Can FRO Suspend My Driver's Licence for Unpaid Support?

Falling behind on spousal support is stressful, and a letter from the Family Responsibility Office (FRO) can make it worse. One of the first questions payors ask is whether they can lose their driver's licence, and whether that is where it stops.

Yes, licence suspension is one of the tools FRO can use, but it comes with a notice and a deadline, and there are steps you can take. This article walks through how it works so you can act in time. It is general information, and a lawyer can advise on your own situation.

Licence suspension is one of many tools

FRO has a range of ways to collect unpaid support. The licence is only one of them, so it helps to see the whole list.

FRO may also send a support deduction notice to the payor's income source, such as an employer, which must remit the amount to FRO. A recipient can go to court for further orders as well.

How a driver's licence suspension works

A suspension does not happen without warning. Before a driver's licence suspension takes effect, FRO sends a notice with a deadline. That deadline is the key date to protect.

When you get the notice, you generally have three choices:

• Pay all of the arrears.
• Enter a voluntary payment plan.
• Ask the court for a refraining order, which must be requested before the notice deadline.

Whether a court would grant a refraining order depends on the facts, and a lawyer can tell you how strong your position is. What matters most is that the request is made before the deadline passes.

Passports, default hearings and other consequences

Passport and federal licence suspension are also on FRO's list of tools. If FRO agrees to a payment plan, it stops requesting the passport suspension. But Ontario.ca warns that this does not mean your suspended passport will be valid, so you must contact the Government of Canada to confirm the passport is valid. Do this well before any planned travel.

Other steps can follow non-payment. Credit bureau reporting generally follows a notice after more than 60 days with no payment, and professional bodies may be notified after three months of non-payment. FRO may charge a $400 administrative fee when it takes enforcement action.

At a default hearing, a judge can order payment plans, change the support order, or order jail time of up to 180 days. Attend a default hearing even if you have filed forms.

If your income has dropped

Many payors fall behind because they lost a job or took a pay cut. FRO cannot lower your support. Only a court can change a support order, not FRO. Paying less on your own does not change what you owe.

If your income drops significantly, the Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines ranges move down, and ability to pay can reduce the range to zeros across the board. The Guidelines are not law, but courts often rely on them. If the drop may not be permanent, a court may order disclosure of future re-employment or add a review term, and voluntary under-employment may be an issue.

To ask for a change by consent, you file a consent motion to change (Form 15C) with Forms 13, 13A, 14B and a draft order (Form 25). If the other party disagrees, you file a motion to change (Form 15) with Forms 13, 13A and 25. For orders under the Divorce Act, a court may vary, rescind or suspend an order retroactively or prospectively. Whether past arrears can be reduced depends on the facts, so ask a lawyer before assuming anything about them.

What to do next

• Open every FRO notice and note its deadline the day it arrives.
• Contact FRO immediately if you are falling behind and ask about a payment plan.
• Pay what you can, on time, while you sort out a longer-term fix.
• If a licence suspension notice has arrived, speak to a lawyer quickly, because a refraining order must be requested before the notice deadline.
• If your income has changed, gather pay stubs, termination papers and tax records and ask about a motion to change.
• Confirm your passport is valid with the Government of Canada if a suspension was ever requested.

Deadlines and forms can change, so check the official Ontario website for current details.

Frequently asked questions