About the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy
The following links will take you further down this page to the information you need:
What we do
What we really do
Our mission
Our responsibilities
Our guiding principles and values
Our services
Insolvency registration
Debtor assistance
Complaints
Enquiries
Name-search service
Our activities
What we do
Section 5(2) of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act states that the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy is to "supervise the administration of all estates and matters to which this Act applies." But that only begins to describe the role we play in ensuring that bankruptcies and insolvencies are conducted in a professional, open, impartial and fair manner.
What we really do:
Whether you are a debtor (you owe money), a creditor (you are owed money) or a trustee (someone who administers bankruptcies and insolvencies), our goal is to make the bankruptcy process easier for you to understand and provide you with the information you need to best manage your situation.
And we pledge to do it in a way that is courteous, fair and accessible.
- Courteous - We will respond to your inquiries promptly and professionally.
- Fair - Our service will be just and impartial.
- Accessible - Information from the public record will be available to you on request in a timely manner.
Apart from the information provided on this website, we also offer bilingual services from our 14 offices across Canada from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday. (See Contact Us to find the office nearest you.)
Our mission
The mission of the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy is to provide an effective, cost-efficient and uniform national program that will ensure compliance with the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, to maintain a sound policy and regulatory base which permits adjustments to the law in response to changing conditions, and to encourage the participation of private-sector stakeholders in order to achieve efficiency in estate administration.
Our responsibilities
At the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy, we have a range of responsibilities:
- supervising the administration of estates in bankruptcy, commercial reorganizations, consumer proposals and receiverships;
- maintaining a publicly accessible record of bankruptcy and insolvency proceedings;
- recording and investigating complaints from creditors, debtors, and members of the general public regarding possible wrong doing by someone involved in the insolvency process;
- licensing of private sector trustees to administer estates and the appointment of administrators of consumer proposals; and
- setting and enforcing professional standards for the administration of estates.
Our guiding principles and values
- Our primary focus is on the effective delivery of our statutory mandate of supervising the administration of all estates and matters to which the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act applies.
- Emphasis will be placed on developing an environment which fosters the growth, motivation
and professionalism of our employees.
- We are committed to providing quality services which respond to client needs, in the most
cost-effective manner, and we will seek out and use alternative delivery structures (e.g. commercialization) as needed to achieve this principle.
- Our services will be provided to our clients with due regard to recovery of full costs and fair
market value.
- We will provide our services in a professional, open, impartial and fair manner.
- We will continue to operate under the purview of current federal acts, regulations and
policies, and will support the policies and priorities of Industry Canada and the Government.
Our services
Insolvency Registration
When businesses or consumers cannot pay their debts, they may file for bankruptcy or make a proposal (a payment arrangement with their creditors to prevent bankruptcy). These are legal proceedings carried out under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act and must be registered with the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy.
Our Commitment: We will register the proceedings within two business days of receiving completed documents. (Please Note: In bankruptcy cases, we first must determine whether the application for bankruptcy is valid.) If we do not meet this deadline, please contact your local Division Assistant Superintendent of Bankruptcy who will look into your complaint and respond within one business day.
Costs: The following charges apply to our registration services:
- summary administration bankruptcy - $75.00
- repeat bankruptcy in summary estate - $150.00
- ordinary administration bankruptcy - $150.00
- change from summary administration to ordinary administration - $75.00
- consumer proposal - $100.00
- commercial proposal - $150.00
- receivership - $70.00
Keep in mind, the insolvency professional will also charge fees.
Debtor Assistance
To file for personal bankruptcy you must use a professional known as a bankruptcy trustee. (For a list of names, consult the yellow pages of your telephone directory under "Bankruptcies - Trustees") If you are unable to obtain the services of a trustee, your local Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy will help find one for you through its DebtorAssistance Service. This service is available as long as:
- your debts are mostly personal rather than business-related;
- you can demonstrate that you have made at least two attempts to find a trustee; and
- you are not in prison
Our Commitment: We will forward your bankruptcy registration forms to a licensed trustee within two business days. After that, you will have access to the bankruptcy process within 30 days. If this does not happen, contact your local Division Assistant Superintendent of Bankruptcy who will investigate and respond to you within three business days.
