Below is a list of essential information related to the administration of Provincial Offences matters.
After being served an Offence Notice (ticket) the defendant then has three options to be exercised within 15 (fifteen) calendar days:
Option 1. Pay the fine: results in a guilty plea and conviction.
Option 2. Request a meeting with the prosecutor to discuss the possible resolution of the charge.
Requests can be made online, by mail or in person at the court location noted on the Offence Notice (ticket).
Option 3. Request a trial.
New: You do not have to attend in person to request a trial.
Requests for trial can be made online at toronto.ca/CourtCaseLookUp by completing a request for trial online transaction.
Requests for trial can also be made by completing a Notice of Intention to Appear (NIA) form and sending the completed NIA by mail to the address located on the back of your Offence Notice. A fillable version of the NIA form is available online at toronto.ca/courtforms.
Note: If you fail to exercise one of these options, a Justice of the Peace will review your case and may enter a conviction in your absence.
To change a Trial Date you have three options.
Attend the court office where the trial is being held at least 3 (three) business days prior to your scheduled court date and request the Clerk of the Court (counter staff) to provide you with a Request for Adjournment of First Trial Date Form.
This option is not available where you received a Summons to appear at court or where charges results from a collision or where you have already appeared at court on the charge.
Where the first option does not apply you must attend the court office where the trial is being held at least five (5) business days in advance of the scheduled trial and file a Notice of Motion requesting a different trial date. This will also require you to return to court to have this Motion heard by a Justice of the Peace.
Send a representative on the trial date to request an adjournment from the presiding Justice of the Peace. The Justice of the Peace may or may not approve the request depending on the reasons provided.
If you have selected Option 2 (Meeting with the Prosecutor), you may reschedule your meeting by:
A new meeting will be rescheduled and a new notice mailed to you.
Please note, you are entitled to reschedule your meeting only once.
Failure to pay your fine in full could result in a conviction being entered against you. Upon conviction you will be required to pay the set fine, including court costs and the applicable victim fine surcharge by the due date. Failure to pay the fine imposed upon conviction by the due date will result in one or more of the following:
The defaulted fine information is provided to a credit bureau.
Find out more about the collection of Provincial Offences Act fines.
If fewer than 15 calendar days have passed from the receipt of the Offence Notice (ticket), you may request a meeting with the prosecutor to discuss entering a guilty plea and establishing an extended time to pay.
If you have been convicted, visit the court office noted on the top of your Notice of Fine and Due date. You will be asked to fill out an application to request an extension of time to pay fine forms. These forms will require you to fill in all of the information regarding your Offence Notice (ticket), including how much you have paid so far and a specific date that you would like it extended to, etc.
You may file a re-opening if:
To request a re-opening:
To check the status of a re-opening:
Note: Only applies to tickets issued prior to August 28, 2017.
Re-openings and requests for extension on parking matters can be done at any Provincial Offences Court Office, but you must have a screen print of the infraction available from one of the parking tag offices, or a Notice of Fine and Due Date.
One amount is the set fine and the second is the total payable. The total payable consists of the set fine, court costs and the Victim Fine Surcharge.
The set fine is ordered by the Chief Judge of the Ontario Court of Justice as an amount payable by the defendant in lieu of attending court to contest the charge.
Court costs are an amount to be paid by the defendant for the service of the offence notice and/or summons and upon conviction of an offence. The costs are authorized by Section 60 of the Provincial Offences Act and the amount is set by regulation.
Section 8 of the Provincial Offences Act provides that payment of an offence notice (ticket) constitutes a plea of guilty and results in a conviction being registered.
The Victim Fine Surcharge is imposed by the Provincial Government and is added to every fine imposed under the Provincial Offences Act, other than parking fines. The amount of the Victim Fine Surcharge is variable, and is based on the amount of the set fine. Proceeds from the surcharge are used to maintain and expand provincial services to victims of crime.
Identity Fraud (Personation) is a criminal offence and is committed when a person fraudulently identifies him/herself as someone else
If you have been convicted of an offence under the Highway Traffic Act (HTA) or Compulsory Automobile Insurance Act (CAIA) for a ticket(s) issued by a Toronto Police Officer and your name was fraudulently used, you must:
1) Attend the court location where the ticket is filed;
2) Obtain an Icon Printout of the ticket(s) and a copy of the ticket(s) from the court;
3) Swear to a ”General Affidavit” before a Justice of the Peace at the court, outlining your claim of identity fraud *;
4) After you have obtained this information from the court, call an investigator at the following number to file your identity fraud report **:
Toronto Police Service
9 Hanna Avenue, Toronto
Tel: (416) 808-1931
Fax: (416) 808-1902
For claims of identity fraud involving tickets issued by Toronto Police for By-Law, Liquor Licence Act, Trespass to Property Act, Pedestrian or Bicycle Offences, contact the officer or agency who issued the ticket(s) or their fraud unit.
For claims of identity fraud involving tickets issued by Go Transit, Toronto By-Law Enforcement Officers or Officers from other Police Services, contact the officer or agency who issued the ticket(s).
Improperly registered vehicles should be reported to your nearest Police Division.
* It is a criminal offence to swear to an affidavit when you knowingly provide false information within that Affidavit.
** It is a criminal offence to cause a peace officer to enter into an investigation when you knowingly provide false information which causes an investigation to occur.