a Quebec notary and a witness, which does not have to be probated (arts. 712, 716 and 772). Ontario has no notarial will. A seal from an Ontario notary public does not turn an Ontario will into one, and it does not let the estate skip probate.

A Codicil Follows the Same Rules

A codicil adds to, changes or revokes part of a will without rewriting it, and the SLRA includes it in the definition of a will (s. 1(1)). So everything above applies:

• It is signed at its end, before two witnesses present together, who then sign. It does not need a notary.
• Its witnesses can be different people from the will's, and the same gift rule applies: a gift to a witness or a witness's spouse is void unless two other independent witnesses also signed or a court finds no undue influence (s. 12).
• A codicil wholly in your own handwriting and signed by you needs no witnesses (s. 6).
• At probate, each codicil needs its own affidavit of execution (Form 74D), separate from the will's (r. 74.04(1)(d)).

Writing on the signed will is not a codicil. A change made on a will after it has been signed has no effect unless you and the witnesses sign it in the margin or near the change (s. 18); on a handwritten will, your own signature is enough. A crossed-out name or an added line in pen, unsigned, has no effect, except that words it makes unreadable lose their effect (s. 18(1)), which can remove a gift without replacing it. For anything more than a small, signed correction, sign a codicil or a new will.

How a codicil is signed, who should witness it and when a new will is the better choice are covered in our guide to the codicil to a will in Ontario.

Where a Notary Does Help in Ontario

The affidavit of execution, for probate

When the estate applies for a certificate of appointment of estate trustee, the process most people call probate, the original will and each codicil are filed as exhibits to an affidavit of execution (Form 74D): one of the witnesses swears that they watched you sign (Rules of Civil Procedure, r. 74.04(1)(d)). A commissioner for taking affidavits or a notary can take that oath. The will was valid without it; the court simply wants the proof.

The easy moment to do it is the signing, while the witness is in the room. Years later the witness may have moved, lost touch or died, and if every witness has died or cannot be found the court asks for other evidence of how the will was signed (r. 74.04(1)(d)(i)(C)). Our affidavit of execution guide walks through the form, and the free affidavit of execution of will or codicil template shows what it says. The probate application itself is explained in our guide to the certificate of appointment of estate trustee.

Notarized copies for banks and the estate file

At probate the original will goes to the court with the application. Before that, and for anyone who will not see the original, a bank, insurer or pension plan may ask for a notarized copy: the notary compares the photocopy with the signed original and certifies it, under seal, as a true copy. It is the institution's requirement, not the Act's. Ask each one what it accepts, because some want their own form or the original.

The difference between a notarized copy, a certified copy and a witnessed copy is explained in notarial copy vs certified copy vs witnessed copy. We make certified true copies from the signed original.

A neutral witness who checks ID

A notary as one of your two witnesses brings two things a relative cannot: a check of your government photo ID, and a witness with no stake in the will. The notary also sees that you understand what you are signing and are signing freely. That is an observation, not a medical assessment of capacity. You can bring your own second witness or ask us to provide one (an additional charge applies). For a signing at home, in hospital or in a care residence, see our mobile notary for wills and powers of attorney guide.

Using a Will or Codicil in Another Country

Why the apostille needs a notary or a court record

Canada joined the Hague Apostille Convention, in force for Canada since January 11, 2024. Between member countries, a public document from one is accepted in the other with a single certificate, the apostille, which confirms the signature and seal on the document but not what the document says.

Ontario's apostilles come from Official Documents Services (ODS), which works by comparing the signature and seal on a document with the ones in its records. The signatures on your will are yours and your witnesses', and ODS has none of them on file. For a will, ODS can work with two kinds of document:

• A document signed and sealed by an Ontario notary public. For an Ontario will, that is normally a notarized copy of the original. Fee: $16 per notarized document.
• A record issued by the Superior Court of Justice on or after July 10, 2023, such as a certificate of appointment of estate trustee. ODS authenticates these directly, without a notary. Fee: $32 per court-issued document. ODS notes that court-issued documents can take up to 10 business days to process in person, and suggests notarizing first if the request is urgent.