Complaints
Complaints - We encourage you to contact us if you feel an insolvency procedure is not being handled properly or if you are aware of possible wrong doing by someone involved in the insolvency process.
Our Commitment: We will acknowledge your written complaint by phone or in writing within three business days of receiving it. We will try to resolve the complaint and inform you about it by phone or in writing within 30 business days. Some complaints, however, are complicated and take more time. We will let you know if this is the case within the 30-day period.
Enquiries
Contact us if you have a question about bankruptcy or insolvency processes.
Our Commitment: We will answer you, or refer you to someone who can, within three business days of receiving your inquiry. If we do not meet deadlines for responding to complaints or inquiries, contact your local Division Assistant Superintendent of Bankruptcy who will respond within one business day.
Name-search service
Our central databank maintains a record of all bankruptcies and proposals filed in Canada since 1978 and all receiverships filed since December 1992. For an $8.00 fee, we will search the records for you to confirm the insolvency status of individuals or businesses. (Persons requesting this service on an ongoing basis will have to establish a credit account with us for billing purposes.)
To obtain information on setting up an account with us, please contact:
Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy
Search Services
Jean Edmonds Tower South, 8th Floor,
365 Laurier Avenue West
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0C9
Phone: (613) 941-2863
Fax: (613) 941-9490
Our Commitment: If you have an account with us, we will respond to your telephone requests for search services immediately. At your request, we will confirm these findings by fax within three business days of the search. We will process your written request within three business days of receiving it. If you're not satisfied with this service, contact the Chief Information Officer, Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy, Ottawa at (613) 941-1000. Your complaint will be handled within one business day.
Our Activities:
The Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy strives:
- To ensure debtor compliance:
The OSB reviews the statement of affairs; may chair the first meeting of creditors and/or examines the bankrupt under oath; supervises estate administration; responds to complaints; may intervene in the discharge process; and works with the RCMP to investigate and resolve serious infractions.
- To ensure trustees are competent:
The OSB licenses trustees; participates in their professional development and the training of potential trustees; provides information and information sessions; and oversees trustee performance.
- To ensure trustees comply with the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, Rules and Directives:
The OSB promotes compliance; monitors trustees; reviews all documents filed by the trustee including statements of receipts and disbursements (including trustee expenses); may intervene in the discharge process; conducts audits and investigates possible fraud, holds discipline hearings and may suspend or remove a license and/or initiate an RCMP investigation.
- To ensure information is readily available from the trustee on the specific bankruptcy or proposal in which you are involved:
The OSB enforces Rules and Directives for trustee performance in this area and responds to creditor complaints.
- To ensure that information is available on the overall bankruptcy process and your rights within the system:
The OSB responds to inquiries and complaints; publishes information both in hard copy and on its Web site; and may chair the first meeting of creditors to ensure all parties are aware of their rights and responsibilities.
- To ensure debtors are informed of alternatives to bankruptcy:
The OSB requires (through Directives) that trustees advise debtors of the alternatives to bankruptcy prior to filing. The OSB monitors trustee documents to ensure compliance. In addition, we publish a booklet entitled 'Dealing with debt'.
- To ensure debtors have access to the financial counselling needed to help avoid future insolvency:
The OSB ensures (through the Act and Directives) that debtors have access to counselling by qualified BIA Counsellors. We monitor to ensure this is done.
- To ensure estate administration is complete and thorough and the estate is closed in a timely manner:
The OSB registers the estate and monitors all legal proceedings on an ongoing basis to ensure completeness, timeliness, and to detect possible noncompliance with the Act; we respond to complaints; we monitor the number of open estates and we take action to ensure they are closed within the time frames specified in the Act and Rules.
- To ensure efficiency of the system:
The OSB monitors and maintains the Rules, Directives, Insolvency Circulars and administrative policies which underpin the bankruptcy and insolvency system to ensure they are current, cost effective and relevant to client needs.
- To ensure professional, accurate and impartial information is available:
The OSB is located in fifteen offices across Canada. Its employees undergo extensive training to obtain the designation of 'Official Receiver' and are available to respond to all client complaints or inquiries for information in the official language of your choice.
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Bankruptcy
