Open ProvincesSeparation, parenting and child support in Ontario: free help and enforcement
Where to get free help with parenting and child support after separation in Ontario, and how support orders are enforced, from the official pages.
Free help and support enforcement
Child support can be set up online (if one parent has the child at least 60% of the time and you live separate and apart), through a written agreement or through the court; support set up online or in court is automatically filed with the Family Responsibility Office (FRO), and an agreement can be filed with FRO too. FRO can report to credit bureaus, suspend a driver's licence or passport and garnish bank accounts. Parenting terms are now parenting time and decision-making responsibility. Free information is available at the Family Law Information Centre in a courthouse near you.
Married parents who divorce are also covered by the federal Divorce Act and federal Child Support Guidelines; unmarried or separated parents use provincial or territorial law. Enforcement programs collect support under an existing order or filed agreement: they do not change it or give legal advice. If there is violence, see our family violence page first. Rules, fees and programs change and were read on 2026-11-14: confirm with the official source. General information, not legal advice. Quebec follows its own rules: see atlasquebec.ca.
Guides for this province
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