What Is a Virtual Real Estate Closing?
A virtual closing is the client-side work done without a trip to the lawyer's office. You confirm who you are, review the papers, and sign on a video call. A Toronto real estate lawyer still runs the closing process: the title search, the lender, the funds, and the registration.
That last part was already electronic. Ontario title transfers register in Teraview. Only a licensed lawyer can do that. Remote closing did not invent e-registration. It moved the appointment off the desk.
The legal result is the same as signing in person. Purchase, sale, refinance, and a title transfer can all close this way. So can occupancy and final closing on a pre-construction condo.
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Is a Virtual Closing Legal in Ontario?
Yes. Same registration. Same documents. Same lawyer.
Most of the file can be signed electronically under Ontario's Electronic Commerce Act, 2000. Some papers still have to be commissioned. Ontario Regulation 431/20 lets a commissioner take an oath or declaration by video, as long as you can see, hear, and speak in real time, your identity is confirmed, and the document records where each of you was.
Since 1 January 2024, a lawyer who verifies you remotely cannot just look at your driver's licence on camera. The Law Society of Ontario requires an authentication step: technology that checks the security features on a government-issued photo ID, or another approved method. A casual Zoom flash of a card is not enough.
What actually changed
The land registry was already digital. What used to require an office visit was you: identification, witnessing, commissioning. That is the remote part.
How a Virtual Closing Works
The order is the closing, not a new product.
Open the file and prove who you are
You send the Agreement of Purchase and Sale and your IDs. Names on the IDs have to match the agreement and the mortgage. Then you complete the ID authentication. That happens before the signing call, not during it.
The legal work still happens
The lawyer searches title, reads a status certificate if it is a condo, orders title insurance, and deals with the lender. None of that is skipped because you are signing from home.
Statement of adjustments and funds
About a week before closing you get the statement of adjustments and the number to wire or draft into trust. Funds still have to clear. A video appointment does not move money faster.
The signing call
A few days before closing you meet on video. The lawyer walks the documents, commissions what needs an oath, and you sign electronically. You do not need a printer.
Closing day
The lawyers exchange documents and funds in escrow, register in Teraview, and release keys when registration is confirmed. You should be reachable by phone that day. You do not need to be on another video call unless something on the file still needs a signature.
Virtual vs In Person
Both produce the same legal result. The fee is the same work. All-inclusive legal fees start at $2,299 on a residential purchase and $1,999 on a sale, plus HST, whether you sign on video or across the desk. Virtual is not a discount and not a surcharge. See real estate legal fees.
Choose virtual if you are out of town, overseas, or you would rather not take a half-day to sit in an office. Choose in person if you want the papers on the table. The file does not care which you pick.
How to Prepare
Two current government-issued photo IDs. Check the expiry date now.
Quiet room, stable internet, a device with a camera and a microphone. Have your phone nearby.
Read the statement of adjustments before the call so the questions happen while you are both on the screen.
Arrange the trust funds early. Tell the lawyer at the start if you will be outside Canada, signing through a power of attorney, or if a co-buyer is in a different city.
A dropped call pauses the appointment. Nothing is final until the documents are properly signed and the transfer is registered.
A virtual closing is still a closing. The lawyer, the trust ledger, and Teraview do the same job. You just do not have to come in.
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Zachary Soccio-Marandola
Real Estate Lawyer
Direct: (647) 797-6881
Email: zachary@socciomarandola.com
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Can I close from another country?
Often, yes, if you tell the lawyer early. Time zones, ID authentication, and the funds transfer all need extra lead time. In some files a power of attorney is cleaner than signing from overseas on closing week.
Do I still need a lawyer if we sign on video?
Yes. Only a licensed lawyer can register the transfer in Teraview. The video call is the appointment. It is not a substitute for the lawyer.
Does a virtual closing cost less than signing in the office?
No. The legal work is the same file. All-inclusive legal fees start at $2,299 + HST on a purchase and $1,999 + HST on a sale either way.
Can two buyers sign from different places?
Yes. Each person completes ID authentication. You can join the same call from different rooms or different cities.
Is in-person signing still available?
Yes. Virtual is an option, not a requirement. If you want to sign at the desk, say so when the file opens.