ODS also sets conditions of its own:

• Not a commissioner. Documents commissioned by a commissioner for taking affidavits cannot be authenticated.
• Signature and seal on one page, matching what ODS has on file. If not, the document has to be notarized again.
• A paper original. Electronic copies are not authenticated.
• A translation if needed. A document in a language other than English or French must be notarized by an Ontario notary public and come with a certified translation, or a translation attested by a notary who speaks both languages.

A country outside the Convention gets a certificate of authentication from ODS instead, then legalization at its embassy or consulate. The current list of members is the HCCH status table linked in Sources, and our apostille guide for Ontario explains both routes.

Keep the original in Ontario

If the estate is probated in Ontario, the original will and every codicil are filed with the court (r. 74.04(1)(d)). That is one reason not to send the original abroad, and not to have anything attached to it. For an Ontario will, the document that travels is normally a notarized copy or the court's certificate. If a foreign court asks for the original, speak to an Ontario estates lawyer before it leaves Canada.

Caption: The notary checks the copy against the signed original before sealing it. The copy can travel; the original stays in Ontario.

This is also why there is little point in notarizing an Ontario will on the day you sign it "in case". It changes nothing in Ontario, and the copy that goes abroad later can be notarized at that time, from the original.

The route after a death

1. Ask the receiver what it wants. A foreign court, land office or bank decides which documents it takes: the certificate of appointment, a copy of the will and codicils, the death certificate, a translation.
2. Ontario court certificate issued on or after July 10, 2023: a certificate of appointment of estate trustee, or a small estate certificate, can go to ODS as it is. A certificate of appointment is issued with a copy of the will and any codicils attached (Form 74C), so the will travels with it. ODS authenticates paper only, so if the court sent the certificate by email, ask the court or ODS how to get a version ODS will accept.
3. Older certificate: a notary makes a notarized copy of it, and ODS apostilles that copy.
4. No Ontario probate: a notarized copy of the original will and codicils can be apostilled, but a foreign court asked to prove the will may want the original, or an Ontario grant first (India and the Philippines both have a route for a will already proved in Ontario; see below). Ask a lawyer there before anything is sent.
5. Death certificate: one issued by ServiceOntario is a vital statistics document, which ODS can authenticate without a notary; the funeral home's proof-of-death certificate is not.
6. Translation into the receiver's language, where it asks for one.
7. The other country's own step: a court in India or the Philippines, a notary office in Viet Nam (see the three countries below).

Caption: For an estate probated in Ontario, the court's certificate, with the will attached, usually travels together with the death certificate.

Planning ahead while you are alive

If you own property abroad, a lawyer in Ontario and one in the other country can tell you whether your Ontario will is enough or whether you need a second will written for that country's law. If you do sign two wills, make sure each names the property it covers and that neither revokes the other: a later will can revoke an earlier one (SLRA s. 15). The notary does not make that call, and does not draft either will.

• A will written for another country's law. If a lawyer there drafts a will in that country's form and it calls for a notary, you sign before an Ontario notary with the witnesses that lawyer specifies, the notary notarizes it, and ODS can apostille it. That lawyer has to confirm the witnesses qualify: the Philippine Civil Code, for one, disqualifies witnesses who are not domiciled in the Philippines (art. 821).
• An international will. Ontario has adopted the convention on the form of an international will, a single form meant to be accepted in every country that has adopted it. Only Ontario lawyers (barristers and solicitors) can act as the "authorized person" for one (SLRA s. 42(3)). A notary who is not a lawyer cannot, and Minute Notary does not offer it.

Three Countries People Ask About Most

India

India has been a member of the Apostille Convention since 2005, so documents apostilled in Ontario need no attestation by the Indian consulate on top. A will already proved in Ontario can be taken to an Indian court for letters of administration with a copy of the will annexed under section 228 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925, which asks for a "properly authenticated" copy of a will proved abroad: the apostilled Ontario certificate with the will attached or, for a certificate issued before July 10, 2023, an apostilled notarized copy of it. Which court, and whether a fresh grant in India would be simpler, is a question for an Indian lawyer.

The Philippines

The Philippines has been a member since May 14, 2019. Under its Civil Code, a Filipino abroad may make a will in the form used where they are, and that will may be probated in the Philippines (art. 815); a non-Filipino's will made abroad is also given effect if it follows the law of the place where they live (art. 816). A will proved in Ontario then goes through reprobate in a Philippine court under Rule 77 of the Rules of Court, on authenticated copies of the will and of the Ontario grant.

