In an Ontario criminal case, a no-contact order is a condition that requires you to stay out of communication, directly or indirectly, with a person named in the order, such as the complainant or a witness. It is not a separate charge. It is a term inside another order: a police undertaking, a bail release order, a peace bond, or a probation order, each made under a different part of the Criminal Code. Breaking the condition can lead to a new criminal charge in addition to the original one. The condition stays in force until the order ends or is changed through the process the Criminal Code sets out, and the protected person cannot cancel it on their own.
"No-contact order" is everyday shorthand. The paper you sign uses the Criminal Code's wording, which is a condition that you "abstain from communicating, directly or indirectly, with any victim, witness or other person identified in the order, except in accordance with any specified conditions." That language appears in the bail section, section 515(4)(d) , and in near-identical form in the provisions for police undertakings, peace bonds and probation.
A no-contact condition can be paired with a stay-away condition. The Criminal Code lets a justice order you to "abstain from going to any place or entering any geographic area specified in the order" ( s. 515(4)(e) ). If the protected person lives in your home, a stay-away condition can mean you cannot go back there while the order is in force.
The same kind of condition can be attached at four different stages of a case. Which one applies to you matters, because each has its own way of being changed and its own breach offence.
| Stage | Who imposes it | Criminal Code authority | Breach offence |
| Release by police on an undertaking | A peace officer | s. 501(3)(d) and (e) | s. 145(4) |
| Bail release order | A justice or judge | s. 515(4)(d) and (e), s. 515(4.2) | s. 145(5)(a) |
| Detention in custody | A justice | s. 515(12) | s. 145(5)(b) |
| Peace bond (recognizance) | A justice or summary conviction court | s. 810(3.2) | s. 811 |
| Probation order | The sentencing court | s. 732.1(3)(a.1) | s. 733.1 |
After an arrest, police can release you on an undertaking instead of holding you for a bail hearing. Under section 501(3) , the undertaking can include a condition not to communicate with a named person and a condition to stay away from places related to that person, if the condition is "reasonable in the circumstances of the offence and necessary" for reasons that include the safety of a victim or witness.
If you are held for a bail hearing, the justice can release you on an order with conditions. For charges listed in section 515(4.3) , which include "an offence in the commission of which violence against a person was used, threatened or attempted, including against the accused's intimate partner," the justice must consider whether a no-contact or stay-away condition is desirable for the safety of a victim, witness or justice system participant. In a domestic case, that is the point where the terms of your release are set, and it is worth having a domestic assault lawyer propose conditions that protect the complainant and still let you keep working, find a place to live, and stay in your children's lives where the order allows it.
A no-contact direction can also follow you into custody. A justice who orders you detained can direct that you not communicate, directly or indirectly, with a victim, witness or other named person ( s. 515(12) ).
A peace bond under section 810 starts with someone who fears on reasonable grounds that another person will injure them, their intimate partner or their child, or damage their property. If the court accepts that the fear is reasonable, it can order the defendant to keep the peace for up to 12 months, and it must consider adding a condition barring communication with the person, their intimate partner or child (s. 810(3.2)).
After a finding of guilt, the sentencing court can make no-contact and stay-away conditions part of a probation order ( s. 732.1(3)(a.1) ).
The exact words of your order control. There is no single standard list, so read the document you were given line by line. A few points apply to the wording the Criminal Code uses:
Release orders for charges involving violence against a person must also include a weapons prohibition unless the justice decides it is not needed for safety ( s. 515(4.1) ). Check for that term alongside the no-contact condition.
