More Canadians are choosing to live together without getting legally married than at any point in the country's history. Statistics Canada estimates that nearly one in five couples in Canada are in common-law relationships — and a large majority of them have no idea how little legal protection their partner actually has if something happens to them.

The short version: in most Canadian provinces, a common-law partner inherits nothing without a will — regardless of how long you've been together, whether you own a home together, or whether you have children together. The law does not treat your partner the same as a legal spouse unless you've made specific documents that say otherwise.

What "Common-Law" Actually Means Legally

The term "common-law partner" is used loosely in everyday conversation, but the legal definition varies by province and by which law you're talking about. For tax purposes, CRA recognizes a common-law partner after 12 months of cohabitation. For intestacy (dying without a will), the rules are completely different — and much stricter in most provinces.

There is no single national standard. Each province has its own rules about whether common-law partners have inheritance rights, what the threshold is, and how those rights compare to a legally married spouse.

Province-by-Province: What Your Partner Actually Inherits Without a Will

Ontario

Zero. Ontario's Succession Law Reform Act gives common-law partners no automatic intestacy rights — none — regardless of the length of the relationship. A partner of 30 years who is not legally married inherits nothing under Ontario law. The estate passes to blood relatives instead. This is one of the most unprotected positions for common-law couples anywhere in Canada.

British Columbia

BC is the most protective province for common-law partners. Under the Wills, Estates and Succession Act, a person you've lived with in a marriage-like relationship for at least two years is treated as a spouse for intestacy purposes — with the same inheritance rights as a legally married partner. If you've been together fewer than two years, however, your partner receives nothing.

Alberta

Alberta recognizes "Adult Interdependent Partners" under the Adult Interdependent Relationships Act. You qualify if you've lived together for at least three years, or if you have a child together and have lived together in an interdependent relationship of some permanence, or if you've signed an Adult Interdependent Partner Agreement. If you qualify, you have intestacy rights similar to a spouse. If you don't meet the threshold — or haven't been together long enough — your partner receives nothing.

Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick

These provinces provide some intestacy rights for common-law partners who meet minimum cohabitation periods (typically two to three years, sometimes less if children are involved) — but the rules differ by province and the amounts are often less than what a legal spouse would receive. In some cases the common-law partner must make an active claim against the estate rather than receiving an automatic share.

Quebec

Quebec has historically been the strictest province of all. Common-law partners ("conjoints de fait") traditionally had zero intestacy rights in Quebec — the province had no recognition of common-law status for inheritance purposes whatsoever. However, as of June 30, 2025, Quebec introduced "parental union" status under family law reforms. A common-law partner who was in a parental union with the deceased (meaning they lived together as a couple, presented themselves publicly as such, and became parents of the same child) may now inherit under intestacy. Common-law partners who do not meet the parental union criteria still have no intestacy rights. Without a will, most Quebec common-law partners still inherit nothing — and Quebec's civil law system provides fewer default protections than other provinces.

Why "We Own Everything Together" Isn't Enough

Many common-law couples assume that joint ownership of a home protects them. It partially does — but only for assets held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship. The family home may transfer automatically to the surviving partner. But everything else — savings accounts, investments, RRSPs, vehicles, personal property, business interests — passes according to your will or, without a will, according to intestacy law.

If your RRSP doesn't have a beneficiary designation pointing to your partner, it goes through your estate. In Ontario, that means it goes to your blood relatives. In any province, if your estate goes through intestacy, your common-law partner is fighting for scraps — or nothing at all.

The Other Risk: Your Partner Has No Decision-Making Authority Either

The inheritance problem is serious. But there's a second issue that's equally important and less often discussed: if you become incapacitated without a power of attorney, your common-law partner has no automatic legal authority to manage your finances or make healthcare decisions on your behalf.

In Ontario, healthcare providers follow a substitute decision-maker hierarchy that puts your spouse first — but "spouse" for these purposes requires legal marriage. Your common-law partner may be bypassed entirely in favour of a parent, sibling, or adult child you're estranged from. They could be standing in a hospital waiting room with no right to be informed of your condition.

A Power of Attorney for Property, Power of Attorney for Personal Care (Ontario), or Representation Agreement (BC) names your partner explicitly and gives them legal authority that the default hierarchy doesn't.

What a Will Actually Does for a Common-Law Couple

A will doesn't just solve the inheritance problem — it closes every gap the law leaves open:

  • Names your partner as beneficiary for your estate, regardless of what intestacy rules say
  • Names your partner as executor, giving them the legal authority to administer your estate
  • Appoints a guardian for any children, and names your partner if that's your intention
  • Overrides intestacy formulas entirely — your assets go exactly where you direct them

Combined with beneficiary designations on RRSPs, TFSAs, and life insurance, and the right powers of attorney, a complete estate plan turns a legally vulnerable relationship into a protected one.

How Long Does It Actually Take?

This is the question that matters. Most couples in a common-law relationship have been meaning to do this for years. The actual barrier isn't complexity — a straightforward will for a couple without unusual assets takes one hour. The questionnaire takes 10–15 minutes beforehand. You leave with everything signed, witnessed, and complete.

The cost of waiting is real and potentially enormous. The cost of acting is a flat-rate appointment.

Getting It Done

Wills Made Easy is expanding across Canada. When available in your city, a licensed legal professional prepares and executes your complete estate plan — will, power of attorney, and healthcare directive — in a single one-hour appointment at a flat rate: $395 for an individual, $495 for a couple. Join the waitlist for your city and we'll notify you when appointments open near you. See our full pricing breakdown and learn what happens if you die without a will as a common-law partner.