Frequently Asked Questions
- Willifi is a web app that allows registered users to create a Will and Powers of Attorney that are personalized with the user's own details and information. The app guides users through the process flow in just a few minutes, providing adults living in Ontario, Canada with a straightforward and affordable solution for making an estate plan.
- Willifi makes it simple and stress-free to create your own personalized will. Answer the questions in our guided step-by-step flow, review your responses, and then generate your personalized Will and Powers of Attorney documents in minutes.
- Creating a Will and Powers of Attorney with Willifi takes just a few minutes. For most people, it takes around 20 minutes. Once you are logged in, Willifi guides you through the flow so that it is quick and easy for you to finish up.
- Your account gives you continuous access to the platform for a whole year, and allows you to save your changes no matter what stage in the Willifi flow you are in. Some people like to get things done quickly, other people like to change their mind, and others get interrupted mid-way! The process is always stress-free with no pressure to do any of it at anyone's pace but your own.
- Yes, included with your Willifi account is access to the platform for a whole year, allowing you to update and download your documents anytime you like!
- Willifi is made for most adults living in Ontario, Canada. This is especially true for people who rent or own the home where you live and own no other real estate, your family dynamics are stable and straightforward, and your investments do not include shareholder or partnership agreements. In these cases, you can use Willifi with confidence that your needs will be addressed and covered by our service. It is always a good idea to seek the advice of an experienced Estate Planning Lawyer, especially if your estate planning wishes fall outside the regular services we provide.
- Willifi is not for people with complex or contentious estate needs, but it is for most other adults living in Ontario. You should not use our service if you own more real estate property than the home where you live, have strained or estranged family relationships, are required to pay child or spousal support, have ownership in one or more major business, have one or more signed shareholder or partnership agreements, or have any other estate planning needs that are better handled by the careful attention and advice of an experienced Estate Planning Lawyer.
- We allow accounts to be cancelled with a refund up to just before your documents have been produced or downloaded. We want you to be confident in our service and recognize the importance of your satisfaction with our service. However, once your documents have been generated and are available for download, the service is considered rendered and no refunds will be issued beyond this point. Please contact our team if you require assistance with your account for any reason.
- Yes, all data shared with Willifi will remain secure and private. The data we collect is used solely for the purposes of creating your personalized documents and this data will never be sold or provided to any unauthorized parties. All Willifi data is stored on Canadian servers and is encrypted both at rest and during transit. We continuously monitor the security of the platform and perform regular upgrades and maintenance to safeguard against emerging threats.
- An Estate Plan is a comprehensive set of legal documents and instructions that outline how your affairs should be managed in the event of your incapacity and how your assets should be distributed after your death. It typically includes essential documents such as a Will, Power of Attorney for Personal Care, and Power of Attorney for Property, and may include other documents to meet your specific estate planning requirements.
- Estate planning is a proactive process that involves the creation of critical legal documents, including a Will and Powers of Attorney, to specify how assets should be managed and by whom in specific situations. While you are alive, Powers of Attorney may be used for the management of your affairs if you become incapacitated, and following your death, the Will is used for the distribution of your assets. Estate planning ensures that your instructions are properly documented so they can be honoured, reducing uncertainty and minimizing complications for loved ones, and can help navigate legal and tax implications efficiently.
- Even without owning much, an Estate Plan is still important. Creating an Estate Plan prompts you to consider who should act on your behalf in an emergency. It also results in a plan that outlines what you want to happen after you die, from deciding who should manage your affairs to who you will provide for. While you may own very little now, it is a mistake to think you have nothing to protect. Circumstances and your need for protection will change over time. Waiting can leave you and your loved ones unprepared and limit the steps that can be taken to make things better; arrangements that an Estate Plan covers must be made in advance. It is never too early but it can be too late, so even if you don't have a lot, these documents will bring benefits to you and to the people you care about the most.
- Yes, an Estate Plan is important even if you're single and don't have children. A Will is valuable if you intend to give anything to anyone outside your direct blood relatives. In Ontario, intestacy laws will dictate how your estate will be divided if you die without a Will, and the only way to leave gifts to a charity or specific people is by recording those gifts in a Will. Powers of Attorney documents are critical if you become incapable of handling your finances or medical care. In them, you designate someone to take over these responsibilities until you can manage again, which can greatly affect the course of your recovery and make a significant difference in how much of an impact a serious event has on your future. An Estate Plan protects you and your loved ones and is important in every phase and stage of life.
- Before getting started with estate planning, it's important to understand who benefits from having these documents in place. Powers of Attorney for Personal Care and for Property are for your benefit while you're alive, allowing someone you trust to manage your affairs if you become incapacitated. A Will is for the benefit of your loved ones after you die, allowing you to provide instructions and clear guidance about who you want managing your estate and how you want your assets distributed. An Estate Plan helps reduce the potential for disputes, minimize tax implications, and provides important protections over your life and property throughout your life and after you've died. It's a proactive step that gives clear guidance and assurance in the most stressful situations to benefit you and the people who mean the most to you.
