Estate accounting template for Canada
A free Excel template for Canadian executors and estate trustees, structured to the format Ontario courts prescribe for estate accounts under Rule 74.17 of the Rules of Civil Procedure. Keep the estate's books in this shape from day one and an accounting — informal or court-reviewed — is an assembly job instead of a reconstruction.
The tabs match the court's categories
- 1 Original Assets — everything owned at the date of death, valued at death, cross-referenced to what became of it
- 2 Money Received — all money in during the administration
- 3 Money Disbursed — all money out, including compensation taken
- 4 Investments — investments bought and sold
- 5 Unrealized Original Assets — original assets still on hand
- 6 On Hand — money and investments held at period end
- 7 Liabilities — debts and claims, paid and outstanding
- 8 Compensation — what the trustee claims, and what was pre-taken
Why keep records in the court format if you may never go to court
Most Canadian estates settle informally: the trustee shares accounts, beneficiaries approve them and sign releases. But the informal path depends on beneficiaries trusting what they see — and the court format is, in effect, the checklist of what a skeptical reader is entitled to ask for. Records kept in these categories answer the questions before they are asked. If the estate ever does head to a formal passing of accounts, the ledger converts to filing form instead of being rebuilt from bank statements.
The limits, stated plainly
- Where the will separates capital and income, Ontario requires separate capital and revenue accounts — this template shows a combined view, and an estates lawyer should structure the final filing version.
- Other provinces have their own filing formats and terminology; the template is a working ledger, not a court form.
- The template records; it does not advise. Contested estates, minor beneficiaries, and compensation disputes are lawyer territory.
Common questions
- Is there a standard estate accounting format in Canada?
- No single national format — probate and estate accounting are provincial. Ontario has the most prescriptive format, set out in Rule 74.17 of its Rules of Civil Procedure, and it is a sound structure for estate records anywhere in Canada: original assets, money received, money disbursed, investments, assets still held, liabilities, and compensation. Executors in other provinces should confirm their province's requirements before filing anything with a court.
- What does Ontario's Rule 74.17 require estate accounts to show?
- Rule 74.17 requires: a statement of the original assets at the date of death cross-referenced to what became of each; an account of all money received; an account of all money disbursed including compensation; investments bought and sold; original assets still unrealized; money and investments on hand at period end; liabilities; and the compensation claimed. Where the will separates capital and income, they must be shown separately.
- Can I keep estate accounts in Excel or Google Sheets in Canada?
- Yes, for running the estate and for informal accountings to beneficiaries a spreadsheet is standard practice. If accounts must actually be filed with a court — for example in an Ontario passing of accounts — they are put into formal filing form, usually by an estates lawyer. Keeping the ledger in the court's categories from day one is what makes that conversion straightforward.
- Does this template work for an executor outside Ontario?
- Yes, as a working ledger. The categories — assets at death, money in, money out, investments, distributions, liabilities, compensation — are the substance of estate accounting across Canadian provinces. What varies is the formal filing format and terminology, so check your province's probate rules, or use the general five-tab version of the template if you prefer a simpler structure.
- Do the same records apply to a power of attorney in Ontario?
- Substantially, yes. Ontario Regulation 100/96 under the Substitute Decisions Act requires an attorney for property to keep ongoing accounts of the assets, receipts, and disbursements they manage, and Rule 74.16 applies the court's passing-of-accounts framework to attorneys as well as executors. Records kept in this template's structure cover both roles.
Related reading
- Passing of accounts in Ontario — when the formal process happens and what it reviews.
- How to keep records as an executor — the habits that keep estates on the informal path.
- General executor accounting template — the simpler five-tab version with automatic reconciliation.
This article and template are general information, not legal advice. Rule references are to Ontario's Rules of Civil Procedure (R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194) as published at ontario.ca — consult an estates lawyer before filing accounts with a court.