Two Philippine rules catch Ontario families:

• The Philippine notarial will is stricter, and hard to sign in Ontario. It needs three witnesses who, with you, sign every page except the last on the left margin, numbered pages and an attestation clause (art. 805), plus an acknowledgment before a notary public by you and the witnesses (art. 806); the notary cannot be one of the three (Cruz v. Villasor, 1973). The Code also disqualifies any witness who is not domiciled in the Philippines (art. 821). For most people in Ontario, an Ontario will, which arts. 815 and 816 accept, is the simpler route; ask a Philippine lawyer before signing in the Philippine form.
• No joint wills. A joint will made by Filipinos abroad is not valid in the Philippines, even where the country allows it (arts. 818 and 819). Couples sign two separate wills.

Viet Nam

The Apostille Convention came into force for Viet Nam on September 11, 2026, and Canada did not object, so an apostille from ODS now replaces legalization at the Vietnamese embassy. Viet Nam's Civil Code accepts a will made in the form required where it was signed, or in the form of the country where the testator lived or was a citizen, or where the land is (Bộ luật Dân sự 2015, art. 681). Inheritance rights over land and houses in Viet Nam are exercised under Vietnamese law (art. 680). The notary office there that handles the inheritance works in Vietnamese and wants a Vietnamese translation certified under Vietnamese law, so ask it how it wants that done. Whether an heir living abroad can register the property in their own name is a separate question of Vietnamese land and housing law, for a lawyer there.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Signing in front of a notary alone. The seal does not replace the second witness. The will needs two.
• A beneficiary, or a beneficiary's spouse, as a witness. The will stands, but the beneficiary's gift is void unless two other independent witnesses also signed or a court finds no undue influence (s. 12).
• Sending the original abroad. Keep it in Ontario for probate. A notarized copy or the court's certificate travels instead.
• Using a commissioner for a document going abroad. ODS refuses documents commissioned by a commissioner for taking affidavits.
• A joint will for a Filipino couple. It is not valid in the Philippines. Sign two wills.
• Leaving the affidavit of execution for later. It takes minutes at the signing and can take months to replace once a witness is gone.

What a notary can and cannot do: A notary public checks your government photo ID, watches you sign, acts as one of your two witnesses, takes the other witness's affidavit of execution, makes notarized copies of the signed will, and notarizes a will written for another country. A notary does not draft your will or codicil, advise what it should say or whether another country will accept it, assess capacity as a medical question, store the original, act as the authorized person for an international will, or issue the apostille itself, which only Official Documents Services can do. For those, you need a lawyer.

How It Works with Minute Notary

Wills and codicils are signed in person, on a mobile visit to your home, a hospital or a care residence anywhere in Ontario.

1. Tell us what you are signing. Contact us or call (613) 434-5555: a will, a codicil, a will written for another country, or copies for an estate, and where anything will be used.
2. Have the document ready, printed and unsigned. We can bring printing at $0.40 per page (black and white).
3. On the visit: you show valid government photo ID, the notary checks that you understand the document and are signing freely, and you sign in front of both witnesses. The notary is one; the second is yours, or ours on request (an additional charge applies).
4. The affidavit: the second witness swears the affidavit of execution before the notary, who completes and seals it.
5. For use abroad: a will written for another country's law is notarized at the signing; for an estate, we make notarized copies from the original. If you wish, we take them to Official Documents Services and return them to you. Ontario's office sets its own processing time.

A signing at the bedside is covered in our guide to a bedside notary in hospital or long-term care.

Pricing

Note: prices are before HST, and card processing is extra. The $60 travel fee is charged once per trip, not once per document, and covers up to 30 km from our nearest office in Ottawa or Toronto; beyond that, an additional travel fee applies. For a couple signing wills and powers of attorney together, there is a couple signing discount; please email us for a rate. Apostille pickup outside Ottawa is quoted. Embassy legalization fees, for a country outside the Convention, are set by the embassy.

All fees are shown in full before you pay. See every posted rate on our pricing page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a will need to be notarized in Ontario?

