Ontario Small Claims Court Deadline Calculator

This page turns a single trigger date into two dates: the nominal date produced by counting under Rule 3.01, and the adjusted date after a last-day Rule 1.02(1) holiday is moved to the next non-holiday. It is a counting aid for people preparing Small Claims Court documents in Ontario, and it is deliberately conservative about what it claims.

It does not decide whether service was legally effective, whether a document was validly issued or filed, whether the court would extend or shorten time under Rule 3.02, or whether relief is available after a missed date. It also does not calculate limitation periods. A result here is a date to verify, never "definitely your deadline".

Rule 3.01(1) sets the arithmetic for a period stated in days: identify the legally effective trigger date, exclude that day, count calendar days forward, including any weekends and holidays that fall inside the period, and include the last day. Intervening holidays never pause the count. Only a last day that is itself a holiday moves, and it moves forward to the next day that is not a holiday.

Six-month periods are not counted in days at all. Under section 89 of the Legislation Act, 2006, a period of months runs to the day in the later month bearing the same calendar number as the starting day, or to the final day of that month where no such day exists. Six months is therefore never 180 days in this tool: a claim issued 31 August 2026 runs to 28 February 2027, not to a day-count date.

Reverse presets ("serve at least 7 days before the hearing") work differently again. The tool subtracts the calendar days and shows the latest effective date on which the step could be taken. A holiday or a court closure on that date normally means completing the step earlier, not later, because the required clear days must still exist.

The most common error in these calculations is starting from the wrong day. The effective date of service depends on the document served and the method used, not the method alone.

Example 1 - Defence after a personally served claim, last day on a Sunday

A Plaintiff's Claim is personally served on Monday 30 March 2026. Personal service is effective that day, so 30 March is the trigger and is excluded. Counting 20 calendar days: day 1 is 31 March, day 10 is 9 April, day 20 is Sunday 19 April 2026. Good Friday (3 April) and Easter Monday (6 April) fall inside the period, but intervening holidays do not pause the count. Because the last day is a Sunday, and Sunday is a holiday under Rule 1.02(1), the deadline moves to Monday 20 April 2026. Nominal date 19 April; adjusted date 20 April.

Example 2 - A Defendant's Claim window and a six-month service window

A Defence is filed on Friday 30 January 2026. Counting 20 days from an excluded 30 January gives 19 February 2026, a Thursday, so no adjustment is needed: the ordinary date to issue a Defendant's Claim is 19 February 2026. Issuing later may still be possible with leave before trial or before default judgment, so a missed ordinary date is not the end of the question.

Separately, a claim issued on Monday 31 August 2026 must be served within six months. Under section 89 there is no 28 February plus three days: the period runs to the same calendar number in the sixth month, and February 2027 has no 31st, so it clamps to 28 February 2027. That day is a Sunday, so the date rolls to Monday 1 March 2027. An extension may be available on motion.

Example 3 - Reverse planning for a motion, with an email-timing trap

A motion is scheduled for Friday 23 October 2026. Notice of motion and supporting affidavit must be served at least 7 days before: 23 October minus 7 days is Friday 16 October 2026, the latest effective service date. The motion and proof of service must be filed at least 3 days before: 23 October minus 3 is Tuesday 20 October 2026. A responding or supplementary affidavit must be served at least 2 days before: Wednesday 21 October 2026.

The trap: emailing the notice of motion at 4:40 p.m. on 16 October makes service effective 17 October, which is one day short of the required 7 days. On a reverse deadline, a late-in-the-day send or a closure means acting earlier, not later.

• Counting business days. Rule 3.01 counts calendar days, so "20 business days" is wrong.
• Treating six months as 180 days. It is a calendar-month calculation under section 89 of the Legislation Act, 2006.
• Counting from the mailing or send date when a deeming rule sets a later effective date, or from a deemed fifth day where a signature-confirmed receipt governs.
• Assuming email service is always available and always effective on the send date. It must be permitted, and a 4:00 p.m. to midnight send moves to the next day.
• Rolling a reverse "at least N days before" date forward onto a holiday, which quietly shortens the notice the other side receives.
• Assuming a late Defence is automatically rejected. Consequences follow from being noted in default and from the court's discretion, not from the calendar alone.
• Forgetting a specially proclaimed holiday or a court closure. Add it manually so the count rolls correctly.

• Read the current text of the rule cited beside the preset you used.
• Confirm the effective date of service from the affidavit of service, matching both document and method.
• Check whether any court closure or proclaimed holiday falls on your last day, and add it manually.
• Check whether an order or written consent has already changed the time.
• For a reverse deadline, plan to complete the step earlier than the latest effective date.
• Confirm the court office's filing hours and accepted filing methods for the final day.

• Record the trigger date, the rule, the nominal date and the adjusted date together in your file, so the count can be reconstructed later.
• Diarise the step several days ahead of the calculated date and keep the calculated date as the backstop.
• If a date has already passed, read the deadlines guide on how the court can lengthen or shorten time, and get advice promptly.
• If the deadline concerns a Defendant's Claim, check the separate issuing and defence timelines in the Defendant's Claim guide.

Rule wording, the Rule 1.02(1) holiday list, and the service rules on this page were checked against the Rules of the Small Claims Court (O. Reg. 258/98), the Legislation Act, 2006, and Ontario's Guide to procedures in Small Claims Court. Links to each source appear in the sources list on this page.

Revision note. On this review the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation was removed from the automatic holiday list used by the counting engine, because it is not in the Rule 1.02(1) definition; a manual override for proclaimed holidays and court closures remains. Presets for a Defence to a Defendant's Claim and for the two Rule 15.04 timelines following an order made without notice were added, and the reverse-deadline wording was changed to describe the result as the latest effective date.

Legal information reviewed: 21 August 2026. Checked against the official sources listed on this page. Rates, fees and rules change; confirm anything you rely on.