Child Support Payments and the Highway Traffic Act

If I do not pay my Child Support payments, are there any consequences under the Highway Traffic Act (the H.T.A )?

Under PART XIII SUSPENSION FOR FAILURE TO PAY JUDGMENTS OR MEET SUPPORT OBLIGATIONS, the H.T.A states the following under section 198.1 (1):

Section 198.1 (1) Licence suspension on direction of Director of Family Responsibility Office:

On receiving a direction under section 37 of the Family Responsibility and Support Arrears Enforcement Act, 1996 to suspend the driver’s licence of a person, the Registrar shall suspend the person’s driver’s licence, if it is not already under suspension.

Section 198.1 (2): Reinstatement

On receiving a direction under section 38 of the Family Responsibility and Support Arrears Enforcement Act, 1996, to reinstate the driver’s licence of a person, the Registrar shall reinstate the licence unless,

the licence is otherwise under suspension
interest charged or a penalty imposed under subsection 5(2) has not been paid; or
an applicable prescribed administrative fee for handling a dishonoured payment has not been paid.

The following Canadian Provinces and Territories have entered into Reciprocal Agreements with all American States and Territories:

* Al berta
* British Columbia
* Manitoba
* New Brunswick
* Newfoundland & Labrador
* Northwest Territories
* Nova Scotia
* Nunavut
* Ontario
* Saskatchewan
* Yukon

This means that if you were living in one of these Provinces or Territories and that you move to any State or Territory or City in the United States that any Child Support Agreement or Order can be enforced within the United States and the same would apply if an American resident or anyone with dual citizenship moved from the United States to any of the Canadian Provinces or Territories listed above.

Provincial and Territorial Information on Interjurisdictional and International Support Order Enforcement

The Department of Justice provides more information on this, as well as those Provinces/Territories (Prince Edward Island, Quebec and the Yukon) that have negotiated individual reciprocal agreements with different United States/Territories.

See: Inter-jurisdictional Support Order Enforcement in Canada -chart

Making a Support or Support Variation Application outside of Alberta

Alberta’s reciprocating jurisdictions

Alberta has the same reciprocal enforcement agreements under the ISO Act that it had under the REMO Act. Reciprocal agreements exist with all other provinces and territories of Canada, the United States and the following other jurisdictions:

American Samoa	Guam	Poland
Australia	Isle of Man	Puerto Rico
Austria	Jersey	Scotland
Barbados	New Zealand	Singapore
Czech Republic	Northern Ireland	Slovak Republic
England	Northern Mariana Island	South Africa
Fiji Islands	Norway	Virgin Islands
Germany	Papua New Guinea	Wales

If an Alberta applicant wishes to vary a support order and the respondent no longer lives in a reciprocating jurisdiction, the ISO Act provides that the Alberta court can hear the variation application if the respondent has been given notice of the proceeding.

Making a Support or Support Variation Application outside of British Columbia

Making a Support or Support Variation Application outside of Manitoba

Making a Support or Support Variation Application Outside New Brunswick

Making a Support or Support Variation Application outside of Newfoundland and Labrador

Making a Support or Support Variation Application outside of Northwest Territories

Making a Support or Support Variation Application outside of Nova Scotia

Making a Support or Support Variation Application outside of Nunavut

Making a Support or Support Variation Application outside of Ontario

Making a Support or Support Variation Application outside of Prince Edward Island

Making a Support or Support Variation Application outside of Quebec

Making a Support or Support Variation Application outside of Saskatchewan

Making a Support or Support Variation Application outside of Yukon Territory