- A Will is a legal document that allows you to outline how you want your assets and belongings to be distributed after your death. It provides a legally recognized way to communicate your wishes regarding who should inherit your property, who should care for any minor children, and who should be responsible for managing your estate. By recording your preferences and intentions in a Will, and by ensuring it is legally valid, you help minimize potential disputes among loved ones and reduce the likelihood of complications in your estate.
- A Will is for you to convey to the person administering your estate your desires and instructions about how you want to provide for your loved ones after your death. It is for you to record how you want your property and assets managed and distributed and clarify your preferences on all manner of end-of-life matters so they can be carried out the way you intended.
- As a legal document that primarily deals with the closing of your estate following your death, a Will does several important things to make the process smoother and more straightforward. A legally valid Will streamlines the probate process, guides your executor, provides assurance for your loved ones, and minimizes the potential for disputes and challenges to your estate. It achieves this by offering a format in which your values and intentions can be recorded as a series of practical and actionable instructions that your executor can then follow.
- The instructions you provide in a Will are for the benefit of your loved ones more than for you. A Will clearly states how your assets should be handled and by whom, giving important details that can prevent disputes and provide certainty during an emotional time. Without a Will, your estate will be distributed according to intestacy laws which won't account for your specific circumstances. Having a Will gives you control over the distribution of your estate, but it also shows your loved ones you care for them because you protected them with this important legal document.
- Whether you include specific gifts or bequests in your will is personal and therefore entirely up to you. If you have particular items you want a someone to have, or amounts of money you want to give to specific people or organizations, then it's a good idea to specify these. However, many people are happy to have their executor decide how to distribute the assets of their estate and leave this part out of their Will.
- Powers of Attorney are legal documents that give someone you designate the authority to act on your behalf in specific situations. These documents can only be used while you are living and must be put into place while you have the capacity to do so, meaning they must be set up in advance of any emergencies. If you are ever incapacitated or otherwise unable to make your own decisions, these documents ensure continuity and control over your healthcare and finances.
- Broadly speaking, Powers of Attorney are for assigning your authority to someone you trust, allowing them to act and make decisions on your behalf (for you and about you) if you're unable to do so yourself.
- A Power of Attorney for Personal Care (POA for Personal Care) is a legal document that gives authority to someone you trust to make medical, healthcare, and personal care decisions on your behalf when, due to illness or incapacity, you are unable to make decisions for yourself. It empowers your designated person to act swiftly and in your best interests, as they are entrusted to uphold the decisions and preferences outlined in the POA for Personal Care, and to advocate for care that aligns with your values, all of which can lead to more favourable outcomes overall.
- A Power of Attorney for Personal Care is for ensuring your desires and best interests are upheld when decisions about your health, medical, or personal care are required, but you are not able to make those decisions for yourself. It does this by designating a person you trust with the authority to see that your options for treatment, living arrangements, and care align with your values and are respectful of your preferences. This can be crucial in situations such as after surgery, during severe illness, following an accident, or when dealing with age-related conditions.
- A Power of Attorney for Personal Care (POA for Personal Care) helps to limit the potential challenges and long-lasting negative impact that incapacity from illness, injury, mental health, and aging can have on your life. It is a legal document that gives authority to someone you trust to make medical, healthcare, and personal care decisions on your behalf when you are unable to make these decisions for yourself. It can lead to more favourable outcomes overall by empowering your designated person to act swiftly and in your best interests, guided by the decisions and preferences you've outlined in the POA for Personal Care document.
- A Power of Attorney for Property (POA for Property) is a legal document that gives someone you trust the authority to manage your financial affairs and legal matters when you are not able to manage them yourself due to illness, incapacity, or any other reason. It empowers your designated person to act on your behalf to handle tasks like paying bills, managing investments, signing contracts, and dealing with other legal matters. It helps protect and maintain the life you've built so it remains intact until you can manage it on your own again.
- A Power of Attorney for Property is for ensuring your financial affairs and legal matters are managed when you are incapable of managing them yourself. It does this by designating a person you trust with the authority to handle tasks such as paying bills, managing investments, buying or selling property, and dealing with legal matters. This can be crucial during incapacitating situations like severe illness, accidents, or age-related conditions. The POA for Property helps limit disruptions, avoid losses, and keep the life you've built intact until you can manage on your own again.
- A Power of Attorney for Property (POA for Property) helps limit the potential challenges and negative impacts that can arise when you are not able to manage your financial affairs and legal matters due to illness, injury, mental health issues, or aging. It is a legal document that gives authority to someone you trust to handle tasks like paying bills, managing bank accounts, handling investments, buying or selling property, and dealing with legal issues. By empowering your designated person to act swiftly and in your best interests, the POA for Property ensures that your financial affairs are managed effectively, minimizing disruption, avoiding loss and hardship, and protecting the life you've built until you can manage on your own again.