4. Learn what happens if you do not have children 

If you're not legally married, do not have children, and you die without a will, your closest living relatives get your estate. They get it based on a certain order.

If you do not have grandchildren or great-grandchildren, your estate goes to your parents.

If your parents died before you, your estate is divided equally among your siblings. If any sibling died before you, the share that would have gone to that sibling is divided equally among their children.

If you have no living siblings when you die, your estate is divided among your nieces and nephews.

If none of these family members are alive when you die, your estate goes to your closest living relative. The law calls this person your “next of kin”. This could be, for example, an aunt, uncle, or cousin.

If there are no living relatives, including very distant relatives, all of your estate goes to the Government of Ontario.

Designated beneficiaries

The rules explained in Step 1 about designated beneficiaries still apply.