Debt Statute Limits Calculator Canada (2026): Start With the Right Date

This tool answers a narrower question than the title may suggest: does an Ontario basic limitation-period screen appear worth checking based on the dates you enter? It is not a national limitation calculator and it does not decide whether a creditor can sue.

Why the result is only a screen

Ontario’s Limitations Act, 2002 generally uses a two-year basic limitation period tied to when a claim is discovered, with additional rules for acknowledgments and other circumstances. A last-payment date alone is not enough to decide a real claim. The calculator therefore labels the result as a screening signal and sends other provinces to a source-checked review instead of inventing a number.

The result can be affected by:

• when the claim was discovered and whether another discovery rule applies;
• a signed written acknowledgment or payment and its legal effect;
• a judgment, secured debt, co-signer, consumer proposal, bankruptcy, or limitation suspension;
• the exact creditor, debt type, pleadings, service date, and court process.

What to gather before responding

Save the original agreement, statements, payment history, collection letters, credit-report dates, any signed acknowledgment, and every court document. If a claim has been served, follow the response deadline on the document even if the debt looks old.

Source and scope

The Ontario screen is based on the Ontario Limitations Act, 2002, especially the basic limitation, discovery, and acknowledgment provisions. Rules outside Ontario are not represented by the calculator until the relevant primary source and exceptions have been reviewed.

This is general information, not legal advice. A limitation defence can be lost or complicated by inaction. Use the result to organize documents and questions for a lawyer, legal clinic, court office, or Licensed Insolvency Trustee.