Bail reform in Canada and Ontario in 2026: what changed

The federal changes: Bill C-14

The Bail and Sentencing Reform Act amended the Criminal Code, the Youth Criminal Justice Act and the National Defence Act. It received Royal Assent on June 15, 2026, and the bail and sentencing changes came into force on July 15, 2026. The youth justice changes take effect later, by order in council.

New reverse onus situations

In these cases the accused must show why release is justified:

• violent or organized crime related auto theft
• breaking and entering a dwelling house
• trafficking in persons and human smuggling
• assaults and sexual assaults involving choking, suffocation or strangulation
• extortion involving violence
• serious violent offences by a person with two or more prior convictions for similar offences
• a person found guilty, where the Crown asks to revoke bail until sentencing

For weapons related violence, the lookback for prior convictions that triggers a reverse onus grew from five years to 10.

Ladder principle and restraint

The ladder principle, which asks courts to consider the least restrictive form of release first, no longer applies to a person facing a reverse onus. The principle of restraint is clarified so that it does not require release where detention is justified, including for public safety. In reverse onus cases the accused must clearly show that the release plan addresses the risks they pose.

New factors and conditions

• Courts must consider whether the allegations involve random or unprovoked violence.
• On the tertiary ground, courts must consider the number and seriousness of any outstanding charges.
• Courts must consider weapons prohibitions in extortion and organized crime cases, and conditions such as geographic limits, non-communication orders and curfews in extortion, organized crime, auto theft and home break-in cases.

Who can be a surety

A person convicted of a serious offence within the previous 10 years generally cannot act as a surety, unless no other suitable surety is available and the court is satisfied that accepting them is in the interests of justice.

Ontario's cash deposit rule

Ontario's Keeping Criminals Behind Bars Act, 2026 amended the provincial Bail Act. From August 17, 2026, people who pledged money under a release order had to deposit the pledged amount in cash, money order or bank draft after release. On August 31, 2026, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice suspended the requirement while a constitutional challenge is decided. As of October 2026 the pledge system, with no money paid up front, is back in use. Our guide do you get bail money back in Ontario explains how pledges and deposits work.

The Ontario Court of Justice bail practice direction

Since June 1, 2026, a bail practice direction in the Ontario Court of Justice sets expectations for how hearings run. A surety should be required only where it is the least onerous form of release in the circumstances, proposed sureties' declarations are expected to be prepared and filed before the hearing, routine contested hearings are expected to take about 30 minutes and consent releases about 15 minutes.

What this means if someone you know is arrested

• Find out early whether the charge now carries a reverse onus. That shapes the whole release plan.
• Check that any proposed surety does not have a disqualifying conviction from the last 10 years.
• Prepare the surety declaration and the plan before court, not on the day.
• Expect more focus on specific conditions tied to the allegations.

Frequently asked questions