Who has to file an accessibility compliance report in Ontario?

Businesses and non-profit organizations with 20 or more employees in Ontario, every three years, and designated public sector organizations, every two years. The next deadline for businesses and non-profits is December 31, 2026.

Do we have to file if we have fewer than 20 employees?

No. Organizations with 1 to 19 employees don't file a report, but the accessibility standards, including AODA training for every employee and volunteer, still apply to them.

Who signs the report?

A director, senior officer or other person with authority to bind the organization certifies that the information is complete and accurate (AODA s. 15). Giving false or misleading information in a report is an offence (AODA s. 37).

What happens if we don't file?

The province says organizations that don't file could face enforcement measures, which can include financial penalties. A director can order you to file and to pay an administrative penalty (AODA s. 21).

Does the report have to be made public?

Yes. The Act says an organization must make an accessibility report it files available to the public (AODA s. 14(2)).

Ontario Accessibility Compliance Report: Due December 31, 2026

Short answer: if your business or non-profit has 20 or more employees in Ontario, file an accessibility compliance report online by December 31, 2026. A senior officer certifies that you meet the accessibility standards that apply to you, including AODA training for every employee and volunteer. Under 20 employees, you don't file, but the standards still apply.

Who files, and what else applies at each size

Employees in Ontario	Compliance report	Other duties
1 to 19 employees	No report	Accessibility policies, accessible customer service, AODA training for every employee and volunteer, accessible employment practices, and accessible information on request.
20 to 49 employees	Report every 3 years, next by December 31, 2026	Everything above.
50 or more employees	Report every 3 years, next by December 31, 2026	Everything above, plus documented accessibility policies, a multi-year accessibility plan posted on your website, accessible public websites, and a written record of AODA training.
Designated public sector	Report every 2 years (the last was due December 31, 2025)	The public sector rules, which go further.

Sources: the AODA, 2005, ss. 14–15; O. Reg. 191/11; and the province's pages on accessibility rules for businesses and on completing your compliance report.

Counting your employees

The Ministry's report form says to count full-time, part-time and seasonal employees and contract workers, and not to count employees outside Ontario, volunteers or independent contractors. If you are close to 20, count carefully before deciding you don't need to file.

What you need before you start

Your organization's legal name.
Your business number (the nine-digit BN on your federal or provincial tax return).
Your number of employees in Ontario.
The name and contact details of your certifier: a senior officer with authority to bind the organization. They can name someone else as the primary contact.

What the report asks

The report confirms that you meet the accessibility requirements that apply to you. The Ministry's form, as organizations have published it, asks a yes-or-no question for each part of the standards, with space for comments:

General requirements: accessibility policies, training, and, at 50 or more employees, the multi-year plan.
Information and communications: feedback, accessible formats on request and, at 50 or more, accessible websites.
Employment: accessible recruitment, accommodation and workplace emergency information.
Transportation: only if you provide transportation services.
Design of public spaces: when you build or redevelop spaces such as outdoor eating areas, paths or parking.
Customer service: serving customers with disabilities, including assistive devices, service animals and support persons.

The training question

Training is part of the general requirements (O. Reg. 191/11, s. 7). Before your certifier answers yes, check that:

every employee and volunteer, everyone who helps develop your policies, and anyone who provides goods, services or facilities on your behalf has been trained on the standards and on the Ontario Human Rights Code as it applies to people with disabilities,
new hires were trained as soon as practicable after joining,
people were trained on any changes to your accessibility policies, and
at 50 or more employees in Ontario, you have a record of the training with its dates and the number of people trained.

Giving false or misleading information in a report is an offence (AODA s. 37), so a yes should rest on a record you could produce. What AODA training covers, and how Ethica delivers it.

How to file

Go to the Accessibility Compliance Reporting Portal, linked from the province's page Completing your accessibility compliance report.
Register an account with your email address and a password.
Select "New Submission" and choose "Accessibility Compliance Report".
Enter your organization's details and answer the compliance questions.
Have your certifier review and certify it, then submit.
Keep the confirmation email. It goes to the certifier and the primary contact and includes a confirmation number.

Questions about the report go to the province's accessibility line: 1-866-515-2025, or AODA.assistance@ontario.ca.

Your checklist before December 31

Count your Ontario employees the way the form describes.
Find your business number and agree who will certify.
Check your accessibility policies exist and, at 50 or more, are documented and your multi-year plan is posted.
Export your AODA training record and check every current employee and volunteer is on it.
Train anyone missing now, and let the record show the real date.
File, keep the confirmation, and make the report available to the public as the Act requires.

Getting the training record in order

If you can't say who has been trained, that is the part to fix first. Ethica assigns the AccessForward training modules published by the Government of Ontario to every employee by email, with no accounts to create. Each person uploads the completion certificate they sign at the end of each module, reminders chase anyone who hasn't finished, and new hires are assigned automatically. The export shows each person, the module and the date, which gives you the dates and the number trained that s. 7(5) asks for.

See all of Ontario's training duties by size, or answer three questions to see which apply to you.