To provide silicon carbide epitaxial wafer in which occurrence of giant step bunchings (GSBs) caused by basal plane dislocations (BPDs) that occur during hydrogen etching is suppressed on low off-angle silicon carbide substrate to decrease surface defect density of epitaxially grown layer to allow formation of silicon carbide semiconductor device having high reliability, method for manufacturing the wafer, and apparatus for manufacturing the wafer, and silicon carbide semiconductor device having the wafer.A silicon carbide epitaxial wafer of the present invention is such that epitaxially grown layer is disposed on silicon carbide substrate which has α-type crystal structure and in which (0001) Si face is tilted at greater than 0° and less than 5°, wherein surface defect density of the epitaxially grown layer based on giant step bunching caused by basal plane dislocation on substrate surface of the silicon carbide substrate is ≦20/cm2.