Debt Collection Restrictions — Know What Collectors Can and Cannot Do in Canada

What Is It?

Every province in Canada regulates collection agencies through dedicated legislation that sets strict rules on how, when, and how often collectors can contact debtors. Violations are common — and most debtors don’t know they have the right to stop calls entirely. The debt doesn’t disappear when you stop contact, but harassment does.

Provincial Restrictions on Collection Calls

All provinces prohibit calls:

• Before 7:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m. on weekdays (Monday–Saturday)
• Before 1:00 p.m. or after 5:00 p.m. on Sundays
• On statutory holidays

Additional restrictions in most provinces:

• Employer contact: Collectors may contact your employer only once — solely to obtain your address and telephone number. They cannot disclose the debt to your employer, and further contact at work is prohibited.
• Third-party contact: Collectors may contact third parties (friends, family) only once to verify your address or phone number — they cannot discuss the debt.
• Harassment: Threats, profanity, making false or misleading statements (like threatening arrest), and applying pressure through excessive or unreasonable contact are prohibited.
• Written notice requirement: Ontario, BC, and Alberta require collection agencies to send written notice to the debtor at least 6 days before making the first collection call.

Sending a Cease Contact Letter

Under most provincial laws (Ontario: Collection and Debt Settlement Services Act; BC: Business Practices and Consumer Protection Act; Alberta: Fair Trading Act), you can write to the collection agency requesting that they stop contacting you.

Sample language:

“Please be advised that I am requesting you cease all communications with me pursuant to [cite your provincial act]. This letter does not constitute an admission of the debt. Please correspond only in writing going forward.”

Send by registered mail (keep the receipt and a copy) to the collection agency’s address shown on your documents.

Effect: The agency must stop calling. They can still send written correspondence and can still pursue legal action — the letter doesn’t eliminate the debt or prevent a lawsuit. But it stops harassment.

Statute of Limitations on Old Debts

In most provinces, the limitation period for suing on consumer debts is 2 years from the date of last acknowledgment (when you last made a payment, sent a written acknowledgment, or verbally acknowledged the debt in some provinces). After 2 years, the creditor’s ability to sue is expired — though the debt still exists and may still appear on your credit report.

Warning: Making a payment or verbally acknowledging the debt can restart the limitation clock in some provinces. If a debt is close to or past the limitation period, consult a credit counsellor or lawyer before making any payment or written communication.

What Most People Don’t Know

• Collection agencies must be licensed in each province where they operate. If a collector contacts you and cannot provide a licence number, this is a violation you can report to the provincial regulator.
• The credit reporting period is separate from the limitation period. In most provinces, negative credit information stays on your report for 6–7 years from the date of the delinquency — regardless of the limitation period for lawsuits.
• Payday lenders face stricter rules. Some provinces (Ontario, BC, Alberta) have additional regulations specifically restricting how payday loan companies can collect debts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources

• Ontario — Collection and Debt Settlement Services Act
• BC — Business Practices and Consumer Protection Act
• Alberta — Fair Trading Act (Collection Practices)
• FCAC — Dealing with Debt Collectors