These three terms get used interchangeably. They are different legal tools, made in different courts, at the request of different people.
| Criminal no-contact condition | Peace bond | Family law restraining order | |
| Source | Criminal Code ss. 501, 515, 732.1 | Criminal Code s. 810 | Ontario Family Law Act, s. 46 |
| Who starts it | Police, the Crown, or the court in a criminal case | A person who fears injury or property damage, or someone on their behalf | A person who applies to family court because they fear for their safety or their child's safety |
| Who it can bind | The accused or offender | The defendant named in the information | A spouse, former spouse, or someone who has lived with the applicant |
| How long it lasts | Until the order ends or is changed | Up to 12 months | Interim or final, as the family court orders |
A restraining order is a family court remedy with its own application process. If you are dealing with criminal conditions and a family court case at the same time, keep both sets of documents together and make sure your criminal and family lawyers both see them. The criminal order allows contact only in accordance with the conditions written into it, so do not assume a family court arrangement permits contact that the criminal order does not.
Each type of order has its own breach offence, and each is a hybrid offence, which means the Crown chooses whether to proceed by summary conviction or by indictment:
A breach charge also changes how any later bail hearing works. If you are charged with a s. 145 offence while already released on another charge, the onus shifts: you have to show why you should not be detained, rather than the Crown having to show why you should be (s. 515(6)(c)). The same reverse onus applies to a new intimate-partner violence charge laid while you are bound by a peace bond made on behalf of an intimate partner (s. 515(6)(b.1)). This is why failing to comply with bail conditions can make a second release much harder to get than the first.
A no-contact condition can decide where you live, how you see your children, and whether a small mistake turns into a second charge. Mass Tsang LLP has practised criminal, quasi-criminal and traffic defence exclusively since 2013, and we can review your release terms, explain exactly what they allow, and pursue a variation through the Crown or the court when the conditions do not fit your circumstances. Contact us for a free, confidential consultation.
A no-contact order in Ontario is a condition attached to an undertaking, a release order, a peace bond, or a probation order, and the Criminal Code gives each one its own source and its own breach offence. The wording covers direct and indirect communication, and only the Crown's consent or a court order can change it. Until that happens, the safest course is to follow the order to the letter and route every question about it through your lawyer.
No. The condition is part of an order made by police or a court, and the Criminal Code sets out how it can be changed: by written consent of the accused and the prosecutor for a police undertaking (s. 502), or by a justice or court for a release order (s. 523(2)). The protected person's permission alone does not change the order.
Do not respond. A no-contact condition restricts your communication, so replying to a message or answering a call can still be a breach, even though the other person reached out first. Keep a record of the contact without replying, and tell your lawyer, who can decide whether to raise it with the Crown.
It depends on the wording. A justice can allow contact "in accordance with any specified conditions," such as exchanges through a third party or under a family court order. If your order does not include a written exception, do not contact the other parent to arrange visits. Ask your lawyer to seek a variation instead.
It can. The condition covers indirect communication, so a message, tag, comment or post aimed at the protected person can be treated as contact. Whether a specific post is a breach depends on the facts, but the safe course is not to interact with the person's accounts at all while the order is in force.
It depends on the order. A release order generally stays in force until your trial is completed or, if you are found guilty, until you are sentenced (s. 523(1)). A peace bond lasts up to 12 months. A probation condition lasts for the term set in the probation order. Any order can end sooner if it is varied or vacated.
For a police undertaking, the Crown and the accused can agree in writing to vary it (s. 502(1)), or either side can apply to a justice (s. 502(2)). For a release order, a justice or court makes the change under s. 523(2), and the section provides a route for doing that with the consent of both the Crown and the accused. A lawyer can start by asking the Crown whether it will consent to a specific change.
A surety signs a declaration acknowledging the amount they may forfeit if the accused fails to comply with a condition of the release order, and that they understand the role and its responsibilities (s. 515.1). If you are a surety, make sure you understand the no-contact terms, because a breach by the accused can put that money at risk.
Yes. Breaching a no-contact condition in an undertaking or release order is an offence under s. 145 of the Criminal Code. Breaching one in a peace bond is an offence under s. 811, and in a probation order under s. 733.1. Each is a new charge that can be laid in addition to the original one.
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Legally Reviewed by
Jeff Mass
| Updated: October 21, 2026
