How does an Ontario court verify true income for a parent who drives for Uber or a similar gig platform?

Gig platform work leaves more of a digital paper trail than a purely cash-based business, since platforms typically generate their own income summaries, trip histories, and payment records that a court can order produced alongside the parent's tax return, making verification somewhat more straightforward than with an under-the-table cash arrangement. A court can order the platform-generated statements directly, along with bank records showing actual deposits, to compare what the parent reports against what the platform's own records show was actually earned before any expense deductions.

The complication in gig work usually isn't hidden income so much as aggressive expense deductions, since gig drivers can deduct vehicle costs, fuel, and other business expenses that significantly reduce their reported net income relative to their gross earnings; a court can scrutinize whether those deductions are legitimate and proportionate to the actual work being done, similar to how any self-employed person's expense claims might be reviewed. Where a parent drives for multiple platforms, disclosure needs to cover each one, since income and records can be split across several accounts. Because gig income can also fluctuate significantly week to week, courts often look at income over a representative period rather than a single month.