An Ontario will does not need to be notarized to be valid: under section 4 of the Succession Law Reform Act it is signed at its end in front of two witnesses who are present at the same time, and both of them then sign in your presence. A notary can be one of those witnesses. A notary matters later, for the probate affidavit, notarized copies and use abroad.

Can a will be notarized instead of witnessed in Ontario?

A notary's seal cannot replace the two witnesses an Ontario will needs: the Succession Law Reform Act counts witnesses, not seals, so a will signed in front of a notary and nobody else has at most one witness and fails the section 4 test. The notary can be one witness; the second must be another adult who is there at the same time.

Does a codicil have to be notarized in Ontario?

A codicil does not have to be notarized in Ontario, because the Succession Law Reform Act treats it as a will (s. 1(1)) and it is signed the same way: at its end, in front of two witnesses who are present together and who then sign. At probate it needs its own affidavit of execution (Form 74D), separate from the will's.

Does a will need to be notarized for use in another country?

An Ontario will used in another country is usually not notarized itself: a notarized copy of it, or an Ontario court certificate issued on or after July 10, 2023, carries the apostille most foreign offices want, because Official Documents Services cannot verify private witnesses' signatures. The original stays in Ontario for probate.

Who can notarize a will in Ontario?

An Ontario notary public, including a lawyer who is also a notary, can make a notarized copy of a will or notarize a will written for another country; a commissioner for taking affidavits cannot, and Official Documents Services refuses documents a commissioner has commissioned. A commissioner can still take the affidavit of execution for probate. Only an Ontario lawyer can act for an international will.

When do you need a notarized copy of a will?

You need a notarized copy of a will when a bank, insurer or foreign office wants proof of the will but should not keep the original: an Ontario notary public compares the photocopy with the signed original and certifies it, under seal, as a true copy. It is also how a will goes abroad for an apostille while the original stays in Ontario. It is $24.95 per seal with us.

Can a will be witnessed or notarized online in Ontario?

An Ontario will can be witnessed over live video only if at least one witness is a licensee of the Law Society of Ontario and the signing and witnessing happen at the same time (Succession Law Reform Act s. 4(3)). Minute Notary witnesses and notarizes wills in person, on a mobile visit, and an apostille needs a paper original with a wet-ink seal.

How much does it cost to have a will notarized?

A will or codicil signing with us, witnessing and affidavit of execution included, is $115 plus HST for one document, $200 for any two, $240 for a will and both powers of attorney. A mobile visit adds a $60 travel fee once per trip, up to 30 km from our nearest office in Ottawa or Toronto; beyond that, an additional travel fee applies. A notarized copy is $24.95 per seal.

Final Recommendation

If the will stays in Ontario, do not pay for a notarization it does not need: sign it in front of two witnesses who inherit nothing, have one of them swear the affidavit of execution at the same visit, and keep the original safe. Treat a codicil exactly the same way. If the will may one day be used in another country, keep the original in Ontario and plan for a notarized copy, or the court's certificate after probate, to carry the apostille. If you own property abroad, ask a lawyer there before you sign whether a second will is needed, and make sure neither will revokes the other.

Book Your Appointment

Signing a will or codicil, or need notarized copies for an estate abroad? Minute Notary witnesses the signing in person, on a mobile visit, takes the affidavit of execution at the same visit, and can file the apostille for you.

• Contact us: Ask a question or request a visit
• Call: (613) 434-5555
• Will signing: Witnessed on a mobile visit, affidavit of execution included
• Apostille: Filed with Official Documents Services for you
• Related guide: Does a power of attorney need to be notarized in Ontario?
• All estate documents: Wills and estate documents in Ontario: what a notary does
• Hours: Every day, Saturday and Sunday included, 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM (Ottawa time)

Sources

• Succession Law Reform Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. S.26, ss. 1(1), 4, 6, 7, 12, 18, 21.1 and 42
• Rules of Civil Procedure, R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 74.04
• Ontario Court Forms: estates forms, including Forms 74C and 74D
• Government of Ontario: Apply for probate of an estate
• Government of Ontario: Authenticate a document for use outside Canada (Official Documents Services)
• HCCH: Apostille Convention status table
• Civil Code of the Philippines (Republic Act No. 386), arts. 805, 806, 815, 816, 818, 819 and 821
• Civil Code of Québec, arts. 712, 716 and 772