Your digital life has real value — and real complexity. Here's how to include digital assets in your Canadian estate plan.
Canadians increasingly hold significant value in digital form: cryptocurrency, online investment accounts, digital businesses, domain names, and subscription services. Beyond financial value, digital accounts contain irreplaceable personal content — emails, photos, social media histories. Without a digital estate plan, your executor may be locked out of these accounts — or they may simply disappear.
Digital assets fall into several categories:
Cryptocurrency held in self-custody wallets (not on an exchange) is particularly challenging for estate planning. Unlike a bank account, there is no institution to contact — the only way to access the funds is with the private key or seed phrase. If your executor cannot find the key, the crypto is lost forever.
Cryptocurrency and other digital assets are capital property under Canadian tax law. At death, deemed disposition rules apply — the FMV at death triggers capital gains on the terminal return. The executor needs to know:
Major platforms have different policies for deceased users' accounts:
| Platform | Policy |
|---|---|
| Facebook/Meta | Memorialization or removal; legacy contact can manage memorialized profile |
| Google (Gmail, Photos) | Inactive Account Manager allows pre-designation of what happens to your account |
| Apple (iCloud) | Digital Legacy feature allows designation of legacy contacts |
| Memorialization available; removal possible with proof of death | |
| Removal by request; no memorialization option | |
| X (Twitter) | Account deactivation available to verified family members |
Set up legacy contacts and inactive account managers now — don't leave this to your executor to figure out.
Document all digital accounts in a secure document (not in your will). Include:
A password manager (1Password, Bitwarden, LastPass) stores all your credentials securely. Leave your master password and recovery instructions with your executor — or use the emergency access feature many managers now offer.
Include explicit language in your will authorizing your executor to access, manage, and close digital accounts. Some platforms require explicit authorization; a will provision helps establish this.
For valuable digital assets (crypto, domain names, digital businesses), include specific bequests in your will or a separate letter of wishes. Specify who inherits each asset and provide the information needed to access it.
Use Google's Inactive Account Manager, Apple's Digital Legacy, and Facebook's Legacy Contact features now, while you're able to configure them.
Simple no-fee accounts like KOHO are easy to include in a digital estate plan. They're straightforward to document, close, or transfer. Including the account details in your digital asset inventory and authorizing your executor to access it makes estate administration much smoother.
Part of good estate planning is keeping your financial accounts simple. KOHO's no-fee account is easy to manage and easy to include in your estate plan. Use code 45ET55JSYA for a bonus.
Get KOHO Free — Use Code 45ET55JSYALegally, in Canada, your executor has the authority to administer your estate — including digital assets. Practically, accessing accounts requires credentials. Include explicit authorization in your will and provide a secure way for your executor to access login information.
It depends on the program. Aeroplan points can be transferred to a surviving spouse or estate (subject to terms). Many credit card rewards expire at death. Check each program's terms and address high-value points in your estate plan.
Yes. Cryptocurrency is a capital asset. At death, it is subject to deemed disposition and included in your estate for distribution purposes. Without access credentials, however, it cannot be recovered — making documentation critical.
Related guides: Estate Planning Guide | Estate Planning Checklist | Deemed Disposition | Wills in Canada