How to Apply for Probate in Alberta (Step by Step)
Reviewed by Megan Koper, JD, Lawyer & Principal at WillWise. Last reviewed: July 2026.
You apply for probate in Alberta by gathering the estate's asset and debt information, completing the surrogate Grant Application (GA) forms, and filing your application online through the Surrogate Digital Service (SDS) with the Court of King's Bench. Probate is the court process that confirms a will is valid and confirms the personal representative's authority to act. The GA1 Grant Application is the core form every applicant completes, and it sets out the estate's net value, which the court uses to calculate its fee (from $35 for an estate of $10,000 or less, up to a $525 maximum for an estate over $250,000, under the Surrogate Rules). Once your filing is complete and correct, a grant of probate is typically issued within 1 to 3 weeks. Most of the elapsed time comes before filing, while you gather information. At WillWise, we prepare and file the whole application for you, with no retainer and no upfront fees.
For a plain-language overview of what probate is and when it is required, see our guide to probate and estate administration in Alberta.
What are the steps to apply for probate in Alberta?
There are seven main steps to apply for probate in Alberta. You gather the estate's information, value the estate, complete the surrogate GA forms, serve notice on the beneficiaries and other interested parties, file the application through the Surrogate Digital Service, respond to any questions the court raises, and receive your grant. Here is the full sequence:
Gather the estate information. Collect the original will and any codicils, the death certificate, your own identification as personal representative, the names and addresses of the beneficiaries, and a complete list of the estate's assets and debts.
Value the estate. Record the value of each asset and debt as at the date of death. This net value sets the court fee and goes into the GA1 form.
Complete the surrogate GA forms. Fill out the GA1 Grant Application and the other forms that apply to your estate (see the forms table below).
Serve notice on the beneficiaries and interested parties. Send the GA3 notice, and the GA4 notice to the Public Trustee if a minor or represented adult has an interest, then swear the GA5 affidavit of service to prove you did.
File through the Surrogate Digital Service (SDS). Submit the application to the Court of King's Bench. The court will not issue the grant until your affidavit of service is filed.
Respond to any court requisitions. If a court clerk needs a correction or more information, you answer the requisition before the grant can issue.
Receive the grant and serve the GA7 notice. Once the grant of probate is issued, serve the GA7 notice of grant on the required people within 30 days.
What information do you need to gather first?
Before you complete any form, gather the will, proof of death, and a full picture of what the deceased owned and owed. Probate applications most often stall at this stage rather than at the court, so thorough information-gathering is what keeps the process moving. You will need:
The original will and any codicils (a codicil is a signed amendment to a will).
Proof of death: a death certificate or a funeral director's statement of death.
Your identification as the personal representative (the person the will names to manage the estate, often called the executor).
The full names, addresses, and relationships of every beneficiary and interested party.
A complete inventory of assets, such as bank accounts, investments, real estate, and vehicles, with their date-of-death values.
A list of the estate's debts, such as mortgages, loans, credit cards, and taxes owing.
In our experience, most delays happen before filing, while you wait for banks and other institutions to confirm date-of-death balances. Request those figures early, because they often take the longest to arrive.
What forms do you need to probate a will in Alberta?
To probate a will in Alberta you use the Grant Application (GA) forms, which replaced the older forms for applications filed on or after June 15, 2022. Every application includes the GA1 Grant Application; the other forms you need depend on the estate. The table below lists the forms most applicants use and what each one does.
| Form | What it is and when you use it |
|---|---|
| GA1: Grant Application | The core application, required in every case. Sets out the deceased's details, the estate's net value, your right to apply, the beneficiaries, and the interested parties. |
| GA2: Inventory | A full list of the estate's assets and debts. In most cases it is not filed with the court (only when a bond is required), but it must be completed and served on the residuary beneficiaries. |
| GA3: Notice to Beneficiaries and Other Interested Parties | Tells each beneficiary about their gift and tells interested parties they may have a claim against the estate. |
| GA4: Notice to Public Trustee | Served on the Public Trustee when a minor, a represented adult, or a missing person has an interest in the estate. |
| GA5: Affidavit of Service | Your sworn proof that everyone was served. The court will not issue the grant until this form is filed. |
| GA7: Notice of Grant | Served after the grant is issued, on the people listed in the GA1, within 30 days. |
| GA8: Affidavit of Witness to a Will | Confirms a witnessed will was signed correctly. One of the witnesses swears it. |
| GA9: Affidavit of Handwriting | Used for a handwritten will, or when a witness cannot be found, to confirm the deceased's handwriting. |
Source: Court of King's Bench Surrogate Rules and the Alberta.ca surrogate forms for non-contentious matters.
Your exact set of forms depends on the estate, so treat this as the common core rather than a fixed checklist.
Do you file for probate online in Alberta?
Yes. In most cases you file for probate online through the Surrogate Digital Service (SDS), the Court of King's Bench's digital filing system. To use SDS yourself, you must be an Alberta resident and one of the applicants. Lawyers in Alberta are required to use SDS for any application it can process. A paper application using the same GA forms is still available for the situations SDS cannot handle, and a paper application is filed at the judicial centre closest to where the deceased lived.
How do you file through the Surrogate Digital Service?
You file through the Surrogate Digital Service by creating the application online, entering the estate and applicant details, uploading the will and proof of death, and paying the court fee. The system assembles your GA forms from the information you enter. You then serve the notices on the beneficiaries and interested parties, file your GA5 affidavit of service, and submit the application for a court clerk to review. The court fee is based on the estate's net value, from $35 for an estate of $10,000 or less up to a $525 maximum for an estate over $250,000, under the Surrogate Rules. For the full breakdown of court fees and legal fees, see how much probate costs in Alberta.
What happens after you submit your application?
After you submit your application, a court clerk reviews it. If everything is complete and correct, the grant of probate is typically issued within 1 to 3 weeks. If the clerk finds a gap, they send a requisition, which is a written request to fix or explain something, and the process pauses until you respond. Once the grant is issued, you serve the GA7 notice of grant on the required people within 30 days, and you can then use the grant to collect, manage, and distribute the estate. For a fuller picture of the wait at each stage, see how long probate takes in Alberta.
Where does the probate application commonly go wrong?
The most common problems are missing or inconsistent information, not the court itself. Applications stall when asset values are left blank or wrong, when a required person is not served, when the affidavit of service is filed incorrectly, or when a will needs a witness affidavit that was never obtained. In our experience, careful preparation before filing prevents almost all of these. Where there is no valid will, you do not apply for probate at all; you apply for a grant of administration instead.
At WillWise, we handle the full application for you: gathering the information, preparing and filing the GA forms through SDS, and responding to any requisitions. We work remotely with clients across Alberta, our pricing is published up front, and there is no retainer and no upfront fee. Our legal fees are invoiced once the grant is received.
Related pages
Probate and Estate Administration in Alberta: the province-wide overview of what probate is and when it is required.
How Long Does Probate Take in Alberta?: the timeline at each stage, from information-gathering to grant.
Grant of Administration in Alberta: what to do when there is no valid will and you need a grant of administration.
How Much Does Probate Cost in Alberta?: the full breakdown of court fees and legal fees
This page is general information about probate in Alberta. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create a lawyer-client relationship with WillWise. Every estate is different, and the law can change. Deadlines are strict and can turn on the specific facts of your situation, so you should not rely on this page in place of advice about your own circumstances. Before you act, or decide not to act, speak with a lawyer who can review the details and advise you directly.
