The Family Responsibility Office (FRO) is a government agency that assists with the collection, distribution and enforcement of spousal support and child support. They act as a intermediary between the partner who pays support and the partner who receives it, collecting and paying out through them rather than a direct transaction.
How does the Family Responsibility Office Enforce Support Payments?
FRO is a program of the Government of Ontario that helps families get the support they are entitled to by collecting, distributing and enforcing child and spousal support payments.
FRO plays an important role in ensuring the financial security of families who count on court-ordered support. We:
- collect payments from the person who pays the support (the payor)
- send payments to the person who is entitled to it (the recipient)
We do this under the authority of the Family Responsibility and Support Arrears Enforcement Act, 1996 and the Interjurisdictional Support Orders Act, 2002.
FRO does not:
- make payments to a recipient when the payor misses a payment
- change the terms of support orders or domestic contracts, including the support amount
- get involved in child custody or access issues[AK1]
We specialize in helping people with complex family law issues, including child support, spousal support and more.
